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Trama vs Linear: A Linear alternative for small teams.

Linear is a product development system built around teams, cycles, projects and initiatives. Trama is a calm workspace for small teams: boards with four views over the same tasks, documents beside them, and AI agents connected over MCP. Here is where they differ, with Linear's side taken from Linear's own documentation.

Start with your e-mail See the MCP setup

Linear details checked on . Sources

Choose Trama if…

  • You are a small team and want boards, a calendar and a timeline over the same tasks, with nothing to set up beyond a board and its columns.
  • You want specs and notes as Documents beside the boards, linked both ways with the tasks they explain.
  • You want AI agents working in your boards and documents over MCP with scopes you approve, and a REST API with an OpenAPI spec.
  • Your team talks in GRUPIM.
  • You like a quiet interface: one accent colour, status as small dots, everything edited in place.

Choose Linear if…

  • You run product development across several teams, with cycles, triage, projects and initiatives.Source: Conceptual model
  • You want native desktop and mobile apps.Source: Download
  • You need Slack, Figma, Sentry, Zendesk or Intercom integrations, or SAML SSO.Source: Integrations directoryLogin methods
  • You are moving from Jira, Asana or Shortcut and want a built-in importer.Source: Import issues
  • You build on GraphQL or need webhooks.Source: API and webhooks

Side by side

The same questions for both. Where we couldn't confirm something about Linear in its documentation, the row leaves it out rather than guess.

TramaLinear
Made forSmall teams that plan and finish work together, in software or not.Product development: Linear calls itself “the product development system for teams and agents”.Source: Linear home page
How work is organizedWorkspaces hold boards, and each board has its own columns. Tasks get keys like ACME-42 from the workspace prefix.A workspace holds teams, each with its own workflow and cycles; projects and initiatives group issues across teams.Source: Conceptual model
ViewsKanban, List, Calendar and Planning (a timeline of tasks by start and due date), over the same tasks and filters.Issue views in list or board layout, and a timeline for projects; individual issues are not shown on the timeline.Source: Board layoutTimeline
PlanningStart and due dates, milestones per board and the Planning timeline. No cycles.Cycles (a team’s repeating planning period), projects with milestones, initiatives above projects, and triage for incoming work.Source: Conceptual model
Inside a taskA Markdown document with @mentions and images, checklists, sub-issues, relations (related, blocks, blocked by, duplicate), attachments, a time tracker and templates.Sub-issues under a parent; blocked, blocking, related and duplicate relations; priorities from No priority to Urgent.Source: Parent and sub-issuesIssue relationsPriority
DocumentsWorkspace pages that nest, link both ways with tasks, carry threaded comments, update live and can be published read-only by link. In the API and MCP.Documents on projects, initiatives, teams, issues or cycles, with real-time collaborative editing, inline comments, @-references and version history.Source: Documents
CodeGitHub and GitLab: a task key in a pull or merge request’s title, description or branch links it. Opening moves the card to the board’s In review column, merging to Done; review and CI state show on the task.GitHub: issue ID in the branch name, PR title or a magic word, with status automations. GitLab: issues update as merge requests are drafted, opened and merged, and when reviews are requested.Source: GitHub integrationGitLab integration
ChatGRUPIM: /task and /board commands, task-key previews and channel updates.Slack (issues from messages, synced threads, notifications) and Discord (/linear issue, /linear search, /linear wrap).Source: Slack integrationDiscord integration
AI agents (MCP)Hosted server at https://mcp.ontrama.com/mcp: Streamable HTTP, OAuth 2.1 with dynamic registration and PKCE, or a personal token. 48 tools for boards, tasks, milestones, labels, checklists, pull requests, the timer, time entries and invoices, comments and documents.Hosted server at https://mcp.linear.app/mcp: Streamable HTTP, OAuth 2.1 with dynamic registration, or an API key. Tools for issues, projects and comments; issues can also be delegated to agents.Source: MCP serverAgents in Linear
Time and billingA timer on every task, a weekly timesheet, time reports with CSV, hourly rates, and invoices built from tracked time that clients pay by card or Pix from a link.No time tracking or invoicing built in; third-party time trackers connect through integrations.Source: Integrations directory
APIREST and JSON with an OpenAPI 3 spec and an interactive reference; personal tokens and scoped OAuth tokens; live updates over WebSocket.GraphQL API, webhooks, personal API keys with granular permissions, and OAuth applications.Source: API and webhooks
Sign-inE-mail and a 6-digit code. No passwords.Google, an e-mailed link or code, and passkeys; SAML SSO on the Enterprise plan.Source: Login methods
AppsWeb, on desktop and phone; it can be added to the home screen or dock.Web, desktop apps for macOS and Windows, and mobile apps for iOS and Android.Source: Download
Moving in and outNo importer yet. Everything is reachable through the API and MCP.Importers for Jira, GitHub Issues, Asana and Shortcut, plus a CLI import tool; exports to CSV, and to Markdown for LLMs.Source: Import issuesExporting data

Moving from Linear

Trama has no importer today, so moving is a short project rather than a button. Most teams bring the open work and leave the history where it is.

  1. Set up the workspace

    Sign in with your e-mail and your first workspace is ready. Set its name and issue prefix in Workspace settings, and invite the team by e-mail as Admins, Members or Viewers.

  2. Make a board per team or project

    Give each board the columns of your Linear workflow (for example Backlog, Todo, In Progress, In Review, Done), and mark its In review and Done columns so pull requests move cards.

  3. Bring the open work

    Export issues from Linear as CSV, then create tasks with Trama’s API: POST /boards/{board_id}/tasks takes a column, name, body, priority, start and due dates and a parent; labels and assignees have their own endpoints. For a small backlog, connect Linear’s and Trama’s MCP servers to the same agent and ask it to copy the open issues, then check the result.

  4. Reconnect code and chat

    Connect GitHub or GitLab in Workspace settings → Integrations. New branches and pull requests should mention the new Trama keys.

What doesn’t come across

  • Tasks get new keys from your workspace prefix; Linear issue numbers don’t carry over.
  • Comments and tasks created through the API show the person whose token made them, with today’s date.
  • Linear’s CSV exports don’t include attachment files, so re-upload the ones you need.
  • Trama has no cycles or initiatives: use milestones, dates and the Planning view instead.

The API guide covers tokens, task creation, sub-issues and relations (POST /boards/{board_id}/tasks, …/sub_issues, …/relations); the MCP guide covers connecting an agent.

Questions

Is Trama a Linear alternative?

Yes, for small teams that want boards, a calendar and a timeline over the same tasks, documents beside them and AI agents connected over MCP, in a quiet interface. Linear is built for product development across teams, with cycles, triage, projects and initiatives, and it has native desktop and mobile apps and more integrations.

Does Trama have an MCP server like Linear’s?

Yes. Both run hosted MCP servers that clients connect to with OAuth: Linear’s at https://mcp.linear.app/mcp and Trama’s at https://mcp.ontrama.com/mcp. Trama’s server has 48 tools for tasks, milestones, labels, checklists, comments, documents, time entries and invoices, asks you to approve read, write, comment and (for workspace admins) invoice scopes in the browser, and also accepts a personal token for clients without OAuth.

MCP setup

Can I import my Linear workspace into Trama?

Not automatically: Trama has no importer today. Linear exports issues to CSV and Trama’s API creates tasks, sub-issues and relations, so a short script can carry the open work over. With both MCP servers connected, an agent such as Claude can also copy a small backlog for you.

API guide

Does Trama have cycles?

No. Trama plans with start and due dates and milestones on each board, shown on the Calendar and the Planning timeline. If your team works in fixed-length cycles, Linear’s cycles are built for that.

Does Trama link GitHub and GitLab pull requests?

Yes. When a pull or merge request in a connected repository mentions a task key such as ACME-42 in its title, description or branch name, Trama links it to the task and shows its review and CI state. The card moves to the board’s In review column when the request opens and to Done when it merges.

GitHub & GitLab

Does Trama have documents like Linear’s?

Yes. Trama’s Documents are workspace pages that nest, link both ways with tasks, carry threaded comments, update live and can be published read-only by link; agents read and write them over MCP. Linear attaches documents to projects, initiatives, teams, issues and cycles, with real-time collaborative editing and version history.

Is Trama only for software teams?

No. Boards, lists, calendars and timelines fit any team’s work. The developer pieces (GitHub and GitLab links, the API and MCP) are there when you need them and stay out of the way when you don’t.

Does Trama have desktop and mobile apps?

Trama runs in the browser on desktop and phone, and can be added to the home screen or dock. Linear offers native apps for macOS, Windows, iOS and Android.

Sources

Everything this page says about Linear comes from Linear's public pages below, read on 4 October 2026. Products change; if something here is out of date, the source is the one to trust.

Try Trama with your team.

Sign in with your e-mail and your first workspace is ready. Bring the open work over, then connect Claude or Cursor.

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