Simple Project Management Software: Best For Planning & Tracking

By Marin Valchev On Apr 21, 2016

There are dozens of good simple project management software and applications out there and it is difficult to decide which one is the best for your large or small business needs.

Let me clarify that simply does not mean less powerful with basic features only.

A PM software can be used for project planning, scheduling, tracking, reporting, and even online marketing management and at the same time to be very user-friendly and easy to use with intuitive design.

Not to mention that nowadays some top PM systems and apps also carry out with ease budget management, web-based team collaboration and communication, change management, IT, administration, documentation, Gantt charts and much more.

On this page, you will see:

Table of Contents

Simple Project Management Software: Best List For Planning and Tracking

Projects are complicated by their nature but a good simple PM software can be a weapon that will show you the big picture in more clear aspect and to give you the ability to lead successfully your entire project from the beginning to the end.

Wrike

When it comes to all-in-one but easy to use and simple project management software, Wrike has a lot to give.
The system combines centralized task management and social collaboration functions into one real-time workspace.
Collaboration is easy – tasks, discussions, and documents – all in one place.
It is really easy to use with very intuitive interface.
An up-to-date picture of the project. If you are running several teams or project, you able to see clear real-time visibility.
Your team collaborates on projects easily. They know exactly what to do and how their work connects to others.
Not just tracking the team work, but help them to do it better.
Robust tools for project management, planning, and workload optimization.
Suitable for freelancers, middle or small business, and / or large companies with thousands of employees.
Easily customizable software to your needs and requirements. Each team can set up their own workflow.
Excel, Word, Google drive. Wrike pretty much integrates with everything.
Main features: Task management, Interactive Gantt chart, Workload management, Time tracker, Discussions, Real-time newsfeed, Document collaboration, 30+ integrations, Email integration, Outlook, Apple Mail add-ins, iPhone and Android apps, Customized reports.
Free trial available.
http://wrike.com

LiquidPlanner

LiquitPlanner is a great example what powerful but simple project management software and solutions mean.
An easy way to organize your work – track time, schedule projects, assign tasks and monitor progress from one central location.You see this all in one single view.
LiquidPlanner creates schedules automatically based on project priorities and predicts through dynamic calculations the most likely completion dates of all your projects.
You can capture the amount of uncertainty. This software estimates a realistic range of time to complete tasks.
The system calculates when you’re likely to complete your work.
If you have hundreds of IT projects and tasks, you can easily organize and prioritize them.
Incorporates your team’s workload, so it’s impossible to overbook people.
LiquidPlanner is perfect for fast-moving technology teams that value speed.
Main features:
Free trial available.
https://www.liquidplanner.com

Easy projects

If you are looking for a low-priced, full and simple project management software and solution, Easy Projects may fit your needs.
Suitable for small business and a large one too.
As a project manager, you can plan every aspect of your projects with ease, visibility, and using a clearly defined timeline.
You will find everything you need for the successful completion of your project – from time tracking to budgeting.
Cloud-based project planning software with tools tailor-made for easy planning and execution.
Time-savers like Gantt chart, Resource Loading Simulations, and Project Calendar.
The software comes with a number of preset templates for IT, Marketing, Engineering and other types of projects. And you can also create your own project templates.
Critical Path and Multiple Dependencies – you are able to able to set up dependencies, which allow for changes you make in one task appropriately affect the ones that are related to it.
Task Management – unlimited tasks, easy add and edit tasks, quick and simple.
https://www.easyprojects.net

Project Bubble

Project Bubble really can save your time.
Easy project management, that allows you to get organized in minutes. Drag and drop tasks, traffic light indicators, sub-tasks and more.
Because this is online project management software, you can invite different teams to your projects and assign tasks to the members.
Give team members permissions e.g. project manager or guest with read-only access and etc.
Automate – when you complete your task or project, a new one will get created with everything pre-populated and with new dates!
A calendar that allows you to view and rearrange all of your projects, task and sub-task milestones.
Team collaboration with file sharing – easily discuss projects, tasks, and files with your whole team.
Files are stored in the cloud for safe and quick access.
Time tracking and resource allocation. Also, you’ll see whether you’re in the budget or not with the ‘actual time’ vs ‘estimated time’ indicators. Simple timesheet entry
Mobile time tracking that even works while you’re offline.
Easy and quickly reporting – beautiful looking reports with charts and graphs that show project progress.
Gantt charts to show your milestones.
http://projectbubble.com/

Smartsheet

Powerful project management tool but very easy for everyone to use.
A familiar interface and hundreds of pre-built templates.
You can manage projects of any size with interactive Gantt charts, automated workflows, file sharing, and more.
You can share your project with other team members. Collaboration with the team members from any device.
Automated alerts to remind you (and others on your team) about upcoming tasks and approaching deadlines.
Smartsheet Sights gives you unprecedented visibility into work as it’s getting done.
Gantt chart – customize your chart with conditional formatting to highlight team members’ tasks or indicate status levels with different colors.
Calendars to track your project progress.
Mobile – Smartsheet mobile apps let you work from anywhere, anytime.
Easily to create online web forms.
Roll up several project sheets into a master sheet by linking cells across sheets.
Other features: web forms, reporting, resource management, google app.
https://www.smartsheet.com

Basecamp

When we talk about powerful but simple project management software, we definitely should mention Basecamp.
It is one of the best and most popular project management software tool for collaboration and working with other people.
Keep everyone on the same page with ease.
World-famously-easy-to-use.
A Basecamp is a great and secure online software where people can work together, organize and discuss everything they need to get a project done.
You can organize everything related to your project – tasks, discussions, deadlines, and files.
The software works over email – people who prefer email can simply reply to discussions via any email app without the need to log into Basecamp.
Other features: Real-time chat/pings, Message boards and comment threads, Automatic check-ins, To-do lists, Docs & file storage, A centralized schedule, Hey! and Notifications, Reports and more.
https://basecamp.com/

Nutcache

Nutcache is surely in the category all in one but really simple project management software with a collaborative workspace.
Allows you to manage projects, track time and expenses, and bill your clients with ease.
All project management tools organized on one single page. By easily gathering everything that matters to your project into one cohesive place, Nutcache allows you to speed up project completion.
Assign members and tasks to projects, review and approve work hours, and bill your project.
Organize and manage your projects with boards, lists and cards to reflect your project workflow.
Make time entries quick and easy – tracking how many hours of work are logged to a specific project.
Also, you are able to keep an eye on your expenses and stay on budget by tracking all costs against a project.
Manage estimates and invoices right from the project.
Store and share documents online.
Track your project’s profitability and progress.
One of the best and most popular project management software tools for all-in-one use.
Free trial available.
http://www.nutcache.com

QuickBase

As Its name suggest QuickBase is easy to use project management app software that really can save your time. But what we have to mention here, this tool has a huge number of solutions from PM to marketing and sales.
Team Collaboration & Management – all data and resources in one easy-to-use custom app.
Customizable Business Apps – this app development software allows you to easily create without coding or compromise.
Process & Workflow Automation – allows you to Manage your approvals, orders, trouble tickets, and more with smart forms that trigger data updates and actions.
Dashboards & Reporting Tools – Build interactive dashboards and easily sync and report on data across apps.
Ready-to-Use Business Apps – you can choose from hundreds of ready-made business apps created by an active community of app builders.
This cloud-based software can be accessed at any time, from anywhere, enabling teams to connect on task statuses and communicate important data, regardless of location.
Solutions: Project Management, Sales Management, Human Resources, Training Management, Customer Service, Marketing, IT Management, Business Process, Healthcare and much more.
http://quickbase.intuit.com/

Dooster

Dooster is a great tool for an easy task and project management. It is so easy that you do not need training or download. Also, it has one of the best pricing out there.
An online project management, task collaboration and business admin tool aimed at small and medium-sized businesses. But it also can be used by major corporations.
You can manage better all your todo’s, appointments and emails while keeping important data, like contacts, schedules, emails and documents always close to hand.
Within seconds of signing up you can quickly create tasks, notes, and events; then set priority levels, due dates and assign them to people.
Quickly create a task using the easy-add box.
Comments, notes, and files can be emailed in. No need to log in – send from anywhere.
Alerts and Reminders – Full history, “reasons why” – makes every alert easily understandable.
Quickly add people and assign them a task.
Google Integration – Syncs perfectly with your Google Calendars and Contacts.
Overview Screens – Everything centralized in one easy view.
Easy Task Lists.
Milestones – Simple but highly effective milestone setting.
Gantt Charts – Simple and Easy to use. Help you manage your time sensitive work.
Mindmaps – a visual overview of every project.
Files / Data Storage – in one central, safe location and more.
http://dooster.net/

Redbooth

When it comes to intuitive, user-friendly and simple project management software, Redbooth has a lot to show too.
Task Management – a central hub for task management and planning.
Video Conferencing – HD video chat and screen sharing make it easy to bring teams all over the world together for face-to-face meetings.
Team Business Chat – team chat that flows with how you work.
Insights into team performance: evaluate trends, strategically allocate work, and identify at-risk initiatives early.
Mobile Collaboration – stay in the loop when you’re on the road with sleek mobile iPhone, iPad, and Android apps.
Locally Hosted Option – Redbooth Private Cloud provides all the features of Redbooth, locally hosted behind your firewall on premise.
Workflow Templates – ready-made workspaces for common projects.
Easy-to-Use Gantt Charts.
Solutions: IT Project Management, Marketing, Financial Services, Education, Enterprise Collaboration Software, Legal & Law Firms, Financial Services.
https://redbooth.com

Tips to choose simple project management tools

There are some basic tips you can use in order to find powerful but simple project management software tools and apps:

Online tools are much easier for using because they have no installation and the collaboration is web-based. If the software has installation, it should be very easy.
The software should allow working in more than one browser windows.
Navigation options as a left bar and top menus come handy.
Drag-and-drop functionality for task management. All those dependencies between tasks, start and end date, resources assigned should be very flexible.
One button comparison between the planned baseline and the actual status
Basic reports and Gantt charts should be available.
Simple exporting of information in all basic formats – .doc, PDF, XML, etc.
Embedded integrations with other software which required no technical skills.
Easily manageable shared resources – adding, editing, removing resources should be done very intuitive.
All projects should be handled in the software with ease.
High management view of information. Something as a dashboard for all projects / data-at-a-glance could be very useful.
Fast document management and sharing could simplify project manager’s daily work.

Download infographic – Tips for choosing Simple PM Software in PDF for Free.

Conclusion:

Using good simple project management software has many benefits and some of the most important of them are saving your time and money.

By default, a PM system has to carry on mainly project planning, tracking, scheduling, and resource allocation. But nowadays on the market, most of the tools and apps can offer you powerful solutions for your whole business process including finance, marketing and sales, and of course team communication and collaboration.

A simple PM software allows you to manage these processes in an easy way and to stay organized and keep track of tasks and projects.

And one more important benefit of simple project management software tools – they are more budget-friendly than more sophisticated systems.