Basecamp pricing starts with a free plan. Freelancer costs $29 a month, Pro $79 and Pro Plus $99, each billed monthly; Pro Unlimited costs $199 a month billed annually or $329 billed monthly. Each price covers the whole account, not each user, and clients count toward its user cap.
A full Pro account costs $79 / 10 people = $7.90 a person a month, but the 16th person moves a team from $99 x 12 = $1,188 a year to $199 x 12 = $2,388.
Quick pricing answer
- Capped packages: Freelancer $29/mo, Pro $79/mo and Pro Plus $99/mo, each billed monthly
- Pro Unlimited: $199/mo billed annually; $329/mo billed monthly
- Free options: one project for up to 3 people, or a 30-day trial of any paid package with no credit card
- For 6-10 people, clients included, who do not track hours: Pro, billed monthly; Pro Plus once you track time
- Watch: caps of 3, 8 and 12 active projects can force an upgrade before headcount does
- Checked: basecamp.com/pricing, November 2026, in USD
In This Article (9 sections)
Basecamp Pricing Plans Compared
Basecamp sells five packages: Free, Freelancer at $29 a month, Pro at $79 a month, Pro Plus at $99 a month, and Pro Unlimited, the only one with an annual price.
| Plan | Annual billing | Monthly billing | Users included | Active projects | Storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Not listed | Free | 3 | 1 | 1 GB |
| Freelancer | Not listed | $29/mo | 5 | 3 | 10 GB |
| Pro | Not listed | $79/mo | 10 | 8 | 25 GB |
| Pro Plus | Not listed | $99/mo | 15 | 12 | 100 GB |
| Pro Unlimited | $199/ | $329/mo | Unlimited | Unlimited | 1 TB |
Sources: Basecamp’s pricing page, checked Nov 2026.
All prices are $ amounts that cover the whole account rather than each user.
The bill steps up by package, never by hire, so the number that decides your cost is the cap your team reaches first.
Pricing note
A per-user Basecamp price quoted on another site does not match what basecamp.com sells a new account: every paid package on the pricing page checked in November 2026 says “no per-user fees”.
A flat package price only means something against your own headcount, so start there.
How Much Does Basecamp Cost for Your Team?
A team of up to 15 people pays between $29 x 12 = $348 and $99 x 12 = $1,188 a year. From the 16th person, the account needs Pro Unlimited, and its annual price no longer grows with headcount.
Count everyone who will log in, not only staff: Basecamp counts every person you add, clients, contractors and guests included, against the user cap.
The calculator takes your headcount, the billing you want on Pro Unlimited and the features you need, then shows each paid package’s monthly and 12-month cost and names the cheapest one that covers you. It leaves out tax, extra storage and discounts.
Basecamp cost calculator
This calculator needs JavaScript. The scenario table below gives the same estimate for typical workloads.
Enter what you need. The calculator prices it on every plan at list prices and names the cheapest plan that covers it.
- List prices in USD from Basecamp’s official pricing pages, checked Nov 9, 2026. Tax and regional prices are not included.
- 12-month figures are 12 times the monthly cost at the billing you choose.
- A planning estimate at list prices, not a quote.
| Team size | Plan | Billing | Monthly equivalent | Annual total | Assumptions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 people | Freelancer | Monthly | $29 | $29 x 12 = $348 | Flat account price, 5 users included; excludes tax and extra storage |
| 10 people | Pro | Monthly | $79 | $79 x 12 = $948 | Flat account price, 10 users included; excludes tax and extra storage |
| 15 people | Pro Plus | Monthly | $99 | $99 x 12 = $1,188 | Flat account price, 15 users included; excludes tax and extra storage |
| 16 people | Pro Unlimited | Annual | $199 | $199 x 12 = $2,388 | Flat account price, unlimited users included; excludes tax and extra storage |
| 50 people | Pro Unlimited | Annual | $199 | $199 x 12 = $2,388 | Flat account price, unlimited users included; same bill as 16 people |
Sources: Basecamp’s pricing page, checked Nov 2026.
Each total is an estimate from list prices for the package alone. The 50-person row shows the point of the flat model: it costs exactly what 16 people pay.
Cost per user at each cap
Freelancer is the cheapest package per person when full, but it stops at five people. Among the team packages, a full Pro Plus account costs less per person than a full Pro account, so the $99 – $79 = $20 step from Pro to Pro Plus is the smallest upgrade on the ladder, and it adds five people and four active projects.
Pro Unlimited on annual billing starts expensive per head and gets cheaper with every hire: $199 / 16 people = $12.44, $199 / 25 people = $7.96, $199 / 50 people = $3.98 and $199 / 100 people = $1.99 a person a month. It drops under $7 a person from 29 people ($199 / 29 people = $6.86) and below a full Pro Plus account from 31 people ($199 / 31 people = $6.42).
What happens when you add the 16th person
The 16th person moves the account from Pro Plus to Pro Unlimited, which costs $2,388 – $1,188 = $1,200 more a year on annual billing. Paying Pro Unlimited month to month instead, the jump is $329 – $99 = $230 a month.
Clients bring that step closer than the org chart suggests. A freelancer who invites five clients already has 6 people, one over Freelancer’s cap, so the account needs Pro at $79 – $29 = $50 more a month. A 12-person agency that adds four client contacts reaches 16 and pays for Pro Unlimited.
Those totals depend on caps and features, so the next question is what each package adds for its price.
What Each Basecamp Plan Actually Gets You
Freelancer covers 3 active projects and 5 people without templates or time tracking; Pro adds project templates and multiple tools per project; Pro Plus adds time tracking; Pro Unlimited removes the caps and adds enhanced admin controls.
Every package, Free included, gets the same core tools (message boards, to-dos, card tables, chat, scheduling, docs and files, reports and check-ins) plus the ChatGPT and Claude AI connectors. You pay for capacity and a few gated features (project templates, multiple tools per project, time tracking and enhanced admin features), not for the basics. Archived or deleted projects do not count against the active-project cap, so the cap limits what runs at once, not what you keep.
Free: one project for up to 3 people
Free runs one project with up to 3 people and 1 GB of storage, without project templates, multiple tools per project, time tracking or enhanced admin features. That fits a personal project or one small client job, and you can delete a finished project to free the slot for the next one.
The catch comes later: a paid account cannot downgrade to Free, so a team that leaves a paid package has to sign up for a new free account.
Freelancer ($29 a month): 3 projects, 5 people
Freelancer is enough for a solo consultant while clients plus you stay at 5 people and no more than 3 projects run at once. It includes 10 GB of storage, but no project templates, no multiple tools per project and no time tracking.
A consultant who bills by the hour will need a separate timer, or Pro Plus. Upgrade when the sixth person or the fourth active project arrives.
Pro ($79 a month): 8 projects, 10 people
Pro doubles the people to 10, raises active projects to 8 and storage to 25 GB, and adds project templates and multiple tools per project. Templates are reusable project and to-do list setups with the same structure and workflows, which spares an agency from rebuilding the same client project each time. Multiple tools let one project hold several message boards, chat rooms or card tables.
Pro still has no time tracking. Move up when the team needs to log hours, reaches an 11th person or opens a 9th active project.
Pro Plus ($99 a month): 12 projects, 15 people and time tracking
Pro Plus earns its place over Pro whenever a team needs time tracking, an 11th to 15th person or a 9th to 12th active project. It also lifts storage from 25 GB to 100 GB, which matters to teams that share large design or video files.
Whether Basecamp’s to-dos, card tables and reports suit the way your team works is a feature question, and my Basecamp review answers it before you pay for a larger package.
My take
For a team of 11 to 15 people, clients included, Pro Plus is the package I would trial first: it is the top capped package, a full account costs less per person than a full Pro account, and its time tracking covers teams that bill hours. A team of 6 to 10 that does not track hours fits Pro; skip both if you already run more than 12 active projects.
Pro Unlimited ($199 a month billed annually)
Pro Unlimited gives unlimited people and projects, 1 TB of storage, unlimited tools per project, enhanced admin controls, priority 24/7/365 support and personalized onboarding. It is also the only package with annual payment by check, ACH, wire or credit card, which matters to a finance team that pays software by invoice.
Buy it when the team passes 15 people, needs a 13th active project, or needs admins to control access and permissions. Below those lines, it buys capacity the team will not use.
The caps tell you which package fits. The next question is whether you can try it, or pay less, first.
Free Plan, Trial, Discounts and Billing
Yes, you can try Basecamp or pay less before committing: there is a free one-project plan, a 30-day free trial of every paid package with no credit card and no automatic charge, 10% off for registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits, and free accounts for class work.
The trial is the better test for a team. Free stops at one project and 3 people, while the trial gives unlimited use of the package you would actually buy, and Basecamp asks for a card only if you continue. Basecamp sells no plan called Personal; for personal use, Free is the option.
Monthly vs annual billing on Pro Unlimited
Only Pro Unlimited is priced with annual billing, and paying yearly saves $3,948 – $2,388 = $1,560 against $329 x 12 = $3,948 month to month, a saving of $1,560 / $3,948 x 100 = 39.51%. Freelancer, Pro and Pro Plus each print one monthly price, and their feature lists leave annual billing out.
Monthly billing passes the annual price in month 8: $329 x 7 = $2,303 is still under the annual total, but $329 x 8 = $2,632 is over it. That break-even assumes you keep the account all year and get nothing back.
Cancelling an annual package prorates the difference back to your credit card, which lowers the risk of paying yearly, but the page does not show how the prorated amount is worked out. Pay annually once you expect to keep Basecamp past seven months; if the team might shrink below 16 people within the year, ask Basecamp how the refund is calculated before you pay up front.
Nonprofit and education discounts
Basecamp takes 10% off for registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits, which brings Pro, billed monthly, to $79 x 0.9 = $71.10 a month, and it is 100% free for K-12 schools, homeschoolers and universities when the account is used for class work only.
To claim either, sign up first and email proof right away: 501(c)(3) paperwork for a nonprofit, or a message from a school account for teachers and students. Basecamp’s discounts page limits the discount to one account and refunds nothing paid before it started, so send the paperwork in the first week, not after the first invoice.
Upgrades, downgrades and cancellation
You can upgrade at any time, downgrade between paid packages only when your usage fits the lower package, and cancel at any time, self-serve, with no long-term contracts.
The usage rule bites in practice. An account with 5 active projects cannot move to Freelancer’s 3, and one storing 145 GB cannot drop to a 25 GB package, so archive finished projects before you downgrade.
List prices and discounts are set; what else can land on the bill?
Basecamp Costs Beyond the Package Price
Basecamp publishes one add-on: 1 TB of extra storage on Pro Unlimited for $50 a month, or $50 x 12 = $600 a year. On the lower packages, more storage or more people means the next package.
| Cost type | When it applies | Pricing basis | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extra storage | Pro Unlimited needs more than 1 TB | $50/ | Shared by all users on the account |
| Package upgrade | A user, active-project or storage cap is reached | The next package’s price | No partial step between packages |
| Per-user fees | Never | None | Every paid package says “no per-user fees” |
Sources: Basecamp’s pricing page, checked Nov 2026.
For most teams, the package jump at a cap, not storage, is the extra cost to plan for, because clients and guests use up the user cap instead of adding fees.
With every cost known, the remaining question is which package to buy.
Which Basecamp Plan Should You Buy?
Pick the package by the first cap you hit: 5, 10 or 15 people (clients included), then 3, 8 or 12 active projects, then templates (Pro) or time tracking (Pro Plus).
| Your needs | Plan to consider | Why | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| One personal or single-client project, up to 3 people | Free | Costs nothing for one project at a time | No templates or time tracking; 1 GB |
| A freelancer with up to 4 clients and 3 active projects | Freelancer | The lowest paid price | A sixth person forces Pro |
| A team of up to 10 that reuses project setups | Pro | Project templates and multiple tools per project | No time tracking; 8 active projects |
| A team of up to 15 that tracks hours | Pro Plus | Time tracking and 12 active projects | The 16th person forces Pro Unlimited |
| 16 or more people, 13 or more active projects, or admin controls | Pro Unlimited, billed annually | No user or project caps | $2,388 – $1,188 = $1,200 more a year than Pro Plus |
| A team already inside its caps | Stay on the current package | An upgrade adds nothing the team uses | Re-check when a client joins |
| A 501(c)(3) nonprofit or a class | Any package with the discount, or a free education account | 10% off, or free for class work | One discounted account only |
Sources: Basecamp’s pricing page and discounts page, checked Nov 2026.
Most mistakes here come from counting staff and forgetting clients: an 8-person team with three client contacts is 11 people, so it needs Pro Plus, not Pro.
My take
Pick Pro Plus for the trial if you are torn between it and Pro. The 30-day trial needs no card, so it costs nothing to learn whether the team tracks time, and you can buy Pro when the trial ends if nobody did.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Basecamp cost per month?
A team of up to 15 people pays $29, $79 or $99 a month for the whole account, billed monthly, depending on its size. A 4-person team on Freelancer pays $29 a month, billed monthly, for the whole account. A team past 15 people has to move to Pro Unlimited.
Does Basecamp still charge per user?
No. As of November 2026 every paid package carries “no per-user fees”: you buy a package that includes up to 5, 10, 15 or unlimited people. This guide covers what a new account pays on the current packages.
Are clients and guests counted as users?
Yes. Basecamp counts every person you add, clients, contractors and guests included. Only Pro Unlimited lifts the limit, and an account could add 500 users there and still pay $329 a month, billed monthly, in total.
Can I start a new project on the free plan?
Yes, but only by deleting the current one. Free runs one project at a time, and you cannot keep the old project while opening a new one, so save the files you need before you delete it.
Can I pay for Basecamp by check or wire?
Yes, on Pro Unlimited with annual billing: it accepts payment by check, ACH, wire or credit card. The other packages carry monthly prices and no annual billing option, so a buyer who has to pay by check or wire is choosing Pro Unlimited.
Is Basecamp Worth the Price?
Basecamp is worth the price for a team that fills its package, and the value grows with headcount: on Pro Unlimited billed annually, 50 people pay $199 / 50 people = $3.98 a person a month. The value is weakest for a team of 16 to 20, which pays $2,388 – $1,188 = $1,200 a year more than Pro Plus for one to five extra people.
It is also a poor buy for a small team that needs Pro Unlimited only for its admin controls: a 10-person team pays $199 x 12 = $2,388 a year for them instead of Pro’s $79 x 12 = $948.
Basecamp vs per-seat tools
A flat package gets cheaper per person with every hire, while a per-seat bill grows with each one. That makes Basecamp’s model strongest for teams that invite many occasional people, such as clients who only need to see one project, because on Pro Unlimited those guests add nothing to the bill.
If you are weighing Basecamp against Asana, my Asana pricing guide covers that side of the bill.
If Basecamp’s packages do not fit your team’s shape, my ranking of the best project management software for your team covers the alternatives by team fit.
Final Pricing Verdict
How I Verified Basecamp Pricing
I read basecamp.com/pricing on November 9, 2026, as the plain page and two rendered package tabs, plus the discounts page and the homepage. Prices are the $ amounts on Basecamp’s pricing page, for one account. Pro Unlimited is $199/mo billed annually. Pro Unlimited is $329/mo billed monthly. I calculated each total as the package price x 12 months, without tax, storage or discounts.
Start a team of 6 to 10 people, clients included, on Pro if it does not track hours, and move to Pro Plus the day you need time tracking or an 11th person. A freelancer who stays within 5 people and 3 projects should stay on Freelancer, and a team past 15 people should buy Pro Unlimited on annual billing and stop counting heads.
Skip Basecamp if: you are a 16-20 person team that will not use the extra capacity, because you would pay Pro Unlimited’s full price for a handful of extra people; compare per-seat tools first.
Final recommendation
Pick Basecamp when your headcount, clients included, lands near the top of a cap: that is where its flat price is spread across the most people, as with $99 / 15 people = $6.60 a person a month on a full Pro Plus account. Start the 30-day trial on the package your count points to, since it needs no credit card.
The trial runs your real projects on the package you picked before any bill arrives.
