Throughout my work day, I talk to our new and existing customers about their project management needs and challenges.
One thing that comes up frequently is how much team collaborations have evolved in the last few years. Companies are embracing the remote culture, where teams need to be on the same page, even when they are not necessarily in the same location.
Tools like Confluence were great in 2014, but fast forward to today, businesses don’t have the same confidence in legacy software.
That’s why I’ve rounded up a list of Confluence alternatives for project management and team collaboration. My team and I have thoroughly tested these tools to see how they fare against Confluence for different use cases.
Let’s get into it!
- Confluence Limitations
- Confluence Alternatives at a Glance
- The 10 Best Confluence Alternatives to Use in 2024
- 1. ClickUp – Best for real-time editing and collaboration
- 2. Notion – Best for creating a knowledge base for SMBs
- 3. Google Drive – Best for Google ecosystem users
- 4. Nuclino – Best for minimalist interface
- 5. SharePoint – Best for advanced document management
- 6. Quip – Best for seamless and secure document sharing
- 7. Asana – Best for document and task organization
- 8. Dropbox Paper – Best for media embedding
- 9. Zoho Learn (Previously Zoho Wiki)—Best for creating customized wikis
- 10. Document360 – Best for enterprise knowledge base
- Champion Knowledge Management and Collaborate the Smart Way with ClickUp
Confluence Limitations
I’ve encountered quite a few issues while using Confluence for my work. Some major ones are
- Delayed customer support: I’ve often found myself waiting longer than expected for assistance from Confluence’s customer support team. It’s a problem when immediate help is needed to sort out a time-sensitive issue
- Steep learning curve: Navigating its features and understanding its terminology have been quite a challenge, especially for freshers in my team. Confluence demands a considerable investment of time and effort to be fully well-versed in using the platform
- Slow search function: Finding specific information or resources within my workspace often takes longer than it should, which breaks my flow and hinders efficiency
- Complex permission management: It’s hard to figure out who can edit or contribute to specific pages or configure permissions to align with my team’s needs
- Challenges with collaborative content development: When multiple people are editing the same document simultaneously, it’s difficult to coordinate the edits, leading to version conflicts
Keeping these recurring issues in mind, I’ve shortlisted Confluence Alternatives that allow seamless collaboration, offer quick access to knowledge, and keep teams productive.
Confluence Alternatives at a Glance
Confluence alternative | Best for | Standout feature(s) | Pricing |
ClickUp | Real-time editing and collaboration | ClickUp Docs and ClickUp Brain | Free Forever Unlimited: $7/user per month Business: $12/user per month Enterprise: Custom pricingClickUp Brain is available at $5/user per month for each Workspace |
Notion | Creating a knowledge base for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) | Notion Wikis | Free Plus: $10/seat per month Business: $18/seat per month Enterprise: Custom pricing Notion AI is available for $10/user per month for each workspace |
Google Drive | Google ecosystem users | Integration with other Google Workspace tools, such as Docs, Sheets, and Slides | Business Starter: $7.20/user per month (Google Workspace) Business Standard: $14.40/user per month (Google Workspace) Business Plan: $21.60/user per month (Google Workspace) Enterprise: Custom pricing (Google Workspace) |
Nuclino | Minimalist interface | Nuclino Sidekick | Free Standard: $6/user per month Premium: $12/user per month |
SharePoint | Advanced document management | Integration with Word, Excel, and Teams | SharePoint (Plan 1): $5/user per month (annual plan) Microsoft 365 Business Standard: $12.50/user per month (annual plan) |
Quip | Seamless and secure document sharing | Wide range of customizable templates | Quip Starter: $12/user per month Quip Plus: $25/user per month (billed annually) Quip Advanced: $100/user per month (billed annually) |
Asana | Document and task organization | Clean UI and automation | Personal: Free Starter: $13.49/user per month Advanced: $30.49/user per month Enterprise: Custom pricing Enterprise+: Custom pricing |
Dropbox Paper | Media embedding | Dropbox integrations and convenient mobile app | Basic: Free Plus: $11.99/user per month Essentials: $19.99/user per month Business: $18/user per month Business Plus: $30/user per month |
Zoho Learn (previously Zoho Wiki) | Creating customized wikis | Advanced permission control | Free Express: $1/user per month Professional: $3/user per month |
Documents 360 | Enterprise knowledge base | AI search function | Free Standard: $199/project per month Professional: $299/project per month (annual billing only) Business: $399/project per month (annual billing only) Enterprise: $599/project per month (annual billing only) |
The 10 Best Confluence Alternatives to Use in 2024
1. ClickUp – Best for real-time editing and collaboration
Let’s start with the in-house favorite—ClickUp. The collaboration features of this project management tool bring cross-functional teams under one roof, offering a single source of truth to maintain consistency at scale.
I use ClickUp Docs to create wikis, SOPs, technical documentation, product roadmaps, or any other type of content. For documents that need in-depth explanations, I use nested pages for linking relevant content, add tables for quick overviews, or embed bookmarks for reference, all within a centralized space.
Thanks to the real-time editing feature, I can collaborate with my remote team and work in tandem to make ambitious ideas come to life. In case I have to add my input or clarify something, I tag my team members in the comments and they get notified instantly.
Task creation takes only a few seconds on Docs—I can simply select a part of a text and convert it into an action item, with relevant details such as assignee and deadline.
I often have to work on detailed company wikis and update them from time to time. ClickUp’s extensive library of customizable templates for wikis and documentation requirements comes in handy for these tasks. My go-to framework is the ClickUp Wiki Template—a quick way to curate, organize, and share information.
I use this template to:
- Create internal knowledge bases for vital company resources such as code of conduct, SOPs, how-to guides for commonly used tools, etc.
- Collaborate with team members in real time to work on and update the content
- Help my team find answers to common questions without wasting any time
- Save and collaborate on all documents in a central location
- Keep documentation up-to-date with timely edits
With plenty of options to customize the design, statuses, fields, and views, the template helps me maintain a uniform structure for all official documentation. It also boosts efficiency and speed, as I no longer have to develop wiki structures from ground zero.
Talking of speed, there’s a superhero tool ClickUp has in its arsenal—ClickUp Brain! This AI knowledge manager fast-tracks my writing process, be it creating a product requirement document, an internal training module, an email, or a blog post.
Brain gives me updates on tasks, docs, and team members, generates templates for specific use cases, and analyzes wikis (and the whole Workspace) to quickly find answers to my questions. Truly the best co-pilot I could ask for!
ClickUp best features
- Keep distraction at bay and concentrate on one line and one idea at a time with focus mode on ClickUp Docs
- Customize Docs with rich formatting—add attachments, widgets, dividers, code blocks, and access Markdown language
- Protect company documentation by setting different permission controls for teams, guests, or public access
- Save frequently used documents as templates and access them quickly
- Integrate ClickUp with 1000+ third-party apps including HubSpot, Salesforce, OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, Figma, GitHub, and more
ClickUp limitations
- The mobile app is yet to offer all the features of the web version
ClickUp pricing
- Free Forever
- Unlimited: $7/user per month
- Business: $12/user per month
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
- ClickUp Brain is available at $5/user per month for each Workspace
ClickUp ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (9,000+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.6/5 (4,000+ reviews)
What are real-life users saying about ClickUp?
2. Notion – Best for creating a knowledge base for SMBs
Notion is a knowledge management tool and collaborative workspace for remote teams of all sizes.
I tested Notion Docs to take down meeting notes and brainstorm on project requirements alongside my team. Turns out, you can add multiple content types within Docs, such as code snippets, maths equations, bookmarks, reminders, and more. A great way to organize to-do lists and project documents in a central hub!
However, I wish customizing the templates and setting up automations were easier—it took a lot of time and manual effort to tailor them, which may not be viable for professionals looking to scale rapidly.
Notion Wikis is another powerful tool I tried out. It works as a knowledge base where organizations can share vital information and update them as needed, and employees can access the information whenever they want. I particularly loved the Synced Blocks features—if the same information is present at multiple places, you can edit it once and the changes will reflect at all places.
For example, I usually embed the project objectives into every project brief I create. I made a small edit to the objectives document and thanks to Synced Blocks, the changes instantly got updated everywhere.
Notion best features
- Autofill tables, find information within the workspace, and explain technical jargon using Notion AI
- Organize wikis faster with the drag-and-drop feature
- Verify pages to ensure you access the latest information
- Integrate the tool with ClickUp, Asana, GitHub, GitLab, Jira, Calendly, Figma, and more
Notion limitations
- Page creation is a time-consuming process
- Difficult to edit and customize templates
Notion pricing
- Free
- Plus: $10/seat per month
- Business: $18/seat per month
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
- Notion AI is available for $10/user per month for each workspace
Notion ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (5,000+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (2,000+ reviews)
3. Google Drive – Best for Google ecosystem users
Google Drive (a part of Google Workspace) is another compelling Confluence alternative, suitable for solopreneurs or small to medium-sized businesses with a limited tech budget.
There are many things I’ve loved about Google Drive over the years. If I have to pinpoint one, it has to be the effortless integration with other Google Workspace tools, such as Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Google Drive.
Teams that prefer the Google ecosystem can use Drive to create, share, and collaborate on content in real time and save resources in an easy-to-access repository.
The sharing setting is another convenient feature—I can manually control who has access to a particular document and protect sensitive data. However, there’s no option to automate this setting, so it takes a lot of time to set this up manually. It’s good for individual use but not very scalable.
Google Drive’s best features
- Ample storage space so you don’t have to worry about file sizes
- Collaborate with multiple team members in real-time on Google Docs
- Create folders and collections to organize your resources
- Work smoothly across devices—desktop, tablet, or mobile
Google Drive limitations
- Not suitable for creating nested pages within documents
- Limited version history feature—can’t track document revisions over time in detail
Google Drive pricing
- Business Starter: $7.20/user per month (Google Workspace)
- Business Standard: $14.40/user per month (Google Workspace)
- Business Plan: $21.60/user per month (Google Workspace)
- Enterprise: Custom pricing (Google Workspace)
Google Drive ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.6/5 (42,000+ reviews, Google Workspace)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (15,000+ reviews, Google Workspace)
4. Nuclino – Best for minimalist interface
This wiki software works best for users looking for an alternative to the graphics-heavy interface of Confluence.
I tested its collaboration feature, and I must say, it gives tough competition to many popular legacy tools.
Each item I created on Nuclino turned into a collaborative document—I could create detailed wikis with embedded flowcharts and files, write notes, assign tasks to team members, and work with them in real time. No more version conflicts!
Nuclino best features
- Stay focused on your work with its clutter-free user interface
- Use slash commands, hotkeys, and Markdown to make work more efficient
- Create drafts for documentation, summarize notes, and generate images using Nuclino Sidekick
- Retrieve the right information at the right time with the quick search feature
Nuclino limitations
- Limited third-party integrations
- May not be a good fit for large companies requiring extensive customizations
Nuclino pricing
- Free
- Standard: $6/user per month
- Premium: $12/user per month
Nuclino ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (20+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (80+ reviews)
5. SharePoint – Best for advanced document management
SharePoint’s deep integration with Office 365 allows users to collaborate using familiar tools like Word, Excel, and Teams.
While trying out this document collaboration tool, I liked how easy it was to co-author documents in real time and manage multiple versions effectively. I also tried my hands at setting up email automations and triggering automated customer service responses with Power Automate—took me just a few minutes to get started.
While Confluence is known for its powerful wiki creation and management capabilities, SharePoint comes with a more extensive set of features for document management, including advanced metadata management, document libraries, and powerful search capabilities.
SharePoint works across Mac, PC, and mobile devices, so I could maintain my flow of work even after switching devices.
SharePoint best features
- Unify files, data, and resources in a single place
- Find connections and conversations from Microsoft Viva and make the best use of collective knowledge
- Organize content with relevant tags and metadata for quick retrieval
- Track version changes in documents and go back to previous versions if needed
SharePoint limitations
- Heavily dependent on the Microsoft ecosystem
- Customizing the platform beyond the basic features requires technical expertise
SharePoint pricing
- SharePoint (Plan 1): $5/user per month (annual plan)
- Microsoft 365 Business Standard: $12.50/user per month (annual plan)
SharePoint ratings and reviews
- G2: 4/5 (8,000+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.3/5 (5,000+ reviews)
6. Quip – Best for seamless and secure document sharing
Quip, owned by Salesforce, is one of the few tools on this list that solely focuses on content creation and document management. It was very easy for me to start creating documents in Quip and have them organized in subfolders.
However, the best part about Quip is its sharing capabilities. I can define a limited audience for my documents, lock the files, and track them throughout the system. I have to manage large volumes of documentation, both confidential and publicly shared, so this feature was particularly a good fit for my workflow.
Quip best features
- Create slides, spreadsheets, decks—all within one place
- Collaborate and add users by tagging them with ‘@’
- Use a wide range of templates for sales, marketing, HR, and accounting departments
- Extensive integrations, including Dropbox, Zendesk, JIRA, and Slack, to help teams scale
Quip limitations
- Most of its value is locked with Salesforce integration
Quip pricing
- Quip Starter: $12/user per month
- Quip Plus: $25/user per month (billed annually)
- Quip Advanced: $100/user per month (billed annually)
Quip ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.2/5 (1000+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/5 (200+ reviews)
7. Asana – Best for document and task organization
Asana is a popular project and document management tool that can give Confluence a run for its money. The first thing that pops out about Asana is its UI. Despite being a complex tech stack on its own, it has clever UI elements to guide users to new actions.
Asana’s pages are organized and easy to skim through. I loved its task management features—I could delegate work to my team members quickly and track progress across departments.
Asana’s custom rules allowed me to accommodate our creative workflows without worrying about adding another tool. For example, I set rules to automatically assign a writing project to a designated editor once the task stage moves from writing to editing.
Asana best features
- Standardize creatives and project scopes with on-brand guidelines and forms
- View content pipeline and track a document across projects to prevent duplicates
- Use AI and automation to link content creation and distribution
- Use templates to collaborate and scale creative productions
Asana limitations
- The complex ecosystem can throw steep learning curves at new users
Asana pricing
- Personal: Free
- Starter: $13.49/user per month
- Advanced: $30.49/user per month
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
- Enterprise+: Custom pricing
Asana ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.3/5 (9500+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.5/5 (12500+ reviews)
8. Dropbox Paper – Best for media embedding
Dropbox is famous for its cloud storage products, but Dropbox Paper is an underrated technical document management tool that flies under the radar. I tried it and found it to be a nicely designed Confluence alternative, especially for Dropbox users.
What I appreciated the most was the media embedding feature. I could import YouTube videos, GIFs, and even Figma designs and play them right inside the doc. It improved how I share ideas and feedback with my teams.
For wiki, I let the pre-built templates take the lead and they turned out to be adequate, especially for new users. My team could brainstorm ideas, design briefs and invite collaborators.
And the most convenient part? It synced across devices in real time.
Dropbox Paper’s best features
- Use keyboard shortcuts to improve productivity
- Organize and integrate with your file system for seamless workflows
- Use the mobile app to edit and manage documents on-the-go
- Integrate with a large number of Dropbox integration partners to avoid disruptions
Dropbox Paper limitations
- Offline feature is limited and requires more updates
Dropbox Paper pricing
- Basic: Free
- Plus: $11.99/user per month
- Essentials: $19.99/user per month
- Business: $15/user per month
- Business Plus: $30/user per month
Dropbox Paper ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.1/5 (4000+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/5 (200+ reviews)
9. Zoho Learn (Previously Zoho Wiki)—Best for creating customized wikis
Zoho Learn is a cost-efficient tool to create a fully customizable, on-brand internal knowledge base for employees.
While tinkering with the tool, the permission control feature stood out for me. It allowed me to set granular access for individual pages or broader access for the entire workspace.
Another feature I absolutely loved was the abundance of customization options. From the logo, page layout, and banner to color, I could change multiple elements of the wikis to make them a perfect fit for my organization’s brand presence.
Zoho Learn best features
- Share knowledge with team members and allow them to contribute
- Access your knowledge base from anywhere and anytime
- Co-edit content with team members simultaneously
- Create custom knowledge base templates and maintain consistency across content
Zoho Learn limitations
- Limited third-party integration
Zoho Learn pricing
- Free
- Express: $1/user per month
- Professional: $3/user per month
(Pricing taken from external source)
Zoho Learn ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.2/5 (50+ reviews)
- Capterra: Not enough reviews
10. Document360 – Best for enterprise knowledge base
Document360 is a knowledge-sharing software that allows organizations to create a comprehensive resource library to store SOPs, product documentation, company wikis, and user manuals. Employees, clients, or external stakeholders can access the documents directly from the platform.
I tried my hands at Site, which is the tool’s knowledge base for employees and customers. What stood out for me is the ability to create a custom branding experience—I could add a custom domain, with colors, embedded links, and customized CTAs.
I was also impressed by its AI-powered search function. It was quick to understand the context and retrieved the page I was looking for in just a few seconds, even though I had hundreds of docs saved.
While it’s a great tool for documentation, the high pricing makes it affordable only for enterprises.
Document360 best features
- Create customizable API documentation for dev teams
- Provide help on-demand to customers using the Widget knowledge base
- Minimize training time and reduce operational errors with detailed SOPs
- Integrate the tool with Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, Google Analytics, Freshdesk, and other apps in your tech stack
Document360 limitations
- Pricey for small to medium-sized businesses
Document360 pricing
- Free
- Standard: $199/project per month
- Professional: $299/project per month (annual billing only)
- Business: $399/project per month (annual billing only)
- Enterprise: $599/project per month (annual billing only)
Document360 ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (400+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (200+ reviews)
Champion Knowledge Management and Collaborate the Smart Way with ClickUp
Confluence is a powerful tool for documentation and collaboration, but its cookie-cutter solutions no longer make the cut. The alternatives I’ve explored in this article offer tailored solutions for your team’s unique needs—exactly what you need to propel your business forward in 2024.
ClickUp emerges as an excellent option in this space, offering a versatile platform that combines task management, project tracking, documentation, and knowledge management in one breath.
The intuitive interface, endless customization options and integrations, and advanced AI capabilities make ClickUp an attractive choice for teams seeking to stay ahead of the curve.
Get started with ClickUp today!
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