You might be a project manager or someone from management who wants a bird’s eye view of all your team’s progress. When it comes to visualizing this progress, there is nothing as effective as a project’s Gantt chart.
What are Gantt Charts?
A Gantt chart is a visualized summary of how your team performs over a certain period. You can draw up a Gantt chart by visualizing tasks that form a part of the project, their start and end dates, and then add important milestones as these tasks go along. Here’s an example of what a Gantt chart looks like:
Figure 1 – Sample Gantt chart template in Excel. Source: Someka
How to make a Gantt chart?
There are lots of ways. The most effective way is to use a Gantt chart software or a task management tool that offers the ability to make one. Usually, Gantt charts are included in project management applications, such as Paymo or Jira.
If you’re using a project management software that does not offer built-in Gantt charts, chances are it might be providing a third-party integration for you to do so. There are a lot of these integrations available, which we will cover later. Examples of such integrations are InstaGantt for Asana and BigGantt for Jira.
You can also use templates available for Microsoft Excel. These templates provide you with a table using which a Graph is being generated on the spreadsheet.
However, these templates might not be the best way to visualize project progress, especially when you’re dealing with big projects that involve complex workflows, sprint cycles, and constant to-the-minute updates.
Plus, with Gantt chart templates for Microsoft Excel, you do not get to leverage task management.
In this article, we help you to identify the best Gantt chart software that can match your needs.
The Best Gantt Chart Software and Programs
1. Float – Resource Planning App for Smart Project Managers: Editor’s Choice for the Best Gantt Chart & Team Scheduling!
📱 Supported Platforms: Web, Native Mobile Apps for the iOS and Android OS
🌟 Editor Rating: 4.9/5
Float is a flexible resource scheduling software which comes with the functionality of easy drag and drop, splitting, and duplicating tasks on calendar. These features are pretty useful when you suddenly have to change deadlines and project requirements. Ever since its release, the application has undergone several core changes.
Whenever your schedule changes, it’s automatically updated in real-time to give everyone a heads up for what’s going on. Additionally, the tool also allows you to duplicate recurring tasks and easily assign to multiple resources at once.
Key Features:
- Drag and drop functionality for resource scheduling.
- Splitting, duplicating, and moving tasks on calendar.
- Task dependencies for indicating relationships.
- Absence and leave management.
- Workload visualization for effective task allocation.
- Resource utilization reports.
- Third-party application integrations, such as; Slack, Microsoft Outlook, Google Calendar, Office 365 and much more!
- Add unasigned roles and append them for future hire, task delegation purposes etc.
- Set project budgets to your liking. Set them by hour(s), dollars and forecast according to your available resources.
- Monitor live activity through real time tracking. As a project manager, you can see everything that’s happening in different project boards and vice versa.
Other Additional Updates:
- Capacity Management
- Import public holidays based on your team’s location. The public holiday day will be blocked on the schedule for team members affected, with the holiday name and location displayed when you hover over the date.
- Set a scheduled status to keep your team member’s in the loop. Whether you’re working from home or the Bahamas, or perhaps out of the office for the day at a conference, adding a scheduled status in Float lets your team members know at a glance who’s working from where and when.
- User Account Settings: Notifications
- Stay up to date with the latest changes to your schedule with in-app live notifications, and optional email and push notifications. Be notified when a task is assigned to you, when one of your project tasks is updated or changed, or when a team member on one of your projects schedules time-off during your project dates. Notifications are directly managed in your account and team settings.
- 3rd Party Integrations – Float has a dedicated integration with Teamwork Projects. With a direct one-way or two-way sync, you can import your projects from Teamwork directly into your Float schedule to start assigning tasks.
- Monitor live activity through real-time tracking “and notifications”.
Float has undergone a tremendous amount of improvements over the time. The good thing about this application is it’s ability to scale up as work progresses. Thanks to an inuititive user interface, regular update rollouts and a relentless customer support, Float has become more of a go-to platform for project managers and team leads from all over the world wide web.
We have written an exlusive Float review to detail the application’s full feature, performance metrics and everything that can take a project to the next level. Make sure to check it out here.
Pricing:
You can go for the tool at $5 per person scheduled/month. 30 days of free trial is also provided.
2. ProjectManager Gantt Chart
ProjectManager.com specializes in Project Management software that’s used by the likes of Volvo, the United Nations, and NASA. Their Gantt Chart Software enables teams to easily plan, share, and assign work. You can also track performance in one view.
ProjectManager.com makes collaboration simple—your team can attach comments, files and documents directly to the task line on the Gantt chart. When one team member updates a task, automatic email alerts are sent to update the right people at the right time.
The cloud-based software can even import MS Project and Excel files, and it works on both Mac and PC. Plus, it has all the features of Microsoft Project, yet is more intuitive and easier to use. This means you can save time on training for your team.
Pricing
ProjectManager.com offers a 30-day free trial and has three pricing plans.
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Starter ($15 per user/month, starts with 5 users)
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Create project plans
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Manage personal projects using calendars, task lists, Gantt charts, and kanban boards
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Team ($20 per user/month, starts with 10 users)
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Manage projects using calendars, task lists, Gantt charts, and kanban boards
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Manage teams with timesheets, skill sorting, and holiday tracking
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Business ($25 per user/month, starts with 15 users)
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Unlimited access to all features plus product training and support
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Manage an unlimited number of projects
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3. Liquid Planner:
Liquid Planner’s approach towards project management is unusual and new in the market. Unlike many other famous task management and project management apps, Liquid Planner focuses primarily on task prioritization.
It is at the top of our list of the best Gantt chart software and is the Editor’s Choice due to various reasons.
Liquid Planner comes with built-in functions such as resource leveling and predictive resource scheduling, which are not only great for small teams but also serve enterprise needs. The simple, elegant interface makes it easier to keep an eye on all your projects.
Let’s talk a bit more about the predictive scheduling function of Liquid Planner. It is a predictive algorithm with priority-based scheduling that automatically predicts resource availability and the time it will take for tasks to complete.
The algorithm calculates this based on best-case and worst-case scenarios. That’s an excellent feature for someone who is new to project planning and scheduling.
Pricing
Liquid Planner comes with two pricing plans:
- Professional – starting at $45 per user per month for teams of 5 people (minimum) on an annual billing cycle, all the essential features included.
- Enterprise – starting at $69 per user per month for teams of 5 people (minimum) on an annual billing cycle, advanced features included.
4. TeamGantt
TeamGantt makes it to the 2nd spot on our list of the best Gantt chart software and programs.
It is a stress-free experience managing project timelines and scheduling tasks within this tool. The app really takes only a couple of minutes for any team to get started. It’s easy to set up and everyone can start using it right away.
Signing up for TeamGantt gives you 30 days of unlimited access, so you can really test this Gantt chart software out before you decide to invest in it. After the 30 days, you can either upgrade by paying or use the Free plan on TeamGantt, which does come with a few limitations.
With the Free plan on TeamGantt, you don’t get hourly estimating and resourcing tools, custom project templates, project history, some key time-tracking features, and more. Guest access to Gantt charts is also not offered on the Free plan.
Pricing
TeamGantt comes with these three pricing plans:
- Free – one project, 3-people access, and basic planning features
- Standard Team – starting at $49.75 per month for teams of 5 people on a monthly billing cycle, some features missing. The annual plan costs $39.50 per month.
- Advanced Team – starting at $74.75 per month for teams of 5 people on a monthly billing cycle, all features included. The annual plan costs $62.25 per month.
5. GanttPRO
On #5, we have a new entry! 🎉
You might already be familiar with GanttPRO. It is one of the world’s leading team collaboration, scheduling and Gantt chart tools. With over 350,000 people on the platform, GanttPRO is definitely a safe bet.
Tasks, subtasks, milestones, dependencies, progress tracking, cost estimations, prioritization, and more – all within one comprehensive Gantt chart software to visualize team progress. There is also a built-in workload tracking and management module, which shows if anyone on your team is over- or under-burdened.
GanttPRO also provides a bunch of templates to give you a headstart. Whether you’re a software development team, or you have a product launch coming up – the templates are nicely defined and are great help to get you started.
Pricing
GanttPRO is available with the following pricing plans:
- Individual (single user plan) – at $15 per month, all of GanttPRO’s features except team progress tracking
- Team (5 users & up) – at $6.5 per month per user, all of GanttPRO’s features
- Enterprise – for 100+ users, contact sales for inquiry
6. Wrike
Our 6th recommendation for the best Gantt chart software is Wrike. Now, most of us are already familiar with this one. However, Wrike offers everything to be stored as folders and subfolders, so it might not be the best fit for your needs to manage projects if you are looking for a Project > task > subtask kind of workflow.
Wrike is an extensive project management software used by large teams and organizations for complex project management requirements. With the ability to cater to all these complex requirements, comes complexity within the tool’s interface.
Wrike is not easy to navigate, and onboarding for the team might become a little challenging. However, since it is one of the most comprehensive project and portfolio management solutions in the market, you can easily depend on the platform with all your needs, including your need to integrate Gantt chart software within all your projects.
Pricing
Wrike offers 5 different pricing plans. The details of these are:
- Free – basic features, small teams of upto 5 users, Gantt charts NOT included
- Professional – at $9.80 per user per month on an annual billing cycle. Added features and functions, for teams of 5-15 users. Gantt charts included.
- Business – at $24.80 per user per month on an annual billing cycle. For teams of 5-200 users. Added features for custom branding and reporting. Gantt charts included.
- Wrike for Marketers – at $34.60 per user per month on an annual billing cycle. For creative and marketing teams of 5-unlimited users. Includes Gantt charts, proofing and approval tools.
- Enterprise – custom pricing, contact for inquiry. Advanced security and controls. For teams of 5-unlimited users. Gantt charts included.
7. Easy Projects
Easy Projects is a great project management software used by teams of all sizes to collaborate together. Their website states that it can “Replace the mess of spreadsheets, emails and whiteboards with a simple workspace…”, which is true.
Easy Projects is simple, and it works well with everyone. It offers an interactive Gantt chart tool, which you can use to not only visualize team progress but also manage and delegate work.
The visual interface for this Gantt chart software gives you an accurate picture for each task; when it started, how long it remained in progress and exactly when it was completed. It also highlights task dependencies, that are critical for a project lifecycle.
Easy Projects is one of the best Gantt chart software you can use. Its features include:
- Modify your project schedule
- Add or change dependencies
- View critical path
- Track project and task progress
Pricing
Easy Projects is available with two pricing plans:
- Pro – starting at $24 per user per month. Unlimited everything, some features missing
- Enterprise – get in touch for a quote. Unlimited everything, covers all features
8. Workzone
Workzone is another great tool for collaboration that integrates Gantt chart software into all of its project views. It includes a project dashboard where users can easily view the projects listed by other team members, start and end dates, task statuses, percentage of completion, and more.
Another great feature that comes with Workzone is its templates. You can set up your project or task once, and save its template to repeat later. This saves a lot of time.
There is also a master group calendar to track deadlines across all tasks on all projects, which is a relatively specific requirement for enterprise users having to oversee a lot of tasks and projects simultaneously.
Workzone ranks #6 on our list of the best Gantt chart software.
Pricing
Workzone offers 3 different plans, the pricing details of which are not available publicly:
- Team – all essential features, with advanced features missing
- Professional – all essential features and custom intake forms
- Enterprise – all essential and advanced features, including SSO, workspace groups, etc.
So, that was it. 6 of the best Gantt chart software available today. Which tool did you like the most? Do you have another tool you’d like to see included in this list? Let us know in the comments below and we’ll review it.
Thanks for the roundup, Steve. Let me expand your list a little. I would also like to pay your attention to GanttPRO, an online Gantt chart software.
This is a robust project management tool that helps to manage tasks, resources, and workload, track progress, collaborate with your team, etc. Hopefully, you will take a chance to review it and include it in your list as well.
Thanks for suggesting GanttPRO for my roundup, Andrew. I’ll check it out! 😄
Another suggestion for your list is Projectslite, which is an excel based Scheduling tool. It offers most of the commonly used features for advanced scheduling like dependencies, resource over-allocation, click-and-drag task creation, import/export from MS Project, Critical path and a lot more
Thanks for recommending Projectslite, Dennis. I will have a look and see if it can be included in my roundup.😊
Hey Steve,
Thank you for the list. It is really great!
Steve, I would suggest also to pay attention to Instagantt in the Standalone Version. Instagantt, is a Gantt chart software which was born as an Asana plugin (the most famous one by far) and right now they launched a new standalone version with an intuitive, beautiful and well-developed interface so it’s worth to take a look of it. I use it every day. Have a great day Steve and continue preparing great rankings!
Thanks so much for the recommendation, Andres. I will check it out. Cheers!