The Best Microsoft Project Online Alternatives in 2026
Tolodora Editorial Team
Independent software reviews for founders and small businesses.
Quick answer
The best Microsoft Project Online alternatives in 2026 are GanttPRO, Smartsheet and ClickUp. GanttPRO is our top overall pick, best for project managers who want a familiar Gantt without the MS price. See the full ranked comparison below.
Microsoft Project Online reached its retirement date on September 30, 2026. Microsoft points existing customers toward Planner, the on-premises Project Server Subscription Edition, or Dynamics 365 Project Operations — but plenty of teams are treating the retirement as the nudge they needed to move to something more modern and less tied to the Microsoft stack. (Note: the Project desktop app and Planner are not affected, so if you only open local .mpp files your migration may be smaller than the headlines suggest.)
Below are the six alternatives teams are actually moving to in 2026, split between Gantt-first tools that feel familiar to Project users and all-in-one work platforms that trade some scheduling depth for ease of use and collaboration. Most cost a fraction of a Project Plan 3 or Plan 5 license. If you are weighing the big all-rounders, our Asana, monday.com and ClickUp alternatives guides compare them in depth.
Prices below are entry list prices verified for this guide; they vary by billing term and region, so confirm on each vendor's site before you migrate a whole PMO.
| Tool | Starts at | Free plan | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| GanttPRO | $9/user/mo (billed yearly) | 14-day trial | Project managers who want a familiar Gantt without the MS price |
| Smartsheet | $9/user/mo (billed yearly) | Free trial | Enterprise PMOs that want grid-plus-Gantt power |
| ClickUp | Free; paid from $7/user/mo | Yes | Teams that want maximum features per dollar |
| monday.com | From $9/seat/mo (billed yearly) | Yes (limited) | Cross-functional teams that value ease of use |
| Wrike | Free; Team from $10/user/mo | Yes | Agencies and larger teams needing resource management |
| Asana | Free; Starter from $10.99/user/mo | Yes | Teams focused on execution over heavy scheduling |
| Tool | Value | Support | Ease of use | Features | Overall | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GanttPRO | 9.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 7.0 | 8.3 | Project managers who want a familiar Gantt without the MS price |
| ClickUp | 8.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 | 10.0 | 8.3 | Teams that want maximum features per dollar |
| monday.com | 7.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | Cross-functional teams that value ease of use |
| Asana | 7.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | Teams focused on execution over heavy scheduling |
| Smartsheet | 7.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 | 9.0 | 7.8 | Enterprise PMOs that want grid-plus-Gantt power |
| Wrike | 7.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 | 9.0 | 7.8 | Agencies and larger teams needing resource management |
| # | Tool | Best for | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GanttPRO | Project managers who want a familiar Gantt without the MS price | 4.1/5 |
| 2 | Smartsheet | Enterprise PMOs that want grid-plus-Gantt power | 3.9/5 |
| 3 | ClickUp | Teams that want maximum features per dollar | 4.1/5 |
| 4 | monday.com | Cross-functional teams that value ease of use | 4.0/5 |
| 5 | Wrike | Agencies and larger teams needing resource management | 3.9/5 |
| 6 | Asana | Teams focused on execution over heavy scheduling | 4.0/5 |
GanttPRO
- Pricing
- 9.0/10
- Functionality
- 7.0/10
- Ease of use
- 9.0/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
The closest feel to Microsoft Project for a fraction of the price — a true, dependency-aware Gantt chart first and foremost.
Best for
Project managers who want a familiar Gantt without the MS price
GanttPRO is the most direct spiritual replacement for Microsoft Project: it is built around a proper interactive Gantt chart with task dependencies, baselines, critical path and resource workload, so schedulers feel at home immediately. It can import Microsoft Project files, which smooths migration, and its pricing is a fraction of a Project Plan 3 seat. It is narrower than the all-in-one platforms — this is a planning and scheduling tool, not a full work OS — which is exactly why Project users like it.
Smartsheet
- Pricing
- 7.0/10
- Functionality
- 9.0/10
- Ease of use
- 7.0/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
A spreadsheet-grid interface with real Gantt, dependencies and portfolio management that enterprise PMOs trust.
Best for
Enterprise PMOs that want grid-plus-Gantt power
Smartsheet is the enterprise favourite for teams leaving Project. Its familiar grid doubles as a scheduling engine with Gantt views, dependencies, automation and portfolio roll-ups, and it scales to large, governed PMO environments. It is more capable — and more complex — than the lightweight tools here, and the strongest choice if you are replacing Project at organisation scale rather than for a single team.
ClickUp
- Pricing
- 8.0/10
- Functionality
- 10.0/10
- Ease of use
- 7.0/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
Enormous feature depth — Gantt, workload, docs, dashboards — at one of the lowest prices in the category.
Best for
Teams that want maximum features per dollar
ClickUp packs the most into the lowest price: Gantt and timeline views, dependencies, workload management, docs, goals and dashboards, all on a generous free plan with cheap paid tiers. For teams that want Project-like scheduling plus everything else in one place, it is the best value on the list. The trade-off is a steeper learning curve from sheer feature density, so budget time for setup. See our full ClickUp alternatives guide if you want to compare it head-to-head with others.
monday.com
- Pricing
- 7.0/10
- Functionality
- 8.0/10
- Ease of use
- 9.0/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
The most approachable, visual platform — colourful boards, timelines and dashboards anyone can pick up.
Best for
Cross-functional teams that value ease of use
monday.com trades some hardcore scheduling depth for approachability. Its colourful boards, timeline (Gantt) views, automations and dashboards are easy for non-PMs to adopt, which makes it a great fit when the people leaving Project are a mix of managers and business users rather than dedicated schedulers. Dependencies and critical-path features exist but are lighter than GanttPRO or Smartsheet; the payoff is adoption across the whole team.
Wrike
- Pricing
- 7.0/10
- Functionality
- 9.0/10
- Ease of use
- 7.0/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
Strong scheduling, resource management and proofing aimed at larger teams and agencies.
Best for
Agencies and larger teams needing resource management
Wrike sits between the Gantt specialists and the all-in-ones: it has serious scheduling with Gantt charts and dependencies, plus resource management, time tracking and proofing that agencies and marketing teams rely on. It scales well to larger, cross-team work and has a free tier to start. It is more structured than monday.com and a sensible pick if you need portfolio-level visibility without Smartsheet's grid-first approach.
Asana
- Pricing
- 7.0/10
- Functionality
- 8.0/10
- Ease of use
- 9.0/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
Clean, fast and reliable for task and project execution, with timeline views and a best-in-class free plan.
Best for
Teams focused on execution over heavy scheduling
Asana is the choice when the work is more about getting tasks done reliably than building complex schedules. Its Timeline view gives you Gantt-style planning with dependencies, and the free plan is one of the most generous in the category. It is not trying to be a PMO scheduling engine like Smartsheet, but for the many teams that used Project as a glorified task planner, Asana is a lighter, more pleasant home that the whole team will adopt.
The verdict
If you want Microsoft Project's scheduling muscle without the price, GanttPRO is the closest feel and Smartsheet is the enterprise-grade choice. For maximum features per dollar, ClickUp wins; for painless team adoption, monday.com or Asana; and for agencies that need resource management, Wrike. Start by exporting your Project files and importing them into your shortlist before the data becomes hard to reach.
Whatever you shortlist, run your real work through it for a week before committing — the right tool is the one that quietly disappears and lets you get back to it. And if you build software like this yourself, you can list it on Tolodora free.
Frequently asked questions
Is Microsoft Project being discontinued entirely?
No — only Project Online (the cloud/Project Web App service) reached retirement on September 30, 2026. The Microsoft Project desktop app, Project Server and Planner are not affected. Microsoft points Project Online users toward Planner, Project Server Subscription Edition or Dynamics 365 Project Operations.
What is the closest alternative to Microsoft Project?
GanttPRO is the closest in feel for individual schedulers because it is Gantt-first and can import Microsoft Project files. For enterprise PMOs, Smartsheet is the most comparable in depth and governance.
What is the cheapest Microsoft Project Online alternative?
ClickUp, Asana and Wrike all have capable free plans, and ClickUp's paid tiers are among the lowest in the category. GanttPRO and Smartsheet start around $9/user/month billed yearly if you want a dedicated scheduling tool.
Can I import my existing Microsoft Project plans?
Several alternatives, including GanttPRO and Smartsheet, can import Microsoft Project (.mpp or exported) files so you do not have to rebuild schedules from scratch. Export your plans before Project Online access ends and test the import on your most complex project first.
Sources & further reading
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