10 Best Free Project Management Software and Tools
There is no doubt that project management solutions can help streamline workflows and boost team productivity. While the advanced features available have a wide variety of use cases, for many people a basic or free version is enough to get the job done.
A solopreneur or small team may opt-in for the free version of a project management tool as a way to get organized on a budget. There is also benefit to business leaders or project managers trying out a free version as a way to test workflows before upgrading to a paid plan
This review highlights the best free project management tools, including who and what they are best for, their core features, and the limitations of the free tiers. You will also find information on the benefits and challenges of using free software for project management and my methodology for compiling this list.
1
monday.com
Employees per Company Size
Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+)
Any Company Size
Any Company Size
Features
Agile Development, Analytics / Reports, API, and more
2
ClickUp
Employees per Company Size
Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+)
Micro (0-49 Employees), Medium (250-999 Employees), Enterprise (5,000+ Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees), Small (50-249 Employees)
Micro, Medium, Enterprise, Large, Small
Features
Analytics / Reports, API, Billing / Invoicing, and more
3
Accelo
Employees per Company Size
Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+)
Medium (250-999 Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees), Small (50-249 Employees)
Medium, Large, Small
Features
Analytics / Reports, API, Billing / Invoicing, and more
Top free project management software and tools comparison
This table compares the top free project management tools in terms of relevant features, support, user limit, and storage for free plans, plus the starting price for paid plans if you decide to upgrade.
| ClickUp | ||||||
| Wrike | ||||||
| monday.com | ||||||
| Notion | ||||||
| Smartsheet | ||||||
| MeisterTask | ||||||
| Trello | ||||||
| Asana | ||||||
| Airtable | ||||||
| Teamwork |
ClickUp: Best overall
ClickUp is a popular project management tool known for its extensive features. Even the free version of ClickUp is loaded with useful tools for project management. This includes unlimited users, activity views and custom fields. The free plan allows you to create up to five spaces—one for each project flow.
Why I chose ClickUp
ClickUp is a multifaceted project management tool, even in its free tier. It offers most standard views you’d expect from a great project management tool in the free version, including the task List, Board, Calendar, Table, Doc, and Chat views. All the other views have restrictions or are unavailable for free, but they are options if you choose to pay for a higher tier plan later.
ClickUp is highly customizable and has lots of integrations, and the free version gives you a taste of workload management, dashboards, reminders, mind maps, whiteboards, and custom fields.
For more information, check out our full ClickUp review.
Standout features of the free version
- ClickUp Docs: You can create documents and connect them to workflows. You can also edit and share the documents in real time and set access permission rules for each document.
- ClickUp Goals: With this feature, you can create trackable objectives for each task or project. You can also assign various objectives to a single goal.
- Integrations: ClickUp boasts over 1,000 tools, with some of the top native ones including ClickUp API, Slack, GitHub, GitLab, HubSpot, Toggl, Harvest, Google Drive, Figma, and Microsoft Teams.
ClickUp pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Feature-rich free plan. | Maximum of 100 uses of custom fields. |
| Unlimited free plan users. | Free plan file storage is limited to 100MB. |
| Easy to create and customize reports. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans
The table below includes the core features you will get when you subscribe to any of ClickUp’s paid plans.
| Unlimited | Business | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $10 | $19 | Price available upon request |
| Annual billing price per user | $7 per month | $12 per month | Price available upon request |
| Top features | Everything in Free Forever, plus: – Unlimited storage – Unlimited integrations – Unlimited dashboards – Guests with permissions – Unlimited Gantt charts – Unlimited custom fields – Column calculations – Email in ClickUp – Teams (user groups) – Native time tracking – Goals & portfolios – Form view |
Everything in Unlimited, plus: – Google SSO – Unlimited teams – Custom exporting – Advanced public sharing – Advanced automations – Advanced project dashboard features – Advanced time tracking – Granular time estimates – Timesheets – Workload management – Timelines & mind maps – Goal folders |
Everything in Business, plus: – White labeling – Advanced permissions – Conditional logic in forms – Enterprise API – Unlimited custom roles – Team sharing for spaces – Universal search – Default personal views – MSA & HIPAA available – Single sign-on (SSO) – Custom capacity in workload – Live onboarding training |
When to use an alternative to ClickUp
You need more file storage
Though ClickUp offers a generous free plan, it only provides 100MB of file storage. If you need more storage space, you may need to consider using a ClickUp alternative that offers more storage capacity.
Best ClickUp alternative: Asana
The Asana free plan gives you unlimited file storage with a limit of 100MB per file.
Wrike: Best for individuals
Wrike is an adaptable project management software suitable for all industries. It’s also highly customizable and offers robust collaboration tools. The free plan is ideal for solopreneurs and small businesses. Users get access to kanban boards, tables, spreadsheets, and 2GB of storage space. An advantage of Wrike’s free plan is that you can access artificial intelligence features, such as AI subtask creation.
Why I chose Wrike
While Wrike’s features for the free tier are limited, its incorporation of generative AI for rapid content generation saves lots of time that would have otherwise been spent on content, communication, and workflows. Aside from the AI project risk prediction feature, all its Work Intelligence features are available in Wrike’s free plan.
For more information, check out our full Wrike review.
Standout features of the free version
- Kanban boards: Users can check the progress of different projects using Wrike’s kanban boards. This feature also allows users to set up or edit the priority of tasks.
- Customized templates: There are pre-built templates that can be customized for different types of projects, including project scheduling, complex projects, and professional service management.
- Integrations: Wrike’s over 400 integrations include Google Drive, Box, GitHub, Jira, IBM Watson Workspace, Bitbucket, and more.
Wrike pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Variety of project templates. | Initial setup can be difficult. |
| Powerful tools for security. | Mobile app functionality could be improved. |
| Customized reports and dashboards. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans
Wrike tries its best to make its free plan feature-rich but the features it offers may be insufficient for the average team. Hence, when you upgrade to the paid plans, you can expect to get additional options and benefits, such as:
| Team | Business | Enterprise | Pinnacle | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual billing price per user | $9.80 per month | $24.80 per month | Custom quote | Quote available upon request |
| Top features | Number of users: 2-25 users – Storage space: 2GB per user – Personal work schedules – Custom fields, workflows & statuses |
Number of users: 5-200 users – Storage space: 5GB per user – Project portfolio management – Real-time reports – AI Recommended Tasks – Resource Management |
Number of users: 5-unlimited – Storage space: 10GB per user – Tableau integration – Business intelligence API – Advanced workflow automation – Folder & project permissions |
Number of users: 5-unlimited – Storage space: 15GB per user – Advanced analytics & data visualizations – Advanced resource and capacity planning – Advanced proofing in HTML5 and Sharepoint – Power BI integration (native) |
When to use an alternative to Wrike
You need resource management and automations
Wrike’s free plan lacks resource management features such as resource view, workload charts, effort allocation, resource assignment, time tracking and timesheets. Wrike’s free plan also doesn’t allow you to perform any automation actions.
If you require resource and capacity management or automations, consider an alternative to Wrike.
Best Wrike alternative: Teamwork
Though limited, Teamwork offers basic resource management features, including workload capacity, time-tracking and timesheets. Teamwork’s free plan also allows you to perform up to 100 automation actions per month.
Standout features of the free version
- Access to all main boards: In the free plan, you and your team get access to all monday.com main boards. You’re limited to three total boards, and there is a limit to the total number of items you can create.
- Files and forms: In the free plan, you can see all of the files you uploaded in preview or full mode. You can also convert any of the boards into custom forms to collect and track data.
- Templates: monday.com’s free plan gives you access to over 200 customizable templates, so you don’t have to create project boards from scratch.
monday.com pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Clean and intuitive interface. | Default notification settings can be disruptive. |
| Highly customizable. | Limited views in the free plan. |
| Access to all main boards. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans
monday.com offers four paid plans. Each plan caters to the needs of various users, depending on the features they need. In the chart below, I’ll outline the cost of each plan and its core features.
| Basic | Standard | Pro | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $12 | $14 | $24 | Custom quote |
| Annual billing price per user | $9 per month | $12 per month | $19 per month | Custom quote |
| Top features | – Unlimited free viewers – Unlimited items – 5GB file storage – Prioritized customer support – Create a project dashboard based on 1 board – 1 week activity log |
– Project Timeline & Gantt views – Calendar View – 20GB file storage – Guest access – Automations (250 actions per month) – Integrations (250 actions per month) – Create a dashboard that combines 5 boards – 6-month activity log |
– Private boards – Chart View – 100GB file storage – Time tracking – Formula Column – Automations (25K actions per month) – Integrations (25K actions per month) – Create a dashboard that combines 10 boards – 1-year activity log Task dependencies |
– Enterprise-scale automations & integrations – Multi-level permissions – 1000GB file storage – Enterprise-grade security & governance – Advanced reporting & analytics – Tailored onboarding – Task dependencies – Enterprise support – Create a dashboard that combines 50 boards – 5-year activity log |
When to use an alternative to monday.com
You want to integrate with third-party services
monday.com’s free plan doesn’t allow you to integrate with other premium applications that may be useful for your workflow. You’re able to access a large number of integrations with their paid plans, so this is only an issue if you want to remain on the free version.
Best monday.com alternative: Asana
Asana offers you over 100 free integrations, including Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Slack. Notion and Teamwork also allow you to connect with some third-party applications, including Zapier and Slack.
Notion: Best for note-taking
Notion is a free project management software tool that excels in note-taking and offers an impressive level of customization for layouts. It is adaptable enough to be used by individuals, small businesses, and enterprises across design, engineering, product, and management teams.
Why I chose Notion
I chose Notion for its unparalleled flexibility and specialized note-taking abilities. The platform allows you to create a workspace that’s as simple or as complex as you need it to be. Its free plan is especially generous for individual users, with plenty of templates and almost no restrictions on blocks and basic integrations.
For more information, check out our full Notion review.
Standout features of the free version
- Unlimited blocks: For individual users, the free plan offers unlimited blocks; however, there is a limited block trial for teams.
- Guest invitations: You can invite up to 10 guests to collaborate, including team members, contractors, or clients.
- Integrations: A few integrations included in Notion are Jira, Slack, GitHub, Asana, Zapier, Make, Tray.io, Slapdash, Miro, Figma, Google Drive, and Webex.
Notion pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Very customizable layout for a tailored workspace. | Gantt charts are not natively available. |
| Specialized note-taking ability. | Limited pages and blocks for teams. |
| Impressive free plan with almost no restrictions for individual users. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans:
The following are the core features you will get when you buy Notion paid plans.
| Plus | Business | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $12 | $18 | Price available upon request |
| Annual billing price per user | $10 per month | $15 per month | |
| Top features | Everything in Free, and: – Unlimited blocks for teams – Unlimited file uploads – 30 day page history – Add collaborators external to your organization (like clients or contractors) to specific pages in your workspace. – Invite 100 guests |
Everything in Plus, and: – SAML SSO – Private teamspaces – Bulk PDF export – Advanced page analytics – 90 day page history – Add collaborators external to your organization (like clients or contractors) to specific pages in your workspace. – Invite 250 guests |
Everything in Business, and: – User provisioning (SCIM) – Advanced security & controls – Audit log – Customer success manager – Workspace analytics – Unlimited page history – Security & Compliance integrations – Add collaborators external to your organization (like clients or contractors) to specific pages in your workspace. – Invite 250 guests |
When to use an alternative to Notion
You need to store a large amount of data
Notion gives free plan users up to 5MB of file storage. If you plan to share and store large files, such as photographs, design files, or marketing decks, it would be a good idea to consider using an alternative to Notion that offers higher storage limits.
Best Notion alternative: Asana
Asana’s free plan gives you unlimited file storage, plus unlimited teams and projects. It’s a great choice for small teams or departments that need to collaborate on large files.
Smartsheet: Best for spreadsheet collaboration
Smartsheet merges the functionality of spreadsheets with the capabilities of a solid project management platform. It brings a spreadsheet approach to complex projects that I haven’t seen in other software, making it particularly valuable for teams that are comfortable with spreadsheet-style interfaces but need more advanced project management features.
Why I chose Smartsheet
Through its unique blend of traditional spreadsheet layouts with modern project management features, Smartsheet simplifies complex projects and makes it natural to collaborate on tasks with a spreadsheet interface. The free version has all the automated workflow features, though automation triggers are limited to 100 per month. Smartsheet also feels easier to use than Airtable, the other spreadsheet-style project management tool on this list.
For more information, check out our full Smartsheet review.
Standout features of the free version
- Two sheets: The free plan offers two sheets for project and task tracking and management.
- Multiple views: Smartsheet’s free tier offers Grid, Gantt, Calendar, and Card View to enable teams to view their programs and projects in the formats that matter most to them.
- Integrations: Smartsheet offers 90+ integrations across communication, data visualization, content creation, automation, and security. They include Slack, Teams, Google Chat, Tableau, Power BI, DocuSign, Adobe Creative Cloud, and Zapier.
Smartsheet pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Free version include all views. | Only one user with up to two editors. |
| Unlimited dashboards. | Free plan lacks support. |
| User-friendly interface. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans:
The table below includes the core features you will get when you subscribe to any of Smartsheet’s paid plans.
| Pro | Business | Enterprise | Advanced Work Management | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $12 | $24 | Price available upon request | Price available upon request |
| Annual billing price per user | $9 per month | $19 per month | ||
| Top features | Includes Free plan, plus: – Up to 10 editors (paid license required to edit) – Unlimited sheets – Unlimited free viewers – Unlimited dashboards, reports and forms – 20 GB attachment storage – 250 automations per month – Integrations with Microsoft 365, Teams, Google Workspace, Slack, Box and Dropbox – User Management – Email support |
Includes Pro plan, plus: – Unlimited free editors – User, group, license management Baselines – Forms with conditional logic – Publish sheets, reports and dashboards – 1 TB attachment storage – Unlimited automations – Access to integrate with Resource Management by Smartsheet, Brandfolder, Adobe Creative Cloud, Tableau and PowerBI – Activity log – Document builder – Proofing – Access to Smartsheet University instructor-led and on demand training – Access to Standard and Professional Support |
Includes Business plan, plus: – Single sign-on/SAML – Directory integration – Enterprise Plan Manager – WorkApps: Curated experiences based on user roles – Work Insights: Instantly analyze your data – Unlimited attachment storage – Chargeback reports – DocuSign integration – Domain validation – Custom email domains – Standard Support and access to Professional Support |
Includes Enterprise plan, plus: – Control Center – Dynamic View – Data Shuttle – Salesforce and Jira connectors – DataMesh – Calendar App – Pivot App – Premium Support |
When to use an alternative to Smartsheet
You need more than two editors
Smartsheet’s free plan only allows you to share your project with two editors and viewers.
You need greater file storage limits
The Smartsheet free plan gives you up to 500MB of attachment storage with a maximum attachment size of 30MB.
If you need additional user seats or storage, consider an alternative to Smartsheet.
Best alternative to Smartsheet: Airtable
The Airtable free plan allows you to invite up to 5 editors, and gives you up to 1GB of attachment storage per base. Since it is also structured around spreadsheets, it’s also a good fit for teams that are more comfortable in that style of project management.
MeisterTask: Best for visual task management
MeisterTask is a visually appealing project management tool that offers a kanban-style approach to task management. It prides itself on simplicity and security and is a worthy consideration for teams that find visual workflows and interactive task and project management appealing.
Why I chose MeisterTask
There’s something about colorful designs and kanban boards that just feels natural to me. MeisterTask understands the need to deliver an intuitive interface that makes task management a breeze. With these vibrant kanban boards, teams can enjoy a more interactive way to manage tasks.
For more information, check out our full MeisterTask review.
Standout features of the free version
- Collaborative notes: Has up to five notes to allow teams to organize their content.
- Unlimited tasks: The free plan offers unlimited tasks for your team to create as many tasks as they need.
- Integrations: MeisterTask offers integrations like Slack, Trello, GitHub, Zapier, MindMeister, MeisterNote, Gmail, Spark, Microsoft Teams, and Zendesk.
MeisterTask pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Visually appealing interface that’s easy to navigate. | Community-based customer support. |
| Kanban-style boards for effective task management. | No security features in the free version. |
| Time tracking integration available. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans:
The following are the core features you will get when you buy MeisterTask paid plans.
| Pro | Business | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $9 | $14.50 | Price available upon request |
| Annual billing price per user | $7 per month | $12.50 per month | |
| Top features | Includes Basic and: – External Sharing – Unlimited Projects & Notes – Agenda – Unlimited integrations – Private projects – Automations – Statistics and reports |
Includes Pro and: – Subtasks – Timeline – Roles and permissions – Custom fields – Security restrictions – Priority email & phone support |
Includes Business and: – Tailored pricing offer – Dedicated account manager – Personalized onboarding assistance – SAML Single Sign-On |
When to use an alternative to MeisterTask
You need to run more than three projects
If you are a MeisterTask free plan user, you cannot run more than three projects. While this may not be an issue for an individual, it may pose a problem for teams.
Best alternative to MeisterTask: Asana
With Asana’s free plan, you can run and manage an unlimited number of projects. For a small team or startup, having access to unlimited projects is likely going to be a deciding factor in your software choice.
Trello: Best for simplicity
Trello is this list’s most easy-to-use free project management software. The interface is based on kanban boards, making it easy to manage and visualize projects.
The free plan includes unlimited cards, lists, and up to 10 boards per team. This means that if you need fewer than 10 boards, you can use the free plan forever. The only major limitation of the free plan is that files you upload have a size limit of 10MB.
Why I chose Trello
Strictly within the confines of free kanban boards, Trello is arguably the top tool. I chose Trello because of how straightforward and intuitive its kanban boards are. Trello also impresses with its Power-Ups, which are unlimited in the free version, although some may require you to pay.
For a closer look, check out our in-depth comparisons of Trello vs Asana, Wrike, Airtable, ClickUp and monday.
Standout features of the free version
- Team collaboration tools: Trello comes with a wide range of collaboration tools, including document sharing, comments, and notifications. Users can configure the notifications according to their preferences.
- Powerful mobile app: Trello’s app is well-designed, allowing users to perform various project management functions through the mobile app with just a few clicks.
- Integrations: Trello’s 190+ integrations—which they call Power-Ups—include Slack, Miro, Jira Cloud, Dropbox, Confluence, Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, and Zapier.
Trello pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Flexible and customizable. | Difficult to track multiple projects at a time. |
| Unlimited cards and lists in the free plan. | Maximum limit of 50 automated command runs per month. |
| Drag-and-drop interface is easy to use. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid pains
The chart below includes the monthly and annual rates of Trello paid plans, as well as its core features and functionalities.
| Standard | Premium | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $6 | $12.50 | N/A |
| Annual billing price per user | $5 | $10 | $17.50 |
| Top features | Everything in Free, plus: – Unlimited boards – Advanced checklists – Custom Fields – Unlimited storage (250MB/file) – 1,000 Workspace command runs per month – Single board guests – Saved searches |
Everything in Standard, plus: – Views: Calendar, Timeline, Table, Dashboard and Map – Workspace views: Table and Calendar – Unlimited Workspace command runs – Admin and security features – Workspace-level templates – Collections – Observers – Simple data export |
Everything in Premium, plus: – Unlimited Workspaces – Organization-wide permissions – Organization-visible boards – Public board management – Multi-board guests – Attachment permissions – Power-Up administration – Free SSO and user provisioning with Atlassian Access |
When to use an alternative to Trello
You need advanced project management features
Trello may not have all the advanced features (Gantt charts, resource allocation or time tracking) that some businesses require.
Best alternative to Trello: ClickUp
ClickUp’s free plan includes all the necessary features you need to manage simple projects. It includes Gantt chart capability, time tracking via integrations, and basic resource management features.
Asana: Best for unlimited features
Asana is a flexible project management and collaboration tool offering multiple views, customization tools, automation, and more. Asana’s free plan offers many features, including unlimited storage and team messaging tools. You also get various project views, including calendar, kanban, lists, workload and more. However, the free plan is limited to three views, no project timeline views, and fewer admin controls.
Why I chose Asana
Even though it can take a while to adapt to Asana’s vast features, it’s a thorough project management tool that constantly surprised me with the breadth of its feature set. You can use it to manage almost any kind of project. You get unlimited projects, tasks, storage, comments, and activity logs in its free version, with List, Board, and Calendar views, plus free integrations with everyday apps.
For more information, check out our full Asana review.
Standout features of the free version
- Unlimited use: What makes Asana’s free plan so outstanding is that you get access to many unlimited features, including activity logs, messaging, file storage, and more.
- Agile and scrum support: If your business uses an agile philosophy, Asana’s free version has features that support both scrum and agile project management.
- Three project views: List, Board, and Calendar views.
Asana pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Scrum and Agile project management support. | The free plan lacks Asana intelligence capabilities. |
| Unlimited teams and projects in the free plan. | Limited time tracking. |
| Multiple project views. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans
When you buy any of the Asana premium plans, you will automatically get access to the available features that are lacking in the free plan. See the cost of Asana premium plans and their core features in the table below.
| Starter | Advanced | Enterprise | Enterprise+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $13.49 | $30.49 | Custom quote | Custom quote |
| Annual billing price per user | $10.99 per month | $24.99 per month | ||
| Top features | Unlimited essentials – Five project views – Scaled security – Automated workflows – Asana Intelligence – Project reporting – Community support – Task dependencies |
Everything in Starter; plus: – Project and portfolio views (20) – Advanced workflows – Advanced reporting Resource management – Community and personalized support |
Everything in Advanced, plus: – Unlimited portfolio views – Standardized workflows – Asana Intelligence – Advanced authentication and user management – Customization – custom branding, admin announcements |
Everything in Enterprise, plus: – Data access and management controls – Security and compliance reporting – Advanced compliance solutions |
When to use an alternative to Asana
You need time tracking and other integrations
Asana’s free plan doesn’t support time tracking—even their lowest paid tier doesn’t offer this feature. The free plan also lacks the ability to connect with Tableau or Salesforce, which may be essential for some teams.
If your company needs more access to advanced features and integrations, consider an alternative to Asana.
Best Asana alternative: ClickUp
The ClickUp free plan supports time tracking through integrations, and allows you to connect natively with 50+ third-party apps, including Salesforce and Tableau. Teamwork’s free plan also includes a time-tracking feature, if that’s the only function you find lacking in Asana.
Airtable: Best for customization
Airtable is a project management software that evolved from spreadsheets, but over time it has changed its interface to be more modern and streamlined. The excellent free version of Airtable offers a host of features and multiple views, including kanban boards, Gallery View, and Grid View. However, with the free plan, there are limitations on revision history and file storage.
Why I chose Airtable
For spreadsheet-style project management, Airtable is highly customizable and has a great, user-friendly interface. You can use this free project management app to create databases without having to write a single line of code. Airtable’s free tier offers unlimited databases and all views except for Gantt chart and project timeline.
For more information, check out our full Airtable review.
Standout features of the free version
- Airtable apps and add-ons: There is an entire Airtable marketplace with a lot of options to choose from. Only some of the apps and add-ons are available in the free version.
- Unlimited viewers and commenters: The free plan allows an unlimited number of viewers and commenters in your workspace. You can upgrade this feature in the paid plans if you want the user to have editing capabilities.
- Integrations: Airtable has some quality integrations, the most popular being Slack, Google Drive, Salesforce, Jira, and Zendesk.
Airtable pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Powerful customization capabilities. | Steep learning curve. |
| Multiple views. | Permissions for user access are a bit confusing. |
| Variety of Airtable apps and add-ons. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans
Airtable’s free plan has many limitations and a very low file storage space of 1GB. If you want to enjoy Airtable’s top-tier features, which make it one of the top-rated project management software choices, you should subscribe to one of the company’s paid plans.
| Team | Business | Enterprise Scale | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $24 | $54 | Custom quote |
| Annual billing price per user | $20 per month | $45 per month | |
| Top features | Everything in Free, plus: – 50,000 records per base – 25,000 automation runs – 20 GB of attachments per base – Standard sync integrations – Extensions – Gantt chart and project timeline view – Expanded color, formatting and calendar options |
Everything in Team, plus: – 125,000 records per base – 100,000 automation runs – 100 GB of attachments per base – Premium sync integrations – Verified data – Two-way sync – Admin panel – SAML-based single sign-on |
Everything in Business, plus: – 500,000 records per base – 500,000 automation runs – 1,000 GB of attachments per base – On-premises sync integrations – Enterprise Hub – Enhanced security and admin controls – Enterprise API – Extension and integration management – Audit logs and DLP |
When to use an alternative to Airtable
You need a simple project management tool
While Airtable is highly customizable, it can quickly get overwhelming and clunky as you add more team members and collaborators. If you need something a bit more intuitive and user-friendly, consider an Airtable alternative.
Best Airtable alternatives: Notion and Trello
Notion and Trello are both simple, straightforward, and easy-to-use project management tools. They are ideal for individuals, startups, and SMBs looking for a user-friendly project management tool to manage basic projects that don’t require a lot of customization.
Teamwork: Best for invoicing
Teamwork is a free project management tool that is particularly well-suited for client work, which often involves marketing teams, creative teams, agencies, consultancies and more. It has a lot of features, ranging from customizable templates to milestone tracking, which makes it adaptable for many different types of projects.
Why I chose Teamwork
I chose Teamwork for its versatility. The platform offers a range of features that are particularly useful for agencies, consultancies and other client-focused teams. Its milestone tracking makes it easy to manage projects from start to finish, while its invoicing features make it seamless to export invoices based on logged billable hours from Teamwork to accounting software.
For more information, check out our full Teamwork review.
Standout features of the free version
- Milestones: You can add milestones to task lists to track progress in the free version.
- Client work essentials: Though some may be limited, Teamwork has most of the core project management features for client work, such as full time tracking, in its free plan.
- Integrations: Teamwork integrates with many tools, which include HubSpot, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Skyvia, Atarim, Stripe, Integrately, and more.
Teamwork pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| The free plan support task dependencies. | Limited reporting features in the free plan. |
| Offers unlimited task list templates. | The free plan’s customization is limited to color themes. |
| Has time tracking and timesheets features in its free plan. |
What you get when you upgrade to the paid plans:
The following are the core features you will get when you buy Teamwork paid plans.
| Deliver | Grow | Scale | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly billing price per user | $13.99 | $25.99 | $69.99 | Custom quote |
| Annual billing price per user | $10.99 per month | $19.99 per month | ||
| Top features | – Automations and forms – Project status reports – Teams management – Unlimited client users – Collaborative doc management (Spaces) - Task dependencies |
– Workload and capacity management – Advanced budgeting – Powerful reports – Company timesheets – Project budget expenses – Resource scheduling |
– Unlimited retainer management – Unlimited custom reports – Resource scheduler – 500GB+ storage |
– Premium consulting and support services – Dedicated infrastructure |
When to use an alternative to Teamwork
You have more than five users
If you have more than five people on your team or in your organization, it might be a good idea to consider using an alternative to Teamwork.
Best Teamwork alternative: ClickUp
The free version of ClickUp supports an unlimited number of free plan users, which is ideal if your team is already larger or you anticipate it growing.
Other free project management tools
Though they did not make it to our top 10 free project management tools list, here are two other free project management solutions worth checking out:
- Zoho Projects: Zoho Projects offers a comprehensive set of project management tools, including task tracking, reporting and collaboration features, all within a user-friendly interface.
- Jira: Jira’s free plan offers several top-rated capabilities, including unlimited projects, issues, and forms. It allows up to 10 users and supports up to 100 automations per month.
What are the benefits of free project management software?
The most significant benefit of free project management software is that you get to try the software without having to pay anything. The best project management software offers a variety of features in the free version, so for some businesses or users, the free plan will be all they ever need for their project management.
In addition, the free version provides a feel for the user interface and overall functionality of the software, so if you want to upgrade, you have a good idea of what to expect from the software.
What are the limitations of free project management software?
The limitations of free project management software are specific to each solution. Some of the more common limitations may include:
- Integrations: Most free versions of project management apps offer minimal or no integration capabilities with third-party applications.
- Access limits: There are sometimes limits on the number of projects, users, file storage, activity logs, and other parameters.
- Fewer advanced features: In most cases, there is a limit to the number of project views, reporting and analytics, and other advanced features.
How to choose free project management software
When choosing the best free project management software for your needs, you must decide which features are most important. For example, if you need software with 24/7 customer support or Gantt charts, you should shortlist vendors offering those features.
Once you have narrowed it down to a few solutions based on specifications, you need to dig deeper through expert reviews and customer ratings. You should also test out the software to make an informed decision about whether it is the right fit for your needs.
Review methodology
I used the software’s features, pricing, customer support, usability and other criteria to compile the best free project management software list. Each software’s popularity, user ratings, expert reviews and hands-on experience were evaluated.
The evaluation was focused on the features offered in the free version of each software. This includes features such as file sharing, project views, collaboration tools, and mobile app.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
What is the best free tool for project management?
After reviewing various tools, I found ClickUp to be the overall best option, because they offer a generous free plan that includes premium features like time tracking, which many other tools reserve for paid tiers. Other popular tools include Wrike, monday.com, Smartsheet, and Trello—each offering unique strengths but with varying free plan limitations.
How do I choose project management software?
To choose the right PM software, consider your team’s specific needs, such as task management, collaboration features, file storage, and integrations. Testing a few options through trial runs will help determine which one aligns best with your workflow.
What is a normal project management fee?
The cost of project management software varies based on the features and number of users. Free plans are common, but premium versions typically range from $7 to $25 per user per month, depending on the platform and the features included.