Top 10 Alternatives to Asana: Popular Project Management Systems

Asana is one of the top project management software available on the market. It is generally liked for featuring the right combination of task management and collaboration tools. However, is it really the best solution for your needs?

To help you find this out, we present these Asana alternatives that may offer you a better option for task management, collaboration, and communication.

Twenty-two percent. That is the failure rate of agile projects if management takes longer than five hours to arrive at a decision. In the same case, the rate that projects would produce inadequate results is 53%. Similarly, organizations that do not use or have outdated project management tools have project failure rates of 18%.

In contrast, 77% of high-performing projects were backed by project management software. That is because project managers have visibility into KPIs. As a result, they are able to adapt agilely to the situation to prevent critical issues from occurring. Project management applications also contribute to the improvement of planning and scheduling. Thus, project teams can better manage budgets and mitigate risks effectively.

One of the most popular project management tools around is Asana. In general, managers like Asana because it allows them to monitor simultaneous projects and easily drill down into task details. Team leaders, on the other hand, can delegate subtasks and create their project sections and multiple workspaces. And team members enjoy the flexibility to manage their workspace, prioritize tasks, upload files, and delegate duties.

But if Asana is not for you, there are plenty of other choices. Before we present the other top project management solutions, let’s take a look at what exactly Asana brings to the table.

What is Asana?

With Asana, you can create projects and tasks and add team members to select activities. You also control who sees what across projects and tasks to protect sensitive data.

Likewise, the solution allows you to share files and collaborate through emails, comments, and notifications. Using Asana, you can let go of email or third-party communication tools. Information exchange can all happen in one place: inside Asana. This makes sharing, tracking, collaborating and organizing tasks much more straightforward and efficient.

Communication is just as easy as on social media. Users are notified in their inbox of any change or update on any task. You can comment, follow, like, or draw the attention of a user through @mention. A manager can jump from project to project and easily join and keep track of discussions without losing sight of the overall picture. The activity feed gives a quick overview of recent actions by project leaders and members. Lastly, tracking progress from any device and browser is also possible in Asana.

Overall, Asana is easily one of the top project management solutions that businesses of any size can use (even freelancers). But is it really the best for you? To find out, we compared Asana with other top contenders in its niche.

If you are not impressed with what Asana has to offer, there is no need to go away. Here are 10 good Asana alternatives that offer quality features of their own. Browse their reviews, and you may just find what you need for your business.

Top 10 Alternatives to Asana

1. monday.com

Leading our list is online collaboration software monday.com, a platform created for agile teams. It serves as a unified platform through which managers can delegate tasks, keep track of employee workloads, monitor deadlines, as well as check project progress. Moreover, it comes with communication software features that allow team members to streamline discussions and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

monday.com is also known for its collaboration-first interface. It has the simplicity and clutter-free feel of social networks, even using the same user-profile style. This makes it great for tech-averse users as it keeps the learning slope to a minimum. Of course, that is not to say that this platform is not flexible enough for tech-savvy users.

In fact, monday.com is highly customizable as it supports a wide variety of integrations. With this, the platform can easily adapt to any workflow, ensuring a more optimized project management operations.

In case you want more information about this product, the vendor allows prospective customers to test out the platform.

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Monday.com vs. Asana

Monday.com has more advanced scheduling tools compared to Asana. It also has better collaboration features, keeping discussions in a logical structure. And while Asana has a free but limited app, monday.com’s unlimited storage and highly efficient search make it a frictionless software in terms of user adoption. With wide integration and diverse reporting features, monday.com can give Asana a run for its money. If you want a wider selection, take a look at these quality monday.com alternatives.

2. Wrike

Award-winning project management solution Wrike matches the needs of projects of any size. From freelance work to complex projects, Wrike’s robust and versatile features help teams collaborate better and communicate with greater transparency, while managers gain more visibility throughout the stages and accomplishments.

Freelancers can also use the free Wrike app that offers robust tools like task management, file sharing, and real-time activity at no cost.

Wrike

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Wrike vs. Asana

Wrike has more sophisticated tools compared to Asana. As you go to the higher plans, the difference becomes starker. There are key features that are missing in Asana. These include high-level tools in Wrike, like reporting and statistics, and resource and workflow management. Agile managers need these tools to adjust immediately to current events or match their processes to a tee. Wrike also features project budgeting and planning tools, two differentiating factors if you have more complex projects. If you want a wider choice, take a look at these Wrike alternatives.

3. ConnectWise Manage

Next on our list of Asana management solutions alternatives is ConnectWise Manage. This powerful project management module serves as a single platform to connect crucial business processes. ConnectWise Manage helps streamline operations, which allows businesses to optimize their resources using error-proof ticketing, clear lines of communication, and robust documentation. ConnectWise Manage utilizes advanced communication technology, thus making it suitable for collaboration, especially when it comes to working on common tasks that involve large and decentralized teams.

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ConnectWise Manage vs. Asana

ConnectWise Manage’s competitive edge is its unique combination of core business solutions in a single application. In terms of project management, ConnectWise Manage provides businesses with project templates, time tracking and billing, along with customizable work plans that you can adjust and change anytime. To enhance team collaboration during the process of accomplishing projects, ConnectWise Manage offers its powerful help desk solution, which helps your team handle customer concerns and inquiries efficiently and resolve issues faster. In terms of reporting, ConnectWise Manage is equipped with robust reporting options to help you make strategic data-driven business decisions, especially in terms of maximizing business resources and reducing operational costs.

4. Smartsheet

Smartsheet reviews say that it’s one of the most innovative collaboration tools for businesses today. The platform combines the familiarity of the spreadsheet interface and visual timeline management to help teams track their schedules and manage their tasks. Aside from task management and file sharing, Smartsheet also provides automation through rules to boost productivity even further.

Moreover, the Smartsheet Sights and live reports features give managers and executives data-driven insights on team performance. Widget-driven dashboards provide real-time information, so your business decisions are backed by data.

Smartsheet vs. Asana

Smartsheet may have the edge over Asana when it comes to ease of use, as the former’s spreadsheet-like platform may be more familiar to users. It also offers more robust features for activity and employee management, plus the platform lets you create Gantt charts. Unlike Asana, Smartsheet comes with built-in capabilities for scheduled reporting as well. However, if you want better capabilities for handling multiple projects, you may be better off with Asana. If you want more choices, consider these Smartsheet alternatives.

5. Zoho Projects

Zoho Projects is one of the most popular project management tools available today. It is not only known for being cost-effective but also because it is highly customizable. In fact, it is being used in a wide variety of industries and business functions. Enterprise users range from construction consultants to costume designers.

The product is also well known for its reporting tools. Using visualizations such as kanban boards and Gantt charts makes it easy for managers and team members to be on top of their projects. Key features include collaboration tools like file sharing, forums, commenting, and discussions. Of course, project management staples like modules for expense tracking, budgeting, and time logging are also available.

Zoho Projects

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Zoho Projects vs Asana

Zoho Projects is more highly customizable than Asana. So, users can configure it to their needs and preferences better. However, the downside is the time and resources it takes for configuration. Asana, on the other hand, is easier to get started as it has a more straightforward approach. Its interface mimics the look and feels of a social media platform. So, it is much more intuitive to use. Zoho Projects, when it comes to GUI intuitiveness, is not really far behind. But, what Zoho Projects lacks for immediate usability, it makes up by being highly customizable. If you are looking for more options, you can check out other Zoho Projects alternatives as well.

6. ProjectManager

Award-winning cloud-based project management system ProjectManager offers plenty of features that help with the on-time delivery of projects. The platform is designed as an end-to-end solution, offering features for planning projects and generating shareable reports. Moreover, ProjectManager lets you create group discussions and chat with team members online. Users can also simultaneously work on online timesheets for smoother collaboration. All these features can help improve productivity and ease collaboration, especially for teams with members across the globe. Additionally, ProjectManager offers integrations with over 400 business applications, including popular CRM software, accounting software, and helpdesk systems.

The vendor offers a comprehensive free trial to get you up to speed with the features.

ProjectManager vs. Asana

Compared to Asana, ProjectManager can provide finer control of project progress and issues. ProjectManager can send involved users task-related alerts and provides features for escalating issues when needed. The platform also allows users to have an approval process in place. This feature comes in handy for more complicated projects. Furthermore, ProjectManager offers capabilities for employee management and expense tracking. Not sure ProjectManager’s the best software for you? Check out these ProjectManager alternatives.

7. Celoxis

Celoxis is a popular business software solution that offers a comprehensive blend of project management and resource management tools. Key features range from project request tracking and project monitoring to job timesheets and expense trackers. These tools are housed in an intuitive and easy-to-use interface giving it a high out-of-the-box functionality rating.

The platform is also highly customizable according to the particular needs of an organization. This is thanks to its built-in configurable application workflows. Users, too, can create their own automations easily through custom fields, routing rules, and escalation procedures. The same level of customizability is also present in its analytics and reporting modules. They include custom drill-down charts and its shareable dashboards can also be personalized using custom widgets and layouts.

And, with the range of its features from project management to resource allocation, users can have a real-time view of their projects including key metrics like time and money spent. Moreover, it is fitted with communication tools reminiscent of popular social media platforms including @mentions and discussion spaces. It also includes a client portal that users can give third-party stakeholders access to for better collaboration.

The platform integrates well with other business solutions like Slack, Salesforce, and Google Drive among many. Also, it is available in two versions: Cloud at $25 per user per month and On Premise at $450 per user billed only once. Subscription to either, however, requires a minimum of five users.

Celoxis

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Celoxis vs. Asana

Asana is a powerful project management platform. Celoxis, however, is the better choice if users need more resource allocation modules. The latter is also fitted with better analytics and reporting modules complete with drill-down charts. Even though Asana’s and Celoxis’ communication tools are comparable, Celoxis has the edge when it comes to customizability. The same thing can be said with regards to automations. To read more about similar products, you can check out other Celoxis alternatives.

8. elapseit

elapseit is a web-based project management software that comes equipped with resource planning, productivity tracking, and finance management. Because of this, teams within a company can work seamlessly together. On top of that, managers can gain complete visibility of project tasks and overall progress. This makes the multi-departmental workflow more seamless.

On top of that, elapseit offers cost-efficient plans depending on the functionalities you require. Plans start at $14/user/month and the vendor also has an Enterprise subscription package that is fully customizable, making it great for teams with highly specific requirements.

elapseit

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elapseit vs. Asana

elapseit has an edge over Asana because of its advanced functionalities that are not often offered by project management tools. For instance, it allows users to see the capacity of each team member, manage workloads, allocate backlogs for deadline planning, and calculate the profitability of resources. In addition, it comes with built-in automated timesheets, overtime management, invoicing tools, as well as leave management. If you want a wider choice, take a look at these quality elapseit alternatives.

9. Easy Projects

Easy Projects is an all-in-one project management solution that also offers business intelligence, financial management, and time tracking capabilities. As a project management platform, it facilitates quick and efficient planning and scheduling of projects. It also enables easier collaboration between team members, as they can exchange messages at project or task levels.

Furthermore, Easy Projects also functions as a business intelligence software, as it lets managers visualize, analyze, and utilize data, which they can use for creating interactive dashboards and reports. Easy Projects also provides expense and time tracking tools. You can check out the platform’s unique features through the free trial.

Easy Projects vs Asana

Unlike Asana, Easy Projects has its own time tracker whereas Asana still needs to be integrated with other software for time tracking, such as Time Doctor. Easy Projects also offers business intelligence capabilities. The platform’s AI-powered algorithm for project completion forecasting can also help managers plan schedules better and come up with the necessary workarounds. If these features interest you, check out Easy Projects alternatives that offer similar functionalities.

10. Jira

Jira is a popular project management solution for agile teams who aim to create and ship products more frequently without experiencing delays. It streamlines the software development processes involved throughout the entire lifecycle of each project. It’s a highly customizable solution with thousands of apps to integrate with from the Atlassian Marketplace.

Jira is flexibly priced with its cloud-based and self-managed hosting plans as well as a free package that’s good for up to 10 users.

Jira vs Asana

The biggest difference between the two is that Jira caters almost exclusively to software teams. This means that if that’s what your personnel is composed of, then Jira is most probably the better solution. Aside from that, Jira also focuses on supporting agile teams and methodologies. One of the features that show this is the use of both Kanban and Scrum boards, and even its hybrid version – Scrumban. To know more about similar solutions, read our list of top Jira alternatives.

Finding the Best Alternative to Asana

We hope that through this in-depth comparison of the popular project management systems on the market, you were able to get an idea of what solution you should get for your operations. Each of these alternatives offers its own strengths, but the best project management software for your business will have features that will meet your team’s specific needs and ensure on-time delivery of your projects.

However, if you haven’t made your mind up yet, we highly recommend checking out the top product on our list, monday.com. This platform does not fall short in terms of providing all the essential collaboration and project management tools. Moreover, it is easy to navigate for both tech-savvy and tech-averse users. For more information about this product, be sure to sign up for monday.com free trial.

By Stephanie Seymour

Stephanie Seymour is a senior business analyst and one of the crucial members of the FinancesOnline research team. She is a leading expert in the field of business intelligence and data science. She specializes in visual data discovery, cloud-based BI solutions, and big data analytics. She’s fascinated by how companies dealing with big data are increasingly embracing cloud business intelligence. In her software reviews, she always focuses on the aspects that let users share analytics and enhance findings with context.