the top 10 free and open source project management software for your small business

The Top 10 Free and Open Source Project Management Software

For Your Small Business

10. Harvest• Great for resource-based

project management and reporting• Free version allows 1 user,

4 clients, 2 projects• Pricing scales up to

$12/mo for unlimited clients and projects

10. Harvest

• Free version is more like a trial- timesheet approval and multiple users come only with the paid version• Mobile apps don’t fully

integrate with desktop version

• Has tons of integrations, including Atlassian Jira, Google Drive, Zendesk, Quickbooks, and more• Great analytics system

replaces traditional spreadsheets

Pros Cons

9. Zoho Projects• As many users as you’d

like• Only limitation on free

version is storage (up to 10 MB)

9. Zoho ProjectsPros Cons• Tons of features, very

intuitive layout• Allows users to set options

for Gantt charts• 50 pre-made report

templates

• Free users are limited to 10 MB storage, while paid version can be 5-30 MB depending on the plan

8. Bitrix24• Free for up to 12 users• Option to upgrade to more

for $99/mo• Rivals BaseCamp, the

current go-to for most PMs

8. Bitrix24Pros Cons• Users can choose whether

to host in the cloud or self-host on the company’s server• Has real-time chat

features• Free cloud storage for

easy document sharing• New Employee Workload

Planning tool

• Small businesses may find the free version unworkable because of the limit on user profiles, and the $99/mo option could be too expensive for some

7. Trello • Uses the Kanban system

to visually represent a project’s progress• Offers unlimited users and

projects, but only 10 MB of storage• Upgrade to Trello Gold

when you get a new user on board and gain 250 MB for a year

7. Trello Pros Cons• Extremely intuitive• Backs of can be filled with

information about tasks• Calendar function allows

users to collaborate on their projects transparently

• No good way to look at a project with high detail• Cannot see task lists

broken down by user or due date

6. 2-Plan Project Management Software • Has three symbiotic, free

programs:• 2-Plan Desktop (project

management)• 2-Plan Team (web-based

project management with multiple hosting options)• Work 2-gether (Scrum-

based task management board for one-team projects)

6. 2-Plan Project Management SoftwarePros Cons• Full-featured- managers

can create animated graphical WBS, implement top-down and bottom-up planning, and build project control systems• Uses Kanban system but

can expand into larger workchart

• Abundance of features can get overwhelming for teams that are strapped for time• Free option can be

limiting- only two taskboards for Work 2-gether and only three team members

5. Asana• One of the most popular

project management apps available • Free for up to 15 users

5. AsanaPros Cons• Allows users to visualize

goals, track time, assign priority to tasks, and get updates on projects in the program• Added an Android app,

conversations, and dashboards

• Does not allow offline use

• Reviewers find that “sometimes it is not intuitive enough to find something”

4. MeisterTask• Unlimited users and

projects• Native apps for iPhone

and iPad• Two integrations for free

users

4. MeisterTaskPros Cons• Offers time tracking, issue

tracking, and user collaboration• No storage limit• Works well with various

agile methodologies

• Still working on several features:• Gantt Charts• CCPM• Integration with Toggl

3. GanttProject• Heavy-hitter in terms of

both features and capacity• Generates Gantt and PERT

charts, produces reports in HTML and PDF formats, offers scheduling and time management tools

3. GanttProjectPros Cons• No limit to what you can

do• Offers task assignment

and milestone implementation• Open-source software

allows project managers to identify workflow problem areas so companies can set goals for improvement

• Not recommended for companies unfamiliar with project management software• Support largely takes

place on forums

2. Orange Scrum• Best locally-hosted, free

project management software for IT teams• On-premise version is $0,

cloud version starts at $9/mo

2. Orange ScrumPros Cons• Completely customizable• Great for those with tech

experience

• Serious coding knowledge is needed to make the most of this tool• Not for beginners

1. Freedcamp• Unlimited users and

projects• Beautiful design• Kanban or tasks• 200 MB of storage, can be

upgraded to 1 GB for $2.49/mo

1. Freedcamp• Scalable- add-ons are very

cheap• Administrators can limit

user permissions down to the client level• Great collaboration

features

1. FreedcampPros Cons• Scalable- add-ons are very

cheap• Administrators can limit

user permissions down to the client level• Great collaboration

features

• Reviewers claim there is a small learning curve on site navigation• No mobile app (though the

company is planning to release one for iOS soon)• No Gantt charts, task

dependencies, recurrence, or subtasks

Originally written by Rachel Burger, the full post can be found here