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Agency PSA

SyncHQ vs Productive

A sourced comparison of SyncHQ and Productive.io: profitability and resource planning versus intake and client portal, with real plan pricing.

Last reviewed August 9, 2026

The short answer

Productive is the stronger financial and resourcing platform, and it is not close. SyncHQ is simpler, cheaper at the entry tier, and stronger on intake and the client-facing side.

  1. 01Productive includes time tracking, budgeting, profitability, invoicing, resource planning, and client access on every plan including Essential.
  2. 02Its scenario planning and profitability modelling are genuinely best-in-class for mid-sized agencies, and SyncHQ has nothing comparable.
  3. 03It is aimed at agencies with a resourcing problem. If you are six people and your problem is winning and delivering work, it is more platform than you need.
What each one costs

SyncHQ

Free plan (3 projects, 5 members). Professional $29/mo. Enterprise $99/mo.

Productive

Essential from $10/user/mo. Professional from $25/user/mo. Ultimate custom. Check the pricing page - the monthly/annual presentation changes.

The thing that changes the bill: Advanced integrations, approval workflows, and Scenario Builder sit on the higher tiers.

Prices as published on August 9, 2026. Vendors change pricing without notice - check the source links below before you budget.

Capability by capability
Capability
SyncHQ
Productive
Winning the work
Conversational AI client intake
Yes
No
Auto-generated project brief
Yes
No
Contracts / e-signature
On the roadmapE-signature contracts are not shipped. Scope lives in the brief and the SOW document.
No
Meeting scheduling
NoNo built-in meeting scheduler.
No
Doing the work
Tasks, boards, and views
Yes
Yes
Time-boxed cycles / sprints
Yes
Not publishedNot detailed on the public pricing page, which is the only source cited for this entry.
Native time tracking
Yes
YesOn every plan.
Capacity / resource planning
PartialTeam capacity and workload views ship; scenario-based forecasting does not.
YesBest-in-class; Scenario Builder on Ultimate.
Workflow automations
PartialRule-based automations exist inside modules; there is no general-purpose visual automation builder.
PartialApproval workflows on higher tiers.
The client relationship
Built-in client portal
Yes
PartialClient access is supported; it is not a white-label portal product.
White-label / own branding
Yes
Not publishedNot detailed on the public pricing page, which is the only source cited for this entry.
Clients do not consume a paid seat
YesClient portal access does not consume a paid seat.
Not publishedSeat treatment for client users is not stated on the public pricing page.
Threaded discussion in-product
Yes
Yes
Getting paid
Invoicing from tracked time
Yes
YesOn every plan.
Retainer / milestone billing
Yes
Yes
Delivery + revenue analytics
Yes
YesProfitability and utilization reporting are the core of the product.
Platform
Roles and per-project permissions
Yes
Yes
Third-party app marketplace
NoNo third-party app marketplace. Integrations are built in-house.
Yes
Native mobile apps
On the roadmapThe web app is responsive; native iOS/Android apps are not shipped.
Yes
YesPartialPaid add-onOn the roadmapNoNot published
Choose SyncHQ when
  • You are under ~15 people and full PSA is more machinery than you need.
  • Intake and briefs are the bottleneck, not utilization forecasting.
  • A white-label client portal is part of what you sell.
Choose Productive when
  • You need real profitability modelling and resource forecasting - Productive is stronger here and it is not close.
  • You are 15+ people with a resourcing manager, or you should have one.
  • You bill in several models across a large client base and need the reporting to keep up.
Questions people actually ask

Is Productive overkill for a small agency?

Often, yes - but "overkill" means unused capability, not a bad tool. If you have a resourcing problem, it is the right answer at almost any size. If you do not, you will pay for and configure a lot of machinery you never look at.

Sources

Every claim about Productive on this page comes from its own public pages, listed here so you can check them yourself.

See whether it fits before you commit

The free plan runs three projects with five people - enough to put a real client through intake, delivery, and an invoice before you decide anything.

Start free (opens in a new tab)
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