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Notion vs Confluence (2026): Wave-B Doc Layer Battle
By the TCCT editorial team · Last tested March 2026
Before you compare tools — which consolidation wave is your company in?
Wave A — M365 mandate
Your CFO already pays for Teams via E3/E5. Slack's days are numbered.
Start here →Wave B — PM tool eating docs
Your PM tool will own docs + chat in 18 months. Pick the one with the best doc layer.
Explore →Wave C — AI meeting tools
Granola/Fathom owns meeting notes by 2027. Pick a PM tool with a clean API.
Learn more →Notion
8.8/10- Floor:
- £7.50/user/month
- Best for:
- Startups and scale-ups without Atlassian
Confluence
7.9/10- Floor:
- £4.75/user/month
- Best for:
- Atlassian shops (Jira users)
The Wave-B framing: this is a doc-layer war
Notion vs Confluence is not just a feature comparison. It is a question of which consolidation wave you are watching. PM tools (ClickUp, Monday, Asana) are actively shipping doc features to eat both Notion and Confluence’s market. The decision you make today may be re-litigated in 24 months when your PM tool’s doc layer is good enough.
Head-to-head
| Feature | Notion | Confluence |
|---|---|---|
| Writing experience | Yes - Block editor, best in class | Decent, more structured |
| Database views (table, board, calendar, timeline) | Yes - Native, powerful | No - Not available |
| Jira integration | Integration via Notion API | Yes - Native, bidirectional |
| Free tier | Unlimited blocks, 10 guests | 10 users, basic features |
| SSO/SAML | Business (GBP 12.50/user) | Premium/Enterprise |
| Permission model maturity | Good | More granular |
| Template library | Extensive | Extensive |
| Pricing floor (paid) | GBP 7.50/user/month (Plus) | GBP 4.75/user/month (Standard) |
| AI features | +GBP 6/user/month add-on | Atlassian Intelligence (premium) |
| Performance at scale (1000+ pages) | Good | Yes - Better |
The database gap
Confluence doesn’t have a database feature. This is the most concrete advantage Notion has. If your team needs to maintain a structured knowledge base with multiple views (table for the full list, calendar for deadlines, board for status), Notion handles this natively. Confluence requires workarounds (Jira boards, external spreadsheets, or paid Confluence apps).
For teams running editorial calendars, content pipelines, research repositories, or feature roadmaps, this is decisive.
The Jira integration gap
Confluence’s Jira integration is first-party and bidirectional: create a Confluence page, link it to a Jira epic, and changes sync between them. Retrospectives can reference Jira sprint data. Meeting notes can link to Jira tickets. For engineering teams deeply embedded in Jira, this is sticky.
Notion’s Jira integration requires the Notion API or a Zapier connector. It works, but the fidelity is lower and the setup time is 2-4 hours vs Confluence’s native integration.
The tipping point: if 50%+ of your team’s work lives in Jira tickets, Confluence wins the doc-tool decision regardless of UX preference.
Pricing comparison for 25 seats
| Plan | Notion | Confluence |
|---|---|---|
| Free | £0 (unlimited blocks, 10 guests) | £0 (10 users) |
| Paid entry | £7.50/user/month (Plus) | £4.75/user/month (Standard) |
| SSO tier | £12.50/user/month (Business) | £8.15/user/month (Premium) |
| 25 seats, SSO | £312.50/month | £203.75/month |
Confluence is cheaper at every paid tier. If SSO is required, Confluence is meaningfully cheaper (£108.75/month cheaper for 25 seats).
FAQs
Can I migrate from Confluence to Notion?
Notion has a Confluence importer. Page content migrates reasonably; Confluence macros and Jira-linked pages don’t translate cleanly. Plan for 20-40% of pages needing manual cleanup. For a 100-page wiki: 4-8 hours of cleanup work.
Is Notion’s AI add-on worth £6/user/month?
If your team writes 10+ docs per week and has someone who will actively use AI summarisation and Q&A features: yes. If you use Notion primarily as a Kanban board or link database: no.
Does Confluence work without Jira?
Yes. Confluence Standard (£4.75/user/month) as a standalone wiki works fine. You lose the native Jira integration benefit but retain the mature permission model and enterprise footprint.