Jira vs Resource Management by Smartsheet: Complete Comparison (2026)
An in-depth comparison of Jira and Resource Management by Smartsheet to help you choose the right tool for your business.
Last updated: November 2026
Jira
7.3/10
Atlassian's work and issue-tracking platform for planning, tracking, and shipping projects, with scrum and kanban boards built mainly for software and technical teams.
Resource Management by Smartsheet
5.7/10
A resource planning and time tracking add-on for Smartsheet that helps service teams balance workloads, plan capacity, track hours, and forecast staffing and budgets.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 7.3/10 | 5.7/10 |
| Cost | 7/10 | 4/10 |
| Ease of Use | 4/10 | 7/10 |
| Analytics | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Customization | 9/10 | 4/10 |
| Scalability | 9/10 | 7/10 |
| Support | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Integration | 9/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 8/10 | 6/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | $8/user/mo Standard | Contact for pricing |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | Free Free | Contact for pricing |
| Features | ||
| App integrations | ||
| Dashboards | ||
| Reporting | ||
| Time tracking | ||
| Timeline view | ||
| Collaboration tools | Not listed | |
| Gantt charts | Not listed | |
| Kanban boards | Not listed | |
| Scheduling | Not listed | |
| Task lists | Not listed | |
| Task management | Not listed | |
| Workflow automation | Not listed | |
Jira vs Resource Management by Smartsheet cost by team size
| Team size | Jira | Resource Management by Smartsheet |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 5 users | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 10 users | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 25 users | $212/moStandard | Contact for pricing |
| 50 users | $424/moStandard | Contact for pricing |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Jira
- Has a free plan (Resource Management by Smartsheet does not)
- Higher Customization score (9/10 vs 4/10)
- Higher Cost score (7/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for startups (8/10 vs 2/10)
- Better fit for small business (6/10 vs 3/10)
Why choose Resource Management by Smartsheet
- Higher Ease of Use score (7/10 vs 4/10)
Pros & Cons
Jira
Pros
- The free plan supports up to 10 users and includes scrum and kanban boards.
- Reviewers highlight deep customization of workflows, boards, and fields.
- Sprint and agile management are strong, and Jira integrates with GitHub and Git tools.
- It links closely with Confluence and other Atlassian products, so tickets can be referenced across those apps.
- Time tracking is built into every plan, including Free.
Cons
- Reviewers report a steep learning curve and an interface that overwhelms non-technical users.
- Users report slow issue loading and laggy boards in large deployments.
- Paid Marketplace apps can add hidden costs for reporting, CRM, and helpdesk needs.
- The free plan is limited to 100 emails per day and community support only.
- Troubleshooting failed automation rules can be frustrating.
Resource Management by Smartsheet
Pros
- Heatmaps and a visual schedule show availability and percentage allocation across every project in one place.
- Comes with Time + Fees, Expense, Budget, and Utilization reports, so services firms do not have to build them.
- Placeholders and role-based planning let managers staff a project before naming people, and help forecast hiring.
- Reviewers say time logging and adding projects are easy, and that teams need little training.
- Connects to Smartsheet projects through Control Center and Advanced Reporting.
Cons
- Prices are not published, and it costs extra on top of a Smartsheet Business or Enterprise plan.
- Smartsheet's documentation says it has no task-level tracking, subtasks, dependencies, or Gantt views.
- Its dashboards cannot be customized, and permissions are set only at the project or account level.
- Reviewers report that exported data lands in the wrong fields and that work items cannot be tied to subphases.
- One reviewer reports a minimum purchase of 15 licences.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Jira scores higher on our Project Management criteria: 7.3/10 against 5.7/10 for Resource Management by Smartsheet. The largest gap is in Customization: 9/10 for Jira and 4/10 for Resource Management by Smartsheet.
Jira has a free plan; Resource Management by Smartsheet does not list one.
Jira is the better fit for startups: we rate it 8/10 for them, against 2/10 for Resource Management by Smartsheet.
