S 
Smartsheet
A spreadsheet that manages projects, versus a spreadsheet that now reasons.
KINDA
why this verdict
Downgrade — pay for the workflow, not the AI
Airtable covers the headline feature free, so the $9/mo is now paying for the workflow around it.
- A named launch, not a vibe named, unlinked
- Copilot in Excel closed the gap on spreadsheet-shaped work management. Microsoft, January 15, 2024 — no announcement link recorded yet.
- How much of the job it covers headline only editorial call
- The headline feature, but not the workflow, data or integrations around it.
- Is there a free way to do it? yes
- 1 of 2 listed replacements have a usable free tier: Airtable.
- What the call is worth $108/yr
- $9/mo at the entry paid tier — $108 a year per seat.
Reason composed from the fields above missing: announcement linked recorded: free replacement listed recorded: two or more escape hatches
- Threatened by
- Microsoft
- Since
- January 15, 2024
- List price
- $9/mo
- Per year
- $108
The backstory
Smartsheet won by giving spreadsheet-minded managers a grid with project features. Copilot in Excel now builds formulas, pivots and analyses from plain English inside the spreadsheet those managers already use. Smartsheet holds enterprise governance and workflow automation, which Excel does not do.
Escape hatches
switching could free up $108/yr M 
Microsoft Copilot Already included in most Microsoft 365 plans.
copilot.microsoft.com open_in_new A 
Airtable Free tier, database-shaped.
airtable.com open_in_new1 of 2 replacements have a usable free tier.