Best Project Management Software For Individuals in 2023
Project management software for individuals can help you with everything from managing your daily to-do list to overseeing a home renovation. In this software guide, we’ve rounded up seven of the best project management software for individuals. We compare their pricing, features and more to help you decide which project management software for individuals is the best for your needs.
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Top project management software for individuals comparison
Besides affordable pricing, you want to make sure that your project management software for individuals has certain key features. Here are some of the features to look out for when comparing project management software for individuals.
Multiple view typesTemplatesDocument managementForever free planPricing Monday work managementYesYesYesYes$8 per user per month SmartsheetYesYesYesYes$7 per user per month ClickUpYesYesYesYes$7 per user per month WrikeYesYesYesYes$9.80 per user per month AsanaYesYesYesYes$10.99 per user per month TrelloYesYesYesYes$5 per user per month NotionYesYesYesYes$8 per user per month monday: Best overall choice Image: monday work management
monday work management is one of the most fully featured project management solutions available. It definitely presents a learning curve, but it also offers a large number of features and customizations that make it suitable for almost any type of project or occasion. If you need a solution that can be used to manage complex projects, not only for simple task management, then monday is definitely worth a try.
Pricing Individual: $0 for up to two seats. Basic: $8 per seat per month billed annually, or $10 per seat per month billed monthly. A free trial is available. Standard: $10 per seat per month billed annually, or $12 per seat per month billed monthly. A free trial is available. Pro: $16 per seat per month billed annually, or $20 per seat per month billed monthly. A free trial is available. Enterprise: Contact the sales team for a custom quote. Features Prebuilt automations for project management workflows. Well-designed, colorful interfaces that are easy to navigate. Many different data visualization options. Easy data import function. Pros Unlimited documents on the free plan. 200+ templates available. Comprehensive project management features. Great selection of integrations. Cons Must upgrade to a paid plan for limited boards. Only 500MB of document storage on the free plan. Must upgrade to Standard plan for Gantt chart views. Advanced features present a learning curve.
For more information, read the full monday review.
Smartsheet: Best for spreadsheet fans
Image: Smartsheet
If you’re currently trying to manage a personal project in spreadsheets and finding it a frustrating and tedious experience, Smartsheet is an excellent option. Its grid view is based on a classic spreadsheet, but it includes more project-specific functionality beyond what Excel can provide, including notifications and automation. Smartsheet also has document storage, so you can manage all assets related to the project in the same application.
Pricing Pro: $7 per user per month billed annually, or $9 per user per month billed monthly. A free trial is available. Business: $25 per user per month billed annually, or $32 per user per month billed monthly. A free trial is available. Enterprise: Quotes are available upon request. Features Choose from grid, Gantt chart, calendar, and Kanban board project views. Library of 280+ templates to choose from. Build flexible, automated workflows for repetitive tasks. Document storage and management included. Pros More traditional interface will feel familiar to many spreadsheet users. Build your own app in the low-code WorkApps tool. Free plan supports up to 100 automations a month. Templates available for all pricing plan tiers. Cons Grid interface can feel outdated compared to some alternatives. Some features are add-on only. Free plan only supports two sheets. Document storage limited to 500MB on the free plan.
For more information, read the full Smartsheet review.
ClickUp: Best for customization
Image: ClickUp
If you’re looking for a project management software for individuals that can be tailored to your needs, consider ClickUp. Choose your own custom statuses, templates, privacy, workflows, tags and more to set up ClickUp exactly to your specifications. With paid plans starting at only $7, it’s also good value for the money.
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Pricing Free trial available. Free Forever: $0; best for personal use. Unlimited: $7 per user per month billed annually, or $10 per user per month billed monthly. Business: $12 per user per month billed annually, or $19 per user per month billed monthly. Enterprise: Quotes are available upon request. Features Create documents, wikis and knowledge bases. Choose from more than 15 project views. More than 1,000 integrations. In-app video recording. Pros Interface is colorful and easy to navigate. 24/7 customer support for all plans. Excellent customization options. Can be used to manage complex projects. Cons Storage for the free plan is limited to 100MB. System occasionally lags when moving between pages. Can have a higher learning curve due to the number of features. Need a Zapier account to access most integrations.
For more information, read the full ClickUp review.
Wrike: Best for power users
Image: Wrike
If you have multiple aspects of your life that you’re looking to manage at once, then consider Wrike. Wrike was designed for project portfolio management, a.k.a. managing multiple complex projects at once. There’s definitely a learning curve and it’s better suited to power users for that reason. But once you master it, you can take advantage of the powerful customizability and truly impressive number of features.
Pricing Free trial available. Free: $0 per user per month. Team: $9.80 per user per month. Business: $24.80 per user per month. Enterprise: Quotes are available upon request. Pinnacle: Quotes are available upon request. Features Subtask management included on all plans. Automations available on paid plans. Folder hierarchy keeps documents organized. Voice assistant interaction available on mobile app. Pros Paid add-on option for two-way sync with 12 other apps. Well organized and designed interface. Suitable for complex project portfolio management. Extremely powerful features and customizability. Cons Free plan limits the number of active tasks you can have. Storage space is limited. Higher learning curve. Free plan only includes board and table views.
For more information, read the full Wrike review.
Asana: Best for unlimited projects
Image: Asana
Many project management software cap the number of projects that you can have on the free plan. Asana bucks this trend by allowing unlimited projects, tasks, activity log, storage and comments on the free forever plan. It does cap free users at 15 people per workspace, but this won’t be an issue for people searching for project management software for individuals.
Pricing Basic: $0 per user per month for up to 15 people. Premium: $10.99 per user per month billed annually, or $13.49 per user per month billed monthly. Business: $24.99 per user per month billed annually, or $30.49 per user per month billed monthly. Enterprise: Contact the sales team for a custom quote. Features Multiple project views available. Workflow builder helps standardize task execution. Document storage and management. Resource management tools available on Business plan. Pros Unlimited projects, tasks and storage on the free plan. Excellent task management features. Integrates well with third-party tools. Many data import options if you’re migrating from another software. Cons User interface could be more intuitive. Not suitable for projects with complex dependencies. No Gantt chart/timeline view on the free plan. Must upgrade to Premium to get Workflow builder.
For more information, read the full Asana review.
Trello: Best for Kanban boards
Image: Trello
While many project management platforms have tried to copy Trello’s Kanban boards, few have been able to match its intuitive drag-and-drop interface. The card-based Kanban view is ideal for visual people who struggle with more text-based software. If the Kanban view doesn’t work for a particular project, then you can also choose from board, timeline, table, calendar, dashboard, map and workspace views.
Pricing Free trial available. Free: Up to 10 boards per workspace. Standard: $5 per user per month if billed annually, or $6 per user per month if billed monthly. Premium: $10 per user per month if billed annually, or $12.50 per user per month if billed monthly. Enterprise: $17.50 per user per month when billed annually. Features Built-in automation tool called Butler. Highly visual user interface. Easy-to-use mobile app. Intuitive Kanban boards. Pros Choose from Card, Board, Timeline, Table, Calendar, Dashboard, Map and Workspace views. Seamless syncing with other Atlassian products. Good selection of native integrations. Unlimited file storage on all plans. Cons Free plan limited to 10 boards per workspace. Project management features aren’t as robust as some competitors. Limited customization options. Need to pay for a Standard plan to invite single board guests.
For more information, read the full Trello review.
Notion: Best for document management
Image: Notion
Notion combines project and task management features with note taking, wiki creation and document management. This makes Notion a great solution if you’re tired of splitting these activities across most apps. Notion’s project management capabilities aren’t robust as some competitors, so it’s not the best choice if you’re managing very complex projects, but it’s more than enough for basic project and task management.
Pricing Free: No cost plan with limited features. Plus: $8 per user per month billed annually, or $10 per user per month billed monthly. Business: $15 per user per month billed annually, or $18 per user per month billed monthly. Enterprise: Custom quote. Features Wiki and document creation. Multiple project views available. Customizable templates for different workflows. Excellent community support. Pros Simple and well-organized user interface. All-in-one productivity tool. Great for knowledge management. Invites up to 10 guests on the free plan. Cons No Gantt charts. No budgeting or invoicing tools. No time tracking. Not suitable for managing complex projects.
For more information, read the full Notion review.
Key features of project management for individuals Task management
Many people seek out project management software for individuals in order to help them manage their day-to-day to-do list. Task management features to watch out for include setting due dates, customizing workflows, creating dependencies and tracking time. Ideally, the dashboard should also show your immediately upcoming tasks so that you don’t have to go hunting for your to-do list.
Automation
Automations help to cut down on repetitive work, such as automatically setting up workflows when a new task is created or moving projects to a specific column when they’re assigned to a certain category. Each platform offers different levels of automations, and they may cap the number of uses on free or entry-level plans, so keep that in mind as you try to decide on project management for individuals.
Document management
Document creation and management can take many forms, from uploading a photo to a task to creating an entire knowledge base. Project management software offers different levels of document management, and they also have various storage cutoffs for free and entry-level plans, which you will want to note. These platforms also typically integrate with popular document storage solutions such as Google Docs and OneDrive.
Templates
Prebuilt templates mean that you don’t have to start from scratch every time you need to create a checklist or project plan. Most top project management software includes dozens or even hundreds of templates to choose from. They also offer the ability to customize the templates to your specific needs.
Guests and collaborators
For certain projects, you might want to add view-only guests or active collaborators to specific boards and workspaces, which means that you need to be able to set permissions for each user. Some project management software limits the ability to add guests to paid plans only, which is something that you should consider, especially if you were hoping to find a free plan that works for your needs.
How do I choose the best project management software for individuals?
When choosing the best project management software for individuals, you can disregard some features, such as team collaboration. Instead, consider exactly what you need the software for and the complexity of the projects you’re managing. Some people will be fine with a simple task management solution for their daily to-do list, whereas others need a robust platform that can be used for complex projects such as a home renovation.
Pay special attention to what limits each software imposes on their free plan. Most pose some kind of constraints, whether that’s what project views you can use, the number of projects you can create or the size of the documents you can upload. If you’re hoping to find a forever free plan that suits your needs, identify your must-have features and prioritize platforms that don’t limit those features on their free plans.
If you aren’t on a budget and don’t mind paying for project management software for individuals, take advantage of free trials to test each of your top contenders. If you still aren’t totally committed after the trial period ends, you can sign up for a month-to-month subscription initially, so you aren’t locked into an annual contract in case you decide to switch later.
Methodology
We reviewed these project management software for individuals based on a number of criteria, including pricing, ease of use, user interface design and the steepness of the learning curve. We also weighed additional features such as document management, automation, project views, templates, time tracking, and billing and invoicing. We evaluated these platforms by consulting user reviews and product documentation.
