Small business project management software is typically a highly-customizable tool that streamlines workflows through advanced planning, task management, and communication. Its primary purpose is to keep everyone abreast of project development.
Every small business is different: goals, strategies, workflows, and resources differ significantly from one company to another. Therefore an appropriate online tool is a powerful “lever” that can drive small teams to success.
Your team may feel the need for construction, IT, or manufacturing small business project management software. It is also possible to utilize such a tool for educational, marketing, architecture, logistics, or other small business projects.
How to pick the best project management solution for your small business projects and teams?
As with the case of identifying the best project management software for startups, it is essential to clearly understand what features and characteristics of online small business apps will be the most useful and in demand.
So, make sure that each app you will consider meets some critical and indispensable criteria.
Contents:
- Overview of the key features of small business PM software.
- 10 top project management software for small business.
- Small business project management software comparison table.
Before diving into the essential features, pay attention to some statistical facts that clearly show the current popularity of small businesses and their predictable development.
According to the Small Business Trends survey conducted by Guidantfinancial (2022), the key priorities small business owners report are increasing staff (51%), expanding or remodeling their business (41%), and investing in digital marketing (39%). Many of them want to invest in various business services that will likely relate to online small business project management.
What is the best project management software for small business? Overview of key features
Every small business is unique when it comes to workflows and processes.
There are many PM software systems to choose from, and each platform has its strengths and weaknesses.
According to the Forbes research (2023), relied on the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, most small businesses are run by a single owner and have no employees. 16% of small companies have between one and 19 employees. All they need robust tools to reach success.
So, what makes great project management software for small businesses?
First, you need to ensure that the tool you consider has the features to manage a small business.
These features typically include:
- Project planning
You will face many questions throughout the project, from “How to create a project plan?” to “How to present a project?” However, it is better to tackle issues as they arise and start with a clear plan.
A proper planning system with visual timelines will help everyone in your team know what needs to be done next.
Project management software for small business
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Once your work plan is ready, you need to know if tasks are getting done.
Simple small business project management software that contains such a feature will serve as a reliable assistant in distributing, managing, and monitoring your work.
- Collaboration
Team members need to work together on tasks to share their thoughts, discuss, and collaborate.
All tools that made our small business project management software comparison list (that you’ll find below) offer some level of in-app collaboration. For example, built-in chats, comments, or file sharing.
By the way, 50% of all small businesses are operated from home. So, remember that team collaboration is an actual plus in choosing a PM tool, especially if this is a freelance project management software or an app for remote teams.
- Resource management
There is no practical use in planning projects if you have no one to execute them. Managing resource allocation is as critical as project management.
Resource management can also relate to available equipment, materials, or other important resources.
Best project and task management solutions for small business that provide simple resource management capabilities will help better understand team members’ workload and available bandwidth.
- Time tracking
This critical feature helps small businesses to understand better where team members are spending their time.
Applying the time tracking option, they can plan and schedule better, boost revenue, and more accurately forecast.
- Reporting
Timely and straightforward reporting is what small business teams also need as they commonly work in an ever-changing landscape.
Popular task management software for small businesses with a reporting option will empower teams to make more informed decisions.
- Integration possibilities
PM workflows are at the heart of any small business company. Therefore any free project management software for small business needs to integrate with the other apps in your tech stack.
- Mobile access
There is no need to sit in your office on your desktop to post a quick comment or question on your project. That is why the best project management software for small business should offer a mobile app.
The feature set described above can probably be supplemented, so do not consider it exemplary or ideal.
Just keep in mind these features as they will help you to answer the question: “What is the best project management software for small business”?
Additionally, it’s worth noting the importance of project management tools’ customization.
Each small business is a unique phenomenon. Therefore, tool customization often seems necessary.
Elizabeth Harrin, a project manager and the founder of the Project Management Rebels community, admits:
Customization is a different take on tailoring your approach and communications to suit the audience. Within project management tools, I want to see the things relevant to me. My sponsor wants to see different things, like real-time information on progress and budget. The data we both need is different but obviously drawn from the same data set. It’s all possible with a few clicks and a smart set up.
Now, to help you find the right solution, we have compiled a list of the 10 best project management tools for small teams.
Best project management software for small business
Best PM tools enable concentration and focus on the right things at the right time by allowing small teams to spend more time on the execution of the actual work itself rather than just the processes that support them.
Companies using simple project management tools for small businesses save on time, money, and efficiency and even enhance promptness on work execution. They also make fewer errors, and the quality of their work gets magnified.
If you are looking for top inexpensive or free project management software solutions that will help your business be more organized, we’ve gathered some outstanding examples existing on the market.
Here’s the list you may consider.
1. GanttPRO
Free trial: 14 days.
Basic: starts at $7.99 user/month (billed annually).
Pro: starts at $12.99 user/month (billed annually).
Business: starts at $19.99 user/month (billed annually).
Let’s start with GanttPRO — a robust project management solution based on a Gantt chart that perfectly suits small businesses and large enterprises. This online Gantt chart maker is widely known as a multi-functional project and task management tool with a growing number of subscribers. It consistently wins prestigious awards such as Frontrunner in small business by Software Advice.
If you deal with a small business of any type, GanttPRO will provide your team with the advanced features for managing and completing projects of various complexity. Even if your small business relates to construction or architecture projects, you can use GanttPRO as handy construction scheduling software.
GanttPRO helps to plan and manage projects of various complexity in many industries and spheres, including construction and IT and software development.
It is also a good choice if you are wondering how to manage project delays.
Using this software, small teams can plan projects, schedule tasks, manage resources, set dependencies and milestones, collaborate with colleagues, customers, and stakeholders. They can manage several workspaces and projects at once.
GanttPRO allows exporting and importing charts from different software, including Excel and MS Project. It integrates with JIRA, Slack, Google Drive, and offers additional API integrations.
Friendly Gantt chart templates provide an easy start for any small business team.
Key features for small business teams:
- Handy Gantt chart for advanced planning and scheduling.
- Drag and drop task management.
- Notifications and deadlines.
- Time tracking.
- Resource management
- Budget management.
- Importing/exporting.
- Reporting.
- Helpful templates.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
2. Trello
Free trial: 14 days
Standard: starts at $5 user/month (billed annually).
Premium: starts at $10 user/month (billed annually).
This popular Kanban-based task management solution provides a quick perspective of an entire project’s status and progress. It offers handy boards organized in different categories (by strategic initiatives, business teams, or board type).
Small businesses can use Trello for organizing tasks of any kind. Its simple interface makes it ideal for small and medium-sized teams to get started with basic project management.
The basic free tier includes unlimited users and boards. However, it has file size restrictions and just one integration with other services per board.
Trello is available on the Web, mobile, and desktop. It is widely used in the IT sector, construction, manufacturing, retail, education, and other spheres.
Key features for small business teams:
- Easy-to-use Kanban boards.
- Drag & drop editing.
- Easy task organization with labeling, tags, and comments.
- Progress meter checklist.
- File attachment.
- Brainstorming.
- Budget management.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
3. Airtable
Free trial: 14 days.
Plus: starts at $10 user/month.
Pro: starts at $20 user/month.
Airtable can be also included in the list of the best free project management software for small business. It combines the flexibility of simple spreadsheets with additional advanced features.
This project management software for small business offers a free version with unlimited bases, grids, Kanban boards, calendars, and gallery views.
Airtable allows creating spreadsheets in an easy-to-navigate format. Its users can also schedule team meetings, process bills, and invoices.
Key features for small business teams:
- Handy spreadsheets.
- Multiple views.
- Alerts and notifications.
- Brainstorming.
- Asset categorization.
- Budget management.
- Categorization/grouping.
- Asset library.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
4. Asana
Free trial: 30 days.
Premium: starts at $10.99 user/month.
Business: starts at $ 24.99 user/month.
Asana is another project management software small business teams use all over the world.
This flexible tool comes with multiple ways to visualize work. You can plan your business or a project schedule using the timeline and the calendar view or collaborate with the help of handy boards and simple to-do lists.
Asana is also known for its straightforward interface and short learning curve, so it can be an excellent choice for any small business.
Key features for small busines teams:
- Streamlined task planning.
- Multiple ways to visualize work.
- Team workload management.
- Task dependencies and milestones.
- Automatied critical actions.
- Segmenting tasks into categories.
- Customized project dashboards.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
5. Toggl Plan
Free trial: 14 days.
Team: starts at $8 user/month.
Business: starts at $13.35 user/month.
This straightforward work management platform also looks appropriate for small business’s needs. It comes with project planning, team availability, task management, and workload management features.
Toggl Plan allows creating unlimited task boards and two types of timelines — Plan timeline and Team timeline. These features can be easily adapted to any workflow.
Like similar Toggl Plan alternatives, the platform is popular among IT, marketing, design, finance, and other departments within small business teams of any format.
Key features for small business teams:
- Project planning and scheduling.
- Online boards and cards.
- To-do lists.
- Resource management.
- Capacity monitoring.
- Reporting.
- Managing recurring tasks.
- Recording task estimates.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
6. Wrike
Free trial: 14 days.
Professional: starts at $9.80 user/month.
Business: starts at $24.80 per user/month.
Wrike is the next small business project management software on our list. Using this flexible PM tool, you can plan and schedule your projects, visualizing them with the help of a friendly Gantt chart.
The tool is also known for its simple task management and team collaboration. It allows organizing, managing, and prioritizing tasks of different complexity, engaging team members through tagging, applying handy reports, and collaborating with remote colleagues.
You can also use calendars, add comments to videos, sections, or documents.
Key features for small business teams:
- Advanced task management.
- Project timelines.
- Tasks prioritization.
- Team discussions.
- Time tracking.
- Real-time newsfeed.
- Customized reports.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
7. Basecamp
Free trial: 30 days.
Business: starts at $99 user/month.
Basecamp is a free PM tool that helps with team collaboration, project organization, and file sharing.
It provides tons of features to track and analyze progress on different-sized teams. We also add it to the list of the top project management software for small business as it helps save time and increase productivity by automating processes.
This tool is free for up to 3 projects and 20 users, but you can easily upgrade it to get unlimited projects and users, 500GB of storage, and more.
Key features for small business teams:
- Simple task management.
- To-do lists.
- Message board for team discussions.
- File storage and sharing.
- Alerts/notifications.
- Task progress tracking.
- Search and bookmarking.
- Schedules.
- Reporting.
| Project planning | No |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
8. Zoho Projects
Free trial: 10 days.
Premium: starts at $5 user/month.
Enterprise: starts at $10 user/month.
Zoho Projects is a cloud-based PM tool designed for small and midsize companies. It offers project scheduling and budgeting, allowing small businesses to define project tasks, assign them to different team members, estimate costs, and follow up on in-progress tasks.
It also includes essential features like baselines, critical paths in a Gantt chart, flexible work hours, task reminders, and more.
The platform provides a free plan, several integrations, and mobile applications.
Key features for small business teams:
- Project planning and scheduling.
- Task management.
- Alerts/notifications.
- Budget management.
- Calendar management.
- Task reminders.
- Billing and invoicing.
- Customizable templates.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource mangement | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
9. nTask
Free trial: 14 days.
Premium: starts at $3 user/month.
Business: starts at $8 user/month.
nTask makes it simpler to manage projects, collaborate with team members, and schedule meetings. That is why it can also be considered one of the best small business project management software solutions.
It is a good choice if you need a solid project management system that will cost you little money. Here you will get a comprehensive set of tools that will allow you to track and manage projects even with distributed teams.
The platform also comes with built-in Agile functionality, which will come in handy for any team working within that methodology.
Key features for small business teams:
- Project planning based on a Gantt chart.
- Kanban boards.
- Team chat.
- Task tracking.
- Workspace personalization.
- Time tracking.
- Meeting management.
- Risk management.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
10. Scoro
Free trial: 14 days.
Essential: starts at $26 user/month (billed annually).
Standard: starts at $37 user/month (billed annually).
Scoro closes our list of the best free project management software for small business.
This tool is designed to deliver efficiency throughout the workflow. It is packed with powerful features, including advanced task management and customer management. Its built-in calendar will let you schedule projects, tasks, and internal affairs like a pro.
Scoro integrates with many useful applications to further expand its capabilities.
Key features for small business teams:
- Workflow management.
- Time management.
- Task scheduling and tracking.
- Access controls/permissions.
- Billing and invoicing.
- Budget management.
- Reporting.
| Project planning | Yes |
| Task management | Yes |
| Collaboration | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes |
| Reporting | Yes |
| Integration | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes |
What do you think about this list of the best task management software for small business? Hopefully, you’ll find your favorite there.
If you missed something, you will find brief information about the cost of all the mentioned software solutions below.
Small business project management software comparison table
The market of small business project management tools is undoubtedly larger. It’s up to you to decide which tool to pay more attention to and which one to choose.
Study this small business project management software comparison table carefully and make the best decision.
| Small business PM tool | Free trial/days | Features on a trial | Users/month |
| GanttPRO | 14 | Fully-featured | $7.99 |
| Trello | 14 | Fully-featured | $5 |
| Airtable | 14 | Fully-featured | $10 |
| Asana | 30 | Limited | $10.99 |
| Toggl Plan | 14 | Fully-featured | $8 |
| Wrike | 14 | Limited | $9.80 |
| Basecamp | 30 | Fully-featured | $99 |
| Zoho Projects | 10 | Fully-featured | $5 |
| nTask | 14 | Fully-featured | $3 |
| Scoro | 14 | Limited | $26 |
Apply top project management software to enhance your small business
Projects are the building blocks of small businesses’ progress and success. When something gets wrong with your project, progress stalls, and success becomes an illusion.
PM software helps small businesses to feel safe on the way from planning to delivery. It facilitates better scheduling, task management, and communication.
Before choosing the best paid or free task management software for small businesses, identify your management problems and decide what platform will resolve them.
So, we’re just about done.
Keep in mind our list as a guide, take advantage of the best PM systems and make your small business the best among the best.
Frequently asked questions about the best small business project management software
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The best project management software for small businesses is a tool that helps manage projects and teams efficiently while being affordable and easy to use. GanttPRO is a good example. It allows small businesses to schedule projects, organize tasks, set deadlines, control resources, and collaborate effectively. Other solid project management solutions include Trello, Airtable, Asana, Toggl Plan, Wrike, Basecamp, Zoho Projects, nTask, and Scoro. They offer useful features and provide integrations with other tools.