Notion has four tiers and most people are on the wrong one. Usually that means paying for Business when Plus would do, or sitting on Free while a 5 MB upload limit quietly ruins their week.
Here is what each tier actually gets you in 2026, and the specific limit that pushes you off each one.
The tiers
| Free | Plus | Business | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $0 | $12/user/mo | $24/user/mo | Custom |
| File upload | 5 MB | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Version history | 7 days | 30 days | 90 days | Unlimited |
| Guests | 10 | Unlimited | 250 | Custom |
| Notion AI | Trial only | Trial only | Full, bundled | Full |
| SAML SSO | — | — | Yes | Yes |
| Private teamspaces | — | — | Yes | Yes |
| Zero data retention | — | — | — | Yes |
The big 2026 change: the AI add-on is gone
This is the single thing most likely to affect your bill, so lead with it.
Notion AI used to be an $8/user/month add-on you could attach to any plan, including Plus. It is no longer sold. Full Notion AI — generation, autofill, chat, translate, the Notion Agent, AI Meeting Notes — is now bundled with Business and above.
So the old $12 Plus + $8 AI path (a $20 total) does not exist anymore. The equivalent today is Business at $24.
That is a 20% increase for anyone who was on that combination, and it changes the calculation completely: AI is no longer a feature you add, it is the reason you would move up a whole tier.
Stay on Free if…
You are one person, your notes are mostly text, and nothing you upload is large.
Free is genuinely capable — full databases with subtasks, forms, sites, calendar and mail integration, 10 external guests. For a personal wiki or a solo project tracker it is not a crippled tier.
What pushes you off it: the 5 MB file upload cap. One PDF, one short screen recording, one high-resolution image and you are stuck. This limit catches people faster than any other, and it is not something you can work around cleanly.
The 7-day version history is the second one, and you will discover it on the day you need an older version.
Pay for Plus if…
You need to upload real files, or you have external collaborators.
At $12 a month Plus removes the upload cap, extends history to 30 days, and makes guests unlimited — which matters if you work with clients or freelancers who need access to one or two pages.
What Plus does not give you, and people assume it does: Notion AI. Plus users get the same limited AI trial as Free. If AI is what you are paying for, Plus is the wrong tier and always will be now.
Also missing at Plus: SSO, private teamspaces, granular permission controls. For a small team where everyone trusts everyone, none of that matters.
Pay for Business if…
You want Notion AI, or you have enough people that permissions have become a real problem.
At $24 per user per month, Business is where AI becomes bundled rather than absent. It also brings SAML SSO, private teamspaces, granular permissions, 90-day history, and 250 guests.
Be honest about which of those you are buying. For a five-person team, Business is $1,440 a year versus $720 on Plus. That $720 difference should be paying for something you will use weekly — not for SSO on a team that logs in with Google anyway.
The test: if you would pay for a separate AI subscription regardless, Business is reasonable, because you are getting AI plus admin features for roughly what a standalone assistant costs. If nobody on the team would pay for AI on their own, stay on Plus.
Enterprise is a conversation, not a plan
Custom pricing, and worth it only when a specific requirement forces it: zero data retention with the language model, SCIM provisioning, audit logs, DLP and SIEM integration, custom domains.
These are compliance requirements, not productivity features. If you do not have a security team asking for them by name, you do not need Enterprise.
Where the bill goes wrong
Paying per seat for people who read. Notion charges per member. Someone who only needs to view a couple of pages can often be a guest instead, and guests are unlimited on Plus. Audit your member list — teams routinely pay for four or five seats belonging to people who open Notion twice a month.
Upgrading the whole workspace for one person’s needs. There is no per-user tiering; if one person needs Business features, the workspace goes to Business. Sometimes a separate workspace is cheaper.
Buying Business for AI you will not use. Try the trial properly first, over a full working week, on real tasks. Bundled AI that nobody opens is $12 per user per month of nothing.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an annual discount?
Notion has historically offered a discount for annual billing on paid tiers. Confirm the current rate at checkout — and weigh it against how likely your team size is to change, since annual commitments are awkward to resize.
Can I still buy Notion AI separately?
No. The $8/user/month add-on has been withdrawn. Business is the entry point for full AI now.
What actually counts as a guest?
Someone given access to specific pages rather than the workspace. They do not consume a paid seat. Unlimited on Plus, capped at 250 on Business.
Do students or nonprofits get a discount?
Notion has run education and nonprofit programmes. Terms change, so check the current offer directly rather than relying on an article — including this one.
What happens to my content if I downgrade?
The content stays. Tier limits reapply — version history shortens, upload caps return, AI features stop. Nothing is deleted, but files already above the new cap can become awkward to replace.
Picking
Solo, text-only, small files: Free. Need real uploads or external collaborators: Plus. Genuinely want AI in your workspace, or need SSO and permissions: Business. Have a compliance requirement someone can name: Enterprise.
And audit your seat count before you renew. That is where the easy savings are.
Pricing verified August 2026 and subject to change — check Notion’s pricing page before purchasing. See also our Notion vs Obsidian comparison and more in business technology.
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