If your teams juggle deadlines, resources, and deliverables, you need a dedicated project management tool. We test and compare the best project management software for helping keep it all on track.
Is there really a viable Microsoft Project alternative for project scheduling software to create project plans and timing plans? Find out with our newly updated article for 2018 which provides a cheaper pay as you go version of, some great new MS Project alternatives and a downloadable how-to guide for choosing a Microsoft Project alternative for your project schedules. If your company is feeling the pinch, your request to purchase a shiny new copy of Microsoft Project might elicit a response that goes something like; “.surely there is a free Microsoft Project alternative out there that can do the job, isn’t there?” You respond something like, “Umm, well, maybe”.
And that’s the point of this article. For those of you who are on the hunt for a alternative, you’ve come to the right place. For a lot of agencies, the default project management tool for creating project plans is still Microsoft Project. If we’re really honest, though, for most of the digital projects that we manage, Microsoft Project does far more than we ever need it for – it’s got stacks of features that most people never use, hasn’t really changed that much in 30 years, and doesn’t necessarily do much to streamline process within project management. So are there any real Microsoft Project alternatives – paid, or even better, for free – that are worth using?
Wait a minute though Before looking for Microsoft Project alternatives, did you know that the real deal is actually not that expensive? Why would you use Microsoft Project? For starters, Microsoft Project is not just a fuzzy old tool that Microsoft doesn’t really care about—they’re introducing some really smart with Power BI, Internet of Things, bots and machine learning that are awesome. How much does Microsoft Project cost? It’s simple and affordable to.
In fact, now you can pick up a copy of Microsoft Project on There’s also been an interesting shift in the Microsoft Project alternative world with pricing that it’s worth being aware of. The cloud-based, online Microsoft Project alternatives are now almost all charging by the user— rather than by the number of projects—which is making MS Project alternatives on average cost about $180/user/year; much more expensive than they used to be. They’re also nearly all transitioning from being simple Gantt chart tools to trying to include project, task and resource management tools. In short, making your choice of an MS Project alternative is becoming more complex. What is Microsoft Project used for? MS Project is a project management tool used by different types of users, who have different levels of access. The software provides tables, views, filters, fields, calendars, and a database for doing things like:.
Developing project plans. Assigning resources. Tracking time & progress. Creating Gantt charts.
Creating & managing budgets. Balancing workloads. Scheduling tasks & resources. Creating graphical reports. Storing project data in a shared database Best Microsoft Project Alternatives For Project Scheduling Software.
In this review of Microsoft Project alternatives, we break down the features, pricing, pros & cons of the following tools:. GanttPRO –.
Team Gantt –. Celoxis –.
Instagantt –. Wrike –. Clarizen –. Smartsheet –.
ProjectLibre –. Tom’s Planner –. Omniplan – Project Scheduling Software Selection Criteria (For A Microsoft Project Alternative) We’re project managers, right, so let’s first define the requirements. We need to properly define what our alternative needs to do. There are loads of project scheduling software alternatives out there, many of which do all kinds of things that we, as digital project managers will never make use of, so what do we actually use it for? GanttPRO – GanttPRO is online Gantt chart software with lots of useful features. If you are not new to the world of project management, you know how painful it is to find a nice looking and powerful Gantt chart and a MS Project alternative.
In GanttPRO, you will find both. This Gantt chart tool looks really nice with its intuitive UX/UI design. Besides, it offers a wide range of project management features. Here you can easily create tasks, assign them, and connect them with dependencies, set milestones, enable the critical path to see the most important tasks or create a baseline to compare a current state of your plan with what you have initially planned. Thanks to the auto-scheduling function, any change in your tasks, dates or dependencies will be automatically reflected. GanttPRO is also a good collaboration tool. It allows users to comment on tasks, export, import and share charts with Public URL as well as get notifications, mention team members, browse History mode, etc.
You can try a 14-day free trial or book a. A plan for 1 user starts from $15 if billed annually. Team plans start from $5.90 per user if billed annually. Summary of GanttPRO:.
Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Pass. Import and export.mpp files: Pass. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 9. Team Gantt – TeamGantt is swanky looking and reasonably robust Project alternative. It’s a paid, web-based (and mobile-friendly) project management tool that delivers the basics of creating pretty Gantt charts, with the ability to create tasks, subtasks, milestones, assign resources and dependencies to tasks.
It places considerable emphasis on individuals, giving them the ability to see what they’re scheduled to work on that week as well as an overview of all the projects they’re working on. This enables an interesting feature to support in-project conversations and file uploads for team collaboration (although I’m not really sure it does it as well as a tool like or ). The real selling point is that it’s pretty and does the basics well. The downside is that the functionality is a bit too limited without support for import and export of.mpp files. Team Gantt costs from $29/10 x projects/month. Summary of Team Gantt:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass.
Create a project overview chart: Fail. Import and export.mpp files: Fail. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 8. Celoxis – More than just a Gantt chart tool, Celoxis is a comprehensive but easy to use, project management tool used by HBO, Deloitte and Rolex that handily comes in two flavours – as an online app or on-premise. When compared to MS Project, it’s a lower cost, yet fuller featured product with powerful interactive Gantt charts, handy portfolio dependencies and all the keyboard shortcuts you could want. Just as you would with Microsoft Project, Celoxis allows you to create tasks, subtasks, milestones, assigned resources and dependencies to tasks. It is a comprehensive and enterprise-grade integrated solution that you can use to not only create Gantt charts but also use to manage your project portfolios, workflows, expenses, time sheets and resources.
It is really a complete and full-featured project management tool with project tracking, resource management, risk management and reporting all rolled into one, together with the full-blown capabilities for collaboration with clients. Celoxis offer the option of a or a if you’re looking to take it for a test drive. Celoxis costs $25/user/month for SaaS users and $450/user for on-premise. Summary of Celoxis:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Pass.
Import and export.mpp files: Pass. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 9. Instagantt – is a Project Management tool that was built with UX and beautiful design in mind. It has all the most powerful features to manage your projects, and some great features like easy scheduling with Drag & Drop, dependencies between tasks, subtasks, milestones and holidays. With a simple but powerful Hour Estimating and Budget Estimating tool, it’s the perfect tool for balancing the workload inside a team or for forecasting a complex project on. It also has a great feature that let you manage all your projects simultaneously on the same Gantt Chart.
It was born 5 years ago as a plug-in for Asana, and now it has just released it’s Standalone version which doesn’t require Asana. Now you can track Estimated Hours, Actual Hours, Estimated Cost and Actual cost, and also track the Priority and Risk of a task.
In terms of resource management, you can assign tasks to real collaborators or just to virtual resources, which makes it really useful for planning quick projects. It has some other powerful tools like Critical Path, or their first-class Baselines, which is an amazing functionality for tracking the changes of a project over time. Another great feature of Instagantt are their “Public Snapshots” feature, which let you create and share a read-only link to any project. Instagantt costs, or $5/month when purchasing more than one user. It also has 7 days of free trial.
Summary of Instagantt:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Fail. Import and export.mpp files: Pass. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 9.5.
Wrike – To illustrate the point that the crossover between cloud-based Gantt chart creating Microsoft Project alternatives and project management tools is narrowing, it’s worth considering an all in one project management and scheduling tool like While it doesn’t fall neatly into our selection criteria (it does much more than simply create Gantt charts), it’s worth including as an alternative way of approaching the challenge to create shareable project plans. It’s a project management tool more akin to, or – based around tasks, Wrike allows you to define and assign tasks and track their progress in real-time. You can easily import your.mpp Microsoft Project plans into the interface, although exporting is limited to.XLS.
The Gantt chart view works but the control of interdependencies and predecessors is a bit cumbersome so it’s not a clean like for like solution, but it’s definitely a workable solution. For the price (which they’ve priced very competitively), you can create Gantt charts and you’ve then armed with a swathe of other project management tools and potential integrations and features that you might find useful.
Wrike costs from $9.80/user/month. Summary of Wrike:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Fail. Import and export mpp files: Pass. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 8. Clarizen – Companies are quickly finding that traditional, siloed, on-premises project planning and task management tools don’t work well in today’s environment.
These tools are too complex and too narrowly focused and do not have the real-time information, the responsive planning and flexibility required to keep everyone in the loop and everything on track. While, it’s easy to download a simple task management tool, they do not support the collaborative interaction needed to complete process or project related tasks. By contrast, delivers secure, cloud-based collaborative work management solutions built on the vision of business agility. Discussions, tasks, projects and portfolios are all accessible from Clarizen’s scalable enterprise platform. Smartsheet – Smartsheet’s online project management tool takes some of the most useful features of Project, marries it with the ease of use of an online spreadsheet, and then layers in team collaboration and time-saving automation features. It’s a paid, cloud hosted and web-based system complete with mobile apps which enable some pretty powerful collaborative tools with alerts and reminders as the project timeline changes over time. It delivers the basics well – creating pretty drag and drop Gantt charts with tasks, subtasks, milestones, assigned resources and dependencies to tasks. It also offers a broader capability for resource management, reporting, and forms; they’ve begun to layer on a lot of features although I’m not sure how helpful they really are in the world of digital project management.
Smartsheet is one of the better-known products and with good reason – it’s a solid product. The only real snags are the inability to produce a high-level project summary and the inability to export as a.mpp; you can only export as XML.
Smartsheet costs from $14/user/month. Summary of Smartsheet:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Fail. Import and export.mpp files: Fail. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 8.
ProjectLibre – ProjectLibre is a fork from OpenProj, a free, open source desktop application designed to pretty closely emulate Microsoft Project of old. It does a reasonable job of imitating the layout and interface of Project so if you’re familiar with it, you’ll be able to download it and get going with very little learning curve; it’s easy to create a simple Gantt chart with the usual workflow; creating indented work breakdown structure (WBS), set durations, create links and assign resources. It even opens.mpp files although it can’t save them back to the same format, instead saving them as XML files which are annoying.
It all sounds good, but when you try using it, you can’t help but wish you were just using Microsoft Project; it’s just very clunky, ugly, and fiddly to use. Yes, it’s free, but do yourself a favour and spend a few bucks to get something that actually works properly. ProjectLibre is free! Summary of ProjectLibre:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Fail.
Import and export.mpp files: Fail. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Fail Score: 3.
Tom’s Planner – Tom’s Planner is paid web-based Gantt chart software that allows anyone to create, collaborate and share Gantt Charts online with drag and drop simplicity. It’s billed as a more simple and collaborative alternative to Project, but is really aimed at replacing teams trying to collaborate using Excel.
Because of that, it looks a lot like MS Excel – there isn’t a way to define dependencies and defining non-working time (e.g. Bank holidays). That said, if you’re looking to produce a simple project plan, it’s pretty good. It’s web based, extremely intuitive and easy-to-use. A great feature is being able to publish your charts online and invite others to collaborate on projects (a free account suffices to accept invitations), add links to other websites and other online documents and embed your schedule in your own blog/website or intranet.
The real selling point here is that it’s online, shareable, and collaborative, the downside is that it’s very basic. Tom’s Planner costs from $7.50/user/month.
Summary of Tom’s Planner:. Create a Gantt chart: Fail. Create a project overview chart: Fail. Import and export.mpp files: Fail. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 6. Omniplan – Alright, there you go, for you crazy digital project managers who are still holding on to your creative side, and are playing around on Macs, here’s a couple of desktop based option for you. Desktop-based Microsoft Project alternatives are important because we can’t always be on the interwebs, like when we’re on planes (yes, I know, some of them offer overpriced terribly slow WiFi but you know what I mean).
Omniplan is made by the Omni group – makers of Omnigraffle, so these peeps know what they’re doing. It delivers the basics well – creating pretty drag and drop Gantt charts with tasks, subtasks, milestones, assigned resources and dependencies to tasks. Powered by your own, or the Omni sync server, it also has some more advanced collaboration features which work pretty nicely. Keeping projects up-to-date is powered by whole-project sharing where change-tracking, automatic publishing, and instant updates notify you when changes are made to the timeline, tasks, or amount of work completed, Omniplan allows you to accept or reject the changes one by one, or en masse. Omniplan costs from $149.99/user.
Summary of Omniplan:. Create a Gantt chart: Pass. Create a project overview chart: Fail.
Import and export.mpp files: Pass. Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Score: 8. Microsoft Project for Mac Microsoft doesn’t produce Microsoft Project for Mac users. In fact, the last time that there was a version of Microsoft Project for Apple users was back in 1993 with Microsoft Project 4.0 for Mac.
Sadly, that doesn’t work now! So if you’re on the Apple train and you’re trying to create a Gantt chart on a Mac, the first thing to remember is that you could just use Bootcamp or to get Windows on your Mac, and then use the PC software we’ve listed above. If you can’t do that, as well as the obvious web-based alternatives, there are a few dedicated Microsoft Project for Mac, Gantt chart options that you can install on your Apple Mac or iPad. X Plan ($79) –.
Project Plan 365 ($99) –. Omniplan ($149.99) –. Merlin Project 5 ($349) – Other project scheduling software alternatives worth considering: There are some new kids on the Gantt chart block! I haven’t had a chance to review these properly, but if none of the above work for you, it’s worth checking some of these out:. Merlin Project 5 –. Edraw Project –. GanttProject –.
ProjExec –. Rational Plan –. Ganttology –. SmartDraw –. Creately –.
ProjectManager.com –. WorkZone –. TaskRay –. Teamweek –. Hyper Plan –. Office Timeline –.
Tiemchart – The Best Microsoft Project Alternatives So what is the best to use as a Microsoft Project alternative? It really depends on whether or not you subscribe to the requirements we set out above. If you’re actually looking for something a bit more than that, then one of the cloud-based solutions like would probably work out well. As I often find myself offline, on planes and in the wilds of BC, I would miss having a desktop app to churn out my.mpp’s on the road. So in short, my preference would be for Microsoft Project Pro for Office 365 – it does everything I want it to do, in the format I need it. Yes, it’s kind of a cop out but it works – and it’s actually no more expensive than any of the better, paid, alternatives.
And if you’re a Mac user, you’re probably best off getting a PC, or failing that, try using Omniplan. So in short, my preference would be for Microsoft Project Pro for Office 365 – it does everything I want it to do, in the format I need it. Yes, it’s kind of a cop-out but it works – and it’s actually no more expensive than any of the better, paid, alternatives. What to consider But with so many options on the table, what are the things worth considering when choosing a Microsoft Project alternative?
I think it’s worth thinking about three areas when choosing a Microsoft Project alternative:. Functionality – does it do what I need it to do? (we’ve covered this already above).
Workflow – how nicely does this play with my other project management toolkit?. Cost – is this actually cheaper than Microsoft Project? Considering where the Gantt chart and project schedule is used in your workflow This is a bit of a catch-all, but in choosing a Microsoft Project alternative, it’s worth thinking about how you’re managing estimates, tasks, resources, budgets, risk, time sheets and project reporting. There are features within Microsoft Project that support this, and many of the alternatives include them too. What do you do with your project plans and schedules? If they are just Gantt charts that get created at the beginning of a project and are then not updated, it’s very different from the requirement for a tool that needs daily updates.
Consider what you actually use project timelines for; do you print them off every day and baseline progress? How do you share that information with the project team and executive? Consider too how you’ll be updating the timeline throughout the project. Who will be using it? It’s worth considering if it will be just the project manager updating the project plan, or if the team will need to do it too.
If the project timeline needs to be actively updated by the project team, it’s worth considering tools which are easy to use, and require minimal onboarding. What other tools are you using?
Microsoft Project integrates and plays nicely with its Microsoft buddies, SharePoint and Project Server which are enterprise based solutions capable of some incredibly smart things with Power BI, Internet of Things, bots and machine learning. Microsoft Project integrates with a lot of other applications and tools too, including JIRA using the Ceptah Plugin and Daptiv PPM. Are you always online? Cloud-based project timeline apps can be great, and they can be kept more up to date with ‘live’ information but consider that they require an active internet connection to work. If you’re ever working offline, and got no cell reception, for example on a plane, you’ll be hooped and want a desktop application instead. Considering the cost of MS Project Alternatives The cost of Microsoft project tends to be one of the primary reasons that people look for an alternative. Microsoft Project isn’t cheap, but did you know that if you do a quick search on Amazon you can find the latest version of Projects vs users Most of the Microsoft Project alternatives are priced on a cost per user basis.
So in working out which solution is the most affordable, consider what makes most sense for you; is it a tool that many people in the organization will need to use, or will it be used principally by the project manager? Lifetime cost of ownership While web-based apps might seem affordable in the short run, typically costing around $15/user/month, the cost of ownership over 3 years is actually the same as. About Ben Aston I’m Ben Aston, a digital project manager. I've been in the industry for more than 10 years working in the UK at London’s top digital agencies including Dare, Wunderman, Lowe and DDB. I’ve delivered everything from video virals to CMS’, flash games to banner ads and eCRM to eCommerce sites.
I’ve been fortunate enough to work across a wide range of great clients; automotive brands including Land Rover, Volkswagen and Honda; Utility brands including BT, British Gas and Exxon, FMCG brands such as Unilever, and consumer electronics brands including Sony. You got right list of Microsoft alternatives and summarized in detail.
As you said you will love to hear about any other alternative ? I want to share proofhub. Its a feature rich tool and we are using it since 2012, we are quite happy with their service so i thought sharing can help your post to keep it refreshing ProofHub costs from $49/ Unlimited USERS /month Summary of ProofHub: Create a Gantt chart: Pass Create a project overview chart: Pass Import and export mpp files: Fail Export PDF’s or shareable project plans: Pass Overall score: 4/5 I will share more if i found more competitive alternative! Also please let me know where I am wrong. Ben, Really liked the article and the brief listing format for the comparisons, proved very useful and timely, just had the experience you open with. Is there nothing else out there etc? As a result, found your article.
Coming from an equipment manufacturing environment, dealing with large scale consultants & Construction companies, the ability to develop, share and reiterate schedules in a consistent format, that they can readily import and export in and out of the clients larger project databases is important. (in some cases it’s a contractual, project communications requirement).
Hence the ability to import & export in.mpp is critical, it’s a shame that the developers for some of the online packages don’t provide this as a defacto standard feature. If there was consistent import/export format across multiple platforms, I think more of these smaller packages would be used more readily, especially by smaller contractors/equipment suppliers supplying into larger projects, where MS Project is simply not cost effective solution. Having said that, from this same perspective, Primavera Project scheduling software is also prevalent on these larger projects and having a similar capability would be useful. I know Excel data can be imported and passed around, but it can be a bit of nightmare, trying to maintain the spreadsheet structure, maintaining the correct data types in fields etc. I’d be interested to hear back from readers, if there are any workable, or proven standard file formats for transferring data between these smaller scheduling software packages, into the larger Project schedule software systems. Thanks again for a clear and informative article. Thank you, Ben, for your review.
I just start experimenting after using MS Project for a long time. How do you think is Arike good for small projects? I can also share with you my personal discovery – GanttPRO – user-friendly online project planning soft which is free and will stay free forever for everyone who sign up now (well, developers promise it ? ). For me I’ve found 5 features: – extremely untuitive interface – after using MS Project GanttPRO is like a child toy) – 360 view of my projects with a critical path and zooming – export to pdf, jpg, xlsx, ical – possibility to share my project plans with colleagues and clients giving the right to edit or the right to view project – perfect visibility – graphic interface is hotsy totsy)). Hi Ben, Great list!
We’re a small company and we’ve found that our main criteria is we need “fixed work” resource allocation (versus “fixed duration”). Other than Project 365 and OmniPlan, it seems all the other solutions use the fixed duration model. We’re trying to get away from Project because we don’t want to continue having to use an outside solution like Basecamp for file sharing and discussions, and we don’t have Macs (OmniPlan also requires an outside platform for file sharing). We signed up for Wrike because we loved the feature set, only to find they are fixed duration only. Do you (or anyone else reading this thread) have any recommendations for a cloud-based DPM platform that uses/allows a fixed work model and also integrates discussions, file sharing, etc.
So we don’t have to run on two separate platforms like we are now? I just used Gantter.com and man did love the intuitive old time feel. It worked beautifully for a basic 12 item 56 point steel construction schedule. Thanks for the Recommendation. I like bells and whistles as much as the next person but simplicity is also a wonderful thing sometimes.
It was straight forward and quite like using MS project 2003. I also took a look at the Rational plan that is suggested above and as far as I can tell that too looks very good for a good price. I would likely purchase that if I did these schedules more often.
I am not sure if that really works but a possible solution would be to use a PM tool from a provider that runs on an AWS GovCloud (US). The service seems to be in compliance with ITAR: That would mean that instead of hosting the program on your internal server and handle version updates, the software producer would do it for you on a dedicated AWS GovCloud (US) machine and you would have the exact same benefits of a cloud/web-based PM tool. We haven’t tried that yet with RationalPlan but it could be a viable solution Interesting point of view, thanks! Fantastic review, thank you! I was just a bit surprised about the Merlin evaluation though.
I use a Mac and found it to be the best Microsoft Project alternative I have tried. It looks very much like Project, and is sufficiently advanced. That is: you can create tasks and subtasks with dependencies and constraints, add work and duration separately, assign resources with an option to decrease duration or increase work, see how much work each resource has assigned, and add your own fields to each task, for which you can define the field type (e.g. Checkbox, date, etc.) This last feature is why I dropped Omniplan – the devil’s in the detail! I needed to add, and filter by, a number of checkboxes and custom dates next to each task (like “urgent” flag, “important” flag, date task was requested etc.).
The only downside I found was being unable to save straight to mpp – you can save to xml and whoever has the latest Project version can open it, but older versions don’t. And a quick note about Omniplan: a great feature for those who frequently change task dates and assignments is that you can define whether to adjust duration or work in a clear option button, rather than indirectly by adjusting dates and work/duration values. Hope you find this helpful! HI Ben, Interesting review but not quite sure how you missed Planner from PROJECT in a box. Now quite a mature product and completely free for ever for all organisations to download. We found in our commercial products that 80+percent of the plans people created in MS Project used a very basic set of functions, tasks, dependencies, groupings, resources etc so we provided these in a simple to use tool five years ago and now there are well over 100,000 users.
We find many people ditching MS Project to use this instead at an organisation wide level as well as on a new user at a time basis. Over the years we have added a lot to Planner so it now includes project accounting and costing model and uniquely is also a risk and issue/RAID tool so users can collect all their key project controls data in one place. Of course we also provide reports and all data and charts etc can be exported and dropped to clip board. We even provide two way exchange with MS Project and Excel. We know of other customers who transfer to Primavera through this interface. Planner is used by many of our biggest global customers on some huge projects and also by the complete novice to create there first ever plans.
A full set of training videos and free technical support is also provided. Although it is free forever it doesn’t mean it is some simple trial tool, we continue to add interesting new features to it based on the dialog with our many customers. Hope your readers find this a helpful update.
Regards Malcolm West MD PROJECT in a box. Hi, Ben It is a great article and a rich collection of MS project alternatives. Like you said you would like to hear about others too.
I would like to represent TIEMCHART Tiemchart have been helping some of the largest organisation where were initially on MS Project. We have delivered a system that is also taking into account for Human, Material and Assets to account for project progress.
Please visit our website to understand bit more about how we are helping the industry. We would love to hear back from you and also will be thankful if you can kindly include our name in your list. Thanks & Regards.
Project management can get overwhelming quickly, especially if you’re juggling multiple initiatives and deadlines at once. From keeping your team on track to ensuring there is good communication and planning between you and your client, there are tons of project management apps available in the App Store to help you tackle even the most challenging of tasks. I’ve been using my iPhone and iPad to help me manage teams and keep projects moving for the better part of five years now. While my workflow constantly changes as tools and apps become better and better, here are my favorite project management apps that I just couldn’t do without. Trello Trello can function as an idea board, SCRUM board and much more. Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor has been an indispensable tool in my workflow for going on three years now.
I use it for everything from brainstorming ideas with colleagues to planning editorial and publishing schedules. I also use it as a way for writers to pitch article ideas for App Factor; that way, none of our inboxes get cluttered with unnecessary strings of emails. In other organizations, I’ve helped implement Trello in many different creative ways. In one scenario, we even used it as a help desk of sorts so IT had a more effective way to communicate with other departments regarding their needs.
If someone noticed a site issue, they could easily add a Trello card to the IT board and assign it to the webmaster. They could then communicate via comments and even attach images, due dates and other team members. Again, minimizing the amount of email for everyone.
The only complaint I have about Trello is its lack of a calendar view on the mobile versions. I’d also like to see more granular control over notifications. Regardless, it’s a tool that has been a vital part of my planning process and I can’t imagine my work life without it. iOS – Free –. Mac – Web only via Trello.com Todoist Todoist is powerful, yet simple to use, which makes it a great candidate for managing many projects at once. Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor While I use Trello for planning and plotting out the “big picture,” I rely on to feed me a steady stream of daily tasks I need to get done.
I also have several shared tasks lists with colleagues and clients. I even made one and shared it with my partner for our home remodel. That way we stayed on track with purchasing materials our contractor needed, or special-ordering things so our completion dates didn’t get pushed back. For consulting projects, I’ve had clients create shared Todoist task lists.
I love this because I can comment on tasks and they can reply back with the information I need. This way I don’t have to keep track of information in 10 different places. It also allows them to see me completing tasks in real time, which holds me accountable and gives them the peace of mind that things are getting done on time. Todoist is a universal download for both iPhone and iPad.
![Best Project Planner For Mac Best Project Planner For Mac](/uploads/1/2/5/6/125603842/128551173.jpg)
There’s also a Mac app available in the Mac App Store. While all versions of Todoist are free to download, you can opt for the premium version for $29 per year. You’ll get refined push notifications, notes, better labeling options, filters, file uploads and more. iOS – Free with optional subscription –. Mac – Free – As a side note, if you’re looking for a task-management service that’s geared more toward organizations, or Todoist doesn’t check all your boxes, my second choice would be. Google Drive Google Drive is hands down the best service when it comes to document collaboration. Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor Over the past year, I’ve given in to the pressure of using as my main method for sharing and collaborating on files.
In terms of shared editing, Google’s implementation is phenomenal and can’t really be rivaled by any other service. You can see changes happening live, view revisions, restore to previous versions, restrict access, share links and so much more. We have paid Google Apps accounts for App Factor and rely on Google Drive for everything from sharing pay schedules with contributors and documenting site development progress to tracking monthly expenses and revenues for owner contributions. Aside from installing the Google Drive app, you’ll also want to install,.
From there, Google Drive will act as a hub for all three. I have them hidden in folders off my main screen and rely on Google Drive to send me notifications on document changes, invitations and to jump to different documents in the respective app. I also have actions set up to allow me 3D Touch access to my most-used files. Google Drive for iOS – Free –. Google Drive for Mac – Free – or on the web via drive.google.com Slack When it comes to team communication, Slack can’t be beat. Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor is a complete powerhouse when it comes to effective team communication.
I’ve used it across several organizations over the past few years and I couldn’t ever go back to anything else. Slack is completely free for teams to get started with and only costs money if you need more file storage, unlimited message history, or other premium integrations. When it comes to managing teams, you can set up separate rooms and private channels for different groups to communicate. Slack supports file uploads and sharing and integrations with other apps and services such as Trello, Twitter and dozens more. For instance, I have a social Slack channel set up in our App Factor Slack so I don’t have to check anywhere else for Twitter replies. It also allows me to quickly see if there’s a problem with automatic social posting when nothing goes up for a long period of time.
Slack has many invaluable uses for teams and I can’t even scratch the surface in a simple roundup. Seriously, try it. You’ll be glad you did. Slack for iOS – Free –. Slack for Mac – Free – OmniPlan For projects with tons of moving parts that depend on each other, nothing else offers the granularity that Omniplan does. Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor and most of the OmniFocus family of products are pretty much the gold standard when it comes to productivity.
While I don’t always have a need for apps as intricate as OmniPlan, there have been several occasions where this app in particular has helped me maintain my sanity. For example, anytime I’m working on a project that is time-sensitive and contains a ton of moving parts that depend upon each other, OmniPlan gives me an incredibly detailed way to map out tasks to completion. This has helped me foresee roadblocks and potential disasters before they happen. OmniPlan allows me to organize resources and set client expectations accordingly. There’s nothing worse than admitting to a client you’ve made a mistake or severely underestimated a bid or time allocation for a project. I’ve caught oversights during planning phases more than once thanks to OmniPlan.
OmniPlan 3 for iOS – $74.99 –. OmniPlan 3 for Mac – $149.99 – Editor’s note: Be prepared for a steep learning curve if you’ve never used Omni products or task software like OmniPlan before.
However, The Omni Group offers incredible documentation for every single one of its products. Hours Project manager or freelancer, time is your most valuable resource. Hours will help you stay on track and identify problem projects you’re spending too much time on. Photo: Ally Kazmucha/The App Factor As a freelance consultant, I spend my time juggling several different projects for multiple clients.
I also spend quite a bit of time on App Factor. I quickly realized that I needed to allocate my time better based on bid and client expectations, as well as how much money I was making off different projects.
That’s when I started using to gain a better understanding of where I was spending my time compared to where I should be spending it. In a few cases, I was spending far more time on a client project than I ever anticipated, which meant I probably under-quoted them. It’s not easy to go back to a client and ask for more money. Hours helped me figure out how much time I was averaging for different kinds of projects and tasks. This led to more accurate quotes and less time on projects that weren’t making me any money. When managing any project, your time should be treated as your most valuable resource.
Hours can help ensure you’re spending it where you should. Hours for iOS – Free – This post was syndicated via.