Airtable vs Monday.com: Which project management tool should you choose?

Mariam Ispiryan • May 25, 2022 • 15 min read

Airtable and Monday.com are two big names in the project management niche and both have their superpowers and limitations. 


Monday.com is great for teams with complex communications and project tracking needs. Meanwhile, Airtable is the perfect choice for smaller businesses or companies that are scaling quickly.


Managing your projects efficiently and making sure nothing falls through the cracks is essential to running a business successfully. But which tool can optimize your workflow best?


And what if you’re really set on one platform, but it’s missing one or two important features that the other tool offers? Is there a way to fill these gaps and make the right choice?


In this article, you’ll get a deeper look into the pros and cons of each platform, their pricing plans, and how you can use Softr to plug the gaps of Airtable.


If you’re looking for a specific answer, use the links below to navigate through the article:

  1. Airtable vs. Monday.com: What are the differences?
  2. Monday.com vs. Airtable: What are the similarities?
  3. Airtable pros and cons 
  4. How much is it going to cost: Airtable
  5. Monday.com pros and cons
  6. How much is it going to cost: Monday.com
  7. Which project management tool is right for you?


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With zero learning curve.

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Airtable vs Monday.com: What are the differences? 


Airtable is a project management software and spreadsheet-database hybrid that allows for creating and sharing relational databases. These databases then allow teams and organizations to manage projects in many views including calendar, Gantt, and Kanban.


Monday.com, on the other hand, is a project management platform that helps teams with time tracking, automating their workflow, streamlining operations, and improving collaboration. This highly customizable tool allows users to visualize their workflow as Kanban boards, timelines, or calendars. 


Some of the main differences between the two platforms include: 

  1. Airtable takes longer to set up initially, because of its many integrations and customizability.
  2. Airtable’s free plan accommodates up to five users, while Monday.com accommodates up to two.
  3. Monday.com has an in-app chat function while Airtable doesn’t. 
  4. Monday.com integrates with over 40 third-party apps. But with Airtable’s robust API and workflow automation tools like Zapier, you can integrate with over 1000 websites and apps.
  5. Airtable’s Block feature allows for 3D modeling, a feature Monday.com isn’t designed to offer.
  6. Monday.com has a limit of 10,000 items per board, while Airtable’s limit is up to 50,000 records per base. This makes Airtable much more scalable (but more on this later).
  7. Airtable is built to focus on data gathering and allowing users to build custom applications. Monday.com focuses mostly on project tracking and team communications.
  8. Airtable integrates with third-party web app build platforms like Softr, so you can turn your databases into powerful websites and web apps. Monday.com doesn’t offer this option (again, more on this later!)


Airtable Monday.com
Longer to set up Shorter set-up time
Over 1,000 integrations using robust API Over 40 integrations
3D modeling block features allows for complex visualizations -
In-app chat possible with Softr integrations In-app chat
A limit of up to 50,000 records per base A limit of 10,000 items per board
Able to power web apps and websites with Softr integration -
Free plan accommodates up to 5 users, which is perfect for small businesses Free plan accommodates up to 2 users
Focuses on data gathering and powering apps Focuses on project tracking and team communication

Monday.com vs Airtable: What are the similarities?


Despite all the differences, Monday.com and Airtable do have a few similarities, including:


  1. Mobile versions are available for both tools. 
  2. Both tools offer different pricing plans to help accommodate teams of all sizes. 
  3. Both Airtable and Monday.com have extensive video and written tutorials available on their knowledge bases.
  4. You can keep detailed records of revisions and changes with both of these tools, helping your team with transparency and easier project tracking.
  5. User access levels can be edited on both these platforms to increase security and data integrity.


Airtable pros and cons 


Now that we’ve talked about the differences and similarities between Airtable and Monday.com, let’s dive deeper into some of Airtable’s best features and limitations.



Airtable’s best features


If you’ve previously worked with spreadsheets at all, then getting the hang of Airtable is going to be a breeze because of its familiar spreadsheet-like interface. 


Some other functions that set the platform apart from Airtable alternatives include: 

  1. 3D space app. Airtable offers a 3D modeler app that lets you design and easily visualize rooms or models, effectively extending the functionality of your bases.
  2. Integrations. One of the best qualities of Airtable is that it integrates with web apps and website building platforms like Softr. This allows you to build custom, no-code drag and drop tools like CRMs, websites, and client dashboards that are seamlessly integrated with all of your data. With Airtable forms, you can begin collecting data from your app or website, which then automatically gets stored in your Airtable database.
  3. A true all-in-one solution. Airtable allows you to link records, tables, and even bases, and keep all your data projects in one spot. No more switching between countless tabs and losing track of important information. You can also connect it to your other tools to automate tasks and optimize your workflow.
  4. Wide variety of views. Airtable offers a wide variety of views, depending on your use case and needs. The Calendar view, for example, is perfect for visualizing deadlines or planning a content calendar. Other views include Gantt charts, timeline view, and Kanban boards.
  5. Highly scalable. Another stand-out quality of Airtable is that it’s highly scalable. You can have unlimited bases, even on the free plan. Each base can have up to 1,000 tables, and between 1,200 records, on the free plan, to 100,000 records on the enterprise plan. This means that you won’t have to lose time migrating from one database to another once your business, or team, starts growing. Airtable grows with you.
  6. Powerful content planning capabilities. Airtable is perfect for social media companies since it allows you to easily plan and visualize your content calendar, share it with clients with a single link, work on getting approval in real-time, and set up automations to simplify publishing. It even has a content calendar template to get you started. 
  7. Structured reporting. Since Airtable was designed as a database with a spreadsheet-interface, you can use Airtable formulas to compute values and give structure to your data. This is great for presenting stakeholders, investors, and team members with a comprehensive set of information. Monday.com lacks this structure when presenting data, especially for bigger projects or tasks. 



“Though Monday.com offers social media templates, Airtable takes planning to the next level with easy-to-use integrations directly to Facebook or LinkedIn. You can even archive relevant Twitter posts to track trends and plan retweets.”

-

John Li

Co-founder and CTO of Fig Loans.


Softr is the fastest and simplest way to upgrade your Airtable experience

With zero learning curve.

Supercharge your Airtable with Softr

Airtable’s limitations


  1. Only available in English. Like Monday.com, Airtable’s solutions are only available in English. This makes it difficult for multilingual teams to collaborate effectively. But, with Softr, you can set your preferred language and easily add a multilanguage site with WeGlot if needed.
  2. Limited in-app communication. Monday.com has a pretty great in-app chat function that lets team members communicate easily, almost like they’re speaking on Slack. On Airtable, you can comment and tag team members, but the communication capabilities are pretty limited. Softr fills this gap by offering an instant messaging integration that enables peer-to-peer communication.
  3. With great complexity, comes a higher learning curve. The complexity of Airtable is often a selling point. But on the other hand, it’s harder for users to get started. 

However, if you’re able to get past the learning curve and take some time to get familiar with Airtable terminology, you’ll have a much more capable platform on your side. Plus, there are always templates you can copy, a strong community that supports you, and many tutorials you can watch. 


How much is it going to cost?


One of Airtable’s advantages over Monday.com is that its free plan is much more cost-effective and accommodates more seats, making it really easy for smaller teams to get started. Let’s take a closer look at what each pricing plan includes.



Airtable free plan


Airtable’s free plan is perfect for individuals and teams of up to 5 people who are just getting started with Airtable. This plan offers


  1. Unlimited bases 
  2. Up to 5 creators or editors 
  3. Unlimited commenters and readers 
  4. One app per base 
  5. One sync integration
  6. 1,200 records per base
  7. 2GB of attachments per base



Airtable paid plans


Airtable’s paid plans include Plus, Pro, and Enterprise. The Plus plan is great for slightly larger teams and costs $10 per seat per month.


The Pro plan is suitable for companies and organizations who are looking to create workflows and apps that run their most important processes. This plan’s pricing begins at $20 per seat per month.

Plus (everything in Free+) Pro (everything in Plus+)
3 apps per base 10 apps per base
3 sync integrations 7 sync integrations including Jira Cloud
5,000 records per base 50,000 records per base
5GB of attachments per base 20GB of attachments per base
Custom branded forms Gantt and Timeline views
6-month revision and snapshot history 1-year revision and snapshot history
Automatic table syncing Personal and locked views
Field and table editing permissions

Airtable enterprise pricing


According to Airtable itself, the Enterprise plan is perfect for “departments and organizations who have advanced customization, scale, security, control, and support needs.”


This plan includes everything in Pro and then some! These additional features include:

  1. Unlimited workspaces per organization
  2. Unlimited apps 
  3. Salesforce and Jira on-prem sync integrations 
  4. 100,000 records per base 
  5. 1,000GB of attachments per base 
  6. 3-year revision and snapshot history 
  7. SAML-based single sign-on
  8. Enterprise-wide admin panel
  9. Ongoing success program 
  10. Included professional services
  11. Add-on professional services 

Airtable pricing for non-profits


In their efforts to make the platform accessible to as many people as possible, Airtable offers a special pricing plan for non-profits and educational organizations. To qualify, organizations must not


  • Discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, political affiliation or beliefs, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression
  • Be a government office or department 
  • Be a hospital or other care provider organization 
  • Be a private grant-making, independent, or operating foundation


For more information on Airtable pricing, best practices, and some pro tips, check out the video below.



Everything to Know about Airtable Pricing

Airtable offers Free, Plus, Pro, and Enterprise plans which make the platform accessible to teams of all sizes.

Softr is the fastest and simplest way to upgrade your Airtable experience

With zero learning curve.

Supercharge your Airtable with Softr

Monday.com pros and cons


Monday’s all-around project management solution is great for teams that rely heavily on communications outside of the office, like hybrid and remote teams. Additionally, the platform is extremely helpful for companies that work with freelancers or contractors and need to keep track of a lot of due dates.


Let’s take a closer look at some of the pros and cons of Monday.com.



Monday’s best features


Monday.com is made for complex team interactions and brings a certain level of agility to any team. Some of the platform’s best features include:


  1. Complex task management capabilities. Monday.com is in some ways, the queen of task management. One of its best capabilities is the “status” option, which allows team members to cut back on unnecessary communication and easily keep each other updated on each project’s status. Users can also attach pictures and videos, as well as including links, to better explain the status of tasks and solve problems more quickly.
  2. 24/7 customer support. A big selling point for Monday is its 24/7 customer support. All users need to do is fill out a simple form, and they’ll be contacted by a representative regardless of the time or the day. This is perfect for those night owls who encounter problems at 3 AM.
  3. In-platform chat. Another powerful capability of Monday.com is its in-platform chat option. As mentioned previously, this feature provides context to the issues and saves users the trouble of sending out countless emails or heading over to Slack to communicate.
  4. Automations. The platform’s extensive automation options are definitely a time-saver. Users can automate notifications and task status changes when certain conditions are met. For example, if a team member is late to a deadline, an automated reminder will give them a nudge.



Monday’s limitations


  1. Not as cost-effective for smaller teams. Monday.com’s free plan is really only useful for individuals who are trying to plan their workflow. While Airtable’s free plan can already support a small team of five. Additionally, Monday.com only allows users to pay for five users at a time. So it’s a loss for smaller businesses who only hire the occasional contractor.
  2. Limited integrations. If users can’t find the integration they like on Airtable, they can use its robust API to solve the problem. But Monday.com doesn’t have that option. Users are limited to the integrations that are already available, meaning that the platform can’t get more complex past a certain point.
  3. Not as scalable. Monday.com has a limit of 10,000 items per board. This means that while users save time on getting started with the platform, they’ll need to spend that time somewhere else down the road, migrating to a different solution.



“Airtable won me over because of its one major advantage - scalability. Airtable allows you to hold 50K records in a single table, while Monday.com is limited to only 10K on each board. While this isn’t a big deal at first, ongoing projects get larger over time, outgrowing Monday.com much more quickly than Airtable. As our business grows, Airtable can better grow and meet our needs.”

-

Anthony Martin

Founder and CEO of Choice Mutual 


How much is it going to cost?


So Airtable’s free plan is more cost-effective than Monday.com. But what other features does Monday.com offer to make up this gap? Let’s take a look.



Monday free plan


Monday.com’s free plan accommodates up to two seats and it’s best for individuals trying to keep track of their work. The offering includes

  1. Unlimited boards 
  2. Unlimited docs 
  3. 200+ available templates 
  4. Over 20 column types 
  5. iOS and Android apps 



Monday paid plans


Monday’s paid plans are Basic, Standard, and Pro. Here’s what they offer:

Basic Standard Pro
$8 per seat per month $10 per seat per month $16 per seat per month
Unlimited free viewers Timeline and Gantt views Private boards and docs
5GB file storage Calendar view Chart view
Prioritized customer support Automations (250 actions per month) Tie tracking
Create a dashboard based on one board Integrations (250 actions per month) Formula column
Create a dashboard that combines up to 5 boards Dependency column
Automations (25,000 actions per month)
Integrations (25,000 actions per month)
Create a dashboard that combines up to 10 boards

Monday enterprise pricing


Monday’s enterprise plan outshines the other plans by offering:


  1. Enterprise-scale automations and integrations 
  2. Enterprise-grade security and governance
  3. Advanced reporting and analytics
  4. Multi-level permissions
  5. Tailored onboarding
  6. Premium support 
  7. The ability to create a dashboard that combines up to 50 boards



Monday pricing for nonprofits


Similar to Airtable, Monday.com also offers a special discount for nonprofits. Eligible nonprofits can access their first 10 seats for free and will receive a 70% discount off the pro plan.


The nonprofit plan includes all the features of the pro plan, plus:

  1. 1000 GB of storage 
  2. 5 years Activity Log 
  3. Up to 250,000 automations and integration actions 
  4. 50 boards per dashboard
  5. Private workspaces
  6. Pivot table

Softr is the fastest and simplest way to upgrade your Airtable experience

With zero learning curve.

Supercharge your Airtable with Softr

Which project management software is right for you?


With Airtable, you can create and share relational databases that can then be used to create custom applications and power third-party platforms. The platform is highly scalable, has complex and sophisticated blocks and features, and has a robust API. 


On the other hand, Monday.com is the perfect tool for teams with complex interactions who are looking to automate their workflow, streamline operations, and improve collaboration. 


Some of the key differences between the two platforms include: 

  1. Airtable fosters a stronger community through Airtable Universe 
  2. Monday.com takes little time to set up, but is less complex 
  3. Airtable’s learning curve is a bit steeper than Monday.com
  4. Monday.com’s in-app chat function allows users to communicate in context 
  5. Airtable is more cost-effective and allows individuals and smaller businesses to get started for free
  6.  Monday.com focuses more on task tracking and project completion, while Airtable allows for creating custom applications and powering third-party platforms 
  7. Airtable can integrate with Softr and fills in any gaps left by the platform 


Lastly, if you do happen to find an integration that Airtable doesn’t offer out of the box, the platform’s robust API can make that integration happen! 



At the end of the day, if you’re looking to have task management, CRMs, websites, and other tools all integrated and built off the same platform so they can work together seamlessly, the Airtable-Softr duo is your answer. 

Softr is the fastest and simplest way to upgrade your Airtable experience

With zero learning curve.

Supercharge your Airtable with Softr

Thanks for inspiration and insight to:


Bonny Albo, Marketing Strategies at PiggyBank 

Cara Carosielli, Founder of Simply Bloom Socials 

Maria A. McDowell, Founder of EasySearchPeople 

Christiaan Huynen, Chief Executive Officer at DesignBro 

Bram Jansen, Chief Editor of vpnAlert

Frequently asked questions about Airtable vs Monday

To decide which tools is best for you and your team, you need to consider a few key factors: - Airtable integrates with more tools compared to Monday.com. - Monday.com has much better in-platform communication capabilities. - Monday.com is a collaboration tool that’s best for tracking project statuses and automating workflow. - Airtable is much more scalable and flexible. - Airtable’s Universe feature presents users with a much wider range of templates to choose from while also fostering a stronger sense of community.

Zapier allows users to connect Monday.com with Airtable and automatically moves information between the web apps.

The benefits of Airtable include: - Spreadsheet-like interface - Scalable - Strong community - Pre-built templates - Customizable - Extensive data-tracking systems - Task automation

1. Create an account or sign in. 2. Begin by creating a base . 3. Customize your first table and import your data . 4. Organize your information by customizing your first view. 5. Pick your preferred view (e.g Kanban, Gallery, Calendar). 6. Share your base with team members to start collaborating

Some Airtable alternatives include: 1. Monday.com 2. Trello 3. Google Sheets 4. Asana 5. Notion 6. Wrike 7. Rows

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