Notion Free 5MB and 10 guests: when indies should buy Plus

While building client pages and shipping notes, indie builders often search Notion Free’s real ceilings. This article is not a full SOP guide. It only covers Free’s official limits and when Plus is justified. Facts are anchored to Notion’s pricing page and block-usage help as of 2026-09-28.

What actually constrains Free

Pricing lists Free at $0 and Plus at about $10 per member per month on yearly billing. The grid shows uploads up to 5 MB on Free, page history of 7 days, and an external guest limit of 10. Help docs: one owner means unlimited blocks; two or more owners means 1,000 blocks; deleting does not reduce the count; prefer guests to stay unlimited. Solo builders usually hit 5 MB and 10 guests before any team block cap.

Attachments and history: link out first

Keep sub-5 MB screenshots inside Notion; store sources in object storage with durable links. Seven-day history is a short undo window—duplicate critical templates before big edits. Compress contracts before upload or upgrade once they must live in the base. Keep demo videos off-page.

Guests, members, and the 1,000-block trap

Guests fit client read-only roadmaps. Free allows up to 10 guests. Before promoting someone to a member, ask whether guest access is enough. If you already added a second owner, remove extra members and re-invite as guests. Cleaning paragraphs will not reset the 1,000 counter. Remove temporary review guests afterward.

When to buy Plus—and when to wait

Buy Plus when you weekly upload over 5 MB, need more than 10 guests, must co-edit as multiple members beyond 1,000 blocks, or need longer history. Wait when you are the only member with solid link-out discipline. After upgrading, set file naming rules, re-audit guests, and drill history restore.

Read this beside SOP articles

Toolvori’s Notion SOP piece covers process structure. This page answers quota only. Write handbook rules for files, guests, and second members. Recheck pricing quarterly with a dated note. Prefer guest links for status-only clients.

Keep the official numbers on a pinned ops note with a review date and source URL. When someone claims the free tier is always enough or that you must upgrade today, open the note instead of arguing from memory. Write upgrade triggers as a checklist: two consecutive weeks at the ceiling, mainline delivery blocked, link-out discipline already exhausted, and a paid feature that maps to the exact gap. Pay only when two of the four are true. Even as a solo builder, leave the checklist for your future self so release week does not trigger impulse subscriptions.

Pick one light monthly review: current usage, broken outbound links, and whether guests or collaborators are still needed. A single memo is enough. The conclusion should be stay on free, clean up and wait another month, or start a paid evaluation—with the next review date written in the same paragraph.

Keep the official numbers on a pinned ops note with a review date and source URL. When someone claims the free tier is always enough or that you must upgrade today, open the note instead of arguing from memory. Write upgrade triggers as a checklist: two consecutive weeks at the ceiling, mainline delivery blocked, link-out discipline already exhausted, and a paid feature that maps to the exact gap. Pay only when two of the four are true. Even as a solo builder, leave the checklist for your future self so release week does not trigger impulse subscriptions.

Pick one light monthly review: current usage, broken outbound links, and whether guests or collaborators are still needed. A single memo is enough. The conclusion should be stay on free, clean up and wait another month, or start a paid evaluation—with the next review date written in the same paragraph.