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Managello vs Asana

Asana is a superb task manager. Managello is a self-hosted client-delivery platform. Here is an honest look at where each one fits an agency.

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Last reviewed: July 2026 · we re-check public pricing and features regularly.
The quick verdict

The short answer, before the detail

Most of this decision comes down to a few honest questions. If you already know your answer, you can stop here.

Choose Asana if…
  • Your team already lives in Asana and loves it
  • You need best-in-class task management and timelines
  • No-code automation (Rules) is important to you
  • You do not need a branded client portal or invoicing
  • Per-user cloud pricing is acceptable
Choose Managello if…
  • You run an agency and bill client work
  • You want a branded client portal, not guest links
  • Proofing, approvals and invoices in one place matter
  • Unlimited staff and client users matter to you
  • You would rather own your platform and data
Company snapshot

Two different products, briefly

Context first — no feature scoring yet. Just who each tool is and where it comes from.

Asana Managello
Founded 2008 2025
Deployment Cloud SaaS Self-hosted (Docker)
Best known for Task & project management Branded client portal + delivery
Pricing model Per user / seat Flat, per install
Best fit Cross-team task management Agencies & studios
Hosting Vendor cloud Your own VPS
Pricing

How pricing changes as your agency grows

We show our assumptions in full and never bend a competitor's numbers. Prices are public list rates and can change — always confirm on their site.

Total users 10 users 25 users 50 users 100 users
Asana $110/mo $275/mo $550/mo $1,099/mo
Managello $59/mo $59/mo $59/mo $59/mo

Assumptions: Asana Starter at its lowest publicly listed rate (billed annually), multiplied by total users. Public pricing, subject to change. Managello is a flat $59/install per month for unlimited staff and client users.

The client workflow

How client work actually flows

Instead of a feature checklist, here is the real path a piece of client work travels — from first request to payment and reporting.

Native Built in Possible Doable, with limits Requires integration Needs another tool Not intended Not what it's for
Stage
Asana
Managello
1Client request
Possible
Native Forms capture requests; there is no branded client space.
Native
Portal + email intake land in one request inbox.
2Project
Native
Excellent projects, tasks, timelines and automation.
Native
Projects, tasks and a Kanban board.
3Files
Native
Attach files to tasks or link Drive/Box.
Native
Uploads on every entity, plus a shared client library.
4Proofing
Possible
Image/PDF proofing on higher tiers; not a client review space.
Native
Pin comments on images/PDFs, compare versions.
5Approval
Possible
Approval task type exists; no external client sign-off record.
Native
Versioned deliverable approvals with a record.
6Invoice
Not intended
Asana does not invoice; use a separate billing tool.
Native
Draft, issue and email invoices on your own template.
7Payment
Not intended
No payments; handled outside Asana.
Native
Stripe Checkout, your own payment link, or manual.
8Reports
Native
Dashboards on work; not client-facing reports.
Native
Monthly client reports + a revenue lens.
Built for agency work

The agency-specific details

The features that matter when clients live inside your tool. Written honestly — where Asana has something, we say so.

Asana Managello
Pricing & ownership
Unlimited users Per user Yes — staff & clients
Self-hosted No — cloud only Yes — your VPS
Ownership Vendor-hosted You own data & files
Project delivery
Project templates Yes, paid plans Native + optional AI draft
Client requests Native forms Native intake spine
Client experience
Client portal No — guest access Branded, with shared files & client teams
Shared client files Project guests only Native per-client library
Client-managed team Guests invite guests Yes — client owner invites
White-label No Yes, on every plan
Magic-link login No Yes
Proofing & approvals
Proofing Higher tiers Native (pins + versions)
Approval workflow Approval tasks Native, with a record
Quotes, billing & payments
Quote acceptance & e-sign None native Accept + typed or drawn signature
Deposit at acceptance No native billing Automatic on acceptance
Invoices No Native, on your own template
Custom invoice layout No native invoicing Native editor + live preview
Payments No Stripe, your own link, or manual
Accounting sync Third-party only QuickBooks Online (one-way)
Reporting, AI & operations
Value Lens No Native revenue lens
AI model Vendor AI, paid plans BYOK — your key, your provider
Notifications In-app + email In-app, email, Slack
Audit trail Enterprise tiers Yes — append-only
Credentials vault Not built in Yes — per-project, encrypted
Updates Automatic by Asana Safe updater + rollback
Full credit where it's due

Where Asana is genuinely better

No comparison is honest without this section. Asana does real things well — here are the ones worth weighing before you decide.

Best-in-class task management

Few tools match Asana for structuring, assigning and tracking work across a company.

Powerful no-code automation

Rules, triggers and templated workflows are mature and genuinely time-saving.

Huge integration ecosystem

Hundreds of native integrations and a deep API make it easy to connect your stack.

Views for every team

Timeline, board, calendar and workload views scale from small teams to enterprise.

A different philosophy

Where Managello is different — not simply “better”

Managello makes a set of deliberate trade-offs. They suit some agencies and not others; here is the thinking behind them.

Agency-first

Managello is built around client work — requests, proofing, approvals and invoices — not adapted from an internal task tracker.

A client workspace, not a status page

Clients get a branded magic-link portal with a shared file library, their own team access, and approval and billing permissions you control. A designated client owner invites their own colleagues; no seat to buy, no Managello logo, no login friction.

Quote to cash in one path

A branded estimate, acceptance with an optional typed or drawn signature, a downloadable acceptance certificate, a fixed or percentage deposit invoice raised at acceptance, conversion into a project without re-entry, then invoicing on your own template — paid by Stripe, your own payment link or manually, and syncable to QuickBooks Online.

Self-hosted

It runs on your VPS with your database and files. Licensing checks validity only — it never reads your client data.

Unlimited users

Staff and client seats are unlimited. Adding a teammate or a client never changes the price.

Repeatable without bureaucracy

Reusable project templates carry milestones and tasks with relative dates, and AI can draft a first pass for you to review. New projects still default to blank, so one-off work stays fast.

Modern UX

A current React interface with proofing, a command palette and keyboard flows — self-hosted without feeling dated.

One install

Portal, projects, proofing, invoicing and reports are one system, not a stack of integrations to wire together.

Trust & optional AI

A Trust & Compliance hub covers privacy requests, retention, audit and publishable Privacy Policy, DPA and Retention Policy pages (from editable templates, not legal advice). Optional AI Assist runs only on your own Anthropic or OpenAI key — encrypted, click-only and spend-capped, with no tokens bundled or marked up — and opt-in email digests replace noisy per-event alerts. Encrypted off-server backups go to an S3 or SFTP destination you own.

Client credentials, sealed in the project

Each client's hosting, CMS, DNS, database and API logins live in the project they belong to — encrypted at rest and hidden by default, even from admins, until a short, self-expiring unlock reveals them. Every reveal is logged, and clients never see any of it. No shared spreadsheet and no separate password tool to keep in sync.

Seen enough to be curious? The live demo shows Managello working the way an agency actually uses it — no signup, your server, your brand.
Try the live demo →
Switching over

Already using Asana?

A typical, low-drama migration. Keep Asana running read-only until you are settled — there is no rush.

1Export projects
2Import data
3Invite staff
4Invite clients
5Start new work
6Keep Asana read-only
The Switch Safely Promise

Managello has a built-in Asana importer. Connect Asana and we bring your projects, tasks and subtasks across — you approve a preview before anything goes live, and every import has a one-click undo. Keep Asana read-only for history while active work moves over.

You approve a preview

Nothing goes live until you have reviewed exactly what will be imported.

One-click undo

Changed your mind? Reverse the whole import in a single click.

If we can’t get your structure in, your next month is on us. How the Switch Safely Promise works →

Questions

Managello vs Asana — FAQ

Can Managello replace Asana?

For an agency delivering client work, usually yes — Managello covers projects, tasks, a Kanban board, proofing, approvals and invoicing. If you rely heavily on Asana's advanced automation and cross-company task management, keep that in mind: Asana is deeper there.

Does Managello support Kanban boards?

Yes. Every project has a Kanban board with drag-and-drop status columns, plus task detail, subtasks and comments.

Can I import my Asana data?

Yes — Managello has a built-in Asana importer. Connect Asana, review a preview of your projects, tasks and subtasks, and import with a one-click undo if anything looks off. Keep Asana read-only for history.

Is Managello cloud or self-hosted?

Self-hosted. It runs on your own VPS with your database and files. Asana is cloud-only.

Do my clients need an Asana-style seat?

No. Clients access a branded portal via magic link. Client and staff users are unlimited and never billed per seat.

Who should stay with Asana?

Teams whose core need is company-wide task management and automation, who do not need a branded client portal or built-in invoicing, and who are happy on cloud SaaS.

See the difference yourself.

The fastest way to know if Managello fits your agency is to click around the live demo. Your server, your brand, unlimited users.

Try the live demo → See pricing

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