Head-to-head

vs

Monday.com vs Smartsheet

An honest, feature-by-feature look at Monday.com and Smartsheet for creative teams — where each is stronger, what they cost, and what neither includes.

kloudboard
Kanban Boards
Included
Included
Included
Video & Image Review
Included
Included
Built-in Chat
Included
Freelancer Payments
Included
File Storage & Drive
Included
Included
Calendar & Scheduling
Included
Included
Included
AI Assistant (kloudie)
Included
Included
Free Guest Access
Included
Included
Pricing
Monday.com's free plan caps you at 2 seats, 3 boards, and 3 docs; paid plans start at Basic $9/seat/mo (annual, $10 monthly), Standard $12, and Pro $19 — but every paid plan carries a 3-seat minimum and sells seats in multiples of 5 above that, so the real floor is ~$27/mo on Basic even for a solo user, and AI runs on a metered credit budget (1,000/2,000/3,000 credits per month by tier).
Smartsheet retired its free plan in 2025 — it now offers only a 30-day trial, with paid plans starting at Pro $9/user/mo ($108/yr, capped at 1-10 users, 250 automations/mo, 20GB storage, 30MB attachment limit) and Business at $19/user/mo ($228/yr, 3-user minimum, 1TB); AI tools are gated to the custom-priced Enterprise plan (10+ seats).
IncludedFree forever for 5

Statuses researched against each tool's official docs and pricing pages. “Limited” means the capability exists with meaningful restrictions.

Where Monday.com and Smartsheet differ

Of the 8 capabilities creative teams typically stitch together, Monday.com fully includes 3 and Smartsheet fully includes 5.

Video & Image Review

Smartsheet includes video & image review; Monday.com covers it partially.

File Storage & Drive

Smartsheet includes file storage & drive; Monday.com covers it partially.

AI Assistant (kloudie)

Monday.com includes ai assistant (kloudie); Smartsheet covers it partially.

Free Guest Access

Smartsheet includes free guest access; Monday.com covers it partially.

What neither includes

Whichever you pick, you'll still be stitching tools around it for the rest of the workflow. kloudboard includes all of the below in the same workspace:

  • IncludedBuilt-in Chat
  • IncludedFreelancer Payments

Frequently asked questions

Is Monday.com or Smartsheet better for creative teams?

Smartsheet covers more of the workflow out of the box (5 of the 8 capabilities we track fully included, vs 3), but the right pick depends on which capabilities your team actually uses. The comparison table above shows exactly where they differ.

How much do Monday.com and Smartsheet cost?

Monday.com's free plan caps you at 2 seats, 3 boards, and 3 docs; paid plans start at Basic $9/seat/mo (annual, $10 monthly), Standard $12, and Pro $19 — but every paid plan carries a 3-seat minimum and sells seats in multiples of 5 above that, so the real floor is ~$27/mo on Basic even for a solo user, and AI runs on a metered credit budget (1,000/2,000/3,000 credits per month by tier). Smartsheet retired its free plan in 2025 — it now offers only a 30-day trial, with paid plans starting at Pro $9/user/mo ($108/yr, capped at 1-10 users, 250 automations/mo, 20GB storage, 30MB attachment limit) and Business at $19/user/mo ($228/yr, 3-user minimum, 1TB); AI tools are gated to the custom-priced Enterprise plan (10+ seats).

What do both Monday.com and Smartsheet lack?

Neither fully includes built-in chat and freelancer payments. kloudboard includes all of these in one workspace, with a free plan for up to 5 members.

Is there one tool that replaces both Monday.com and Smartsheet?

kloudboard combines kanban boards, frame-accurate video and image review, built-in chat (with Slack, Discord, and WhatsApp bridging), freelancer payments, file storage, calendar, and a free AI assistant in one workspace — free forever for up to 5 members, with Pro at a flat $20/member/mo.

Skip the trade-off

Instead of choosing between Monday.com and Smartsheet, get boards, review, chat, and payments in one workspace. Free forever for up to 5 members — no credit card required.

Get started for free