GitHub vs Linear Pricing (2026)
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Team size
25 seats

GitHub vs Linear

Developer Tools pricing comparison · 2026

GitHub pricing ranges from $0–$21/user/month, while Linear ranges from $0–$16/user/month. GitHub is typically 60% more affordable, though your actual cost depends on tier and team size.

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See pricing on each vendor's site
Above-the-fold path — each link opens the vendor's pricing page in a new tab.
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2 products · Developer Tools
Side-by-side · live
GitHub
GitHub pricing ranges from free to $21/user/month as of March 2026.
verified 27d ago
$700 $1.2K
View pricing →
Linear
Linear has emerged as the modern alternative to Jira, designed specifically for high-veloc
verified 27d ago
$700 $1.2K
View pricing →
Verdict · Vendr median · year 1
Linear saves $488 vs GitHub · 25 seats
Cheapest $700
Spread 41%
Estimated license cost
at 25 seats
List price × seats. Click a tier below to lock it.
Enterprise
$6.3K/yr
year 1 license · $21/seat
Business
$4.8K/yr
year 1 license · $16/seat
What buyers actually pay
median, annual
Vendr deal-flow data. The real benchmark, not list price.
Median annual
$1.2K/yr
Vendr · n=161
↓ Lowest median
Median annual
$700/yr
Vendr · n=368
REF · 01

Sources & confidence

Every dollar amount and contract clause below traces back to a sourced fact. We don't manufacture composite scores.

Where this data comes from
Vendr · TrustRadius · Reddit · BBB · official docs
Sources 14 sourced facts
12 hidden-cost · 1 contract · Vendr median
Last verified 3w ago
Confidence High confidence
Sources 9 sourced facts
5 hidden-cost · 1 contract · Vendr median · 2 review platforms
Last verified 3w ago
Confidence High confidence
REF · 02

Plans at a glance

Every tier per product. Lock one to drive the cost row above and reveal a tier-specific outbound CTA.

Tier ladder
Click a tier to lock the cost row to it. Locking surfaces a tier-specific Visit CTA.
REF · 03

Hidden costs

Each cost is severity-ranked, with the dollar range quoted from its source (Vendr, Reddit, TrustRadius, BBB, official docs) — never our estimate.

Beyond the sticker
Severity-ranked, sourced
4 documented
  • Git LFS Storage and Bandwidth Overages
    5-20% of license costs
    3 sources
  • Critical Collaboration Features Locked Behind Paid Tiers
    $4-$17/user/month
    6 sources
  • Enterprise Plan Required for SSO and Directory Integration
    $17/user/month
    1 source
  • GitHub Actions CI/CD Minutes Overages
    5-15% of license costs
    2 sources
5 documented
  • Guest user access requires paid seats
    $8-$16/guest/month
    1 source
  • Enterprise features locked behind expensive tier
    Variable - Enterprise pricing not disclosed
    1 source
  • Per-seat pricing scales poorly for larger teams
    $10-$16/user/month
    1 source
  • Enterprise Feature Lock-In for Security Requirements
    2-3x cost increase vs Business tier for compliance-driven teams
    1 source
  • Annual-Only Billing Locks in Spending
    $120-$192/user/year in committed spend with no monthly flexibility
    1 source
REF · 05

What users say

Aggregated, with sample sizes. We use whichever review platform has data.

User reviews
TrustRadius · Trustpilot · G2
No public ratings yet
Best for
Individuals and organizations starting out
Watch out
Advanced features and security scanning locked behind paid Enterprise tiers
TrustRadius
9/5 (58)
Trustpilot
1/5 (1)
Best for
Everyone getting started
Watch out
Limited customization and reporting capabilities
Decide
Get a quote from each vendor
Each link opens the vendor's pricing page in a new tab.
License cost is computed from publicly listed plans (real math, list price × seats). Median annual cost is from Vendr's deal flow when available — see source badges. Hidden costs and contract terms each cite their own sources. We do not invent composite scores.
Developer Tools

GitHub

$0–$21
/user/month
3 plans · Free tier
Full pricing breakdown →
VS
Developer Tools

Linear

$0–$16
/user/month
4 plans · Free tier
Full pricing breakdown →

GitHub and Linear both operate in the developer tools category. This page compares their list pricing.

Plan-by-Plan Pricing

Plan GitHub Linear
Free Free /user/month Free /month
Team $4 /user/month $10 /user/month
Enterprise $21 /user/month $16 /user/month
Enterprise Custom

Cost at Scale

Total cost of ownership — licenses, implementation, and hidden costs included.

GitHub

5 scenarios
$460/month ($5,520/year)
20-Developer Startup with Copilot
$80 for Team (20 x $4) + $380 for Copilot Business (20 x $19). Actions within included 60,000 minutes.
$8,450/month ($101,400/year)
100-Person Enterprise with Advanced Security
$2,100 for Enterprise (100 x $21) + $2,450 for Advanced Security (50 x $49) + $3,900 for Copilot Enterprise (100 x $39)
$0/month
Solo Developer or Open Source Project — Free Plan
See all 5 scenarios →

Linear

4 scenarios
$80/month ($960/year)
10-Person Startup Team
$8 x 10 users, billed annually
$700/month ($8,400/year)
50-Person Engineering Organization
$14 x 50 users, billed annually
$960
Small product team (10 members)
$1,920 per year for 10 users on Basic or Business tier
See all 4 scenarios →

Market Intelligence

GitHub

Median annual cost
$1,188
Based on
161 deals

Linear

Median annual cost
$700
Based on
368 deals

Hidden Costs

Beyond the sticker price — what catches buyers off guard.

GitHub 4 hidden costs

high
Git LFS Storage and Bandwidth Overages 5-20% of license costs
high
Critical Collaboration Features Locked Behind Paid Tiers $4-$17/user/month
high
Enterprise Plan Required for SSO and Directory Integration $17/user/month
medium
GitHub Actions CI/CD Minutes Overages 5-15% of license costs
See all GitHub hidden costs →

Linear 5 hidden costs

medium
Guest user access requires paid seats $8-$16/guest/month
high
Enterprise features locked behind expensive tier Variable - Enterprise pricing not disclosed
medium
Per-seat pricing scales poorly for larger teams $10-$16/user/month
high
Enterprise Feature Lock-In for Security Requirements 2-3x cost increase vs Business tier for compliance-driven teams
medium
Annual-Only Billing Locks in Spending $120-$192/user/year in committed spend with no monthly flexibility
See all Linear hidden costs →

Contract Terms

Term GitHub Linear
Auto-renewal Yes
Cancellation Cancel anytime for monthly plans; annual plans commit for the full year with no mid-term refunds
Minimum commitment Annual billing required on all paid plans
Price escalation No published annual uplift schedule; pricing has remained stable since launch
Can downgrade Yes

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