The closest like-for-like Jira replacement at a fraction of the price, and one you can still host yourself, but its dense interface and smaller app ecosystem take more getting used to than Linear.
What it is
YouTrack, from JetBrains, combines an issue tracker with scrum and kanban boards, Gantt charts, time tracking, a knowledge base, a helpdesk for customer tickets, scriptable workflows and an AI Assistant with weekly free credits. It imports from Jira. Cloud: free and full-featured for up to 10 users with 30 GB of storage (only the custom logo is paid); from 11 users it costs $4.50 per user a month billed yearly ($5.40 monthly), falling with volume to $1.53; paid plans include 3 GB of storage per user; Helpdesk is free for 3 agents, then $5.50 per agent a month billed yearly; 14-day trial with up to 100 users. YouTrack Server (self-hosted) is free for 10 users, then $900 a year for 15 users or $1,500 for 25. Free cloud instances that go unused are removed after 3.5 months. Web, with IDE integrations and iOS and Android apps. Checked on jetbrains.com/youtrack/buy November 13, 2026.
Best for
- Teams that want Jira-style issues, boards and workflows for less
- Companies that must self-host after Jira Data Center
- Teams that also run a customer helpdesk
What we like
- Full-featured free plan for up to 10 users
- From $4.50 a user, cheaper than Jira at every team size
- Cloud or self-hosted Server, with a free 10-user Server license
- Helpdesk, knowledge base, Gantt and time tracking built in
What to watch
- Dense interface with a learning curve
- Far smaller marketplace of apps than Jira
- Storage tied to user count: 3 GB per user, no separate storage purchase
- Unused free instances are deleted after 3.5 months
Where YouTrack ranks
Alternatives and head-to-heads
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