Project Management Programs: 5 Free Tools to Save Time and Money

Project Management Programs: 5 Free Tools to Save Time and Money
September 27, 2018
Laptop on desk

Turn Project Management Skills Into Career Growth

 

The right tools can help you stay organized, collaborate more effectively, and keep projects on track. As organizations increasingly rely on skilled project managers to lead teams and deliver results, developing formal project management knowledge can help you stand out in the workplace and prepare for new opportunities. Whether you're looking to move into a project management role, build leadership skills, or strengthen your resume with industry-relevant expertise, 麻豆社 College of Professional Studies offers flexible online project management programs designed for working professionals.

Project management plays a critical role in organizations of all sizes, helping teams improve productivity, manage resources effectively, reduce risk, and achieve goals on time and within budget. Whether you're leading projects now or hoping to advance into a project management role, understanding the tools and strategies professionals use can help you work more efficiently and deliver stronger results.

While larger organizations often invest in enterprise-level software, many powerful project management tools are available at little to no cost. If you're part of a small team or looking to build your project management skill set, these five free tools can help you stay organized, collaborate effectively, and keep projects moving forward.

5 free tools to save time and money

01
Redbooth 鈥� Simple, Agile Task Management
Open icon icon to open the summary

 is a great option for smaller teams who value simplicity, an intuitive user interface, and strong task management. It isn鈥檛 overly robust in terms of features. However, it鈥檚 an agile, easily-implemented solution for managing your team鈥檚 individual tasks, while also providing light overarching project management functionality as well.

  • Pros: The free plan allows up to 10 users and provides unlimited conversations, Gantt charts, and basic reporting. You can also import tasks, create subtasks, and assign users and deadlines.
  • Cons: The biggest drawback to the program is its limited scope. Redbooth鈥檚 free plan is confined to just two active projects at a time, which may be problematic for some teams. Redbooth is also primarily a task management software, rather than project management, so it鈥檚 better suited for teams whose primary need is to efficiently assign and accomplish tasks.
02
Asana 鈥� Effective Management with Useful Integrations
Open icon icon to open the summary

As one of the most popular project management software programs on the market,  is perfect for small to medium-sized teams looking for strong functionality and useful third-party integrations.

  • Pros: Asana allows up to 15 users on its free plan, which is more than most of its competitors. The plan also comes with unlimited tasks, projects, and conversations, and you can integrate with third-party tools to gain additional features like time tracking, automation, and reporting (although those third-party tools are usually paid services).
  • Cons: Because Asana boasts more features, its interface is a bit more complex and text-heavy than Redbooth鈥檚. Your team will likely take a bit longer to get the hang of it, but considering the functionality you get, it鈥檚 still an intuitive, useful platform, even if its most attractive functionalities (like task dependencies) are behind a paywall.
03
Wrike 鈥� Balanced and secure, for small teams
Open icon icon to open the summary

 works very well for very small teams looking for a slick, robust project management platform. The free plan may be limited to just 5 users, but it also offers unlimited active projects and top-notch file security.

  • Pros: Wrike offers a lot of features without bogging down their interface, combining diverse functionality with slick usability. The biggest draws, however, are that Wrike puts no limit on projects, offers unlimited collaborators (people who can view but not create or edit tasks), and stores your data in .
  • Cons: Because the free plan maxes out at 5 users, it鈥檚 really only useful for small teams. If you ever consider upgrading to a paid plan, Wrike鈥檚 options are also easily the most expensive on the list. So if it鈥檚 likely your team will grow into a paid plan, other options like Asana or Freedcamp (below) may be better choices, so that you can seamlessly move from free to paid plans within the same program, without breaking your budget.
04
Bitrix24 鈥� Robust platform, with CRM and HR capabilities
Open icon icon to open the summary

 offers more than just project management functionality; it鈥檚 also a customer relationship management (CRM) software packed with sales, automation, and email marketing features, as well as a human resources (HR) program.

  • Pros: Bitrix24鈥檚 free plan allows up to 12 users and has unlimited tasks, subtasks, and projects. It also offers time tracking, 5 GB of storage, Gantt charts, and up to 5 task dependencies. On the sales side, it offers lead and contact management, automation, and email marketing, and for HR, it offers an employee directory, worker profiles, and more.
  • Cons: Bitrix24 is by far the most complicated software on the list to learn, and because customer service isn鈥檛 included in the free plan, the learning curve is quite large. But if your team plans to make full use of Bitrix24鈥檚 vast array of features, the time and money saved in the long run may be worth it.
05
Freedcamp 鈥� Unlimited users, projects, and storage
Open icon icon to open the summary

With , there鈥檚 a lot to love, whether you鈥檙e a smaller team looking for great functionality, or a larger team (15+) looking to stick with free software a while longer. Unlimited users, projects, and storage mean that Freedcamp could hypothetically scale up to any sized organization.

  • Pros: It鈥檚 hard to beat the unlimited users, projects, and storage that Freedcamp offers on its free plan. The program comes with other useful features, too, such as file sharing, time tracking, invoicing, subtasks, and milestones.
  • Cons: While Freedcamp allows for unlimited users, any team of 15+ individuals is going to end up feeling the plan鈥檚 limitations, such as its lack of task dependencies, third-party integrations, and reporting. There are a lot of great reasons to choose Freedcamp, but unlimited users is only useful to a point, after which your team may need to start considering upgrading to a paid plan.

The Skillset to Support the Software


Good project management software is vital for every team, but it can鈥檛 take the place of an experienced, knowledgeable project manager. If you鈥檙e looking to sharpen your ability to integrate complex projects, motivate people, and achieve cost-effective results, then check out our GAC Accredited Project Management Master鈥檚 Degree or our Project Management graduate certificate.

GAC Accredited
Online Degrees

Gain Project Management Skills Employers Value

Take the next step toward becoming a more effective project leader. Explore 麻豆社 College of Professional Studies online project management master's degree.
Published
September 27, 2018
Topics