It is 2023, and we have seen how rapidly the workplace is shifting to a remote environment, necessitating efficient communication. This explains the plethora of communication tools in the market that companies can integrate into their business to stay connected and collaborate with ease.

At the top of the chat communication tools pyramid are Slack and Asana, two applications that facilitate how people communicate, connect, organize projects and tasks, and manage projects to meet organizational goals. While the two are not necessarily meant to perform the same tasks, you may spot slight similarities. 

If you are trying to decide between Slack and Asana for your company, our comparison will help clarify the value of each platform’s key features and help you make an informed decision. Read on to find out how the two compare regarding features, prices, and use.

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Slack vs. Asana: Side-by-Side Comparison

Slack vs. Asana: What’s the Difference?

Slack and Asana have been developed to perform fundamentally different tasks. Slack is a communication tool that focuses on making collaboration and file sharing easier, quicker, and more secure, while Asana is a project management communication tool to track projects, assign tasks, and set deadlines.

However, Slack and Asana facilitate workplace communication and collaboration to meet organizational goals and can be used in integration for better outcomes. To decide which tool to invest in, consider their key differences, value to your organization, ease of use, user interface, and pros and cons.

Pricing

The price is a fundamental aspect when deciding between two options. And, of course, it is important to note that high prices are not always synonymous with good quality or offerings of the product. Slack and Asana use a freemium model with unique offerings to suit business needs and budgets. That means you can only access a limited number of features on both but must upgrade for advanced features. The free plan can be ideal for small businesses; however, we recommend upgrading to get the full experience.

That being said, Slack’s Pro plan costs $7.25 per person each month when billed annually and $8.75 per person per month when billed monthly. In addition to the basic features offered by the free plan, you get integrated apps, and you can share your screen, make group calls with up to 50 members, add guest accounts, get priority customer support, and share channels with other companies, to mention a few.

Slack’s Business+ and Enterprise Grid plans will evidently cost you more. The Business+ offers additional features such as 24/7 support and a 99.99% guaranteed uptime. This plan will cost your business $12.40 per user per month when billed annually and $15 per user per month when billed monthly. The most expensive plan will allow you to connect workspaces and have unlimited workspaces.

Asana, on the other hand, is a tad pricier than Slack. Similarly, the prices vary slightly depending on how you are billed, monthly, or annually. For the premium version, you will pay $10.99 per person per month when billed annually or $13.49 when billed monthly. Additional features on this plan include unlimited dashboards, workflow builder, advanced searches to filter tasks by parameters, and unlimited guests, to mention a few.

For $24.99, you can upgrade to the Business plan and enjoy a wide range of features. This plan allows for enhanced customization because of its ability to integrate with other software such as Adobe Creative Cloud and Microsoft Power BI. Finally, Enterprise’s top-tier plan is the most customizable, with features such as custom branding, advanced administrative controls, and expedited ticket support.

Signing Up

Signing up on both applications is pretty easy, requiring mostly your email. After providing an email, all you are required to do is create an account. The free plan of both Slack and Asana does not require you to provide personal or credit card information.

We recommend using your work email to sign up for either application, as this will help ensure you are automatically matched with your team. However, you can use a personal email, but you’ll need to find your team manually. Unlike Asana, Slack has a few more steps in the signing-up process. This includes adding basic information, such as a display name, and creating a profile.

Key Features

Slack has features that make collaborations, file sharing, and communication easy and efficient. In contrast, Asana has unique features that facilitate project management within a company. Team members with common business goals can work collaboratively and communicate through workspaces in Slack. The feature has channels that enable members to hold group discussions about projects they are working on, making Slack an ideal business communication platform for small and large companies.

On the other hand, Asana is a composite work management solution that allows a company to track, plan, and manage projects seamlessly, all in one place. It is convenient for organizing operations at a workplace, allowing leaders to delegate duties, set deadlines, assign tasks, and prioritize them.

Ease of Use

Slack is quite impressive, to start. It has an easy-to-operate interface and a UI that simplifies things while keeping everything neat and organized. It is designed so that a casual end-user can use it for messaging and communication.

Asana shakes things a little bit with professional features. While it is created for professional users, it is an easy-to-use platform that may require you to browse to figure out its rich features. Asana, however, has a longer signing process than Slack. But considering the work it performs and the organization information it holds, the process is duly necessary.

Appearance, Layout, and Design

There is not much difference in the layout and appearance of Slack and Asana, as both have a main screen and a left-hand sidebar for easy navigation. However, Asana’s main screen displays tasks and projects. The appearance and layout of the main screen can easily be customized using provided templates to fit your needs and desired outlook.

In comparison, Slack has a main screen (workspace) displaying all conversations you have. The application also allows you to play around with color schemes till you find one that fits your personality. The color schemes or themes are grouped in categories of dark and dramatic, accessible and clear, clean and minimal, and bright and cheerful.

Integration

The integration aspect of Slack and Asana makes them even more useful and efficient for project management and communication in the workplace. Slack boasts over 1,500 app integrations and useful bots to enhance its communication channels. Integrating Slack with other apps will significantly improve efficiency.

Similarly, Asana can integrate with other apps such as Slack, OneDrive, Jira, GitHub, Microsoft Office 365, and Adobe Creative Cloud, to name a few. These integrations aim to make your work easier by allowing you to connect your work across different applications.

Slack vs. Asana: 8 Must-Know Facts

• Slack provides more than 1,500 app integrations to help users communicate efficiently. Similarly, Asana can integrate with several apps to allow you to connect your work.
• Slack is a communication tool that makes file sharing, collaboration, and communication easier. At the same time, Asana is a project management app aimed at facilitating task assigning, setting deadlines, and tracking projects, to mention a few.
• Asana has a few more steps than Slack when signing up, such as creating a profile.
• Slack and Asana were commercially launched during the same period, with Slack hitting the market in 2013, while Asana was released in 2012.
• 65% of the companies on the Fortune 100 list have active subscriptions to Slack.
• Asana can be integrated with Slack to increase efficiency in project management.
• In 2022, Asana recorded more than 119,000 paying customers and millions of free organizations across 190 countries.
• Teams of up to 15 users can use Asana for free. There are no restrictions on the number of tasks you can make or the size of task attached files. On free plans, there is no access to a timeline view or a custom dashboard.

Slack vs. Asana: Which One is Better? Which One Should You Use?

It is evident from the write-up that Slack and Asana have distinct capabilities, as they are not completely the same. Despite their differences, they remain effective in their core messaging and project management functions.

Deciding which of the two to use can be challenging. However, considering your requirements can help narrow down to an ideal option. If your budget can stretch out, we recommend combining them for a single outlook where all your projects and communications can be handled for better outcomes. Depending on your needs, go with Slack if you want an application that can streamline communication within your business. Similarly, if you need an application for project management, consider investing in Asana.