Your operations need more than a board. See why teams choose Jestor over Trello.

Trello is Atlassian's visual task board, priced per user, with automation runs, views, AI and admin controls unlocked tier by tier. Jestor is an operations system you build with AI, change by prompt, and can start for free, with an unlimited-users option.

The short version

Trello is a kanban tool: boards, lists and cards, with checklists, custom fields, Butler automations and Power-Ups, priced per user and metered by tier for automation runs, views, guests and AI. Jestor is an operations system you build with AI, change by prompt from any MCP client, and can start for free, with an unlimited-users option.

Jestor

Trello

Unlimited users at a flat price
Automations not metered by tier
External users at no seat cost
Relational database with n:m, n:1 and 1:1 relations
Field-level permissions on every plan
Reporting and dashboards built in
Change the system by prompt from Claude, Cursor or any MCP client
Kanban boards, checklists and due dates
Forms, approvals and SLAs
Activity log
Mobile app
Free plan and self-serve signup with no sales call
ISO 27001 and PCI-DSS certification

The long version

Trello is Atlassian's board-and-card tool for task tracking, with a free tier for individuals and small teams and paid tiers per user. Its business model unlocks capability by tier: the free tier caps boards per Workspace and monthly automation runs and limits attachment size; the entry paid tier adds unlimited boards, custom fields, card mirroring, AI capture, more command runs and free single-board guests; the middle tier adds Calendar, Timeline, Table, Dashboard and Map views, unlimited command runs, observers, workspace templates, admin and security controls and simple data export; the top tier adds unlimited Workspaces, organization-wide permissions, multi-board guests, attachment permissions, Power-Up administration and SAML SSO with user provisioning through Atlassian Guard, which is a separate subscription on every other tier. Every Workspace member is billable, and a guest present on more than one board is billed at the member rate. Trello is cloud-only and holds SOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and PCI-DSS. On G2, Trello holds 4.4 out of 5 across 14,064 reviews, with "limited features" (270), "lacks integrated document creation and useful statistics" (259), "limited customization" (103), "learning curve" (82) and "expensive" (80) as the most-cited dislikes, and "ease of use" (776) as the most-cited like by a wide margin. Trello is the stronger choice for teams that want a free, instantly understandable task board with a large Power-Up marketplace inside the Atlassian ecosystem; Jestor is the stronger choice when an operations team has outgrown boards and wants a system of record with a relational database, field-level permissions, native approvals and SLAs, built for them and priced flat. Below, dimension by dimension.

Jestor

Trello

UsersUnlimited users on Hero AI and Enterprise; seats or company price on Growth and Pro; employees, clients and suppliers use the system at no seat costPer user: every Workspace member and admin is billable; single-board guests are free from the entry paid tier; multi-board guests are billed as members; the free tier caps collaborators per Workspace
Best forOperations teams (5 to 500 people) that want a system of record for CRM, back office, field ops and approvals, built for them, without counting seats or automation runsIndividuals and teams that want a simple, visual task board they can set up in minutes, from personal to-dos to lightweight project tracking, inside the Atlassian ecosystem
Changing the systemBy prompt from Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT or any MCP client, or by Jestor’s team at the next review. Changes are edits, not rewritesAnyone edits boards, lists, labels, custom fields and Butler rules directly; AI generates boards from a prompt on paid tiers; the official Trello MCP server lets external AI tools read and act on boards
Data modelNative relational database with n:m, n:1 and 1:1 relations, lookups and roll-upsBoards, lists and cards with labels, checklists and custom fields (paid); card mirroring shows one card on several boards; no relations, lookups or roll-ups across records
Automations400+ native automations, conditional kanban stages, SLAs, email and WhatsApp agents, OCR; Python, .NET and PHP for custom logicButler: rules, scheduled commands, card and board buttons; command runs capped per Workspace on the free and entry tiers, unlimited on upper tiers; command administration on upper tiers
PermissionsField-level permissions on all plans; who sees vs who edits per field, by roleBoard visibility (private, Workspace, public) and member roles; observers, domain-restricted invites and member deactivation on the middle tier; organization-wide permissions, attachment permissions and public board management on the top tier; no per-field permissions
External usersIncluded; clients and suppliers get portals and forms at no seat costSingle-board guests free from the entry paid tier; multi-board guests billed as members; public boards for read-only sharing
Apps and interfacesKanbans, tables, forms, docs, dashboards, app pages, mobile app; no codingBoard view on every tier; Calendar, Timeline, Table, Dashboard and Map views and Workspace views on upper tiers; Inbox and Planner; iOS, Android and desktop apps
AIChat-to-App, Ask Your Data, MCP server, agents for email, WhatsApp and documents; AI inherits the user's permissions and writes to the same audit trail as humansAI-powered Quick Capture, summarization, checklist and due-date generation, AI-generated boards, on paid tiers; official MCP server to connect Trello to any AI tool
ReportingDashboards and metrics built in; Power BI connector on EnterpriseDashboard view on upper tiers; anything deeper through Power-Ups or export; reviewers describe native reporting as basic (Technical Project Manager, August 2026)
APIREST API and webhooks included; no fee to exportREST API and webhooks; Power-Up platform for developers; simple data export on upper tiers
Pricing modelFree trial on Hero AI. Growth and Pro are per seat or one company price. Enterprise is quoted with sales. 30-day guaranteeFree tier; paid tiers per user per month, cheaper on annual billing; multi-board guests billed as members; Atlassian Guard as a separate subscription except on the top tier; some partner Power-Ups charge their own fees
Usage modelEvery plan starts with an allowance for records and automation runs and grows with add-ons; when you need more, you activate an add-on for that resource without changing plan. Hero AI and Enterprise include unlimited users; Growth and Pro can be per seat or one company priceBoards per Workspace, collaborators, command runs, attachment size, views, guests and admin controls are set by tier; exceeding a cap means upgrading the Workspace
SecuritySOC 2 Type I and Type II, LGPD, annual pentest, MFA, field-level permissions, audit trailSOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001, PCI-DSS; two-factor authentication on every tier; MDM, domain restrictions and enforced 2FA and SAML SSO through Atlassian Guard on upper tiers; cloud-only
Ownership and exitYour data exports to CSV and via API at any time, no feeBoard export (JSON on every tier, CSV on upper tiers) and full API access; downgrading returns the Workspace to the free tier's board cap

Trello data from trello.com/pricing, trello.com/mcp, support.atlassian.com/trello and G2, accessed September 22, 2026. Features, plans and billing change; verify with each vendor. Jestor data from jestor.com/ai, jestor.com/main-features and jestor.com/security.

Three reasons

Unlimited users, one flat price.

Trello bills every Workspace member, turns a guest into a billable member the moment they touch a second board, and caps automation runs, views, guests and admin controls by tier. "Expensive" appears in 80 G2 reviews (September 2026), and a Technical Project Manager wrote in August 2026 that pricing becomes a real consideration past a small team because advanced features sit behind upper tiers. Jestor charges a monthly price with unlimited users on Hero AI and Enterprise; Growth and Pro can be per seat or one company price, covering employees, clients and suppliers.

Forms, approvals, SLAs and kanban as native features.

Those are operations features, configured on the data model, not assembled as workarounds or generated as custom code you then have to maintain. Jestor ships forms, approvals, SLAs and kanban natively, with more than 400 automations. Python, .NET and PHP cover custom logic when you need it.

Change the system with a sentence, on a system of record.

Trello has an official MCP server, so an AI tool can read and move cards. What it moves is still a card on a list: no relations between records, no per-field permission, no SLA engine. Jestor exposes the whole system through MCP, so you can change a workflow, a field, a permission or an automation from Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT or any MCP client. The AI only sees what you are allowed to see, and every change, human or AI, lands in one audit trail.

Why unlimited users matter

Hero AI and Enterprise include unlimited users. Growth and Pro can be one flat company price or per seat. You can start a free trial on Hero AI. Everyone involved in a process can have their own login, from the operations team to field staff, customers and partners. Permissions control what each person sees and edits. Per-seat pricing pushes companies to leave people out. The workarounds that follow, like shared passwords, public links and side tools, cost more in security, traceability and money than the seats they save.

Everyone in, nobody left out

Every employee can use the system, not just the few who justify a seat. Field-level permissions decide what each person can see and edit, so giving more people access doesn't mean giving everyone access to everything.

No more public links

When every user costs extra, teams share data through public links to avoid buying seats. Anyone holding the link can open it, it can be forwarded, and there is usually no way to know who opened it. When everyone has a login, access is tied to a person and can be revoked.

No more shared logins

A shared login turns five people into one user. You lose track of who created, edited or deleted each record. When someone leaves the company, the only safe move is to change the password for everyone. Individual users keep a clear history of who did what, and you can remove one person's access without affecting anyone else.

Easier to meet security standards

Security frameworks like SOC 2 rely on three core controls: unique user identification, least-privilege access and fast offboarding. Those controls also support the safeguards LGPD requires. Shared credentials and open links work against all three. Jestor is SOC 2 Type I and Type II compliant, and unlimited users make it practical to keep those controls in place for everyone.

Customers and partners get access too

Clients, suppliers and partners can log in to follow requests, submit information or approve steps. They see only what their permissions allow. There are no extra seats to budget for and no separate portal tool to buy.

The real cost is the people left out

The per-seat price is only part of the bill. When some people stay out, work moves to spreadsheets, email and WhatsApp, and data gets retyped. Companies often end up paying for a second tool to cover the people without access. A flat price removes the trade-off between cost and adoption.

The system works better when everyone is in it

Features built around people only work when the people are there. You can mention anyone in a chat, assign tasks and approvals to the right person, and send SLAs and notifications to whoever owns each step. The audit trail then shows who did what. Jestor’s AI also follows each user's permissions, which only works when each person has their own user.

Which one should you pick?

Choose Trello if

You want a free or low-commitment task board your team understands in thirty seconds, your work is task tracking rather than a system of record, you value 200+ Power-Ups and native Jira, Confluence and Slack integration, or you need ISO 27001 and PCI-DSS on the vendor's side.

Choose Jestor if

You want the system built for you, your whole company and your clients need access without seat or guest billing, your processes need relations between records, field-level permissions, approvals and SLAs without Power-Ups, or you want to change the system by prompt on data you can report on.

FAQ

Is Trello a database?
No. Trello is a board-and-card tool: cards hold text, checklists, labels, attachments and, on paid tiers, custom fields, and card mirroring lets one card appear on several boards. There is no data model with relations, lookups or roll-ups, which is why reviewers report boards becoming hard to manage past a hundred cards. Jestor is a relational database and an operations system in one, so the data, the workflows and the interfaces live in the same place.
What is the difference between Jestor and Trello?
Trello is a self-serve, per-user task board: your team builds boards and Butler rules within the limits of its tier. Jestor is a no-code operations system where you build with AI on Hero, Growth, and Pro. On Enterprise, Jestor’s team builds the apps, automations, and AI agents. You can start a free trial on Hero AI, and changes are made by prompt through MCP on a relational database with field-level permissions.
Is Jestor a Trello alternative?
For operations teams that have outgrown boards and want a system of record built for them, yes. Trello remains the better fit for individuals and teams that want a free plan, a task board with no setup, a large Power-Up marketplace, or native Atlassian ecosystem integration.
Does Trello have unlimited users?
No. Every Workspace member is billable on paid tiers, the free tier caps collaborators per Workspace, and a guest on more than one board is billed as a member. Single-board guests are free from the entry paid tier. Jestor includes unlimited users on Hero AI and Enterprise. Growth and Pro can be per seat or one company price.
Does Trello have granular permissions?
At the board and Workspace level: private, Workspace-visible or public boards and member roles on every tier; observers, domain-restricted invites and member deactivation on the middle tier; organization-wide permissions, attachment permissions and public board management on the top tier. There are no per-field permissions. Jestor sets who sees and who edits each field directly on the data model, on all plans.
Does Trello have approvals and automations?
Automations, yes: Butler rules, scheduled commands and buttons, with command runs capped per Workspace on the free and entry tiers and unlimited on upper tiers. Approvals and SLAs are assembled from lists, labels, due dates and rules, or added through Power-Ups. Jestor ships approvals, conditional kanban stages, SLAs and 400+ native automations with an allowance that grows by add-on rather than by tier.
Who builds the system in Jestor?
On Hero, Growth, and Pro you build with AI, and you can change the system by prompt from Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT, or any MCP client. On Enterprise, Jestor’s team builds the apps, automations, and AI agents. You can start a free trial on Hero AI.
Can I customize Jestor as much as Trello?
More, in structure; differently, in look. Trello's customization is boards, lists, labels, backgrounds, custom fields and Power-Ups. Jestor offers a relational data model, field-level permissions, conditional kanbans, forms, SLAs, dashboards and Python, .NET and PHP for custom logic. If your need is a visual board with stickers and a marketplace of add-ons, Trello is the better tool.
How does the Trello pricing model compare to Jestor’s?
Trello has a free tier and paid tiers per user per month, cheaper on annual billing; every Workspace member is billable, multi-board guests are billed as members, automation runs, views, guests and admin controls are unlocked by tier, and SAML SSO requires Atlassian Guard as a separate subscription except on the top tier. You can start a free trial on Hero AI. Growth and Pro are per seat or one company price. Enterprise is quoted with sales. There is a 30-day guarantee. For a small team tracking tasks, Trello is cheaper; for a company-wide or client-facing operation, a flat price is usually lower and predictable.
Can I import my Trello data into Jestor?
Yes. Boards export to JSON on every tier and to CSV on upper tiers, and everything is accessible through Trello's REST API, so cards, custom fields and checklists can be loaded into Jestor tables or through Jestor’s API. Butler rules and Power-Up configurations are not portable; Jestor’s team rebuilds the workflows during setup.
Is Jestor secure?
Jestor is SOC 2 Type I and Type II certified, LGPD compliant and runs an annual penetration test. Field-level permissions, MFA and audit trail are included on all plans. Trello holds SOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001 and PCI-DSS, with SAML SSO and enforced 2FA through Atlassian Guard; if you need ISO 27001 or PCI paperwork on the vendor's side, Trello has it and Jestor does not claim it.
Who owns the data?
You do, in both. Jestor exports to CSV and via API at any time, with no fee. Trello lets you export boards and read everything through its API; after a downgrade, the Workspace keeps its data but returns to the free tier's board cap.
What's included in each Jestor plan?
You can start a free trial on Hero AI, with unlimited users. Growth and Pro can be per seat or one company price, each with a starting allowance for records and automation runs that you expand with add-ons. Pro includes MCP, WhatsApp agents, and SuperForm. Enterprise is quoted with sales: Jestor builds the apps, automations, and AI agents, with Power BI, SSO, and unlimited tables, apps, and automations. Cancel anytime, with a 30-day guarantee.
Can Jestor and Trello work together?
Yes. Both expose REST APIs and webhooks, so a Jestor automation can create or update Trello cards and a Trello Butler rule or Power-Up can call Jestor. Teams often keep Trello for personal and project task boards and run the operational system of record in Jestor.
Sources and legal

Jestor is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Atlassian or Trello, Inc. "Trello" and "Atlassian" are trademarks of their owner. Information about Trello comes from trello.com, support.atlassian.com and G2, current as of September 22, 2026. Features, plans and pricing change frequently; verify current offerings directly with each vendor. Provided as is, without warranty, for informational purposes.

  1. trello.com/pricing
  2. trello.com/mcp
  3. trello.com/enterprise
  4. support.atlassian.com/trello
  5. support.atlassian.com/organization-administration/docs/atlassian-intelligence-features-in-trello
  6. help.trello.com/article/855-how-billing-works-with-trello-business-class
  7. atlassian.com/software/guard
  8. g2.com/products/trello/reviews
  9. jestor.com/ai
  10. jestor.com/main-features
  11. jestor.com/security
  12. docs.jestor.com
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