Project Management Software Buying Guide

What is project management software?

Project management software is a software application that businesses use to keep assignments on track, meet deadlines and remain on budget. These platforms let company leaders assign roles, set deadlines and mark major milestones, all in an intuitive interface. With project management software, all employees access a central portal to obtain information and check the status of assignments.

Project management software is an excellent workspace virtualization tool that helps keep team members focused on larger goals while effectively managing day-to-day tasks. The best project management software platforms automatically reschedule work when a deadline is missed and reorder tasks to account for the new timeline. 

“Project management software allows users to consolidate work activities onto one central platform, allowing employees to save time by housing all task tools on one interface,” said John Furneaux, founder of project management company Hive. “The range of software varies from startups … to veteran players like SharePoint. All project management software ranges in their capabilities, and it’s important to assess what the business needs are and how processes could be improved.”

What are the top project management software features?

Although project management system features and tools differ, most include the following elements and tools: 

• Dashboard: Each employee’s dashboard lists assigned tasks and their due dates.
• Scheduling and deadline management: Project managers can easily assess team members’ workloads via the dashboard and assign new tasks without overloading or distracting them from other assignments.
• Role assignment: Project management software allows leaders to add team members to a task and ensure everyone knows who is responsible for each portion of a project.
• Collaboration: Project management software includes built-in tools to enable remote collaboration and employee communication.
• File uploads: Most platforms include secure file sharing so team members can easily and safely share key documents, information and assets.
• Project templates: Many project management programs include customizable templates that you can adjust to fit your business’s needs.

How much does project management software cost?

Project management software pricing varies greatly. There are multiple pricing structures and tiers, ranging from free, entry-level services to premium options with robust feature sets. 

For example, the work management platform monday.com offers a free plan with limited features, a Pro plan for three users for $57 monthly, and a custom-priced Enterprise plan. Similarly, Asana has a free plan, a Starter plan for $10.99 per user per month, and an Advanced plan for $24.99 per user per month. Trello is another affordable tool with options ranging from free to $17.50 per user per month. 

The following factors may affect the price of project management software:

• Number of users: Many project management vendors charge per user monthly, while others allow various user numbers for each subscription tier.
• Features: Some software offers more functionality for a lower price.
• Billing frequency: Project management providers may offer discounts and incentives for paying for a year of service upfront rather than monthly.

When evaluating your financial investment in project management software, you should also consider the costs of training staff and the expense of transferring platforms, if applicable. Because so many factors influence the final price of project management software, it’s important to know your needs before you obtain price quotes from vendors.

What does project management software look like?

Project management platforms tend to have similar visual elements. 

Central dashboard

Project management software typically presents an online dashboard that serves as a home base and provides access to the platform’s major features. From the dashboard, users can create new projects and manage and organize ongoing ones. 

In many project management platforms, the dashboard provides an overview of active and completed projects that users can access anytime. Reporting dashboards can usually be shared across entire teams, giving everyone easy access to relevant projects and tasks. For example, as seen below, monday.com’s dashboard can display projects broken into various assignable subtasks, with fields for status, priority, due dates and more.

monday.com’s dashboard breaks down projects into tasks that can be assigned to different team members. Source: monday.com 

Project tracking tools

Once you create a project, you can access various tools for organizing and coordinating specific aspects and ensuring accountability for the timeliness and quality of assigned tasks. For example, as shown below, Atlassian’s Jira tool features several visual ways to track projects, tasks and subtasks.

 The main Jira board allows for an at-a-glance understanding of where each task is in the production process and which team or individual a task is assigned to. Source: Atlassian

Additional scheduling and tracking tools

Many project management platforms allow team members to schedule and track tasks and project timelines with more sophisticated tools, such as Gantt charts. These tools help keep employees on the same page, even if they don’t work in the same physical location, and ease the burden of meeting tight deadlines. 

For example, as seen below, the Asana Product Roadmap page offers a zoomed-out view of tasks to be completed over a quarter, complete with the task status, assignee and due date. Team members can see which tasks are assigned to which person, making it easier to coordinate project elements. 

Project management tools, such as Asana’s Product Roadmap, can help various teams coordinate their efforts, especially on long-term projects. Source: Asana

Project direction tools

Project management platforms include visual tools that give managers complete control over a project’s direction. For example, they can reassign work or shuffle tasks to delegate assignments more equitably among team members and to more effectively manage project resources on the fly. Some software programs also have built-in chat applications that make collaboration instantaneous and direct, thus keeping projects on track. 

With the detailed overviews and reports available in project management software, managers can more easily stay abreast of new developments. For example, as seen below, Zoho Projects’ reporting capabilities deliver a visual representation of a project’s condition so you always know where you stand. 

Zoho Projects allows you to run custom task reports for overall projects or issues occurring within projects. Source: Zoho Projects 

What are the pros and cons of project management software?

Project management software provides significant benefits for businesses, but it can also present some downsides.

Pros

Project management software can significantly increase productivity and collaboration across an entire team or organization. Here are some of the advantages:

• Centrally located and organized tasks and files: Your entire team can see any tasks you add to your project management platform. The employees with tasks assigned to them will see those assignments in their dashboards. As a result, your team always knows who’s working on what.
• Real-time team collaboration: Once you upload a deliverable or mark a project as complete, your entire team receives the notification. You don’t have to double-check that everyone has gotten the information or manually alert everyone that a project is complete.
• Easier remote work: Project management software is basically your office space if you’re managing a remote workforce. It’s where your employees go to receive their assignments, file deliverables and ask questions. It’s also where team members update you on their progress, almost as if you were sitting in an office with them.
• Automated reporting: Many project management tools automatically generate reports that provide a high-level view of a project’s progress. You can use this information to plan meaningful next steps that get you closer to the finish line. Without project management software, gleaning this data might be tedious and time-consuming.

Cons

Despite the many advantages of project management software, it can hold you back in some ways. Consider these possible drawbacks:

• Overcomplication: Creating a task, adding information and completing other project management steps can be as time-consuming as completing a simple task independently. If you must send the same short email every Monday morning, creating and completing a task for it in your project management dashboard can double your time spent. Putting a recurring notification in your calendar makes more sense.
• Learning curve: Not all project management platforms are intuitive to navigate and use. It’s crucial to choose a user-friendly platform that your team will embrace.

Do I need project management software?

Project management software is designed for projects that require time and teamwork. These tools aren’t advisable for routine work. For example, project management software can be invaluable for setting up and configuring a computer network, but it wouldn’t be necessary to maintain it. 

Ask yourself the following questions to determine whether project management software is appropriate for a project:

• Do I have a definitive start date?
• Do I have a definitive deadline?
• Do I have a clear understanding of my goals between now and then?
• Is my project recurring, with similar tasks or components every month or quarter?
• Who will be working on the project?

“A company needs project management software when they’re coordinating between several individuals or business units, both internally or externally, to complete tasks that involve a variety of deliverables or creatives,” said Conrad Magalis, chief marketing officer at EXtrance. “It’s a best practice so that all of the information and conversations related to a specific project or task can be documented and delegated to each stakeholder involved.”

How do I determine if I need project management software?

Here are some telltale signs your business needs project management software:

• Projects are delayed due to poor email etiquette, and work gets buried in team members’ inboxes.
• There is confusion surrounding overly busy and non-user-friendly spreadsheets.
• Employees miss deadlines for individual tasks or company projects because there is a lack of accountability and transparency in the process.
• Workplace conflicts occur due to poor communication among team members and managers; people don’t properly report the status of a project or task. 
• There is overlapping or redundant work due to confusion surrounding each employee’s specific role.

What should I consider when choosing project management software?

Here are some essential factors to consider when you’re choosing project management software:

• Business size: A large enterprise has different needs than a small startup does. It’s important to examine each application and ask vendors the right questions. “Companies should take the time to demo several options before moving forward, as well as factor in the adoption time for the team and clients to get used to using the application,” Magalis advised. “If you’re working in a highly technical field — such as IT — it may be more common than in other industries to have experience with project management applications.”
• Scalability: As your project management needs evolve, you must know your chosen software can keep up. Perhaps its file storage capacity doesn’t grow as your company does. Or maybe the pricing becomes untenable if your team reaches a certain size. When you’re choosing your project management software, consider long-term growth factors, even if significant growth is years down the line. You want the platform to be able to scale alongside your business.
• Pain points: Identifying your current project management challenges can be helpful. For example, maybe you have trouble sharing timely updates with a client or communicating with your team. By understanding your weaknesses, you can find the software that best addresses your needs.
• Ease of use: If you don’t choose a system that’s easy for your team to implement and use, you’ll end up magnifying the challenges you already face. Ensure that your chosen platform is intuitive. 

Even if you are confident in the project management solution you’ve selected, be aware that your team may not embrace it immediately, particularly if your organization is unfamiliar with project management systems. 

“Successfully implementing an enterprise project management system is difficult,” said Alan Zucker, founding principal of Project Management Essentials. “This is a cultural [issue], not a tool issue. Most organizations do not have consistent and standard practices for managing projects and reporting on portfolio performance. Something as seemingly simple as having a standard day for reporting status across the enterprise can send shock waves, as people are used to reporting status on a specific day, usually because of their executive status cadence.”

Best project management software

The best project management software for your organization will meet your unique needs, scale with your business and remain affordable. Consider the following top options: 

• monday.com: monday is a full-featured work management tool with a wide range of templates, campaign management tools and automation functions. It helps businesses create seamless workflows and foster collaboration among in-person and remote workers. Our monday Sales CRM review and our review of monday’s email campaign management solution will give you a more comprehensive overview of this workforce management platform’s capabilities.
• Trello: Trello is an easy-to-use drag-and-drop project management tool with a shallow learning curve. It’s ideal for smaller teams that need a Kanban-style board. Trello also allows for a range of integrations, including with Google Drive, so users can customize their experience to their needs. However, it may not be ideal for larger teams, as it is limited to a Kanban-style view and does not provide project visualizations. 
• Asana: Asana is an advanced project management system that hides much of its complexity and power behind an easy-to-use interface. Like Trello, Asana can be used and viewed through a series of Kanban boards. However, Asana also allows for more advanced visualizations and includes a suite of automations and no-code workflows that extend its capabilities. Read our comparison of Asana vs. monday to see which platform is better for your business.
• Zoho Projects: Zoho Projects is a powerful, all-in-one project management tool. It boasts built-in collaboration apps, a customizable customer relationship management system, artificial-intelligence-powered data tools, and sales and marketing functions to meet multiple needs. Additionally, you’ll gain access to the Zoho Marketplace for integrations, allowing for even greater flexibility in how you use the tool. 
• Jira: Jira is an easy-to-use, straightforward project management tool. Originally created for bug tracking, Jira provides at-a-glance information through Kanban boards. Individual Jira cards contain data on assignees and due dates and can be expanded through integrations for various additional functions, like time tracking. However, like other Kanban-based boards, Jira can become chaotic and difficult to manage across a large team. 

Is project management software worthwhile?

While companies must consider financial constraints when buying any new software, they should also look at the monetary implications of not buying it. Without project management software, your business could be hampered by miscommunication, redundancy and inefficiency — costing you time and money. The services provided by project management platforms are designed to take a company’s workflow to the next level. The investment will likely be worth it when you consider all you stand to gain.

Jeremy Bender and Max Freedman contributed to this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.