Smartsheet is a well-known project management software several organizations use to streamline their workflow. Of course, this wasn’t the case when the software was released in 2005 with such bogus tools. Since it remodeled its features in 2010, it now has over 10 million users on its platform, including Wix, Pioneer Studios, and Discovery, Inc.
One reason for its widespread adoption by companies in that regard is the fact that it doubles as a spreadsheet and an organizational and collaboration tool. Smartsheet does this by embedding features that let users manage projects, communicate and share relevant information with others working on the same project.
However, like any other software, Smartsheet has features that may not come to par. This article tackles this issue by outlining some great alternatives to consider in place of Smartsheet. It compares the specific features that put these software in a great position to serve as close or better choices.
Top 12 Smartsheet Alternatives
- Monday.com – Best Overall
- ClickUp – Best for task management
- Asana – Best in number of available features
- Wrike – Best customizable features
- Zoho Projects – Best in data and documents management
- Trello – Best for team collaboration
- Teamwork – Best Integration (5000+)
- Celoxis – Best for resource management
- Easy Projects – Best for small projects
- Microsoft 365 – Best Spreadsheet
- Scoro – Best for client reporting
- Nifty – Best customizable milestones feature
Overview Of Some Of The Best Smartsheet Alternatives In 2023
Software
Pricing Per Month (Annually)
Team Management And Collaboration.
Time and Resource Tracking
Integration with Other Tools and Applications.
- Individual plan – $0(up to 2 team members)
- Basic plan – $8 per seat (5GB file storage)
- Standard plan – $10 per seat (Guest access available)
- Pro plan – $16 per seat (dependency column)
- Enterprise plan – Exclusive pricing
Allows users to collaborate using work docs in real-time.
Use the time tracking column to keep tabs on hours spent on a project.
Link any tool you already use to Monday.com.
- Forever free – $0 (100MB storage)
- Unlimited – $5 (unlimited storage)
- Business – $12 (advanced automatons)
- Business plus – $19 (custom permissions)
Customize your workflow process and manage your task using 35+ ClickApps like the Milestones feature, task, and nested subtask.
Use time estimates to keep track of team progress.
Here are some Integrate 1000+ apps and tools natively.
- Forever free – $0 (15 team members)
- Business plan $30.49
- Exclusive enterprise plan for organizations.
Share ideas and receive helpful feedback on assigned tasks.
Use time log templates to track the duration of time spent on tasks.
Get every tool you need in one space by integrating your favorite Apps.
- Free – $0 (active task limitations apply)
- Team – $9.80 (2GB storage per user)
- Business – $24.80 (5GB storage per user)
- Exclusive offers for Enterprise and pinnacle plans. (10GB and 15GB storage per user, respectively)
Collaborate on projects by tagging specific team members who have the required information.
Wrike’s live timer or manual time logs and timesheets keep detailed records of time spent on each task.
Connect to 400+ native apps and tools & 1000+ extra using connectors.
- Free – $0 (limited storage space)
- Premium – $5 (100GB of storage space)
- Enterprise – $10 (120GB of storage space)
Assign due dates to tasks using the calendar feature and best deadlines.
Create payroll invoices and track billable hours with Zoho timesheets.
Use Zoho apps and third-party software using integration tools.
- Free plan
- Standard plan – $5
- Premium plan – $10
- Enterprise plan – $17.50
Use custom fields to create a to-do list and assign tasks to team members.
Use Zoho time tracking and reporting tools to beat deadlines.
Get design, IT, and file management tools on Zoho with a few clicks.
- Free plan (maximum of 5 users.)
- Starter plan – $5.99 (minimum of 3 users)
- Deliver plan – $9.99 (automation and forms)
- Grow plan – $17.99 (advanced budgeting)
Task priority feature to show which task should be given top consideration.
Play and pause billable and non-billable time logs for more accurate figures.
Sync and use all your tools on one platform.
- Cloud plan – $22.50 (2GB file space per user)
- On-premise Plan offers exclusive pricing.
Customizable client portal to boost collaboration between the client and team.
Optimize your workflow with integrated time trackers.
Power up your work processes with 400+ other softwares.
- Essentials plan – $5.90 (agile tools)
- Business plan – $11.90 (resource management)
- Platform plan – $23.90 (project budget)
- Enterprise Plan – negotiable pricing.
Baseline views feature to compare insights to original project plans.
Stopwatch and task reporting tools.
Share data on Easy Project from third-party sites.
- Basic Plan – $6 (1TB of cloud storage per user)
- Standard Plan – $12.50 (manage customer appointments)
- Premium Plan – $22 (advanced security)
Plan project tasks with Microsoft To-Do and Planner & Create tasks manually via email using Microsoft Teams & Track hours spent completing every job on Sharepoint.
Integrate all Microsoft 365 softwares with any website you use.
Integrate Outlook with DocSend, Docusign, Employee Directories, and more
Here are some words
- Essential plan – $26 (detailed work reports)
- Standard plan – $37 (multiple currencies)
- Pro plan – $63 (timesheet and time locking)
- Ultimate plan – Exclusively available on negotiation
Use a project portfolio to plan and implement tasks.
Weekly reports cover time and resources spent.
Marketing, Task management, and accounting tools available on demand + Custom made integrations built via the marketplace.
- Free plan – $0 (100MB storage space)
- Starter plan – $39 (100GB storage space)
- Pro plan – $79 (500GB storage space)
- Business plan – $124 (1TB storage space)
- Unlimited plan – $399 (unlimited storage space)
Use Agile development flows to create and customize tasks.
Manage resources and time spent with detailed time logs + Timesheets for client reporting.
Customs embed links to every tool needed to improve workflow.
Best Smartsheet Alternatives – Quick Verdict
Best Overall – Monday.com is the best Smartsheet alternative software because although it doesn’t have a native spreadsheet option, it has every other feature needed for seamless team management. Plus, it can integrate with Excel for anyone who needs the additional spreadsheet feature offered by Smartsheets.
12 Best Smartsheet Alternatives In 2023
Three men birthed Monday.com to create a single-page workspace that allowed team members working on a project to collaborate effectively. Several years later, Monday.com is one of the leading product management softwares and an outstanding Smartsheet alternative.
Monday.com provides a platform where teams can plan and schedule, set deadlines, customize their experience, collaborate with managers and team members, etc. Companies can use its features in different niches with different workforce levels.
- The Web version has an excellent user interface.
- The customer support system is highly effective. Response time takes a couple of minutes.
- Offers numerous task management features that make the cost worth it.
- Automation features work like it is supposed to.
- Premium plans are pricey.
- Keeping track of billable hours could be a hassle.
ClickUp is a product management software hosted on the cloud, and it is commonly used as an alternative to Smartsheet. At the time of its release, its founders believed the task management software were not intuitive enough and created Click-Up as an alternative with a user-friendly interface and features.
ClickUp is hosted on the web, and it has a mobile app version to cater to small businesses and teams utilizing its free plan or one of its low-tier plans. Some solutions ClickUp provides include 20+ 360 degrees ways to view projects, drag-and-drop task functions, and other ways to customize workflow.
- Click-Up offers excellent storage options.
- Allows users to add an unlimited number of guests.
- The platform is easy to navigate.
- Integrates easily with other platforms.
- The mobile version needs more features and a better UI
- Billable hours are difficult to track, except it is a few hours.
Asana is one of the project management alternatives to Smartsheet that helps to encourage collaboration within a team and proper management of resources. This project management software achieves this in several ways, one of them being by providing tools that automate the workflow of a project.
Another fantastic feature it incorporates is prioritizing any task given to a team member, which helps everyone know the urgency of handling any assignment. Like most other project management tools, users can bring different software and play around with them on Asana’s platform.
- Asana offers detailed insights on milestones and team productivity.
- Makes working with big teams easy.
- The onboarding process is swift, even for beginners.
- Has over 20+ premade project templates.
- The mobile App is difficult to use and needs more customizable features.
- Errors are bound to happen, but there is no undo button.
Wrike is one of the biggest Smartsheet competitors and is a cloud-based software like ClickUp. Wrike allows teams to organize their projects online on a single page, enabling team leaders to follow up on projects in real time and spot any areas that could draw back the project.
- Users can create charts natively for reporting.
- Great for budget and resource tracking.
- Has a highly intuitive interface.
- Provides users with the blueprint option to duplicate functional project workflow.
- Tends to lag.
- The pricing plan is discouraging for teams with lots of members.
Zoho Projects is among the perfect Smartsheet competitors to consider for small projects. It has a free version (with minimal offers), and you can use the software premium package for just $9.
However, it’s an excellent platform for teams to try out if the workflow involves a lot of collaboration. Zoho’s feature allows users to create discussion forums and collaborate on mutual tasks. Additionally, Zoho is widely praised for its data management, enabling users to drag, drop and customize data according to the demands of an assignment.
- Space provision is incredible for such low-price offers.
- Has a variety of collaboration features.
- The customer feedback loop is impressive.
- Managing data and documents is easy and effective.
- Needs to improve security (2FA).
- Things tend to disappear in a storm of tasks, subtasks, and features.
Trello is amongst the free Smartsheet alternatives for users who need project management software on a budget. Although it has paid plans, its free pricing options are excellent for a team of, say, two persons because of the space limitations.
Trello’s collaboration features are fantastic, and it incorporates features that help to ease up a workspace. For instance, it allows users to do more than use plain numbers and texts when communicating. On Trello, users can add stickers anytime when leaving comments under a task.
- Incredibly cheap offers.
- Goes the extra mile with collaboration features.
- The one-page project overview is straightforward to understand and visually appealing.
- Very easy to integrate with other software.
- Storage space options are too limited.
- Drag-and-drop drop feature is a little too eager. Moves when it’s not supposed to.
- Too many features depend on third-party connections.
Teamwork is an incredible project planning and management tool and yet another Smartsheet free alternative. Free in the sense that it offers a forever free package to its users for as many as 5 users.
Apart from its exciting free offer, Teamwork can integrate with over 5000+ websites and apps its users need. Most of these connections are facilitated by third-party automation sites.
Teamwork aims to create an online environment that promotes collaboration and improves team productivity. It delivers on this via its Milestones, Portfolio, Projects, tasks, and many more features that help plan and manage a project.
- Its add a guest feature allows for improved collaboration on projects.
- Provides regular updates.
- Multiple users can work on a single task and set different billable timers without hassle.
- Needs to automate more of its features.
- Needs to improve its platform to allow users to work from different parts of the world in sync.
Celoxis serves as one of the competitors to Smartsheet, which helps to organize all tasks and resources needed for a project. The solution is usually centered on the project team and how to keep them in sync to improve workflow. It enables teams to work better by helping them track time spent on projects, create budgets to aid resource management, give a detailed overview of all the actions carried out on the project, etc.
- Integrates with several useful websites and boosts productivity.
- Its free package includes many great features for small businesses and individuals.
- The live support option is very responsive
- Needs to increase website UI screen resolution.
Easy Projects is not one of the free Smartsheet alternative options available for businesses or individuals looking for Project management software. Easy projects run a 15-day free trial period, after which you are expected to subscribe to the team plan or acquire an entire enterprise plan.
Easy projects are great for users running small businesses with small operations because they tend to lag and slow extensive processes down. It provides customizable project templates, Gantt chart view, automation, collaboration features, and other tools needed for effective management.
- Clients can keep an eye on their projects.
- Perfect for Small business owners.
- Tracking work hours is uncomplicated and can be done following a few steps.
- Provides an option for exporting and importing project reports.
- It’s a bit hard to integrate Apps or web pages into the platform.
- The platform needs to improve its filter options.
Microsoft 365 is a high-end alternative to SmartSheets, owned by Microsoft. Microsoft 365 used to be known as Office 365, and if you didn’t already know, it is not a single software. MS 365 is a suite that houses 10+ softwares including, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, To Do, Teams, and Planner.
All these packages can be linked together to perform certain functions, including project management. However, MS Teams and Planner + Excel (for their spreadsheet function) are the best options for businesses or organizations that would instead use Microsoft products for task management.
- Offers extensive storage options.
- The platform is very secure and screens out suspicious logins.
- Provides updates to features often.
- Available offline.
- Third-party integration is too limited.
- Very pricey.
Scoro is a Smartsheet alternative that provides a centralized site for businesses, IT firms, etc., to carry out their projects orderly. Different aspects involved in this project could range from reporting to clients, planning, expense management, clocking in and out, and other activities. It has shortcomings, but it still excels in client reporting and CRM.
- Scoro’s features and tools are pretty flexible for its users.
- Quote, and invoice features are great for businesses.
- Team members without administrative access need more permission to implement changes.
- The mobile version incorporates most of the features available on the web version.
Nifty is another pricey alternative to Smartsheet. It has a free plan and a 14-day free trial period for its premium plans that start at $39 for the lowest offer. Its highest bid or unlimited plan will cost you $399, allowing users to add any number of team members, clients, and visitors to a project.
Moving on to its tools and features, Nifty’s excellent User Interface has been applauded by many. However, Nifty has excellent collaboration tools that allow more than one team member to be assigned to a project. Plus, other unique instruments.
- Has a very well-designed UI
- Notifications are all over the place, needs.
- Offers some essential CRM tools.
- Gives users an option to create shortcuts to their most used sections.
- It is too pricey, and over-dependence on third-party integration sites makes it even worse.
- Needs to improve on its Word Docs tool.
Benefits Of Using Smartsheet Alternatives
Enhanced Collaboration and Communication
Product management from the onset has been targeted at taking the necessary steps to ensure that a project is implemented correctly. However, traditional methods were not as effective, so the wave of product management softwares like Smartsheets and its alternatives came.
Devs created alternatives to Smartsheet to improve team collaboration and make it easy to communicate with the clients who own these projects and the project managers. One way this was achieved was through building tools that allow multiple users to take part in conversations around a project simultaneously in the same space. Similar to what you’d have in a boardroom meeting, although boardroom meetings.
It made it easy to create project plans and allowed everyone to brainstorm solutions together. That way, everyone who needed to be in the loop was fully aware of the steps that would be embarked on ahead of time.
Streamlined Project Workflow
Another benefit one would observe with Smartsheet competitors and even on the Smartsheet software is the ability to streamline a project workflow. A streamlined workflow is a process that has been adjusted to improve efficiency and ease up the execution of tasks.
Most project management softwares, including Smartsheets and all its alternatives, are built with tools that improve how projects are carried out. Each one comes with its unique solution that helps with the central goal of revamping the project execution.
The improved workflow of teams on each alternative software will be because of features that users can customize to assign tasks. Plus, tools managers will use to set deadlines to ensure the project is completed within the budget.
Better Time Management and Resource Allocation
To be able to implement and wrap up any project successfully, one must know how to manage time effectively and the ways to allocate resources assigned to the project. Product managers must devise ways to ensure that the available material and human resources to users are utilized efficiently.
That’s where Smartsheet competitors like Monday.com, Click-Up, Asana, and lots more come in. These softwares are built with timers and budgeting tools that help teams manage their time better.
They also provide features that allow the project managers access to metrics displaying how every resource meant for the project is being spent. That way, the business owners or project managers can effect changes if necessary to ensure that time and resources are appropriately managed.
Improved Budget and Expense Management
Most firms, organizations, and small and large-scale businesses are constantly seeking avenues to improve their budgets and cut down on expenses. It is essential to understand where your resources are going as a profit-based organization, especially if the plan is to maximize profit.
For years companies have used product management softwares to effect changes in how they spend their resources. They use this softwares to provide a rundown of expenses, insights, income statements, etc. These financial details now help these businesses identify where money is being wasted and where adjustments can be made based on the insight provided.
Many Smartsheet alternatives, such as Wrike and Asana, provide budget and expense management features either natively or through integrations. The features allow businesses to manage costs and expenditures more effectively. This enables companies to track expenses, set budgets, and monitor expenditures in real-time to ensure that projects stay within budget.
Real-Time Project Visibility
Real-time project visibility is one of the unique features offered by project management softwares. Businesses can take advantage of this feature using most alternatives to Smartsheets like Click-Up, Trello, Teamwork, and lots more.
This softwares allows users access to all their business operations on one page using Gantt Charts, Kanban boards, etc. Using this tool enables the user to be completely aware of anything going on in their business; that way, it’s possible to make informed decisions and adjustments.
The details contained in this metric or insight is usually drawn from task lists containing the different job allocation and who handled the job. Another feature that adds to the detailed one-page view is the time trackers attached to each task. Time trackers enable the team and Admins to check out the overall or individual billable hours, providing insight into resources allocated and how it was spent.
The downside is that most of these features are mainly available to premium subscribers. However, some specific softwares provides this service to their free subscribers, and the package usually has a minimal seat open.
Scalability and Adaptability
Due to the increasing number of processes, activities, and projects that need to be finished, it may be challenging to keep track of everything that needs to be done. This is where having a tool like Smartsheet comes in handy. It enables you to build a centralized location in which all of the data associated with your company can be saved and arranged in a single place in a centralized location that you create. This not only makes it easier to obtain information when you require it, but it also contributes to the overall smoother operation of the project.
Smartsheet competitors, like Nifty, ClickUp, and Microsoft 365, provide scalable and adaptable project management solutions that can be customized to meet the unique needs of businesses. These tools offer features like customizable workflows, integrations with other tools, and flexible pricing plans that make it easier for companies to scale their project management solutions as their needs grow and change.
Businesses have several Smartsheet alternatives, each providing unique features that can help enhance collaboration, streamline workflows, improve time management, manage budgets and expenses, and provide real-time visibility into project status. Whether you’re looking for a free Smartsheet alternative or a more robust project management tool, there is a tool out there that can meet your needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Conclusion
Smartsheet is one of the leaders in providing project management software solutions for businesses and other organizations. Smartsheet provide excellent collaborative tools and other tools for analyzing, displaying, and storing data.
However, everyone can not be a fan of Smartsheet for reasons like pricing or usability of certain features based on personal preferences. This would lead them to seek free or paid alternatives to fill the gap. 12 Smartsheet options and their key components have been outlined here; feel free to check them out.
Before choosing an alternative, it’s best to fully understand the needs of your team or business to guide you in making an informed decision. The right software will have you or your team collaborating easily and more efficiently, leading to better outcomes. However, Monday.com is the top choice here for businesses and individuals.