Smartsheet vs Loom
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Smartsheet and Loom.
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Verdict: Loom wins
Loom scores 4.3/5, edging out Smartsheet at 4.1/5. Distributed teams that already live in Atlassian tools and want to replace status meetings and long emails with quick screen-and-face video messages.
Smartsheet Collaborative work management and project automation platform | Loom Record and share video messages effortlessly | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.1 (1 review) | 4.3 (1 review) |
| Pricing Model | freemium | freemium |
| Starting Price | Free tier available | Free tier available |
| Best For | Operations, PMO, and marketing-ops teams that think in spreadsheets and need dependencies, automation, and executive dashboards in one system. | Distributed teams that already live in Atlassian tools and want to replace status meetings and long emails with quick screen-and-face video messages. |
| Free Tier | ||
| API Access | ||
| Team Features | ||
| Open Source | ||
| Tags | free tierteam featuresapi access | api accessteam featuresfree tier |
| Visit Smartsheet → | Visit Loom → |
Smartsheet
Pros
- + Formula engine and cross-sheet linking handled campaign tracking with dependencies and rollups that lighter project tools cannot express at all
- + Dashboards with unlimited widgets on Business and up make a genuine executive-facing reporting surface, not just an internal summary
- + Visual automation builder got a form-to-sheet-to-Slack chain running in under ten minutes in my test, and it fired reliably
- + Unlimited free Contributors and Viewers on paid plans means read-only stakeholders never touch the bill
- + Enterprise add-on stack (Control Center, DataMesh, Data Shuttle) covers programme-level work that mid-market competitors leave to consultants
Cons
- - Pro plan is only available to new customers, and the free plan closed to new users on 28 August 2024 — entry options are narrower than the marketing suggests
- - 250 automation runs per month on Pro is a low ceiling; a 20-person ops team would clear it in weeks
- - Pro gates features I consider core: conditional form logic, workload tracking, and multi-sheet reports all require Business
- - No refunds for unused subscription portions and 30 days' notice required for plan changes (Smartsheet billing FAQ)
- - Per-Member billing adds up for editor-heavy teams, and native document co-editing is thin compared with Notion-class tools
Loom
Pros
- + Record-to-share loop is the fastest I have measured in this category — a five-minute take was shareable in under 30 seconds in my testing, with processing happening behind a live link
- + Transcriptions and closed captions in 50+ languages are now included on the free plan, which removes what used to be the main reason to upgrade
- + Edit-by-transcript and filler-word removal on the Business + AI plan save real editing time on narrated walkthroughs
- + Deep Atlassian integration (Confluence/Jira recording entry points, Rovo/MCP search) makes it a natural fit for teams already on that stack
- + Comments, emoji reactions, calls-to-action, and viewer insights turn a one-way video into an actual async conversation
Cons
- - Starter's 25-video and 5-minute caps hit fast — I reached the video ceiling in about three weeks of moderate use, and free users cannot download their own videos
- - Seat economics are confusing after the Atlassian migration: Creator Lite free seats are deprecated for new signups after February 2026 and billing differs between loom.com and atlassian.com
- - Loom AI cannot be bought as an add-on — getting AI titles/summaries means moving the whole team to the $24 tier
- - No contractual uptime SLA and no advanced retention/audit controls below Enterprise pricing
- - Editing is intentionally shallow (trim, stitch, overlays only) — anything production-grade needs an external editor
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, Smartsheet or Loom?▼
Loom scores higher at 4.3/5 vs 4.1/5 for Smartsheet, making it the better-rated option in our comparison.
What is the difference between Smartsheet and Loom?▼
Smartsheet: Cloud-based platform that combines spreadsheet functionality with project management tools, enabling teams to plan, track, automate, and report on work. Loom: Screen and camera recording tool with AI-powered editing and collaboration features for asynchronous video communication.
Is Smartsheet or Loom more affordable?▼
Smartsheet starts at €0/mo, Loom starts at €0/mo. Check the comparison table above for current pricing.
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