Resource management, project planning, team collaboration: the best project management tools can help with these important tasks – and more. In the face of increasing competition and an increase in remote work, businesses can get ahead by adopting these impactful and cost-effective project management tools and techniques in 2023.

Top project management tools for 2023

The best project management tools will make things better for your business as a whole, as well as improve workflows and accessibility for individual employees. Scheduling tools are some of the most common PM tools, but software solutions can handle everything from cost control and task management to data organization. 

Trello, for example, is great for small businesses looking for an easy way to get started. Their free plan can easily be integrated into existing operations and lets you break up multiple projects into an intuitive Kanban framework (more on that later). It features unlimited “cards,” unlimited storage (although individual files are capped at 10MB apiece), and project insight perks like an activity log and assigned due dates. Paid plans add additional features and start at $5 per user per month.

While Trello is ideal for small-scale team collaboration and easy project management, PM tools like Microsoft Project are geared more toward enterprise teams and businesses not deterred by a steep learning curve. High price tag aside (plans start at $10 per user per month, but annual commitments are required), Microsoft Project comes with a range of benefits, including great project progress-tracking tools, Gantt chart tracking, and seamless integration with the rest of the Microsoft ecosystem (Microsoft Teams, Excel, Outlook, etc.). 

Whether your project management tools need to align more with a small business, or an established company with the money and resources to properly wield PM tools like MS Project – or somewhere in between – there are tools out there that would be a perfect fit. 

Best project management software applications of 2023

With so many PM tools to choose from, comparing software solutions can be a daunting task. To make things easier, here are the top five project management software applications, as ranked by business users, in 2023: 

1. Monday.com

Marketed as an all-in-one project management tool, Monday.com packs in plenty of impressive features and configuration capabilities. Add valuable visualizations, personalized interfaces, and preconfigured automations to control complex projects from concept through completion. Project teams of all tech levels can enjoy ease of access and an accessible learning curve. Individual users can make use of their free plan, while paid subscriptions start at $8 per user per month.

2. ClickUp

What began as a startup company has, in just 5 years, become a powerful and affordable project management tool perfect for tracking productivity and collaboration across multiple teams. Platform workflows are easily customized, with the ability to transfer data from Monday.com, Trello, Jira, Wrike, and other applications over to ClickUp. The biggest benefit to this project management tool is the range of affordable plans: Besides a Free Forever package that’s ideal for personal use, paid plans start at just $5 per user per month and go up to Enterprise options (reach out for a price quote).

3. Asana

Another popular platform that has grown dramatically in recent years, Asana is a great long-term investment for business users and project managers alike. Best known scalability, Asana offers intuitive dashboards to track project successes, easily configured security policies, and documentation. The free Basic Plan lets you plan out unlimited tasks and projects with up to 15 teammates, but there are also Premium ($11 per user per month) and Business ($25 per user per month) plans that add in everything from workflow builders to entire portfolios.

4. Jira Work Management

For larger businesses that need to break down complex projects, there is Jira, a popular project management tool that supports issue tracking, project progress, and even individual relationships. Jira software is a great fit for teams across multiple industries that are focused on large-scale projects such as software development. Free plan options exist for teams of less than 10 users, but for everyone else, prices start at around $8 per user per month.

5. Toggl

If time-management software is what you need, Toggl is one of the best project management tools to consider. This software makes employee time tracking, billing and invoicing, and budgeting easier than ever with tools that replace cumbersome and confusing spreadsheets. Free packages exist for teams of five users or less, while paid Toggl plans start at $10 per user per month.

Get to know these essential project management techniques

No project management strategy is complete without a set of tried and true best practices. Agile project management is an essential skill for project leaders, since one of the most popular frameworks – Scrum – falls under the category of Agile methodologies. 

The Scrum framework involves refining a project through short development cycles, or “sprints.” This project management method is known for increasing a team’s chances at delivering a product that satisfies clients. While Scrum is a value-based methodology, alternatives like the Waterfall method are more schedule-based – ideal for prioritizing budgets and breaking down project costs. 

Other important project management tools and techniques to familiarize yourself with include: 

• The work breakdown structure (WBS) technique, a crucial first step for any project manager looking to break down projects into tasks that are then fit into a realistic workflow
• The critical path method (CPM) for outlining and establishing accurate project timelines
• Kanban boards that segment, organize, and display projects for entire teams
• Gantt charts that visualize project activities over a set period of time – essentially, a bar chart that has been perfected for project planning tasks
• Scaled agile frameworks (SAFe) that can implement Agile project management with a focus on scalability