The Problem
Why teams leave Asana
Portfolio and goals features locked to Business tier ($24.99/seat)
Per-seat pricing makes company-wide adoption expensive
Limited customization of project views and fields
Reporting is shallow without Enterprise plan
No time tracking without integrations
What We Build Instead
Your custom project management tool
Project management tool shaped around your team's workflow
Custom views: boards, lists, timelines, calendars
Goals and portfolio tracking without tier restrictions
Built-in time tracking and resource management
Automated status reports and project health dashboards
The Math
Asana vs. custom build
Based on 75 seats at $25/seat/month, with ~10% annual SaaS price increases.
Keep paying Asana
Build with 86 SaaS
3-year savings with 75 seats
$30,750
41% less than Asana
Pricing Breakdown
Asana tier pricing vs. one-time custom build
Compare what you pay per seat across Asana's tiers against a single investment in software you own forever.
| Tier | Monthly/Seat | Annual/Seat | Key Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal | Free | Free | Unlimited tasks, List, board, and calendar views, Up to 10 users, Basic integrations |
| Starter | $11/mo | $11/mo | Timeline view, Workflow builder, Forms, Unlimited free guests |
| Advanced | $25/mo | $25/mo | Portfolio tracking, Workload management, Goals, Custom fields |
| Enterprise | $30/mo | $30/mo | Resource management, Advanced reporting, Custom branding, SAML SSO |
| Custom Build by 86 SaaS | $20,000–$40,000 one-time | $0/seat | Unlimited users, full ownership, no recurring fees |
Migration Timeline
From Asana to ownership — week by week
A structured migration plan to move off Asana in 5-9 weeks with zero downtime.
Discovery & Audit
1 weekAudit Asana projects, custom fields, rules, portfolios, and integrations. Map team workflows and templates.
Architecture & Design
1-2 weeksDesign project management platform with custom views, goals, and portfolio tracking. Plan template migration.
Core Development
2-4 weeksBuild task management, custom views, goals, portfolios, time tracking, and resource management.
Data Migration & Testing
1-2 weeksMigrate projects, tasks, custom fields, attachments, and team structure from Asana. Verify automations.
Deployment & Training
1 weekDeploy platform, configure integrations, train team leads, and run parallel operations.
Total build time
5-9 weeks
Feature Comparison
What you keep, what you skip, and why
A transparent comparison of Asana features vs. your custom-built alternative.
| Feature | Asana | Custom Build | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Task & Project Management | |||
| Multiple Views (Board, List, Timeline) | |||
| Goals & Portfolio Tracking | |||
| Workload Management | |||
| Custom Fields & Rules | |||
| Built-in Time Tracking | Built-in — no third-party integration needed | ||
| Automated Status Reports | |||
| Forms & Intake | |||
| Asana Intelligence (AI) | Intentionally omitted — AI features are basic and rarely relied upon | ||
| App Marketplace | Replaced by direct integrations with your tools | ||
| Unlimited Users | No per-seat pricing — add your entire org | ||
| Data Ownership | Your database, your infrastructure |
Your custom build focuses on the features your team actually uses — typically 15-20% of what Asana offers — built exactly for your workflow.
How It Works
From Asana to ownership in 5-9 weeks
Free Audit
We analyze your Asana usage and identify exactly which features your team actually uses.
Scope & Build
We build your custom project management tool with only the features you need. 5-9 weeks.
Deploy & Migrate
We deploy to your infrastructure, migrate your data from Asana, and train your team.
You Own It
Full source code, documentation, and optional maintenance retainer. No vendor lock-in. Ever.