Roundup of the Best Project Management Software for Small Business [Inexpensive and Free]

Every small business is unique when it comes to workflows and processes. Project management software for small business is aimed to streamline workflows through professional planning, task management, and team collaboration.

Any small business project management tool helps in many spheres and industries: software development, construction, manufacturing, logistics, marketing, architecture, logistics, etc.

For project managers, it’s critical to pick up an appropriate solution for their projects and teams. They should consider all essential features and characteristics of online small business PM tools and know their benefits.

Here we share the list of the best small business project management tools and their common characteristics.

Key features of the top project management tools for small business

There are so many project management software solutions out there. Each platform comes with benefits and possible drawbacks.

What makes great project management systems for small businesses?

Make sure you consider the PM tools for small business with the following features and characteristics.

Project planning

It is always better to tackle issues as they arise. Therefore you should take care of a clear ad flexible plan. It will help you to understand what should be done next.

Task management

A small business project management tool with task management functionality serves as a reliable assistant in distributing, managing, and monitoring your work.

Resource management

Managing resource allocation is another critical feature that small business PM software must contain. Online solutions for small teams that provide such a feature will help better understand team members’ workload and available bandwidth.

Time tracking

Time tracking helps small teams to understand better where they are spending their time. Applying this feature, they can schedule better, more accurately forecast, and boost revenue.

Collaboration

Any small business project management software solution should provide in-app collaboration. For example, comments, built-in chats, or file sharing.

Integration

Project management workflows are at the heart of any small company. That is why any PM tool for small business needs to integrate with the other apps in your tech stack.

Reporting

Small teams also need advanced reporting as they commonly work in an ever-changing landscape. Leading PM platforms for small businesses with a reporting option empower teams to make more informed decisions.

Mobile access

A mobile app is what a modern project management tool for small business should also contain because there is no need to constantly sit in the office to post a quick comment or question on your project.

Note: the list of the features mentioned above can probably be supplemented.

Now it is time to move to the small business project management software systems worth your attention in 2023. Here we share 5 leading tools. But at the very end of this article, you will find a link to more outstanding pm solutions for small teams. So, let’s move on!

Best small business project management tools

Leading project management tools focus on the right things at the right time. They let small business project teams spend more time on the execution of the actual work.

Companies that use powerful PM solutions save on time, money, and efficiency. They make fewer errors, and the quality of their work gets magnified.

If you are looking for the best small business management platform, consider the following options.

1. GanttPRO

GanttPRO is one of the best online Gantt chart generators that perfectly suit small businesses and large enterprises.

It is widely known for its great project and task management functionality and outstanding collaboration capabilities.

GanttPRO offers robust features for managing and completing projects of various complexity. With its help, any small business team can plan projects, schedule tasks, set dependencies and project milestones, collaborate, and manage resources. It allows managing several workspaces and projects at once.

It integrates with JIRA, Google Drive, Slack, and other solutions. You may use handy Gantt chart templates to start your work easily.

Core features:

• Professional planning and scheduling.
• Resource management
• Budget management.
• Board view.
• Drag and drop task management.
• Notifications and deadlines.
• Time tracking.
• Importing/exporting.

2. Trello

Trello is a famous Kanban-based task management tool that offers a quick perspective of an entire project’s status and progress. You get friendly boards organized in various categories (by strategic initiatives, business teams, or board type).

Small teams apply this platform to organize tasks of any kind. It comes with a simple interface that makes it ideal for small and medium-sized groups.

Trello is widely used in software development, manufacturing, construction, retail, education, and other spheres. It is available on the Web, mobile, and desktop.

Core features:

• Kanban board view.
• Task organization with labeling, tags, and comments.
• File attachment.
• Drag & drop editing.
• Progress meter checklist.
• Brainstorming.

3. Airtable

Airtable combines the flexibility of simple spreadsheets with additional robust features. This small business PM tool has a free version. It comes with unlimited bases, Kanban boards, grids, calendars, and gallery views.

With the help of this platform, you can generate spreadsheets in an easy-to-navigate format. Scheduling team meetings, process bills, and invoices are also available.

Core features:

• Advanced spreadsheets.
• Budget management.
• Multiple views.
• Brainstorming.
• Alerts and notifications.
• Asset library.

4. Asana

Asana is a flexible tool that can also be included in the top small business project management apps list.

The tool provides multiple ways to visualize work. It allows planning and scheduling projects using the timeline and the calendar view. You can also collaborate there with the help of colorful boards and easy-to-manage to-do lists.

Asana provides a straightforward interface and short learning curve.

Core features:

• Multiple ways to visualize work.
• Task planning.
• Task dependencies and milestones.
• Team workload management.
• Automated critical actions.
• Segmenting tasks into categories.

5. Toggl Plan

Toggl Plan is a reliable PM software solution that suits many small business teams. It offers professional project planning, task management, team availability, and workload management features.

Using this tool, you can build unlimited task boards and two types of timelines (Plan timeline and Team timeline). These features can be easily adapted to any workflow.

Toggl Plan is popular among IT, marketing, design, finance, and other departments within small business teams of any format.

Core features:

• Planning and scheduling.
• Online boards.
• To-do lists.
• Resource management.
• Recording task estimates.
• Reporting.

So, we’re just about done.

Would you like to explore some more multifunctional and creative project management tools for small businesses?

Follow the article Best Small Business Project Management Software for 2023 [Including Free] https://blog.ganttpro.com/en/small-business-project-management-software/ where you can enrich your knowledge about such software solutions and select your favorite.

As a conclusion

The market for small business project management tools is vast and complex. It’s up to you to decide which software to pay more attention to.

Best PM systems help us to feel safe on the way from planning to delivery. They facilitate better scheduling, task management, and communication. Make your choice and win.

Also read: Best Teamwork alternatives.