Have you gotten confused about what project management software to use? There are so many options, it can be hard to know which ones are good. Here are reviews of the best project management software for entrepreneurs. You can read reviews of some great options based on use case. If you want to get started quickly, some tools have guided walk-throughs that will help you get up and running more easily.
Project management software can help you improve project communication, stay on top of deadlines, and organize the data of your business. It’s essential for any startup or small business, but also useful for individuals looking to stay organized. Some project management software systems are very complex, while some are so simple to use anyone could use them.
Hubstaff Tasks
Hubstaff Tasks is a project management software for startups with multiple task tracking and collaboration features. Its interface is based on the Kanban methodology; it lets you organize tasks in different project stages, which are represented by columns. Each task can be categorized using color-coded labels. One of its notable features is custom workflows. These let you automate assigning tasks to team members at different project stages and moving them forward with one click.
You can create checklists within each task and track them from the project view using progress bars. Files can also be attached to task cards, but the free plan only allows up to 100 MB of storage per user. Switching to the sprints view displays all your assigned tasks, organized by sprint. You can move tasks to current or future sprints or to the backlog with a drag-and-drop mechanism similar to Kanban.
Hubstaff Tasks integrates with Active Collab, Asana, Breeze, ClickUp, GitHub, GitLab, Insightly, JIRA, LiquidPlanner, Mavenlink, Paymo, PivotalTracker, Podio, Redbooth, Redmine, Teamwork Projects, Trello, Unfuddle, Wrike, Zoho Projects, Slack, Zendesk, Salesforce, QuickBooks, and other apps. You can boost your integration options with a paid plan through Zapier, unlocking hundreds of other possible connections.
Hubstaff Tasks is free for up to 5 users and 10 projects. The premium plan starts at $5/user/month.
10,000ft
10,000ft gives entrepreneurs “the big picture,” or an overview of who’s working on what task, how much budget is left for what project, and reporting tools to better your project efficiency. 10,000ft is great for managing your entire company as opposed to zeroing in on specific projects. Their support team adds, “[10,000ft] focuses on important information like project profitability and team utilization to help entrepreneurs make better decisions about their business.”
The cost is mid-level at $49+ per month (the fee varies on the number of users). I would recommend this solution for entrepreneurs who want a high-level view of what’s happening at their company.
Teamwork
As you can guess by its name, teamwork is one of the best project management software for startups and bigger companies that focus on making team collaboration more streamlined to the point where it becomes effortless.
Teamwork offers excellent project management features that include time tracking, billing, estimates, milestones, notifications, task boards, and more.
It is suitable for companies of all sizes, whether large or small business and can bring all your workspaces and teams in one place for easier management.
The ability to track time and log billable and non-billable hours are handy, and users can track and log time on each task individually. In addition, setting task status and adding labels, reminders, and tags is easy, and the ability to import tasks right from excel is super convenient.
Users can also create multiple tasks and link them to milestones and/or the Teamwork Calendar. In addition, the Task Board allows users to exchange ideas in chat or comments, and project managers can control who gets the notifications.
Teamwork is great for startup companies because it’s free for up to five users and the Email integration with Gmail. It also integrates with Basecamp, Trello, Slack, YouTube, and more.
Cons
You can’t import tasks with the solution, and you always have to enter them manually.
Teamwork Pricing:
- Free – offers up to 5 users, 100MB of file space, and 2 active projects.
- Pro – $10/user/month (billed annually)– offers up to 50 users, 100GB file space, and 300 active projects. Integrations with Slack, Drive, Onedrive.
- Premium – $18/user/month (billed annually)– Offers up to 100 users, 250 GB file space, and 600 projects. Adds custom domains, project portfolio, extra integrations.
Kissflow Project
It’s impossible to complete any list of startup project management tools without mentioning Kissflow Project. This tool focuses on collaboration, transparency, and productivity through simplification. The tool offers multiple views like Kanban, matrix, and lists, so you can always keep an eye on the big picture and make quick decisions according to the situation.
Here are some of the most important features of Kissflow Project that are especially useful for startups:
- Advanced communication channels
- Reporting and analytics
- Dynamic visualization between Kanban, matrix, and lists
- Excellent security features
- 24/7 support
- Custom fields
- Project and task status
Pricing is an essential consideration for startups and Kissflow has the most suitable plans for a budding business.
- Free – A basic package for small teams. Can allow 3 users and runs 1 project at a time.
- Starter ($45/month) – Equipped with everything you need to get your team on track. The package has a limit of 5 users and 5 projects. However, you can pay $5 per additional user.
- Professional ($75/month) – Unlimited custom views and unmatched capabilities. You’ll find everything you’ll need to optimize your workflows and streamline processes. The package has a limit of 5 users and 10 projects. You can add additional users at the rate of $10.
- Enterprise (Custom) – Tailored plans to fit your organization’s needs with their excellent capabilities. Enjoy unlimited views, storage, and file sharing options at a very reasonable price.
Nifty
Nifty consolidates team communication, project discussions, tasks, milestones, docs, and files into one place with organizational overview across all projects and teammate workloads for the ultimate experience. Interactive and affordable, Nifty is a scalable platform that will grow with your company from startup to enterprise.
Startups on Nifty enjoy:
- One place to manage their projects, communications, and operations
- An automated, intuitive environment that facilitates organization
- A birds-eye overview of all your projects and teammate workloads
Price: Nifty starts with a Free tier that allows for unlimited users and two Active projects! The Starter tier begins at only $49/month for 40 projects and 100GB of storage, the Pro plans begin at $99/mo for unlimited projects, cross-project overviews, and 500 GB storage.
Forecast.app
Forecast is a project management software for startups that unites your projects, resources, and financials in one AI-powered platform. Project managers can leverage Forecast’s workflow automation capabilities to create smart schedules, estimate timeframes and budgets, and populate timesheets instantly. Forecast is currently used in over 40 countries by an assortment of agencies, consulting companies, SMBs, and enterprises.
PMs can control the workflow by building out detailed task lists and flagging clear priorities. Task cards allow every team member to easily comment, share files, and register time spent. Everything related to the specific task appears in one place, including dependencies and subtasks. You can put together projects for any type of work: fixed price, time and material, or retainer.
Forecast’s AI learns from previous work and suggests the number of hours you normally register on similar tasks to help you log time faster. You can monitor time registrations from a team perspective and notify each member if they forget to enter something in. Time tracking utilization on a company-wide level is calculated for you for easy alerts, estimates, and reporting.
Forecast integrates with Slack, Microsoft Teams, iCloud Calendar, Google Drive, Google Calendar, Outlook, Harvest, Trello, Asana, GitLab, Github, and dozens more using a paid plan through Zapier. Higher-tier subscriptions include native integrations with Timelog, Xero, QuickBooks Online, JIRA, Azure DevOps, Salesforce, Okta, OneLogin, and Azure Active Directory.
Forecast cost from $29/user/month with a minimum of 10 users and offers a 14-day free trial.
Conclusion
If you are in business for yourself or part of a larger organization then project management is an important skill. Whether you are managing a project within your organization or across projects in your industry, successful management can be the difference between success and failure.
If you’re crafting the next killer app on your company laptop on weekends, project management software software is a must have.