monday.com vs Asana: Versatility, Affordability & Features Comparison

Monday.com vs Asana Versatile & Affordable

Project management has become so much a part of business that comparing tools like monday.com vs Asana require you to see them more as work operating systems. They bring all of project management’s sophisticated tools to bear on your daily schedule. We compare monday.com vs Asana to see which is a better fit for your work life.

Monday.com logo

monday.com: Best for Small Teams Working Remotely

From $10

3.0

monday.com is a code-free, cloud-based project management software geared with a spectrum of sleek features for small teams working remotely. It makes it simple for you to design workflow apps for your project. You can use these apps to handle day-to-day operations and responsibilities.

monday.com comes with workflow templates you can easily customize to manage your project. It helps you reduce your manual administrative work by automating key tasks. You can also integrate monday.com with other tools to streamline project management. Read the full monday.com review for greater insight into it.

  • Modern user interface (UI) is easy to use and navigate
  • Highly customizable features 
  • Ideal for managing ongoing work for multiple projects
  • Confusing pricing of plans
  • Slow customer support 
  • Best features only available with upper tiers of paid plans

Pricing

  • Basic: $10/user per month
  • Standard: $12/user per month
  • Pro: $20/user per month
  • Enterprise: Inquire for price
Asana logo

Asana: Best for Flexibility and Customization

From $13.49

3.5

Asana is one of the most popular project management software out there. It’s easy to use and offers some of the most powerful management tools available. It’s a versatile software that suits small teams but can also scale to larger companies. Asana lets you divide tasks into themes and time-related segments so you can manage your workflow with ease. 

With a much broader feature set, Asana is a great choice for agile project management. You can use multiple management styles including Gantt charts, task lists, and Kanban boards with this project management software. Read the complete Asana review for greater insight into it.

  • Offers workload management
  • Smart project-focused interface
  • Various management features
  • No financial management tools
  • Assigns tasks to one user only
  • Steeper learning curve

Pricing 

  • Basic: Free 
  • Premium: $13.49/user per month
  • Business: $30.49/user per month
  • Enterprise: Inquire for price

Pricing & Features Comparison

Key Features

Pricing

3/5

3/5

Team Management

3/5

4/5

Project Delivery Management

4/5

5/5

Agile Methodology Suitability

3/5

4/5

Waterfall Methodology Suitability

3/5

3/5

Risk Management

4/5

3/5

Reporting

4/5

4.5/5

Finance Management

3/5

3/5

Collaboration and communication

3/5

4/5

Integration With Other Apps

2/5

4/5

Usability

3/5

5/5

Support

3/5

3.5/5

Privacy

3/5

3.5/5

Pros

  • More price options
  • Customized views
  • Templates help you set up project
  • Larger teams on free tier
  • Attractive Status Updates
  • Easy to use

Cons

  • Limited integrations and automations
  • More expensive

Overall Rating

3/5

3.5/5

monday.com vs Asana

Putting monday.com vs Asana means comparing two well-known project management software options. Both have fairly good reputations, while also being somewhat more expensive than competitors. 

The similarities don’t end there. Both also focus on task management, using tasks as a starting point to build out your project. There is a standard set of popular project management tools that both provide. 

However, the two platforms are far from clones of each other. While the tools may be similar, the presentation and usability can be leagues apart. Follow along to discover which is the best fit for you.

Pricing

monday.com and Asana have similar, straightforward pricing plans that will be familiar to anyone who has used project management software recently. Both offer a free version for a Basic plan best used to manage simple projects, limited in users and functions. Pay tiers offer more with each step up in price.

monday.com

monday.com is slightly less expensive, with four pay tier options:

  • Basic: $10/user per month
  • Standard: $12/user per month
  • Pro: $20/user per month
  • Enterprise: Inquire for price

monday.com offers unlimited boards even at the free tier, but pay tiers offer more reporting options and more seats. Depending on the tier, you may also be limited in integration actions, automations, or a few other things.

Asana

Asana offers three different levels beyond the free tier, including:

  • Premium: $13.49/user per month
  • Business: $30.49/user per month
  • Enterprise: Inquire for price

Each of the pay tiers offers unlimited projects and many reporting options. Some of the most powerful tools, such as portfolio management, require a Business or better subscription.

Winner: Tie 

Although monday.com is less expensive, its limiting API calls and other actions can be a real problem for some users. Asana offers a lot of important tools even on the least expensive pay tier, though the higher cost puts it on par with monday.com.

Read: Best 6 Free Project Management Software

Team Management

In terms of team management, Asana, and monday.com both focus on managing teams through task management. In fact, like most examples of this type of project management software, everything starts when you create tasks and then assign tasks to team members. The details are slightly different between the two options. However, they both allow you to add details, due dates, define task level priority, and more.

With that foundation, you can bring a number of powerful team management features to bear. Both Asana and monday.com focus most resource management tools on the time commitment of each team member, offering a Workload view to track team level, though Asana’s is a bit easier to use. For both platforms, it’s an option that is only available with the more expensive tiers.

Additionally, task progress tracking is straightforward with both platforms and each has an easy-to-find action log.

Winner: Asana

While both platforms allow you to filter tasks by specific team members, as well as track workload, it’s much simpler to do in Asana. monday.com helps you construct a sort of spreadsheet to do the same thing, which is much more involved.

Project Delivery Management

Some of the most important tools in a project manager’s toolbox are designed to keep everything on track and moving in the right direction. When it comes to Asana vs monday.com, they seem to offer some similar tools for tracking project statuses. 

Gantt charts are easy to set up, with task dependencies requiring no more than a drag-and-drop, providing a look at project workflow management. Both options also provide a way to monitor several projects simultaneously, balancing resources and workload. 

The two options also provide a list view, breaking down steps and making it easy to see both project plans and project schedules. However, monday.com’s list is easier to read and can contain more information.

Winner: Asana

While monday.com’s list view is easier to read, Asana has one big advantage. Information from all your projects is collected in the Portfolios tab, where it can be visualized in a few different ways. monday.com requires you to set up a separate Portfolio Management board.

Methodology Suitability

Comparing Asana vs monday.com, is one more suitable for waterfall methodology or Agile methodology? Both can be used for either method used to manage projects, though it might not be surprising that they offer some tools exclusive to the Agile approach. Read our review on waterfall vs agile methods.

Asana has a Board view that serves very well as a Kanban board. monday.com also provides Kanban boards for all your projects, as well as for your overall portfolio. In both cases, it’s possible to drag and drop tasks into the appropriate column. Asana’s Boards offer some automation options that Monday doesn’t, however. 

Additionally, Asana’s Update feature is much more comprehensive, including a painless method of automatically generating graphs, and works great for Sprint reviews. 

Winner: Asana

A few features, such as automations in Asana’s Boards, edges it out ahead of its competition. 

Risk Management

There are no native features for bug or issue tracking in either option. We’re contrasting Asana vs monday.com, but realistically they do have a lot in common. Unlike a project management tool like, for example, Jira, they aren’t focused tightly on software development. However, both integrate with apps that can perform those functions. 

Asana offers a way to mark a project as On Track, Off Track, or At Risk, as part of a status update. monday.com can mark projects automatically as part of its Overview widget, based on the number of tasks team members have completed, versus tasks still outstanding. Note that the Overview widget is only available to Pro and above accounts.

Winner: monday.com

Asana’s project status tool is used for communication, telling people something you already know. monday.com’s feature offers an analysis, offering more information on the health of your project, though it comes with a higher price tag.

Reporting

Managing projects is a complex business, which graphs, charts, and other visualizations can help keep straight. Both options offer a number of ways to visualize projects, from variations on a basic project management tool like Gantt charts, to the status reports we’ve already mentioned.

Reporting options for portfolio management are also available, allowing you track the progress and resource use of multiple projects. monday.com offers a wider range of reporting for your portfolio, allowing you to set up a Gantt chart of project dependencies, rather than task dependencies.

Winner: Asana

For reporting, Asana vs monday.com is close to a tie. monday.com does have a few more options. However, Asana offers a user interface that moves a lot of information for you. Check out your portfolio and all the information you entered in each project is already there. monday.com wants you to enter portfolio information again, separately.

Finance Management

Few things are more important to a successful project than finances. However, it’s an area that most cloud-based project management platforms leave for integrated apps, rather than handling natively.

monday.com doesn’t have any tools for tracking expenses exactly, though it doesn’t rely on integration for those functions. In many ways, monday.com’s platform can be thought of as a specialized spreadsheet, which you can customize to your needs. A Numbers Column can be easily added to track how estimated costs compare to the actual project plan, or how much your team members’ time costs.

Asana has the List view, which is similar to monday.com’s spreadsheet layout and can perform the same functions, allowing you to track, quickly add up, or compare numbers. However, both also offer integrations to add more tools.

Asana has specifically partnered with Power Bi for finance management and reporting, though it integrates with other options as well. Time tracking, on the other hand, has to be handled by integration, with Asana partnering with Harvest for that need. 

Winner: Tie

Yet again, Asana vs monday.com is a close comparison. In this case, the tools offered by both options are similar enough that it’s tough to choose between them. Additionally, they both integrate with many of the same third-party apps.

Collaboration and Communication

One key responsibility for project management software in modern business is as a set of collaboration tools, used for workflow management when a team may be physically distant from each other. 

The first step in team collaboration is team communication, so both platforms offer lots of different ways to send messages. Communication and task management features have been combined, as both allow you to comment on individual tasks. Comments can also be added to projects and files, including a mark-up tool for the free file storage.

Asana offers a team page that allows each team member to track all the projects they’re working on. A shared team calendar makes it easy to track due dates and progress. Additionally, a Chrome extension allows team members to pull ideas from around the web into the workspace to share.

monday.com can offer a similar calendar, as well as a board designed for project requests. Both platforms also offer iOS and Android apps for free. monday.com also has workdocs, a document shared with and edited by the whole team.

Winner: Asana

monday.com’s workdoc is a nice feature, but nothing you can’t find in Google Docs or many other places. Asana offers the chance to focus comments on specific tasks, while also seeing the big picture.

Integration With Other Apps

Even the most powerful project management tool won’t have every feature you need for your perfect workflow. Integration allows you to reach out and add those missing features to your pool of task management tools.

Both Asana and monday.com have libraries of integrations for anything you might need, from tracking team members’ time to managing customer requests. Some big names include Google Workspace, Adobe Creative Cloud, and Microsoft Teams. Both platforms also offer an API.

Winner: Asana

Both Asana and monday.com have wide libraries of integrations to choose from, including all the most commonly needed apps. However, Monday limits the integration and automations on most tiers.

Usability

There is no such thing as a perfect project management tool and everyone’s experience will vary. However, a user-friendly tool for project management with a gentle learning curve can save your mental health, your company’s money, and hours of aggravation.

Both platforms focus on task management, with a number of features that have become semi-standard for this sort of software. The task manager allows you to assign team members, attach documents, define dependencies, and many other things. The user interface includes drag-and-drop functionality and most basic functions can be understood with a little experimentation.

monday.com’s user interface is practical and straightforward. It may not be attractive, but all task information is visible in the main table. It’s easy to add Gantt charts, Kanban boards, and more. It’s also easy to find automations for repetitive and mundane tasks, as well as integrations.

Asana has a slicker presentation, but is just as easy to use. The team page makes for a good base, which is helpful as it can be easy to get lost among the different views. However, workflow management is greatly aided by only having to enter information in one place.

Winner: Asana

The user-friendliness of Asana vs monday.com is ultimately a personal choice. However, a few of Asana’s features stand out, such as easily formatted Status Updates and a single tab that collects all of a project’s files.

Support

Support for either option, comparing Asana vs monday.com, boils down to a web form. You describe your issue and wait for a service rep to get back with some help. However, both also offer many additional resources to help you figure out solutions for yourself.

monday.com offers real-life content examples from users, which you can peruse to get some ideas for your own project management style. There is also a range of video tutorials, webinars, and support docs. The only upgrade is if you’re an Enterprise customer, which gets you a dedicated support manager.

Asana has a similar set-up, similarly offering project managers video tutorials, webinars, courses, and so forth. They have a wider range of walk-throughs, which can be helpful. Additionally, business tier customers can get priority support, moving their help requests to the front of the line.

Winner: Asana

Asana has a bigger library of tutorials and courses. The option for priority on support for the Business tier of service is also nice.

Privacy

Project management systems can contain a lot of very important, very private information. It’s therefore not surprising that both Asana and monday.com make promises to keep information in your work operating system secure. 

Both say that they don’t share information with third parties, the exception being when you elect to use an integration. Additionally, both monday.com and Asana have made commitments to 99% uptime.

Asana has a couple of neat offerings, such as the ability to choose where in the world your data is stored. However, that’s a feature only available to Enterprise clients.

Winner: Asana

It might take an expert to compare some aspects of Asana vs monday.com, and their security. However, Asana also helps you secure your data by offering admins the ability to require 2FA security, limiting access, and a number of other tools.

Alternative Project Management Software Options

Wrike gives you greater flexibility and works for teams of all types and sizes. You get a wide range of project management features. Wrike’s price may be a bit higher than others, but the range of features is worth it. Read the ultimate Wrike review for a more detailed analysis.

  • Specialized marketing, creative, and services delivery team packages
  • Offers in-built time tracking 
  • Analytics tool generates charts automatically
  • Costlier than other PM software
  • Templates can’t remove all options
  • Can’t prioritize tasks

Pricing

  • Free version.
  • Professional Plan: $9.80/user/month.
  • Business Plan: $24.80/user/month.
  • Enterprise Plan: Inquire for price.

ClickUp is a leading project management platform. It’s scalable for teams of all sizes. ClickUp is excellent for remote work. Creating spaces for different projects and adding teams to them is pretty easy. To learn more about this tool, read our ClickUp review.

  • Lower cost
  • Better support options
  • Free version offers a lot of features
  • Slows down when you use too many ClickApps 
  • Complicated interface
  • Lacks workflow management

Pricing

  • Free
  • Unlimited: $5/user/month
  • Business: $12/user/month
  • Business Plus: $19/user/month
  • Enterprise: Inquire for price.

Microsoft Project is one of the oldest project management software. It has been the go-to PM tool for many industry-leading companies for many years. But it comes with a steep learning curve and is not ideal for beginners.

  • Offers projections, baselines, and other features
  • Review all your projects at once
  • Advanced project management features
  • Expensive
  • Steep learning curve
  • Slow customer support

Pricing

  • Plan 1:$10/user/month
  • Plan 3: $30/user/month
  • Plan 5: $55/user/month

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for monday.com vs Asana

Don’t have time for the in-depth review? Check out the most commonly asked questions.

monday.com vs Asana Conclusion

Both monday.com and Asana offer some of the best project management tools available at the moment. However, small differences add up, pointing to a clear winner. Asana comes out on top due to a more attractive and intuitive user interface. It’s also easier to manage tasks when all the task details move from view to view automatically. 

Additionally, the difference in price disappears when you compare feature availability. monday.com is high-quality software, but Asana is just a bit better.

Anything can be a project, if you want to look at it that way. With that in mind, it’s possible to use all the methods of project management to keep your own life organized and on track. That might have been an intimidating prospect even a few years ago. Today, quality platforms like Asana and monday.com make it easy.

Best 6 Free Project Management Software – 2023

Business team contemplating on what free project management software to use

If you’re running a small business and need help managing your team and projects, free project management software can help you dramatically. Manually managing your projects is both headache-inducing and highly inefficient. Luckily, there are plenty of options for free project management apps.

Best Free Project Management Software

  • monday.comBest Overall for Building Custom Workflows Across Teams
  • ClickUpBest for Fully Customizable Dashboards & Task Management 
  • HiveBest for Collaboration & Messaging
  • GanttProBest for Gantt Chart Creation & Project Planning
  • Easy ProjectBest for Visual Project Management for Large Teams
  • Microsoft ProjectBest for Microsoft Based Businesses

Software

Price

Free Trial Available

Storage Included at Price Listed

Members Included at Price Listed

Time Tracking Included at Price Listed

Support Included at Price Listed

From $0 monthly per user

Yes

500 MB

Up to 2

No

24/7 customer support

From $0 monthly per user

Yes

100 MB

Unlimited

Yes

24/7 customer support

From $0 monthly per user

Yes

Unlimited

Up to 2

No

Self-serve knowledge base

From $8.90 monthly per user

Yes

5 GB

1

Yes

Personal account manager

From $24 monthly per user

Yes

100 GB

1

Yes

Email & live chat support

From $10 monthly per user

Yes

Unlimited

1

No

24/7 customer support

Monday logo

monday.com: Best Overall Free Project Management Software

Pricing: Free (2 seats) to $27 per seat

4.95

monday.com offers the most features out of every free project management software. Along with project management tools, you’ll also find HR tools with the ability to clearly organize and see others’ availability.

With more than 125,000 companies on its roster, monday.com is one of the more popular projects management tools today. Used by big names like Zippo, Unilevel, Hulu, and Uber, monday.com offers intuitive dashboards with hundreds of customizable templates to depict project status, estimates, priority, and resources by start and end dates. You can view data in the calendar, timeline, Kanbatt, Gantt, and map formats.

Why we chose it: We chose monday.com as the best overall free project management software because of the number of features included in the free plan. With the free plan, you get unlimited boards, unlimited docs, 200+ templates, and customizable notifications. monday.com is great for any size business.

  • Tracks assignments for multiple people per project
  • Sends updates and reminders via email or Slack, depending on your preferences 
  • Offers multiple views for boards so you can manage up to C-suite level
  • Limited reporting functionality
  • Lack of a built-in chat function (can integrate with Slack)
  • Higher learning curve as you dive into more features

Pricing: As for cost, monday.com offers five pricing plans – Individual, Basic, Standard (most popular), Pro, and Enterprise. Individual plans (free) allow up to two team members. The Basic plan ($8 per user per month) includes Individual features plus unlimited free viewers, unlimited items, and a dashboard with one board.

Standard ($12 per seat per month) and Pro ($27 per seat per month) plans add additional views (e.g. Timeline & Gantt) along with up to five boards and up to 250 automation and 250 integrations per month.

Lastly, the Enterprise plan features all of monday.com’s bells and whistles, including enterprise-grade security, advanced reporting, multi-level permissions, and premium support with the fastest turnaround times.

Clickup logo

ClickUp: Best for Fully Customizable Dashboards & Task Management 

Pricing: Free “Free Forever” plan that lasts forever and allows unlimited members

4.91

Most project management software demand premium prices for what ClickUp offers for free. With ClickUp, you can enjoy 11 different task views and 20 different dashboard widgets.

Over the past several years, ClickUp has made serious waves with its project workflow tools. Calling itself “one app to replace them all,” ClickUp works with the concept of “Spaces,” which are fully customizable dashboards based on a team’s needs. It also integrates non-project management-related items into the dashboard, such as emails (sending and receiving directly within the app) and document creation with a full-on document editor available within, easily replacing similar apps like Confluence, Evernote, and Google Docs.

Why we chose it: In short, ClickUp touts itself as a one-stop-shop where using separate apps like Google Docs, Smartsheet, Jira, and countless others is no longer necessary. Teams that rely tremendously on four or five third-party apps may decide to choose ClickUp over other free project management software options for this purpose. ClickUp is fully customizable for every type and size of team.

  • Ability to create different views to track tasks/projects due in a specific time period
  • Email integration for notifications and chat integration with Slack
  • Ability to create multiple spaces or folders for simple organization
  • Lack of dashboard customizability options
  • Time tracking feature needs improvement
  • The Free Plan features a limited amount of storage and goal-setting options

Pricing: With pricing, ClickUp is one of the more affordable options we’ve covered. There is a free version and an Unlimited version, costing $9 per user per month (paid monthly) and $5 per user per month (paid annually). The free version is good for 100MB of storage, unlimited tasks, unlimited members, and two-factor authentication. The paid version offers unlimited dashboards, storage, integrations, and dashboards along with the ability to invite guests.

There are also two higher-tier plans named Business and Business Plus. Business costs $12 per member per month (paid annually) and $19 per member per month (paid monthly. Business Plus costs $19 per member per month (paid annually) and $29 per member per month (paid monthly. The Business plan is for mid-sized teams whereas the Business Plus plan is best for multiple teams.

One of the most impressive features of ClickUp is its sheer number of available views. It offers more than 15 views in total, with list, board, box, and calendar views being the most popular.

Hive logo

Hive: Best for Collaboration & Messaging

Pricing:  Free “Hive Solo” plan that lasts forever and allows up to 2 seats

4.85

Hive is the best project management software for collaboration and messaging because of its native email and group messaging features. Effective file sharing and resourcing capabilities enhance the collaborative nature of software even more.

Like monday.com, Hive offers a centralized workflow management system with powerful project and action templates for all kinds of tasks. It offers project calendar, Gantt, Kanban, Portfolio, calendar, and summary views, each customized to a work style preference (e.g. heavy drag-and-drop with powerful visuals over simpler linear formats).

Why we chose it: Hive is a beginner-friendly project management software that offers a robust amount of features in its free plan. These include unlimited storage, task management, project summary views, Hive calendar, and reporting. However, the easy-to-use communication and collaboration tools makes Hive stand out among all the free project management services. 

  • Integration with 1000+ apps
  • Especially user friendly and built for beginners
  • Ability to turn any action into a task
  • Needs improved reporting functions
  • Inability to create dependent tasks within project actions that recur
  • Difficult to track edits and modifications made by users

Pricing: Hive has three pricing plans – Solo, Team, and Enterprise. Solo is free and is for individuals and small teams of up to two users, with unlimited storage, community support, and a robust list of project management and collaboration features. Teams ($12 per month per user) allows for unlimited users, phone support, and flexible a-la-carte options for an additional fee per user per month, such as reporting and analytics, approvals reporting, single-sign on (SSO), enterprise security, and controls.

The Enterprise version offers all of the benefits of Solo and Teams, plus a dedicated customer success manager, ongoing coaching/adoption training, and specialized offerings such as security contract & legal review.

GanttPRO logo

GanttPro: Best for Gantt Chart Creation & Project Planning

Pricing: No free plan but offers a free trial

4.81

GanttPro gives teams the flexibility to organize complex tasks in a convenient and intuitive way that’s easy to understand. True to its name, GantPro’s main function is to provide effective project planning through Gantt charts.

Dubbed the “Online Chart Maker”, GanttPro is based on Gantt charting. Used by more than 700,000 project managers around the world across well-known brands like Booking.com, Sony, Intel, and Amway, it relies on the highly popular Gantt system, which uses stacked bar charts to show resources, schedule status, and task/subtask activity dependencies.

Why we chose it: GanttPro is an excellent project management app for small teams that need to visually enhance their project planning process through Gantt Charts. Although many project management apps include Gantt charts, GanttPro takes them to the next level with a heap of customizability options and features.

  • Convenient and intuitive user interface
  • Easy to track the progress of the team, the workload of each member and the total budget spent
  • Ability to share and export data
  • Mobile version needs improvement
  • Exceedingly large projects with lots of tasks can get difficult to show on the screen
  • Kanban view has limited column options

Pricing: As for pricing, GanttPro offers three packages—Individual, Team, and Enterprise. Individual costs $15 per user per month. Chosen by roughly 74% of businesses, the Team feature offers unlimited functionality for $8.90 per user per month, whereas the Enterprise version offers advanced management and security features such as AML Single sign-on & 2FA, increased API limits, and priority level support.

Both the Individual and Teams plans have the option for a free trial.

Easy Project logo

Easy Project: Best for Visual Project Management for Large Teams

Pricing: No free plan but offers a 14-day free trial

4.76

Easy Project is the best free project management software for large teams because of its in-depth resource planning and reporting features. This allows managers to monitor employee and team workloads efficiently. Counting IBM, HP, and CenturyLink amongst its users, Easy Projects is one of the more popular project management tools today.

Like most elite project management software, Easy Projects offers all types of views, such as Table, Gantt, Kanban, and calendar views. Each offers its own benefits, in terms of visual layout with different ways of viewing task hierarchy, critical paths, and start/end dates. Its Kanban board is arguably the most intuitive, using quick drag and drop motions to move tasks from one phase to the next (updating team members in the process)

Another area Easy Projects is strong in is Integrations. It allows data, information, and files from 2000+ third-party apps such as Outlook, Slack, and Jira to become centralized in one place.

Why we chose it: One of our favorite features with Easy Projects is its robust machine learning suite. It uses a proprietary algorithm that processes all historical data to determine how likely a project is to come to completion, highlighting all pre-emptive corrective actions earlier in the process to make task, resource, and dependency changes. This software is ideal for companies with 100+ employees because of how easy it is to keep track of and organize different projects and portfolios.

  • Auto notifications to keep projects on track
  • Helpful and friendly customer support 
  • Effective charting and reporting features
  • The user experience isn’t as strong as other free project management software
  • Lack of documentation for different features
  • Not very effective for small tasks

Pricing: Unlike Monday, Hive, and GanttPro, Easy Project’s pricing structure is a lot simpler, only offering the choice of Team and Enterprise options. The Team pricing tier ($24 per user per month) comes with most of its project management tools, including Kanban boards, milestone setting, time tracking, and portfolio management

The Enterprise pricing tier offers add-on project management features, such as resource loading simulations, payroll reports, and enhanced integrations and API functionality (e.g. 200+ integrations via Workato), and webhook compatibility. It also offers additional security and business intelligence services for larger businesses. No pricing is offered for Enterprise plans; a custom quote can be requested using its contact form based on your organization’s needs.

Microsoft Project logo

Microsoft Project: Best for Microsoft-Based Businesses

Pricing: No free plan but offers a free trial

4.74

Microsoft Project is one of the most widely used project management software in the world. It is an excellent choice for businesses already integrating other Microsoft products into their workflow, such as Microsoft 365. Our favorite Microsoft Project features include its centralized home screen, support for multiple project management methodologies (Scrum, Kanban, and customized), and multiple views such as Kanban boards, and Gantt charts.

Why we chose it: Microsoft Project is one of the most powerful project management tools out today. In the right hands, this software is an excellent way to manage various company projects. However, the steep learning curve means that it isn’t for beginners. 

  • Offers customizable features and well-documented APIs 
  • Ability to select specific tasks or summary tasks for the timeline to see an overview of the project
  • Great integration with Microsoft Office products and tools
  • Advanced features require training
  • Could improve its network diagram features
  • Overall user interface needs improvement

Pricing: In terms of pricing, it offers an on-premise (software) or cloud-based solution, where projects can be managed using a web browser like monday.com and Hive. All plans include a Project Home centralized view per user, an ordered list of tasks in three views (Grid, Board, Gantt), and several collaboration tools for a flat fee per user per month with additional portfolio optimization, demand management, and enterprise resource planning tools.

There are tiered packages, starting with Project Plan one ($10 per user per month) up to Project Plan 5 at $55 per user per month.

Methodology for the Best 6 Free Project Management Software

We looked at 6 main criteria as we created this list for the best free project management app. In essence, we prioritized software that had user-friendly interfaces with additional features that improve productivity, communication, and organization. Let’s take a closer look at each essential rating criteria.

Scheduling and planning projects 

The primary function of any free project management software is to plan and schedule projects. Each software on our list is equipped with comprehensive team and individual dashboards. Dashboards will state all assigned tasks, as well as start and end dates. For example, monday.com features more than eight view options and ClickUp offers more than 15. The scheduling and planning function of each software heavily impacted its rating and overall usability. 

At a minimum, your free project management software should incorporate a minimum of three views (Kanban, Gantt, calendar). Kanban is a highly visual, drag-and-drop interface board that separates tasks into different categories, labeling them as “To Do,” “In Progress,” and “Complete” to oversee a continuous workflow. Gantt Charts are much more conventional, using a horizontal axis to depict the project timeline and a vertical axis to depict where individual tasks should occur. Each view offers outstanding benefits as it pertains to project management.

Integrations 

Integrations allow third-party apps to work within the project management software’s ecosystem. For instance, monday.com allows 1000+ app integrations, including examples such as Dropbox, Slack, and Outlook. App integrations provide even more convenience to your team in terms of managing emails, files, and important information. The best free project management software should act as the only place you and your employees need to visit on a daily basis because of the integration capabilities. 

User Interface (UI) 

User interface is the design, functionality, and intuitive nature of a free project management app. Effectively designed user interfaces require minimum effort on the user’s end to receive the maximum desired outcome. The best free project management app has easy-to-understand dashboards, a high-level view of project statuses, assigned team members, start, and end dates. This extends itself to a healthy mix of view and chart types (e.g. calendar, box, Gantt, Kanban). Interfaces should also be uncluttered and visually pleasing on each page.

Monitoring

Successful project management does not rely on a “set it and forget it” approach. In reality, effectively run projects require constant monitoring. Although monitoring is frequently overlooked, it’s an essential part of a project’s lifespan. The best project management software should allow you to create systems for monitoring and evaluating projects, including the ability to organize all data in a centralized view, keep track of different project phases (e.g. Initiation, Planning/Execution), assign responsibilities, and record project bottlenecks. 

Another related aspect to monitoring is the ability to pull reports to measure performance against key performance indicators such as time spent, money spent, or resources dedicated. It’s the best way to understand why project deadlines might not be met.

Reporting

All excellent project management software features real-time reporting capabilities, allowing quick exports of every success metric imaginable from time spent expenses, project budgets, overrun forecasts, and deadline completion percentages by team members. Many of the best project management apps already have pre-defined reports to choose from with lots of customization options.

Cost

Each software on this list has a free plan that offers limited functionality or a free trial. However, most economic options range from $5 to $9 per user per month with the potential for additional a-la-carte style add-ons such as enhanced security/encryption, reports, and the ability to create and access an unlimited number of dashboards. Paid plans usually fall under Standard, Pro, Enterprise, or a combination of these payment types and allow for many more users. Some offer a 14-day free trial, with the ability to extend in some cases with a quick note to the customer support team.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Free Project Management Software

Here are a few common questions we frequently receive about project management software.

Bottom Line on Free Project Management Software

With the rise of remote teams and collaboration, you need project management software to accompany your business. The right free project management software can quickly change a disorganized and dysfunctional business into an optimized and effective one. 

The best free project management software are monday.com and ClickUp. These two services provide a heap of free features that usually require a paid subscription. You’ll have more than enough tools to manage your team and business with these these two free project management software options.

The Best Project Management Software for Startups

The Best Project Management Software for Startups

Managing projects in a business of any size is no simple task. For startups, having the right project management tools can spell the difference between success and failure. In this article, we’ll look at the best project management software for startups and how to select the one you need to take your startup to the next level.

Quick View

Software

Price

Task Management

Personnel Management

Collaboration

Reporting

From $0 to $22.50 per user per month with custom options

Several tools, including Kanban lists and templates

Can see employee availability and quickly assign tasks

Proprietary software that offers transparency and customizability

Profitability charts, time management, billing

Free to $24.80 per user per month, custom plans available

Customizable dashboards, workflows, request forms, and more

Prioritize projects, Gantt charts

File sharing, tasks, and reports instantly

Track projects in real-time with 360° visibility

Free to $17.50 per user per month

Customizable cards using the Kanban boards system

Gantt charts for tracking how far along people and projects are

Every single part of cards can be shared with teammates

New dashboard view offers insights into projects

Free to $25 per user per month, custom options available

Multiple views and automated tasks

Time tracking to follow workloads and billable hours

Discussions to facilitate ideas and take action

Overview and detailed management tools

Free to $30.49 per user per month

Multiple views to sort projects, assign due dates and personnel

Workload charts to show how each user is working among projects

Chat windows available within project tabs

Charts and graphs to pull in any data from any team

Free to $12 per user per month

Collaborative tools between $500 and $2000 per month

Simple, clutter-free, tailor-made interface

Attendance and project tracking tools

Private and group chat, channel posts, events

Prebuilt or custom reporting tools

Flat rate of $45 or $89 per month

Kanban and Gantt charts, calendar, file hub

Timesheets, custom roles, request forms

Discussions section to keep chat content in one place

Detailed resource and project reports in a single click

Free or a flat $99 per month

To-do lists, scheduling, priorities, Gantt charting

Automated check-in questions, time tracking, can create teams and groups

Group chat, instant messaging, message boards

No tools available

Free to $14.50 per user per month, custom options available

Kanban and scrum boards, roadmapping, automation tools

Time and budget planning

No internal integration options for other software

Agile reporting through multiple charts

Free to $10 per user per month, custom options available

Timelines, roadmaps, to-do lists, Kanban lists

Payroll, expense tracking, daily and weekly limits, scheduling, and attendance

Limited to Kanban lists

Easy, customizable report charts

Quick Verdict 

Best Overall – Teamwork. Teamwork offers a range of features that help it find its place in any size business. The software makes it easy to schedule and keep tabs on teams and tasks. With several plan options, Teamwork will scale with you as your company grows.

10 Best Project Management Tools for Startups

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the 10 best project management tools for startups currently available

Teamwork logo

Teamwork

From $0 to $22.50

4.5

As the name implies, Teamwork is a project management tool your team members can rally around to get work done.

Teamwork effectively manages projects through tools such as Kanban task boards and templates with several custom fields. The number available depends on your membership level. The downside to all these project management tools is that team members can’t make changes while offline.

The software makes it easy to see what your entire team is working on at a glance. In the Workload section, you can scan how many different projects each individual is working on and quickly assign team members new tasks as needed.

As a project manager, you can gather information from ongoing projects to study things like profitability, time tracking, and billing. As you manage tasks, these tools are essential in discovering where you’re making the most impact.

Teamwork has team collaboration tools that allow team members to discuss project tasks and share feedback from one convenient location. Collaboration comes in the form of a software add-on included in Teamwork’s paid plans.

Small teams of fewer than five users can make use of Teamwork’s most basic features at no cost. As your group grows, Teamwork can scale with your business by offering more features that cost $12.50 or $22.50 per user on a monthly basis. To test things out, project managers can test Teamwork’s premium features for 30 days without cost.

Bottom Line: 

With access to it all, it’s no wonder that Teamwork is one of the best project management tools out there.

  • Suitable for companies of all sizes.
  • Quick and easy task assignment.
  • Project management templates.
  • Intuitive and flexible.
  • Can’t make changes in offline mode.
Wrike logo

Wrike

Free to $24.80

4.0

Wrike offers stellar project management software for startups and small businesses that grow with your team.

Startup companies can take advantage of Wrike’s free plan that opens the door for unlimited users to make use of limited resources. It’s easy to jump to higher-tier plans at $9.80 or $24.80 per user per month to access the best project management tools the platform has to offer.

Each project management tool has a layer of customization that you can use to fine-tune your team’s specific needs. Once dialed in, it’s possible to view multiple tasks with Gantt charts or a Kanban task board. With so many options, it can be overwhelming at first to overcome the learning curve.

The software makes streamlining team collaboration a breeze by sharing files and tasks in one central location. While team members can chat within the same project, there are no other ways to communicate.

Wrike stands out with its reporting, as project managers can follow project progress in real-time. Detailed reports show project performance and team productivity that help facilitate effective project management.

Bottom Line: 

Wrike scales with enterprise companies to deliver the project management software needed at any stage of the game. Read the complete Wrike review for in-depth analysis.

  • Task tabs allow for team discussion.
  • Suitable for all business sizes.
  • Quick file sharing.
  • Detailed reporting.
  • Steeper learning curve.
  • Limited chat options.
Trello logo

Trello

Free to $17.50

3.6

Trello’s project management system revolves around cards representing task progress that can be grouped into boards for different projects. Users can communicate on each card while providing updates and setting task status. This card approach makes it a breeze to manage tasks individually.

The fact that you can have unlimited cards even on the free plan makes Trello one of the best project management software for startups or small businesses. If you need more task boards or to access Trello’s new views, you’ll need to shell out $6 or $12.50 per user per month.

Speaking of views, Trello now offers the means to monitor progress via timelines, dashboards, and even a calendar to check current and upcoming tasks. The timeline view helps with time tracking, and dashboards are great for reporting.

If you’re going to use Trello, you’d better be a fan of the card system. It’s the only way to view tasks in this particular project management tool. Although tasks can be grouped into different boards, Trello doesn’t allow you or your team members to create subtasks.

At the premium level, the software allows the use of its Butler. Feed Butler your recurring tasks, and it will automate the processes for you. There’s no knowledge of coding required to make use of this service.

Bottom Line: 

Trello is one of the best visual PM software options available with an easy to create and update card system. However, this management software does have limitations that businesses can outgrow.

  • Simple interface.
  • Excellent Kanban tools.
  • Scales well with company growth.
  • Can automate tasks.
  • Limited ways to view projects.
  • Can’t create subtasks.
Nifty PM logo

Nifty

Free to $25

3.9

Nifty’s neat project management software package offers its suite of core features to an unlimited number of team members for free. As sweet as that sounds, you’re limited to just 100 megabytes of file storage and just two projects.

To tap into tools such as time tracking, automation, and unlimited projects, you’ll need to upgrade. Successive tier plans come at $9, $16, or $25 per user every month.

One of Nifty’s star features is the ability to integrate with your other favorite apps such as Slack, Google Calendar, and the Microsoft Suite of products. You may even be able to import tasks from other startup project management software. What Nifty can’t do, one of these other applications should be able to fill in the gaps.

As Nifty is one of the newest project management tools for startups, it still lacks on the feature front. While it offers time tracking, there’s no way for a project manager to look deeper into how different team members are doing without going task by task.

There are also limitations on how much you can customize the projects and the dashboard. The project management tool does have an excellent discussion section for team communication and collaboration.

Bottom Line: 

Although new, Nifty already has some solid task and team management tools. You’ll just need to look past the lack of flexibility to make use of these features.

  • Direct messaging on projects.
  • Multiple project view options.
  • Pricing for businesses of all sizes.
  • Seamlessly integrates with other popular apps.
  • Still new, lacks features.
Asana logo

Asana

Free to $30.49

3.9

Asana is one of the best project management software for startups, with several features available even at the free level. For startup companies of 15 people or less, you’ll get basic reporting, three views, and unlimited projects, tasks, and activity logs.

The most prominent benefits for upgrading to either the Premium plan at $13.49 or the Business plan at $30.49 are automated workflows, advanced reporting, scaled security, and priority support. These benefits make Asana appealing to software development teams.

You can streamline processes and manage multiple projects through up to six viewing options. Each task has a chat option that team members can use to converse. The platform also allows flagging urgent tasks that need immediate attention.

Asana may be a miss for enterprises with just a handful more than 15 employees, as prices escalate quickly. Being able to customize the calendar and view may soften the burn.

Similarly, Asana gives project managers the chance to generate charts and graphs from any team or task to aid in project planning. For on-the-go users, Asana features a convenient mobile app.

Bottom Line: 

Asana makes working with teams a snap with clear resource allocation, unlimited essential tools, and streamline communication.

  • Can assign due dates and priorities to tasks.
  • Create custom calendars and views.
  • Chat option within each task.
  • Uses Kanban view.
  • The price may be high for small teams.
Kissflow Project logo

Kissflow Project

Free to $12

4.0

Kissflow Project enters the mix with simple project management software for startups that’s a joy to look at and surprisingly clutter-free. Newer companies may eat this up, but mid-sized organizations may find the interface a little too basic.

The software platform starts out free to unlimited users while still offering all but the most advanced features. A paid plan to get endless custom views, limitless storage, and advanced reporting will run $5 per user per month. The extra security from the advanced plan will set you back $12 per user monthly.

Besides Project, Kissflow has other products such as Digital Workplace, Procurement Cloud, and Community tools. These integrate seamlessly with Project but come with a significant additional price tag.

In particular, the team collaboration software is some of the best out there, with private and group chat, channel posting, and events. Unfortunately, you’re looking at an extra $500 minimum per month to use it.

The service was known for an abundance of bugs in the past, but many of these are now under control. That won’t stop the occasional error message from appearing, though.

Even so, there are plenty of prebuilt tools for analyzing project timelines, tracking team attendance, and viewing tasks.

Bottom Line: 

Kissflow Project’s simple interface saves time and energy by making the data and information you need easy to locate.

  • Prebuilt tools and automated tasks.
  • Clutter-free interface.
  • On the cheaper side.
  • Kissflow has several other products besides Project.
  • Collaboration tools cost extra.
  • Occasional bugs.
Proofhub logo

ProofHub

$50 or $99

4.2

ProofHub doesn’t have a free option for startups but does offer a relatively uncommon flat rate for its services. You can get access to core features for $50 per month, but ProofHub’s complete package runs $99 per month no matter how many users work with you.

A flat-rate option can speak to companies with a more extensive staff. As most other project management software companies charge upwards of $10 per user for advanced tools, even a business of 10 users can save some money here.

Depending on your needs, just the core features of the project management tool may suffice. The core package includes time tracking, discussion tools for collaboration, project templates, a calendar, announcements, and more. While announcements are a way to share achievements, they can quickly become overwhelming if used too often.

Some of ProofHub’s top features revolve around file sharing and proofing. Files are easy to transfer and remain in a central place for everyone to view. As the team reviews documents, ProofHub adds file versions to track updates.

Custom roles allow the project manager to create an organizational workflow, limiting what users can access. Tasks are visible in either Gantt or Kanban format depending on each user’s preference.

Bottom Line: 

ProofHub shares its features for one flat rate per month while simplifying tasks and working off uploaded documents.

  • Unlimited projects and users for one flat rate.
  • Project proofing.
  • Easy file transfer and storage.
  • Custom roles.
  • Discussions section.
  • Notifications can be overwhelming.
  • Limited customization options.
Basecamp logo

Basecamp

Free or a flat $99

3.5

Basecamp prides itself on being a one-stop-shop for all of the tools your company needs to succeed.

For $99 per month, Basecamp’s entire portfolio of features is made available to you and your team. This one flat rate allows the creation of unlimited projects without placing a limit on the number of users you can have. The rate doesn’t increase no matter how many people you enlist, making Basecamp affordable for large and small businesses alike.

There’s also a free but minimal free version available. You can access basic features with up to 20 users, but all advanced tools are blocked.

The software itself really excels with collaborative tools. Within the platform’s umbrella, your team can chat in real-time privately, in groups, or on a message board.

With the ability to create an unlimited number of projects, you can structure or organize tasks any way you see fit. To-do lists, Gantt charting, and priorities make it easy to see which items need to be addressed first. The downside here is that Basecamp doesn’t allow the creation of task dependencies.

The software doesn’t offer any charts for reporting but provides the means to group your crew into specific groups and teams. With automated check-in questions, you can get updates straight from the source.

Bottom Line: 

Basecamp strives to incorporate everything you’ll need to manage your business at one flat monthly price. For a more comprehensive analysis of Basecamp, read the ultimate Basecamp review.

  • To-do lists.
  • Task history.
  • Flat rate per month.
  • Can assign project priority.
  • No reporting tools.
  • No customization options.
Jira logo

Jira

Free to $14.50

3.7

Jira sets the bar high when it comes to staying on top of timelines and tracking progress. The project management software lets you create a seemingly endless number of reports and charts to ensure goals are being met. Best of all, you can bring all these reporting tools together in a single view with Jira’s dashboard tool.

All this reporting comes at the cost of collaborative tools. Jira lets you assign your staff to different projects using either Kanban or scrum boards, but there’s no way for those users to talk to each other. There are options to integrate with other programs, however.

There’s a free plan available for groups of 10 users or less that comes with basic management tools and limited storage. Jira’s Standard plan at $7.50 per user per month and Premium plan at $14.50 per user per month allow up to 20,000 users and get cheaper with the more team members you have. The number of features grows as you shell out the dough for the higher-tier plans.

In addition to reporting, Jira has an abundance of roadmapping and automation tools to make project management as stress-free and efficient as possible. You don’t need to be a programmer to excel at these features, as everything is handled through a drag and drop method.

Bottom Line: 

Jira’s reporting tools are second to none and marry well with roadmapping features to save you time.

  • Roadmaps for project planning.
  • Bug and issue tracker.
  • Powerful agile reporting.
  • Integrates with many third-party apps.
  • No native collaboration tools.
  • The interface can become cluttered.
Hubstaff logo

Hubstaff

Free to $10

4.0

Hubstaff’s base software is built around time tracking, payroll, and reporting for your team. The system logs hours worked based on activity levels and takes occasional screenshots of employees’ screens.

All this data is viewable through Hubstaff’s detailed and actionable time reports. It’s possible to track individual users or follow the progress of specific tasks your team is assigned to.

Businesses likely won’t benefit from the free option, which only allows for one user. Other plans start at $7 or $10 per user per month, depending on the features you need.

Hubstaff Tasks introduces Kanban lists, roadmaps, automated workflows, and more to make project management that much more straightforward. You’ll even be able to customize the dashboard to see what’s most important to you.

Bottom Line: 

Hubstaff has many impressive features split over multiple platforms, adding significantly to cost.

  • Impressive resource management tools.
  • Personnel scheduling.
  • Screen monitoring.
  • Customizable dashboard.
  • No live chatting.
  • Resource and task management each have monthly costs.

How To Choose Project Management Software for a Startup

Here are the six most important things to consider when choosing a startup project management software:

  1. Scheduling and task management tools
  2. Monitoring
  3. User interface
  4. Cost
  5. Integrations
  6. Resource management

Scheduling and Task Management Tools

Each project management software out there brings its own set of tools to the table. It’s important to factor in how your project management methodologies and business processes match what’s available.

Find something that’s large enough for your team now and in the future while ensuring the tools for both project scheduling and task management live up to your needs.

Monitoring

How much of your team’s progress do you need to see? Some platforms dive deeper into reporting than others with more complex charts and graphs. If preset reporting tools aren’t enough, consider project management software that allows customizability.

User Interface

All the information in the world won’t mean a thing if you can’t make sense of it all. Some project management software for startups provide simple, straightforward, intuitive interfaces that are easy to understand and navigate through. Others offer a more comprehensive approach for those needing to see a lot of data in short order.

Cost

Cost is always a heavy factor when considering the software you choose. Many platforms offer free-to-start plans but often limit available features. No matter where you start, ensure that the free software can scale with your business, both in terms of functionality and price.

Integrations

If you’ve been in business for any length of time, you already have tools you enjoy using and are comfortable with. If you’re not aiming to replace those programs, it’s worth picking out a project management system that will integrate seamlessly with what you already use.

Resource Management

Tracking tasks is only half the battle. It’s just as important to be able to see what each team member is working on to ensure they’re sufficiently loaded with work and have the tools they need to succeed. The best project management software knows this and will allow you to effectively lead your team.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Best PM Software for Startups

Below we tackle some of the top questions about project management software.

Conclusion: Best Project Management Software for Startups

Having the best project management tools at your fingertips can boost your company’s productivity while saving you time in one fell swoop.

Before making a purchase, ensure the software you’re considering meets your needs both now and in the future. We landed on Teamwork as the best project management software available with a large number of features and collaborative tools.

The 10 Best Project Management Tools

The Best 10 Project Management Tools

The best project management tools are the ones that meet your needs. However, the range of options and factors to consider can often be overwhelming. We’ve boiled down some of the most used and best options to help you make an easier, yet still informed decision.

Quick View

Product

Price

Features

Services and Support

Customization and Integrations

Mobile friendly

Free tier, or $13.49 and $30.49 per user per month pay plans.

Generate easy to read graphs, easy to use, lots of collaboration tools

Large library of tutorials and support docs

A range of integrations are available, including particular partnerships with Harvest, Power Bi, and others

Free Android and iOS apps

Free to $17.50 per user per month. Custom options available

Part of Atlassian App Ecosystem. Easy to use drag-and-drop interface, automatically generate reports and charts

Library of help article and tutorials, community help, Premium and Enterprise users get priority support

Lots of ‘Power-Up’ options to connect apps, integrate with Atlassian products

Free Android and iOS apps

Basic tier is free, paid tiers are $9.80 and $24.80.

Time tracking and timesheets, workload charts, branded Workspace

Help docs, video tutorials, submit help tickets

Large library of common integrations

Free Android and iOS app

Free version, Unlimited for $9, Business for $19, and Business Plus for $29 per user per month

Unlimited file storage, branded views, time tracking

Library of docs, tutorials, and videos. Free one-on-one live coaching

Long list of integrations, some reserved for higher tiers. API for custom integrations

Free Android and iOS apps

Free tier and paid tiers for $10, $12, and $20 per user per month

Collaborative documents, workload view, project health status

Library of support docs, videos, and tutorials

Long list of integrations, some limited to higher pay tiers

Free Android and iOS apps

Free plan, pay tier at $16 with optional add-ons or customizable tier

Time tracking and timesheets, collaborative docs, automated risk tracking

Library of support docs and intro webinar.

Short list includes commonly used apps

Free Android and iOS apps

Free or Essentials for $4 per user per month

(Additional features require Microsoft 365 subscription)

Screen sharing, breakout rooms, meeting recordings, and transcripts

Microsoft support

Part of Microsoft 365, integrates with a long list of apps

Free Android and iOS apps

Basic is $8, Plus is $12, and Pro is $18 per user per month

Real-time chat, ‘Catch-up’ action log, add new tasks via email

Sparse library of videos and docs, email support

Handful of integrations, more through Zapier

Free Android and iOS app

Starter is $19, Business is $65, and Professional is $129 per user per month

‘Roadmaps’ to organize projects, reviewers can provide feedback, customer feedback portal

Training videos, help docs, live-chat support

Integrates with AzureOS and Jira, API for custom integrations

No mobile app

Free or paid plans at $5.50 or $10.50 per user per month

Plan projects in collaborative ‘pages‘, track page history, embed Jira roadmaps

Large library of guides, videos, and tutorials. Message support

Integrates with Atlassian apps. Loads of integrations and apps

Free Android and iOS apps

Quick Verdict

Best Overall – Asana. It’s easy to use with a range of valuable tools. Among the highlights are easy to create charts with status updates and a wide range of support options.

The 10 Best Project Management Tools

We’ve reviewed some of the best project management software options out there so you can find the right one for your business.

Asana logo

Asana

$0 to $30.49

4.4

There are few project management platforms that tend to show up a lot, Asana being one of the most common. It’s not just a coincidence. Asana is easy to use and offers some of the best project management tools available. It can work for small teams or scale to larger companies.

One of the most useful tools to the average project manager may be the Status Update feature. With it, you can easily generate graphics detailing project progress, workload, and a number of other key factors. You can also share them with team members, clients, or whoever you choose.

Bottom Line:

While a bit more expensive than some options, Asana can help keep control of even the most complex projects. Read our Asana review to learn more about its features and pricing.

  • Automatically generate attractive graphs and charts
  • Easy to use
  • Large library of tutorials, courses, and other support docs
  • Relatively expensive
Trello logo

Trello

Free to $12.50

4.2

Visit

Many people may be more familiar with another Atlassian project management offering, Jira. Trello isn’t as heavyweight an app, primarily offering a Kanban-style board with some additions. It might work best for small project teams that follow an Agile approach, but don’t need all the bells and whistles to keep things organized.

The features Trello does offer are useful and make it easy to see a project’s status at a glance. In particular, automations are easy to use and set up. 

Bottom Line:

Trello offers a streamlined project management app suited for small projects.

  • Kanban board-based design
  • Labels help organize at a glance
  • Easy to use automations
  • Limited tools
Wrike logo

Wrike

Free to $24.80

4.0

Wrike just updated their interface, moving more information to the default view. As a result, you can see your inbox, list of to-dos, and current tasks all without clicking a button. It may sound overwhelming, but it’s actually nicely arranged in an easy-to-understand format.

Otherwise, Wrike follows a pretty standard model for online project management software. There are plenty of reporting options, including resource management, project planning, and tracking time. One nice Wrike feature is the ability to track time to specific tasks, making this the best project management software with time tracking on our list.

Bottom Line:

Wrike is well designed, with lots of useful features, though on the more expensive side. Read the Wrike review if you’re interested in this software.

  • Easy to navigate
  • Customizable reports
  • Track time on specific tasks
  • Pricey
Clickup logo

ClickUp

Free to $29

4.0

ClickUp is loaded with a number of helpful task management features, including native time tracking on tasks. One nice feature is the ability to create collaborative docs and wikis within the app, building a knowledge base for your project. 

Options for collaboration include proofing and document editing, and recording videos in-app. Other features are fairly standard for project management software, including project templates, task management, tracking, and analytics. To know more about its pricing and features, check out our ClickUp review.

  • Lots of support options
  • Create a wiki for your project
  • Onboarding guides and services
  • Limited uses of some features on lower tiers
Monday logo

monday.com

$0 to $20

3.8

Monday is one of the better-known and well-established project management apps out there. It offers a number of features like to-do lists, collaborative documents, and task assignments that can help keep complex projects organized. There are also options for communicating with team members either in groups or across your organization. 

However, a lot of useful features are reserved for more expensive tiers, like unlimited users, integration, dependencies, and others. While it may seem less expensive than a competitor like Asana, you’ll actually pay about the same for similar levels of service. As a result, it probably makes the most sense for larger teams that both need and can afford those costs.

Bottom Line:

Monday.com offers high-quality, if standard, features for a slightly higher cost. Read the monday.com review if you’re interested in going for this tool or the Monday vs Asana article.

  • Well established
  • Lots of useful tools
  • Multiple ways to view info
  • Useful tools reserved for costlier plans
Hive logo

Hive

$0 to $16

3.5

Hive has a reasonably simple interface, though as with most project management tools, there is a learning curve. The basics include assigning ‘actions’ and mapping out deadlines with Gantt charts. There is also a collaborative document that can be used for brainstorming and to-do lists, among other things. 

Additional features can be added with apps and integrations. The number of integrations is quite small, but the ones on offer connect painlessly to your workspace.

The downside may be the pricing structure. There’s only the free Solo plan, paid Teams plan, and the Enterprise plan. Some Enterprise features can be added to a Teams subscription ala carte, and there is a small additional fee for each one. That could allow you to tailor your cost to your budget, but also pressure your project manager to do without and save money.

Bottom Line:

Hive is a nice platform with an unusual pricing structure, but a great advantage is that you can pay for individual services to tailor features to your needs.

  • Tracking time options included
  • Lots of features included with Hive Solo
  • Tools for deliverable proofing and approval
  • Complicated pricing structure
Microsoft Teams logo

Microsoft Teams

Free

3.4

Microsoft is ubiquitous in the business world, which can make using their product a no-brainer. While the brand name can prompt a few rants, the approach to software is already very familiar to most people. However, Teams isn’t a set of desktop and online project management tools. Microsoft Project fills that slot. Instead, Teams is a platform for teleconferencing and collaboration.

Despite that, Teams can work as a PM platform, as it integrates with a lot of common tools and also provides storage for project data through OneDrive.

Bottom Line:

Teams is an industry-standard for collaborating with team members, but may not have all the features a business needs in a project management platform.

  • Easy to use teleconferencing
  • Screen sharing, file sharing, and transcripts
  • Part of Microsoft 365
  • Doesn’t offer a number of project management features
  • Focused on team communication
Flow PM favicon

Flow

$8 to $18

3.3

Several project management software options have updated their offerings in the last few years, including Asana and Wrike. Flow X, the newest iteration, was released in September 2021. It includes useful additional features like task priority and deadlines to help manage project timelines. Messaging and other new project management tools for collaboration have also been added.

Bottom Line:

Flow was once a personal productivity app that has grown into a full-blown project management platform.

  • Workload by employee, team, or company
  • Lower cost
  • 30-day free trial
  • No free tier
  • Fewer support documents
Roadmunk logo

Roadmunk

$19 to $129

3.0

Many other project management software options try to remain flexible, while Roadmunk specializes in product management. It offers project management tools focused for that type of business, including a portal for customer feedback and tools for prioritizing new ideas.

The software offers plenty of team collaboration features and schedule visualization tools. Project managers can rank tasks according to priority, and manage teams by assigning permission levels to each member. 

Bottom Line:

Roadmunk offers a complete project management system for creating, releasing, and updating software products.

  • Chrome extension
  • Tools for idea prioritization
  • Handles customer feedback
  • No mobile apps
  • Expensive
Confluence logo

Confluence

Free to $10.50

3.0

The standard, modern project management tool focuses on tasks and uses those as building blocks. It makes sense, but Confluence has a different take on how to manage projects. The project is the basic unit, with a page detailing the goal and steps along the way. Graphics, to-do lists, and other features are added to the page by team members with a range of easy-to-use tools.

For some teams, it might be a confusing way to work. However, it may work well for many projects, particularly creative tasks. 

Bottom Line:

Confluence takes a holistic view of a project that may work well for creative teams. Read our in-depth review on Confluence to find out if it’s the right choice for you.

  • Based on pages rather than tasks.
  • Spaces, sub-pages, and page trees keep things organized.
  • Easy to use automations.
  • Dedicated IP address.
  • Unusual format.

Key Features of a Good Project Management Tool

While the offer to help you manage unlimited projects is a little grandiose, comprehensive project management software can actually make successful projects more likely. All the features they offer can help you manage tasks, track dates, and allow project tracking in a way that once required a large staff and reams of paper. 

Most platforms put their attention on project tasks, but it’s how those tasks are used, discussed, and reported that makes a quality project management tool.

Team Management

Most project management tools focus on managing your team to some degree. Whether you’re trying to communicate with your entire team, assign tasks, or manage their time with resource allocation tools, figuring out how to best use their talents is what makes a project a success. 

Project Delivery Management

Managers often have to take a larger view, as part of their job may involve project portfolio management. As a result, tools that aid in project planning and balancing multiple projects are vital. 

Methodology Suitability

Agile development has taken over in many sectors of business, while in others, traditional project management will probably always be on top. Many organizations are embracing hybrid approaches of one sort or another. Whatever your preference, the best project management platform is one that offers features for the methodology you use.

Risk Management

Risk can mean different things, like issue tracking in the software development process or production delays in manufacturing. Whatever it means to your project, good project management tools don’t just track progress, they help interpret project details and understand the causes of risk.

Reporting

One of the most important project management features is the ability to display information in a clear, understandable way. Gantt charts are often just the start. A quality project management tool can help you understand project progress, resource use, and a host of other factors that are required for informed decision-making. 

Perhaps even more importantly, good reporting tools help you communicate those factors to stakeholders and team members. 

Finance Management

Perhaps surprisingly, many project management platforms don’t include specific tools for expense tracking, billing, and other financial tasks. In many cases, it’s possible to use different project management tools instead. However, you may find that some platforms integrate with financial tools that you already use, making them more efficient and attractive options.

Collaboration and Communication

Good project management software in modern business requires far more than just task management. It is also often a key collaboration tool, serving as a meeting place and method of communication. Generally speaking, the more team collaboration tools a platform offers, and the easier they are for project team members to use, the better.

Integration With Other Apps

Even the right project management software, the perfect option for your needs, might not have every feature you’d like. The easiest way to pull in a new project management tool is often an integration. Additionally, you may find that some platforms work with apps you already use.

Usability

The ease of using a project management tool is obviously important, though a certain degree of complexity may be inevitable. Perhaps more importantly is whether the tool helps your team complete tasks by fostering team collaboration, reminding them of recurring tasks, and a host of other day-to-day features.

Support

The support offered by a platform is often an important factor for project managers to consider. Managing projects is hard when your PM software keeps going down. A team member flailingly trying to understand a feature is a drain on time and resources. Both ends of the support spectrum are important to keep in mind.

Privacy

Great project management software isn’t so great if your information isn’t secure and under your control. In an age of cloud computing, adequate security is important to everyone.

Choosing the Best Project Management Tool

A project manager often has to use whatever online project management tool their company has chosen. However, when you get the chance to make that decision, follow a few simple steps to find the best project management tools for you:

  • Shortlist features that are important for you
  • Define what good project management is for your team
  • Consider costs and fees

Shortlist Features That Are Important for You

A good project management app will have the features that meet your team’s needs. The best tool for software development teams may not be the best project management software for startups, for example. The best construction project management software would probably be different than either of those.

Define What Good Project Management Is for Your Team

Project managers often have their own approach to problems and it’s important to find a platform that reflects that approach. Are you looking for an option for business process management software, or do you need help herding cats on a creative project?

Consider Costs and Fees

Consider the size of your team and your project planning needs. For individuals and smaller projects, the free plan for project management software tools may be all you need. There are also a range of price points for PM software, so look for one that meets your needs and budget.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Best Project Management Tools

Conclusion: Best Project Management Tools

It would be nice if free project management software covered all the bases, but just about all of the most important tools come with a cost. Managing that cost and choosing the platform that fits your needs is the first step to successfully managing a project. 

The Ultimate monday.com Review – Pricing, Features & More

Monday.com logo

Work operating system (OS) monday.com is popular among companies because it improves the way teams manage and monitor projects. It focuses on project management, which is critical to the success of any business. 

monday.com is a potential option for you and your team if you wish to level up your project management methodology, especially if you need a user-friendly, customizable platform to complete multiple business projects. It is well known for its excellent collaboration and integration features.

This project management tool empowers you and your team to complete long-term and short-term projects in an organized, operational efficiency way. Learn about the product’s features, advantages, and disadvantages in this monday.com review.

Our Verdict

Monday logo

monday.com at a Glance

Free to  $22+ per seat/month

monday.com is an adobe creative cloud based OS which is mainly used for project management. Since it is code-free, it makes it simple for you to design workflow apps for your business. These apps can be used to handle your daily routines and responsibilities.

This tool includes workflow templates you can customize to manage your projects with ease. It reduces the manual work of your team by automating some of your key task management. Plus, this flexible platform may be adjusted based on the evolving needs of your business. You can even integrate it with well-known tools and apps to speed up your operations.

monday.com grants you the opportunity to collaborate with your team in a joint workspace. You can use it to track the time of your employees so you can motivate them to meet deadlines. The dashboards provide insightful data which gives you an overview of the progress of your multiple work projects.

monday.com is one of the best options in the global IT project and portfolio management market, a thriving industry which gained a total estimated revenue of $3.88 billion in 2019. At present, over 100,000 teams all over the globe use monday.com to streamline their work processes. After reading this monday.com software review, you can decide for yourself if this product is a perfect fit for your team or not.

  • Modern user interface (UI) is easy to use and navigate
  • Highly customizable features 
  • Ideal for managing ongoing work for multiple projects
  • Confusing pricing of plans
  • Slow customer support 
  • Best features only available with upper tiers of paid plans

Who monday.com Is Best For

monday.com is best for business teams, managers, and owners who want to become more productive and efficient in the workplace. It is recommended for you if you need to manage several long-term projects that are in progress, not just short-term projects. It can guide you in setting your group project goals and in planning how to achieve these goals through specific tasks. 

It is also advisable for you if you would like to establish a culture of openness and transparency among your employees because its multiple project view feature keeps everyone updated on the progress of the whole team. monday.com is a smart choice for you if you needa project management work OS that is easy to use yet feature-packed at the same time.

monday.com Pricing

monday.com offers five plans that vary in terms of pricing and features. Compare the different project management plans to find the right one that matches the budget and needs of your business.

Monday logo

Individual

Basic

Standard

Pro

Enterprise

Price

Free (Up to 2 seats only)

$6 per seat / month

$10 per seat / month

$22 per seat / month

Contact monday.com for pricing

Project Tools

  • Unlimited boards
  • Unlimited documents
  • Unlimited boards
  • Unlimited documents
  • Projects, viewers, and shareable forms
  • Unlimited boards
  • Unlimited documents
  • Projects, viewers, and shareable forms
  • Gantt charts
  • Unlimited boards
  • Unlimited documents
  • Projects, viewers, and shareable forms
  • Gantt charts
  • Unlimited private boards
  • Unlimited boards
  • Unlimited documents
  • Projects, viewers, and shareable forms
  • Gantt charts
  • Unlimited private boards
  • Tailored onboarding

Automations

N/A

N/A

250 actions every month

25,000 actions every month

Enterprise-scale automations

Integration Actions

N/A

N/A

250 actions every month

25,000 actions every month

Advanced integrations

Integration Compatibility

Android and iOS apps

Android and iOS apps

  • Android and iOS apps
  • Outlook or Gmail email
  • Google or Outlook  calendar
  • Android and iOS apps
  • Outlook or Gmail email
  • Outlook or Gmail  calendar
  • Microsoft Teams
  • Slack
  • Todoist
  • Android and iOS apps
  • Outlook or Gmail email
  • Google or Outlook  calendar
  • Microsoft Teams
  • Slack
  • Todoist
  • Salesforce
  • Jira

Analytics and Reporting

N/A

N/A

Basic analytics and reporting dashboards

Powerful analytics and reporting dashboards

Advanced analytics and reporting

Project Portfolio Management

N/A

N/A

Simple project portfolio management

Advanced project portfolio management

Advanced project portfolio management plus Premium Support

To be realistic, the pricing of monday.com can be slightly confusing because the monthly cost of each plan can fluctuate depending on how many team members will be using it. Make sure to read the terms thoroughly so you can properly compute the estimated cost if you are interested in subscribing to a plan.

Check out the summary of the monday.com packages so you can select the plan that works best for your business:

  1. Individual: It is ideal for professionals who wish to keep track of their individual work.
  2. Basic: This is suitable for teams who would like to collaborate on simple projects and shared weekly tasks.
  3. Standard: It is widely used among groups that require visual tools and automation for intermediate project planning and monitoring.
  4. Pro: We recommend this for teams that need professional and analytical tools and automation to manage complex projects.
  5. Enterprise: It’s best for teams that can benefit from enterprise-grade business workflows and analytics combined with Premium unlimited support.

monday.com Features

Let’s take a closer look at the key features of the work OS in this monday.com project management review. We will discuss the user interface, multiple project views, time tracking, customizable templates, integrations, customer support, automation, and customizable dashboards features of monday.com. 

User Interface

The UI of monday.com showcases building blocks which enables business teams to create or customize project plans in a visual way. It has adjustable tabs and color-coding options which let you organize your tasks into groups. Transferring and arranging data is a breeze because you can drag-and-drop or copy-and-paste content from table to table. Plus, this UI has a modern, trendy design that is aesthetically pleasing. 

Multiple Project Views

monday.com lets you view multiple projects at the same time so you can stay updated on your team’s progress. You can create a central timeline which gives you a handy overview of team members, activities, project details, deadlines, and milestones. The broad visibility options also make it possible for you to assess your projects through the Kanban board, Gantt chart, workload, or calendar.

Time Tracking

The time tracking feature of monday.com makes it possible for you to evaluate how much time each team member spends on specific tasks for particular projects.It can be used to measure boost productivity of employees in the office, but it is especially useful in gauging the efficiency of remote workers. This data can give you insight into how to streamline your work processes in the future.

Customizable Templates

The customizable templates are one of the foundational features of monday.com. You can adjust these ready-made guides for your business based on its size and type, as well as the industry you belong to. These templates can be helpful for various workflows, such as project management, marketing, design, software development, HR, sales professionals, and CRM.

Personalized templates make it possible for you to organize your existing contacts, gain new leads, and monitor sales within one central location. These tools motivate you to conceptualize and brainstorm marketing and advertising campaigns through visual techniques. The templates also allow you to oversee your content initiatives through a single calendar.

Integrations

Integrations are one of the notable advantages of monday.com. Aside from being highly functional in its own right, it grants you the opportunity to tap into a vast pool of features of multiple software programs. Its ability to integrate with more than 50 different applications is crucial since you need the combined power of a variety of systems to start and complete work projects.

Connect monday.com to simple programs you use daily to complete basic office tasks, such as Google or Outlook calendar and Gmail or Outlook email. It can also sync with certain Android and iOS apps on your smartphone even when you are on the go. You can use it to coordinate with your team through Slack, Todoist, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, or Jira. Just take note that while basic integrations are available for all packages, advanced integrations are only accessible for plans with premium pricing.

Customer Support

monday.com offers 24/7 support to customers. Nevertheless, the speed of customer support may be considered as slow-paced by modern standards. On average, the support team of monday.com typically replies in less than an hour. However, you may need a quicker response because  technical difficulties can hinder your work productivity.

Automation

monday.com lets you save time by automating some of your work tasks. As soon as one of your team members submits a project idea, the approval group gets a notification. Once the project budget is approved, the project owner gets informed right away. Your entire team gets a notification when the due date finally arrives, while the project owner is alerted in case a task becomes overdue.

Customizable Dashboards

The customizable dashboards of monday.com can be tweaked according to the requirements of your business projects. You can gain insights and big picture through the data that is strategically displayed via the dashboards. You can transform these insights into concrete actions by making informed choices that are based on solid facts, not just on intuition. It will be more convenient for you to access your data by consolidating them into a single, secure platform.

monday.com Customer Reviews

Overall, monday.com has fairly positive customer reviews from G2 and TrustRadius. G2 reviewers commend it for its task prioritization, due dates, and project creation features, although they acknowledge its limitations in terms of critical path and resource allocation. TrustRadius reviewers approve of its board sharing and information sharing capacity, while pointing out its lack of features and adoption features for some apps.

Alternatives to monday.com

You might be interested in other alternatives to monday.com if you are looking for project management software with a lower pricing. Discover how monday.com stacks up to the competition.

Microsoft Project

Microsoft Project is a project management app that is suitable for business teams who need to manage simple and complex projects. monday.com has an edge over Microsoft Project because it is more affordable and it has more collaboration features.

Pricing: $10-$55 per user / month

Wrike

Wrike is a project management software that is appropriate for entrepreneurs that require a simple UI, accurate time tracking, and customizable feature sets. Wrike has a broad range of features like monday.com, but the work OS is less expensive than Wrike.

Pricing: Free to $24.80+ per user / month

ClickUp

ClickUp is aproductivity platform that is ideal for professional teams with team management who wish to simplify the way that they handle work anytime projects. ClickUp is a competitor to watch out for since it has more functions than monday.com, plus it has a lower pricing scheme too.

Pricing: Free to $19+ per member / month

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for monday.com Review

Find out the answers to the most frequently asked questions about monday.com.

Bottom Line on monday.com Review

Overall, monday.com is a work OS with impressive project management features, although it has a few limitations as well. You and your business teams create workflow apps and may consider monday.com as a viable option if you are serious about enhancing the way that you manage and keep track of your multiple work projects. 

Trello vs Asana: Pricing, Features & Ease of Use Comparison

Trello vs Asana

It’s the clash of the titans as we weigh Trello vs Asana, two giants within the project management industry. If you’re searching for the right project management software, it’s virtually impossible to not come across the two. 

Trello and Asana are popular among a range of world-renowned companies. Both can be pretty attractive options with their remarkable user-friendliness and enticing free plans. This makes your choice all the much more difficult. But relax, we’ve done the research for you. Continue reading as we bring Trello vs Asana head-to-head to find which of the two is the better choice. 

Trello logo

Trello: Best for Kanban-style Project Management

Trello offers Kanban board-based project management where you can organize tasks and collaborate with your team with ease. It has a very simple and easy-to-use interface but it lacks advanced management features

Trello is a great choice if you want to visualize your project operations on a large board with multiple lists and cards. It offers a range of integrations as well as automation options to streamline managerial tasks. Creating automation rules is relatively easier too.

  • Very simple to use
  • Visual project progression
  • Easy to onboard new members
  • Offers basic management features
  • No financial management tools
  • Not viable for large projects

Pricing

  1. Free plan
  2. Standard plan starting at $5/user/month
  3. Premium plan starting at $10/user/month
  4. Enterprise plan starting at $7.38 to 17.50/user/month
Screenshot of Trello pricing plans
The Enterprise plan calculator gives you an accurate estimate of what it’ll cost for your company.
Asana logo

Asana: Best for Flexibility and Customization

Asana uses a basic, task-based approach to project management. It lets users manage their workflow with ease by dividing tasks according to themes and in time-related segments: Today, Upcoming, and Later.

Asana has a much broader feature set and is great for small teams following agile project management. It offers multiple management styles including task lists, Gantt charts, and Kanban boards. This project management software also comes with ready-made templates you can use to design your project and also lets you create custom templates.

  • Offers workload management
  • Smart project-focused interface
  • Various management features
  • No financial management tools
  • Assigns tasks to one user only
  • Steeper learning curve

Pricing

  1. Basic plan – free 
  2. Premium plan starting at $10.99/user/month
  3. Business plan starting at $24.99/user/month
Screenshot of Asana pricing plans
Asana’s features are worth the price tag.

Trello vs Asana – Pricing & Features Comparison 

Trello uses intuitive drag-and-drop functionality to move cards between lists and boards. You can comment on cards, assign them to users and automate functions with rules. It’s cheaper than Asana but lacks advanced management features. 

Asana, on the other hand, is a bit more expensive but its price is justified with the range of powerful features it comes with. It offers a great user experience, greater flexibility, and comes with basic reporting features. Being a complete project management suite, Asana trumps Trello in most departments.

Plan

Trello logo

Trello Free

Trello logo

Trello Standard

Trello logo

Trello Premium

Trello logo

Trello Enterprise

Asana logo

Asana Basic

Asana logo

Asana Premium

Asana logo

Asana Business

Price

Free

$5/user/mo

$10/user/mo

$7-17/user/mo

Free

$10.99/user/mo

$24.99/use/mo

Free trial

N/A

14-day

N/A

30-day

30-day

No. of users

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

15

Unlimited free guests

Unlimited free guests

No. of boards/projects

10 boards per workspace

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Ease of use

Easiest PM software to use. Intuitive drag-and-drop interface.

Easiest PM software to use. Intuitive drag-and-drop interface.

Easiest PM software to use. Intuitive drag-and-drop interface.

Easiest PM software to use. Intuitive drag-and-drop interface.

Easy to use. Has a powerful and refined interface.

Easy to use. Has a powerful and refined interface.

Easy to use. Has a powerful and refined interface.

Storage

Unlimited (10MB/file)

Unlimited (250MB/file)

Unlimited (250MB/file)

Unlimited (250MB/file)

Unlimited (100MB/file)

Unlimited (100MB/file)

Unlimited (100MB/file)

Kanban boards

Gantt charts

Calendar

Reports

Messaging

Time tracking

Color coding

Integrations

Slack, Salesforce, Google Drive, Jira, Adobe XD and 100+ others

Slack, Salesforce, Google Drive, Jira, Adobe XD and 100+ others

Slack, Salesforce, Google Drive, Jira, Adobe XD and 100+ others

Slack, Salesforce, Google Drive, Jira, Adobe XD and 100+ others

Jira, Zoom, Salesforce, Google Drive, Microsoft Teams and 100+ others

Jira, Zoom, Salesforce, Google Drive, Microsoft Teams and 100+ others

Jira, Zoom, Salesforce, Google Drive, Microsoft Teams and 100+ others

Customer support

Online forum support

Phone and concierge support

Phone and concierge support

Phone and concierge support

Support Tickets

Support Tickets

Priority phone support

Winner: Asana – It takes the lead when it comes to advanced project management. Asana is a better project management software than Trello in terms of features, flexibility, customizability, and dependency management.

Asana vs Trello: Ease of Use

A smooth UX is crucial for any project management software. The software solution you choose should be easy to operate so that you and your team can get quickly down to the real deal. Asana and Trello are known for their amazing user experience. That’s probably why they’re at the top when it comes to the best project management software. But which of the two is easier to use?

Trello – Simplest Project Management Software

Experts consider Trello to be the easiest to use among the many project management software. Since it uses a highly intuitive Kanban board style, you can easily understand how everything works from the get-go. But that’s also because Trello doesn’t offer a lot of advanced features. One could say that its ease-of-use stems from its simplicity.

Example of a Trello board
Trello gives you an accurate visual representation of your project’s progression
Source: Trello

It’s easy to move cards around using the drag-and-drop function. Other features like comments, assigning users, and setting due dates are all easily accessible. When it comes to automation, Trello attempts to simplify its architecture so everyone can create custom rules. But that’s not always the case, as there’s a limit to what you can automate. 

Asana – Incredible UX with Powerful Features

It’s not easy to combine advanced management features with an easy-to-use interface. But that’s exactly what Asana has managed to do. It uses a traditional project management software layout but makes sure users can use all functions with little or no training.

Asana User interface
A power-packed interface.
Source: Asana

Asana puts much more effort into keeping things simple and smooth. It’s not as visually-oriented as Trello, but it tries to keep things as it gives you a range of task management views to select from when planning your project. This makes it convenient for managers who want to work on different projects. 

Winner: Trello – a great tool for beginners and simple projects. 

Trello vs Asana: Dependency Management

This is a crucial feature for you if you want to follow the waterfall methodology with your project. Some projects require tasks to be completed in chronological order. This means you can’t start on the next task before the previous one is complete.

Trello Dependency Management

Trello doesn’t do very well in this department. It doesn’t have a built-in feature to manage task dependencies. You can add a dependency management feature to your Trello boards with a power-up (integration), Hello Epics. But this comes at an additional cost.

Asana Dependency Management

Dependency management is an area where Asana works better than Trello because you can specify which tasks need to be completed before others can begin.

Screenshot of Asana dependency management
Asana lets you draw dependencies between tasks.
Source: Asana

The timeline view helps identify any bottlenecks or problems where people are idle waiting for other tasks to get done. Asana actually lets you organize these dependencies to solve such problems.

Winner: Asana – Asana has built-in dependency management features while Trello doesn’t. 

Trello vs Asana: Project Management Views

Project management views offered by the software matter a lot when you have a specific management style. Ideally, you should be able to switch between different views to suit different projects.

Trello PM View

Trello’s free and standard plans offer the traditional Kanban board view only. You can add additional views with power-ups but at an additional cost. The premium and enterprise plans offer a range of management views including dashboard, timeline, workspace table, calendar, workspace calendar, and map views. 

Asana PM View

Asana offers a greater range of built-in project management views with its free plan. You can visualize your project with a board view, list view, or calendar view in the basic plan. The premium plan comes with a timeline view, forms view, and a few others. 

Winner: Asana – It has a range of PM views while Trello offers a Kanban board view only.

Asana vs Trello: Integrations

3rd party integrations are of core importance when evaluating a cloud-based service. The better it integrates with the software you already use, the more useful it is for you. Let’s see how Asana and Trello match up in terms of integrations. 

Trello Power-Ups

Trello integrates with other software tools through Power-Ups. It has recently made its Power-Ups unlimited to all users. With more than 130 integrations with different apps, Trello lets you streamline your work operations. Some of its most popular integrations include Jira, Time Tracker by TimeCamp, Crumble, Microsoft Teams, Gmail, Google Drive, and Slack.

Screenshot of Trello Power-ups page
Oh! There’s an Asana + Trello Power-Up too!
Source: Trello

Trello’s Power-Ups often come at an additional cost which keeps adding up to the total project management cost.

Asana Integrations

Asana integrates with more than 200 apps. These cover a range of software categories including productivity, communication, finance, reporting, and human resources. Some of the most popular Asana integrations are Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Office 365, Adobe Creative Cloud, Slack, Google Drive, Dropbox, Vimeo, and Canva.

Visual representation of Asana integrations
Asana has plenty of integration options.
Source: Asana

Winner: Tie – Both Trello and Asana have a healthy number of integrations with different apps. 

Trello vs Asana: Sharing & Collaboration

Sharing and collaboration are what project management tools are built for. The right software should let all members of your team collaborate with ease. It should also let you share your project with guest users in case you want clients to be able to monitor the progress.

Trello

Trello gives you a basic collaboration ability. It lets you assign tasks to users and add comments to cards. The comments feature lets all members of the team participate in co-creating a deliverable. You can also add an unlimited number of users to a board even if you have the free plan. 

You can also invite an unlimited number of guests to your Trello boards. But a lot of users or guests is not always practical because there’s a limit to what Trello can handle. It’s not a great management software for larger, more complex projects so you might never need more than 10-15 members on board. 

Asana

Asana’s free plan lets you work with a maximum of 15 users with the basic plan. You’d have to purchase the premium plan if you need to add more members. It lets you share your entire team and projects externally. The premium and free plans let you add unlimited free guests and reporting across multiple projects to easily share progress reports with clients. 

Winner: Asana – It lets you share and collaborate on a larger scale than Trello.

Trello vs Asana: Customer Service

Although both management tools are pretty easy to use and there’s very little chance you’d find yourself stuck while using them, customer service is still an important factor. A responsive customer support team matters, no matter what software you’re using. 

Some teammates may find it tough to use specific features such as automation rules on Trello or syncing another app with Asana. You wouldn’t want your work operations to come to a halt just because you can’t seem to figure out how a feature works and the support team is taking too long to respond. 

Trello Customer Support

Trello has an online forum for free users. While the forum is a valuable resource, it’s not always the quickest way to find a solution. Paid users get phone and concierge support to get their issues resolved by the support team and are only available during office hours, Eastern Time, Monday to Friday.

Asana Customer Support

Free and Premium users can get in touch with the customer service team through support tickets. This means you submit a form or email to communicate your issue and this is not always the fastest option. Only enterprise users get priority phone support

Winner: Tie – Both Trello and Asana’s customer service teams have a similar performance. 

Customer Reviews

Customers are always a great source of information when reviewing a project management software. Customer reviews give you first-hand information on what a software is good at, where it needs improvement and how it has helped their team. Here’s a brief overview of Trello and Asana’s customer reviews from some of the top software reviewing platforms. 

Trello Customer Reviews

Trello scores a healthy 4.4/5 average rating for its 12,500 reviews on G2, and an 8.4/10 with 2000+ reviews on TrustRadius. A vast majority of customer reviews share positive feedback on the software, especially for its interface and ease of use. 

Asana Customer Reviews

Asana has a 4.3/5 with 8000+ reviews on G2 and a TrustRadius score of 8.5/10 with 1800+ reviews. Although it hasn’t been as widely reviewed as Trello, we can consider the customer reviews to be a tie among the two. Customers mostly praise Asana for its ease-of-use, flexibility, and team management features.

Winner: Tie – Both Trello and Asana share similar customer review scores. 

Trello & Asana Alternatives

Wrike gives you greater customizability and works for all types and sizes of businesses. It offers a wide range of project management features. Its price may be a bit higher, but the functionality is worth it. This in-depth review on Wrike summarizes all you need to know about it.

  • Specialized marketing, creative, and services delivery team packages
  • Offers in-built time tracking 
  • Analytics tool generates charts automatically
  • Costlier than other PM software
  • Templates can’t remove all options
  • Can’t prioritize tasks

Pricing

  1. Free version.
  2. Professional Plan: $9.80/user/month.
  3. Business Plan: $24.80/user/month.
  4. Enterprise Plan: Inquire for price.

ClickUp is a leading project management platform. It suits teams of all sizes and is excellent for those working remotely. You can create spaces for different projects with ease and add teams to them accordingly.

  • Lower cost
  • Better support options
  • Free version offers a lot of features
  • Slows down when you use too many ClickApps 
  • Complicated interface
  • Lacks workflow management

Pricing

  1. Free
  2. Unlimited: $5/user/month
  3. Business: $12/user/month
  4. Business Plus: $19/user/month
  5. Enterprise: Inquire for price.

Microsoft Project is one of the oldest PM software out there. It has been the go-to management tool for many industry-leading companies for decades. But it’s not as easy to use. MS Project is best for experienced project managers.

  • Offers projections, baselines, and other features
  • Review all your projects at once
  • Advanced project management features
  • Expensive
  • Steep learning curve
  • Slow customer support

Pricing

  1. Plan 1:$10/user/month
  2. Plan 3: $30/user/month
  3. Plan 5: $55/user/month

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Trello vs Asana

Bottom Line on Trello vs Asana

Asana is a better project management software than Trello in terms of features, flexibility, customizability, and dependency management. Trello is much more limited in the management features its offers, but its simple Kanban board interface makes it a popular choice for beginners and simple projects. 

Choose Asana if you have a larger team and want to work on different projects with different management styles. The cost is a bit higher but its features compensate for it. On the other hand, if you prefer visual organization and like a board-based management style, Trello can prove to be an excellent choice.

The Complete Asana Review: Sophisticated and Easy to Use

Asana review

Many project management techniques were once reserved for large projects with lots of resources. However, many of those techniques can now be easily and painlessly accessed by anyone, using one of a range of cloud-based project management tools. Asana is one of the more popular options, with a reputation for being easy to use.

Asana logo

Being easy to use is great, but does it also offer all the important features you need to organize your project, at an affordable price? Check out our Asana review to find out if it’s a good match for your needs.

5 Things That Make Asana Stand Out From the Crowd

  • Intuitive and easy to use.
  • Combines ease of use with high-powered tools for organizing projects.
  • Attractive, easy to assemble status updates, charts, and other reporting options.
  • Easily track the progress of several different projects.
  • Create or edit tasks from nearly any project view.

Where Asana Falls Short

  • More expensive than some other options.
  • You may need to pay for more expensive tiers of service for timely support.

Pricing

Asana may not exactly qualify as cheap project management software, but it provides value for money if you need a versatile project management tool. There is a free version that is great for organizing an individual or basic project. You’ll need to upgrade to one of the pay plans for many important features, like task start and end dates, or business quality reporting and analytics. Options include:

  • Asana Basic: $0, up to 15 users.
  • Asan Premium: $13.49/user each month.
  • Asana Business: $30.49/user each month.
  • Asana Enterprise: Requires inquiry.

The prices are higher than some competitors, such as ClickUp, but you can get a discount if you choose to pay annually. It’s also more complex than some options, such as Basecamp, which offers unlimited users and unlimited teams for a flat rate. However, each of the pay tiers offers a 30-day free trial, giving you a risk-free way to find out if it’s worth the cost.

Team Management

Screenshot of project overview -- Asana team management

Keeping team communication simple is important, but the primary task of a team manager is often time management. The task scheduler Asana provides is intuitive and flexible, allowing you to assign team members, split off sub-tasks, or add everyone to create a team task. Doing so allows you to track progress, monitor deadlines, and use all of Asana’s other features easily.

The resource management features Asana offers come in a task management tool within the Portfolios feature. The Workload tab provides a way to monitor your team’s time commitments. You can also add the amount of effort a task requires by adding more weight to difficult tasks. Workload also provides access to the task assignments, so you can edit assignments without changing views.

Project Delivery Management

A project can be anything from planning strategic initiatives and company objectives to planning your next sprint. One reason Asana’s project management features are so appealing is how painless it is to switch between multiple projects. There are also many ways to switch between viewing a task and project, whatever tab you happen to be on. 

When creating projects, it’s also easy to ‘zoom out’ instead, seeing each project progress percentage at a glance. Each project can also be examined in multiple project views, using bar charts, timelines, and burnup charts. Dependencies can be mapped out in the project Timeline, where milestones can also be used for major completion dates.

Asana lacks a time tracking function, though it has partnered with Harvest and integrates with several other options.

Cost of lacking project performance

A survey by the Project Management Institute (PMI) shows more than $122 million is wasted per $1 billion invested by companies because of low or bad project performance.

Risk/Issue Management

Screenshot of Asana risk register, project risk management with Asana

Asana provides a tool that allows you to label a project:

  • On track.
  • At risk.
  • Off track.

The tool is available to only the project managers, who can select who it’s shared with as part of a regular status update. 

Otherwise, there isn’t a single tracking tool specifically for issue tracking, though there are tools that can work. The Timeline includes a customizable board, for example, into which troublesome tasks can be separated. The same tool can be set up with a range of automations and notifications. Of course, for a complex project, risk management may be split off into a project of its own.

Reporting

Screenshot of Asana reports, project dashboard

The center of each project is the project Timeline, where project managers can see daily tasks in the calendar view, view important messages, and monitor progress. It also provides the tool interface for most reporting features. The Overview provides just that, a quick look at team members, milestones, and objectives. The Overview also offers a simple way to create attractive project updates for even complex projects.

The customizable Dashboard has many reporting options for everyday needs, including burnup charts and other graphic ways of tracking tasks. The Timeline can provide Gantt charts for projects when dependencies are added to tasks. Finally, the Board tab can easily serve as a Kanban board, for Agile reporting.

Finance Management

Though project budgeting is a key aspect of project management, most software leaves that aspect to integrated apps focused on budgeting, invoicing, and so forth. That is an option, with Asana making it easy on a project manager in several ways. For example, integrating with a time tracking app allows for fairly straightforward timesheets, budgeting, payroll, and invoicing.

Asana integrates with another app, Power Bi, for more powerful finance management. It allows the creation of charts to track projected vs actual expenses. Power Bi also allows budget forecasting up to project completion. 

Asana has some native tools, such as setting a custom fiscal year for the project.

Collaboration and Communication

Screenshot of adding comments and attachments to a task on Asana

Like any other cloud-based project management tool, Asana puts a lot of effort into making communication easy. It’s straightforward to work with multiple users, including client-project access, as you’re able to grant different levels of permission. Status updates can be shared with the entire team, or just specific stakeholders. 

Project collaboration is also easily fostered. Comments can be added at any level, to tasks and also to uploaded files such as a client contract or email campaign. File storage is easy to manage, as a single tab lists all the files uploaded anywhere within that project. Additionally, client-project access can be customized to the project’s needs.

While it is an excellent collaboration tool, it doesn’t have all the features some alternatives offer, such as real-time chat. 

Integration With Other Apps

Asana offers a lot of options for task management and monitoring, with nearly every tool revolving around assigning, reporting, or communicating about a task. As we’ve already noted, some important project management tools aren’t native to Asana and will require integrating with an outside app. We’ve mentioned two already, Harvest for time tracking and Power Bi for analytics, but there are many more.

Slack, Microsoft products, and Google products all are easy to integrate. There are many other options as well, with companies providing integrations to join Asana’s partner program.

Artificial Intelligence

Automation of each repetitive daily task allows a project manager to focus on more important things, namely keeping their project organized. Asana offers a number of different ways to set up automatically recurring tasks or send free mail notifications to team members. 

Notifications can be sent out when managers assign tasks, tasks are completed, or deadlines missed. You can also set up reminders for your daily social media project posts or other daily tasks.

Other types of automation are aimed at helping you stay organized. For example, the Kanban-style Board will move tasks from section to section automatically, with user-defined rules. 

Automation also assists with reporting, allowing the easy creation and sharing of status reports.

Usability

Screenshot of Asana home interface - How to navigate Asana

Everyone’s experience will vary. Overall, most customer reviews share that the service offers a simple project management software that still provides vast capabilities for project planning. The user interface may take a little exploring to figure out, but there is plenty of guidance, including courses providing advice for specific use cases. 

Otherwise, it’s possible to assign tasks within moments of signing up. Project templates on offer provide an easy way to organize tasks. It’s also possible to define your own templates, to keep projects consistent across your organization. 

The ease of being able to manage tasks from any screen aids in making changes on the fly, allowing a user to track a specific task across Calendar, Board, or Timeline views. And, with their mobile app, you’re never more than a ping away from your team.

Support

Asana is fairly intuitive to use and is supported by a medium-sized library of support documents and tutorials, so any given team member should be able to dive in without a problem. However, when there is a hiccup, it might significantly impact a team’s productivity. When that’s the case, you’ll need to put in a support request and wait for a response.

If you opt for Asana Business or Enterprise, your request will jump to the front of the line, so it gets seen by Asana’s support team more quickly. 

Privacy

Security and privacy are some of Asana’s company objectives, described in detail on their website. They make several guarantees, including that they will only share information with third parties you elect to work with. You can also remove or delete information at will. Perhaps most impressively, Asana also allows you to choose where in the world your data is stored, though only if you’re an enterprise customer.

Methodology Suitability

With Asana, you can manage projects organized using either waterfall or Agile methodologies. The flexibility of the system, centered around task assignment, means that it can be built into more complicated projects. However, there are some features that might be better suited to an Agile approach.

In particular, the Board tab of the Timeline seems ready-made to be a Kanban board, tracking the progress of various tasks in a publicly visible way. The Dashboard/update system might work well into a Scrum workflow, detailing the most recent sprint.

Screenshot of Asana Kanban board view

On the other hand, the Calendar tab allows dependencies to be mapped out, turning it into a Gantt chart. There are many ways Asana could be used to bring traditional methods into a modern project.

Asana Alternatives

The task-and-project model is one that is commonly used with cloud-based project management software. As a result, there are several similar options out there, with a different project management tool potentially better fitting your needs. Some other project management tools include:

5 alternatives to Asana

Most other options will also have a mobile app and several other standard offerings. However, other services may not offer all the tools Asana does. For example, Basecamp also uses a task-and-project approach. However, it uses a simpler payment structure, giving up some of the more powerful reporting and analytical tools in exchange. Find out more in our Basecamp review.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Asana Review

Final Thoughts on Asana Review

Asana has struck a difficult-to-find balance, managing to both offer almost all the tools needed for a modern, sophisticated project while also being relatively easy to use. As we’ve seen throughout our Asana review, the result is a powerful tool for keeping your team and organization on task.

However, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Access to those powerful tools comes with a higher price tag than some PM software alternatives.

Microsoft Project vs Hive Project Management Software

Versus concept on a black screen

Microsoft Project and Hive are two of the most popular project management software services on the market. Each has its strengths and disadvantages relating to project portfolio management tools, complete with file and information sharing, time tracking, resource management, third-party integrations, scheduling features, and more.

Quick Comparison: Microsoft Project vs Hive

Key Features

Ease-of-use

3/5

4.5/5

Project Mapping

3.5/5

4.5/5

Capacity

5/5

4/5

To-Do Lists

3/5

4/5

Integrations

3/5

5/5

Customer support

3/5

4.5/5

Pricing

2/5

4.5/5

Pros

  • Excellent for large businesses
  • Power BI for deep analytical insights
  • Easy time and task progress tracking
  • Integrates with 1000+ apps
  • Easy-to-learn chat and file sharing tools
  • High number of available views

Cons

  • Steep learning curve required
  • Average customer support
  • Limited integrations with third-party apps
  • No search function for each project
  • Mobile apps are not as intuitive as desktop version
  • File deletion is permanent

Overall Rating

3.5/5

4/5

Microsoft Project vs Hive

Microsoft Project and Hive may be similar services, but they each take a different approach to project management software. We looked at the features and functionality of both to compare them, including:

  • Ease of use. 
  • Project mapping.
  • Capacity.
  • To-do lists.
  • Integrations.
  • Customer support.
  • Cost.

Ease of Use

Popular project management and portfolio management software Microsoft Project allows a user to choose from several popular views, including board, grid, and Gantt views. Grid views are arguably the most basic, converting any project into a simple ordered list of tasks with status and due dates and not much else. Another view, Kanban, offers heavy visuals, converting tasks into boxes that can be dragged and dropped to rearrange the order, drag its duration, and more.

Like Microsoft Project, many user reviews have praised Hive project management software for its intuitive platform. It offers six views, including status, team, calendar, label, Gantt, and table. Of the six, Gantt and table view are the most popular, with each functionality offering its benefits on the way teams view and process work.

Another benefit of Hive technology is the ability to convert workflows to different views. Users can flip projects from Kanban to project views and vice versa. Hive also offers mobile apps to be able to check-in when on the go.

Winner: Hive is simple to use, offers plenty of diversity, and is easy on the eyes and mind.

Project Mapping

Microsoft Project offers excellent project mapping and portfolio management functionalities designed to show every step and all processes from project start to finish using flow charts. For starters, it offers an auto-scheduled feature that automatically maps out a calendar for your project by entering scope and designated time frames for each task. Consider this one of the more useful tools for project managers.

It also allows users to create “Master Project Plans” that combine multiple project details into one centralized workspace for a higher-level overview. Subprojects can be tied to master projects, all of which can be viewed using Gantt charts, grid views, and board views.

Hive also offers outstanding project mapping and portfolio management tools, starting with its six views mentioned above. Two of its core methodologies are Kanban and Agile. Kanban boards are a highly visual representation of workflows using customizable task cards flipped to either a Not Started, In Progress, or Completed status. They can be easily dragged and dropped with every status change.

Winner: Hive has a much more simplified interface, a higher number of available views, and easier toggling between different views.

To-Do Lists

Hive offers a comprehensive to-do list feature with milestones. It starts by entering tasks using your “My Actions” list and selecting due dates. Each to-do item is full of options, including the ability to create sub-actions, link a dependent action, and contribute to each task by uploading attachments, adding comments, using action templates, and generating share links for other members of your organization to view.

If to-do lists are an important functionality for you, Microsoft Project has very robust tools. All users have the option to start a to-do list using a blank project file, easily converting them into projects and shareable files. Once tasks are added, a user can indent and outdent tasks to show hierarchy, link tasks to show relationships, and change views.

Winner: Microsoft Projects offers a slightly more simplified to-do list feature than Hive.

Read:

Want to know what happens when you compare ClickUp vs Microsoft Projects? Read our detailed comparison here.

Integrations

Microsoft Project offers a healthy number of integrations for collaboration, most notable with popular Microsoft Office apps Word, Excel, Teams, Outlook, OneNote, and Powerpoint. This allows users to centralize work from multiple apps into one centralized dashboard at the same time.

Hive is very strong with integrations and can connect to third-party applications using the popular Zapier app or native APIs. Some of the more popular apps include Outlook, Salesforce, and Google Drive. Integrations streamline work quickly, for example, a Zoom integration allows users to use video conferencing directly from Hive messaging, eliminating the need to share links to a meeting.

Winner: Hive offers integrations with a lot more apps than Microsoft Project, including the most popular ones (e.g. Google Drive, Salesforce, Slack, Microsoft Teams) and lesser-known ones such as Freshbooks for accounting and Marketo.

Customer Support

Microsoft Project has a wide-reaching project community and support resource page that offers online webinars, documentation, videos, white papers, forums, and tutorials on all things Microsoft Project-related. While chat training is offered, there is a heavy reliance on self-help resources, with customer service numbers or dedicated emails harder to come by.

Hive’s customer support options for all project management software features are more visible than Microsoft Project. Users have the option to connect directly to their sales team using an online form where you can ask about anything from integration features to reports. Hive also offers a dedicated service email (help@hive.com) and an on-site webchat assistant also fields questions from new and repeat visitors.

Users also have the option to sign up for a free trial and request a demo. Hive technology offers personalized demos for all types of businesses. Simply fill out the form on the website with your contact information for a customer service representative to get back to you.

Winner: Hive offers the most generous customer support of the two. In addition to online chats and a dedicated phone line for Teams and Enterprise level users, a sales team is on standby to walk new users through a free demo with separate options to request a free trial.

Pricing

Microsoft Project offers two plans for on-premise solutions that use licenses and three package plans for their cloud services:

  • Project Plan 1 ($10 per user per month) offers Microsoft Project’s basic features, including management of projects, tasks, and reports that do not need any advanced features.
  • Project Plan 2 ($30 per user per month) includes all of the features of Project Plan 1, with the ability to assign project tasks to resources and use the desktop app, with one license good for up to five PCs per person.
  • Project Plan 3 ($55 per user per month) offers all of the features of Project Plan 1 and Project Plan 2 with the addition of enterprise-level analytics and resource management tools.

Both on-premise solutions require a one-time fee and allow access to its desktop app, with one license covering one PC per person. It has a lot more robust features, including the ability to connect with Project Online and Project Service, the offering of advanced analytics to choose project proposals based on strategic goals, and other solutions for larger enterprises.

Hive offers a much more simplified plan and pricing structure than Microsoft Project. It offers three plans paid in monthly or annual installments:

  • Solo (free) allows access for up to two users with unlimited service and a community support function. 
  • Teams ($12 per user per month) is for unlimited users with unlimited storage and time tracking, with the option to add a-la-carte options such as team resourcing and SSO, enterprise security, and controls for $4 per user per month.
  • Enterprise (custom quote) is the most robust, offering all of Teams’ features with the addition of contract and legal review and the most flexible add-on options like team resourcing and the ability to add external users as part of the package.

Winner: Hive is the clear winner in this category, thanks to its overall cheaper cost and ability to add a-la-carte options for a small nominal user fee per month. It does not overcomplicate pricing plans by splitting cloud versus on-premises (desktop licenses) plans like Microsoft Project, making it less overwhelming for new users or smaller companies.

Overall Winner

In the battle of Hive vs Microsoft Project for small to medium size businesses, our nod goes to Hive. Microsoft Project has a gargantuan infrastructure, yet has many limitations, most notably with collaboration and the ability to share files.

Another key consideration is cost. Hive is considerably cheaper on a per-user per month basis.

All in all, Hive is better served for a small to a medium-sized organization that does not want a steep learning curve in learning a new project workflow tool.

Frequently Asked Questions for Microsoft Project vs Hive

Final Thoughts on Microsoft Project vs Hive

Microsoft Project and Hive are two of the most powerful project management tools on the market. Each offers its own advantages and disadvantages when we compare ease of use, project mapping, to-do lists, integrations, customer support, and cost. 

Consider Hive the superior option when it comes to the learning curve, real-time collaboration tools, and overall simplicity with a heavier reliance on cloud-based apps and third-party integrations to bring the workforce closer together.

ClickUp vs Hive: Which Is the Best Mix of Price & Features?

Woman on a couch working with a laptop

The services that Hive, ClickUp, Monday, and others offer have become invaluable to good project management. Keeping team members connected, assembling reports, and tracking progress all happen within the software now, as do many other aspects of a business. As a result, choosing the right software is vital.

We’re putting two of the most popular options head to head, ClickUp vs Hive, to see how they stack up. Along the way, you may find that one is the perfect fit for your needs.

Quick Comparison: ClickUp vs Hive

Key Features

Usability

3.5/5

3/5

Resource Management

4/5

3/5

Collaboration

3.5/5

3/5

Gantt View

3/5

3/5

Customer Support

3/5

2/5

Pricing

3/5

2/5

Pros

  • More features on free plan
  • Better options for support
  • Helpful collaboration tools
  • Some simpler features

Cons

  • Steep learning curve
  • Complicated pricing
  • Lack of support

Overall Rating

3.5/5

2.5/5

ClickUp vs Hive

The art of managing projects focuses largely on methodologies, high-level outlines describing how to keep everything organized. Those are undoubtedly important, but perhaps equally as important are the practical tools that make those methodologies possible. These days, the best project management tool is actually good project management software.

Those tools are apps like ClickUp, Hive, and a whole range of other options. Each is designed to support team members by offering features like creating tasks, managing cost, tracking time, and many other types of functionality.

Every project management program tends to have some of the same options for users, with ClickUp and Hive being no exception. To compare the two, we’ll be looking in detail at ClickUp’s adaptability and the Hive technology on offer, and what you’re getting for your money in each case.

Usability

Usability can mean a lot of different things. Does it have the functionality you need and can you find it when you need to? Ease of use is often at odds with the inclusion of all the features you require. Breaking usability down into discrete categories might help keep things clear, including:

  1. Ease of use.
  2. Integrations.
  3. Agile vs traditional methods.

Ease of Use

It’s important that software fits cleanly into your workflow. If you spend more time figuring the apps out than using them, they’re more a hindrance than a help. Both ClickUp and Hive have a similar interface, including a workspace where you can define tasks and connect with team members.

Both should feel intuitive. Task management consists of creating tasks or ‘cards’ and assigning them to team members. Reporting options are easy to access, as are other services. Using some options, like machine learning-driven automation, is more complicated. One issue mentioned frequently in ClickUp user reviews is the learning curve.

Integrations

Both support a wide range of integrations, though many important ones such as Google Drive are only available on pay tiers. ClickUp has a library of ‘native’ integrations that can be added to projects with a few clicks.

Agile vs Traditional

These approaches often require different tools. Both apps allow you to use Kanban boards and other Agile-focused functionality. However, ClickUp creates sprints and has other useful agile tools. With Hive technology, you’ll have to look to integration for those options.

Resource Management

Resources can be many things, and project management software focuses on tasks and time. As a result, the resource they both focus on is workload. Both offers features for tracking resources and creating reports. 

Hive has a resource app that’s available on their pay tier. When task cards are set up with due dates, assignees, and estimates, from the same page you can use the app to:

  • Monitor your team’s time.
  • Set work limits for individuals.
  • Add holidays to your business calendar.

ClickUp has different views which collectively offer the same information. It might be more work, but you’re offered greater flexibility. These features are available, if limited, on every tier. Also available is Pulse, an automation service that offers useful reports for projects.

Collaboration

Communicating effectively is always important, but it becomes more difficult in an era of remote teams all working for the same company. As a result, one important role for this sort of software is fostering team collaboration.

Many of the features are standard, whether you’re looking at ClickUp, Hive, or another option. Commenting on tasks, notes, and elsewhere is possible. A native messaging system includes an inbox. Users can also live chat to keep in contact within the app, rather than using other chat clients. Tasks can have multiple assignees, all communicating through the app.

Hive offers a team inbox, which is useful for direct response marketing and similar efforts. It also allows users to search within comments and messages. To do something similar with ClickUp, you’d have to be using an integration.

If you compare the features, they’re fairly equal. However, as with our ClickUp vs Monday review, ClickUp pulls ahead by offering more at a lower price.

Gantt View

Gantt charts are a foundational tool of project management and are a standard part of this sort of software. Use the tool for tracking workflow, project scheduling, and general project progress.

You can also use them for managing resources and tracking critical paths in important processes. ClickUp and Hive both offer Gantt views to aid in task management, as long as tasks are set up correctly.  

Charts in both apps can also be exported if you’d like to include them in company reports, for example, to reassure clients that their marketing campaign is on time. You can also loop in vendors or other suppliers.

See how ClickUp ranks against apps focused on Gantt charts in our ClickUp vs GanttPro and ClickUp vs TeamGantt reviews.

Customer Support

Decent support can be a critical aspect of both services. They’re complicated enough that most users will probably get lost at some point. As we’ve mentioned, one hit to customer satisfaction is the learning curve. 

That may be less of an issue if you’re part of a larger company, but if you’ve got a small team, you don’t want to spend time working out how to clear notifications or switch views between projects.

Being able to contact a real person for help is one of the premium features in both cases. With ClickUp, users can schedule a meeting with a live rep for coaching over video conferencing.

Hive offers a similar option for chat training. Otherwise, most support is limited to online webinars, documentation, videos, and so forth.

If help docs aren’t enough, ClickUp can connect you with a paid consultant. Hive doesn’t have a lot else to offer.

Pricing

Usually, project management software offers a subscription, including a free plan with limited services. More features come at each tier with a progressively higher cost. Cost is charged per user, paid either annually or monthly. Both Hive and ClickUp pricing follow this pattern, though with some complications thrown in. 

ClickUp offers a great deal of functionality on its free and low-cost plans. Some helpful options do require the more expensive options, including some integration options. Even so, ClickUp is a good option for small businesses or teams.

When you compare to ClickUp, Hive software might seem as if it has a simpler payment structure. There is a free tier for individuals or a small business, and a slightly more expensive business account. 

However, the free version lacks a lot of the features you might be looking for. Additionally, some individual features are only available at an additional cost, ala carte style, even with the business tier.

Overall Winner

ClickUp comfortably comes out ahead in our project management software comparison. When we first put ClickUp vs Hive, it seemed like they were pretty close in many aspects. However, when you take a closer look, ClickUp comes out slightly ahead in every case. The differences add up.

Though it may not matter to every business, ClickUp allows unlimited users even on the free plan. While both offer useful ways to monitor progress, ClickUp has a better way of structuring costs. Both are one of the best project management tools available, but ClickUp just offers more.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on ClickUp vs Hive

Bottom Line on ClickUp vs Hive

Either Hive or ClickUp might be a good fit for your needs. However, if you want to succeed in business you want to find the best option, rather than one that’s just good enough.

The results might depend on your needs, but all things being equal, ClickUp offers the best mix of price and features. Perhaps as importantly, the software also offers enough help that you can figure out how to use all those fancy features, too.

ClickUp Review: The Best Project Management Software Out There?

ClickUp review

Managing a business or project is no small task. It’s more like one human being against a never-ending mountain of work. Fortunately, there are tools out there that can cut out a lot of the mundane tasks while making the rest that much easier. 

We want to look in more detail at some of the best project management tools out there, so we put together this ClickUp review to see what it brings to the table.

Our Verdict

Screenshot of Clickup Hompage
Clickup logo

ClickUp at a Glance

From $0

ClickUp is a versatile project management tool that can satisfy almost any project type and methodology. Use it for agile project management or the waterfall model. You can also change views to see a list, a Kanban-like style board, or a calendar view. ClickUp offers features to make it easy to collaborate in real time with your team, too. 

There’s a free version for budget-conscious small businesses, but it’s a relatively affordable project management software option if you’re considering upgrading. ClickUp works best for remote teams that need to work on projects together. However, it’s suitable for almost any size business, thanks to the tiers of paid plans and the multiple apps and integrations ClickUp offers.

  • 15 unique views for sorting out tasks, teams, and data
  • Fully customizable user interface
  • Built-in chat for public and private conversations
  • No video conferencing tools
  • The large number of features can be overwhelming for some

Pricing

ClickUp has several pricing options, so you can invest in whatever level makes the most sense for your team.

Free Version

ClickUp offers a free plan that allows users to make use of the project management tool, but only so many features are made available.

Although there’s room for unlimited users, the free plan is best suited for solo users or small startups. Even solo users would make short work of the 100 megabytes of storage to work with. It’s possible to create unlimited projects, but there’s limited access to views and other ClickUp features.

Paid Versions

Should you opt to upgrade from the free version to a paid plan, ClickUp offers a 100% money-back guarantee during the first 30 days of use. If you’re not satisfied with ClickUp’s features, just shoot them an email for a full refund.

The project management system has four paid versions beyond its free plan with increasing levels of functionality. It is not cheap project management software, with ClickUp pricing varying whether you pay monthly or annually. An annual subscription is going to provide the most value for money.

Paid Plans at a Glance

  • Unlimited Plan: $5 per person per month if paid annually, $9 if paid monthly
  • Business Plan: $9 per person per month if paid annually, $19 if paid monthly
  • Business Plus Plan: $19 per person per month if paid annually, $29 if paid monthly
  • Enterprise Plan: Contact Clickup’s sales team for pricing

The Unlimited Plan adds in unlimited storage, users, and the views missing from the free plan. You can level up to the Business Plan, making it even easier to manage projects with advanced features and some customization options. The Business Plus Plan adds priority support, personalized testing, and even more customization to the software.

Finally, the Enterprise Plan has all the features ClickUp can throw your way. Enterprise customers have access to API tools and a dedicated account manager alongside white labeling and managed services. If your business needs this all-in-one solution, contact ClickUp’s sales team for more information.

Team Management

ClickUp features an Activity View that lets you see all the actions taking place in any List, Folder, Space, or your entire Workspace. You can also view team member profiles to see what they’ve been up to.

The Timeline View looks similar to Gantt charts but is sorted by users instead of projects. At a glance, you can see what specific team members are working on with projected task completion dates.

For resource allocation, the Workload View and Box View allow you to see multiple team members at a glance and what each is working on. It shows a day-by-day visualization of each user’s workload and how it compares to their capacity. From there, it’s simple to reallocate tasks to less burdened users through dragging and dropping.

Screenshot of ClickUp Activity View

Project Delivery Management

ClickUp is project management software with time tracking built-in, even at the free level. You can track time across single or multiple projects and also view timesheets for each user. Once enabled, time tracking allows users to log hours spent on tasks with the click of a button. You can use ClickUp’s time reporting to filter and view data any way you want to.

It’s possible to build your project timeline by providing estimates for the amount of time a project should take. You can compare this information against actual user progress to ensure goals are met. 

Furthermore, you or your team can create subtasks to define more detailed criteria for parent tasks. You can also assign comments to a task that behave like simple subtasks for the sake of accountability. Each subtask or comment can have its own assigned user and due date.

Milestones

ClickUp features milestones to display important events or deadlines. These visual tools are flagged in bold and with a diamond shape, making them stand out among multiple tasks. Changing a task to a milestone does not remove the ClickUp user or duration already assigned to it.

You can see milestones in several ways, including Gantt view, Board view, and even on your dashboard.

Screenshot of waterfall view in ClickUp

Sprints

ClickUp helps your team race to the finish line on old or new projects through the use of sprints.

Sprints are easy to create from the dashboard, where you can break projects into bite-size pieces. You can assign tasks to users alongside deadlines for each. You can prioritize tasks through ClickUp’s unique points system.

There’s a specific list dedicated to sprints that’s easy to navigate and provides to-the-minute updates on the status of each goal. You can also set up the task management software to automatically roll over unfinished work to your next sprint.

Sprint Features

Each sprint provides burnup and burndown charts to see how your team members are pacing against your target. You can create either chart with a few clicks, and they will be accessible from your sprint on the dashboard.

Velocity charts in ClickUp show the amount of work your team has accomplished on sprints in a given week. You can compare this information against the amount of work ClickUp estimates should have been done for the week.

The information appears in bar graph format, and you can choose to view the velocity of your team over one, two, three, six, and 12-month intervals.

Screenshots of ClickUp Burn up and Burn down charts

Dependencies

Another of ClickUp’s best project management tools is dependencies. Dependencies indicate tasks that are either blocking or being blocked by another task to clarify which ones need to be completed first. ClickUp will automatically change the start and end dates of a blocked task if the task it depends on gets adjusted. 

Within Gantt View, you can draw lines between tasks to automatically link them as dependent. A drop-down in either List or Board view is another way to add dependencies between two items. These changes appear simultaneously across all boards.

Risk/Issue Management

Risk management in ClickUp is best handled by using Gantt charting and the Timeline View, which help you see if tasks are on track or falling behind. Due dates in the List View will show in red if an assignment is overdue. Similarly, you can check who on your team is overburdened in Workflow.

Reporting

ClickUp is a very visual project management software with several viewing options available. While the Free and Unlimited plans are somewhat limited, ClickUp contains over a dozen ways to peruse data, including Gantt charts, List View, Calendar View, and Mind Maps.

A banner at the top of the screen lists your favorite views, and a click allows you to move between them. ClickUp can even sync with your Google calendar. ClickUp’s dashboard is full of rich customization options, making it a breeze to build a great user interface in no time flat.

ClickUp has recently done away with its reporting page in favor of becoming even more simple project management software. You can now do all your reporting directly from your dashboard.

At a glance, you can see time estimates that will help you deliver projects on time alongside what your established and new users have been working on. ClickUp can tell you who’s ahead on task work and who is falling behind.

Screenshot of different reporting statistics offered by ClickUp

KPIs

Goals are ClickUp’s way of creating trackable KPI metrics. The project management software has a long list of metrics you can track, and these metrics are just one of the things you can watch on your dashboard. You can use this data to generate operational, analytical, or strategic reports to share with your team.

Finance Management

There’s no need to stop at task management. ClickUp has an array of tools you can use to keep tabs on finances as well.

You can track sales records, invoices, income, and even estimate revenue from within. By adding in expenses, the software can perform mind-numbing calculations with a click to see where money is going and to help allocate a budget.

ClickUp also has checklist templates for payments due, so you never miss a single one. It will automatically create future checklists based on those payments so you don’t have to.

Screenshot of Budget Reporting page in ClickUp

Collaboration and Communication

One of ClickUp’s key features is Docs, allowing users to create and share documents. You can leave files as public access or choose who can view them through shareable links or permissions.

Real-time collaboration allows your team to edit documents together in Docs. Documents can be linked to workflows where you can assign tasks a deadline. 

Another of ClickUp’s collaboration tools is the chat feature. In addition to chatting in real-time, you can mention team members, create reminders, or embed files for others to look at. Once you create a chat, you can assign whichever users you want to participate and leave unnecessary members out.

Whiteboards are in beta testing and are currently available to all ClickUp plans. The digital space is malleable and easy for teams to develop ideas in real-time. You can save whiteboards for review somewhere down the line.

Roles

It’s possible to assign each user one of four roles within a workspace: Member, Admin, Owner, or Guest. Roles are easy to assign from a drop-down when a user joins the team. Note that Enterprise users can create custom roles for their teams.

Accessibility

ClickUp advertises “one app to rule them all”. They have an app for just about any device, including iOS, Android, PC, Mac, and Linux. Functionality is standard across all devices and works well no matter where you go. If an app isn’t your thing, you can run ClickUp straight from a browser.

Integration With Other Apps

ClickUp allows external integrations with over 1,000 other software tools. Some of the most notable apps include:

  • Slack: Create ClickUp tasks right in Slack and add Slack notifications to channels of your choice.
  • Github/Gitlab: Create branches, pull requests, and perform bug tracking directly in ClickUp.
  • Google Drive/OneDrive/Dropbox: Quickly attach external files to tasks in ClickUp.
  • Google Calendar: Organize calendars and create events from ClickUp’s Calendar View.
  • Zoom: Host meetings from within ClickUp tasks using Zoom.
  • Toggl/Harvest/Everhour: Advanced time tracking tools that assimilate with ClickUp tasks.

Artificial Intelligence

You can use a set number of monthly automation based on your ClickUp subscription plan, from 100 to 25,000. These automations remove the monotony of adding in recurring tasks that you’re bound to lose track of over time.

What’s more, you can program triggers to perform an action when a task is complete. With a simple interface, you won’t need software advice to set up your automation conditions.

Usability

To decipher how usable this project management software is, we turned to sites like G2 and Trustradius to look at feedback from thousands of ClickUp reviews.

After poring over ClickUp reviews, the majority of subscribers state that ClickUp’s learning curve is relatively gentle, but can be steep at times. The general consensus is that it’s easy to get started, but the large number of features is overwhelming for some.

To help hit the ground running, ClickUp offers a platform demo and video tutorials. You can use a ClickUp specialist to help with onboarding, or the site has a FAQ and several documents explaining each feature.

Support

ClickUp has 24/7 customer support with even its most basic plan. Business Plus and Enterprise plans receive an enhanced level of support to get issues resolved even more quickly.

All ClickUp’s paid plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you’re not satisfied within the first month, email ClickUp for a complete refund.

Privacy

ClickUp states in its privacy policy that it doesn’t disclose any information to third parties. The task management software uses Amazon Web Services for data security and encryption alongside two-factor authorization to ensure only the right people log in.

Methodology Suitability

There are a few popular approaches to project management, and ClickUp makes use of them all. Whether your method of choice is Scrum, Waterfall, or Agile, you’ll be good to go here. The software lets you customize your dashboards however you choose and has built-in templates to maximize your effectiveness with a preferred method.

ClickUp Alternatives

ClickUp uses a proven method to streamline projects through tasks, collaboration, and views. The platform does a great job of this, but it may not be for everyone. Here are a few viable alternatives:

Each tool has its own pros and cons that you may choose to weigh against ClickUp’s wide range of features. For instance, Asana is known for its ease of use alongside high-powered tools and a pleasant interface. You can read more about it in our Asana review.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for ClickUp Review

Here we look at answers to some additional questions you may have about ClickUp.

Final Thoughts on ClickUp Review

The right project management software can make all the difference in running an efficient business. It’s essential to be able to track team members, projects, and finances in a single platform. Just as important is a tool that won’t break the bank.

Considering the features we’ve outlined in this ClickUp review, we believe it gets the job done and then some. The platform also isn’t afraid of rolling out new features to stay ahead of the competition.