8 Best Project Management Tools for Startups: 2023 Review

It doesn’t matter where you are in the tech industry. It’s not easy to launch, scale, and maintain your startup in a time where everybody’s pushing for your market share and you have limited resources and staff to get things done on time. 

That’s why project management solutions are so massively popular these days. But, out of countless options available on the market, which one can truly take you to the next step without draining your budget? 

Well, you can start with this list. Here are 8 of the best project management tools.

Trello

More than 1.1 million people are now using Trello, making it the most popular online project management software available. The greatest part of Trello is that it provides both free and paid options, the latter of which may be customized based on the number of users. 

Trello's user interface is so simple that it doesn't have a learning curve. Workflow visualization is a breeze thanks to the Kanban board functionality. The task's progress can be monitored, and it may be moved across the board with a simple drag and drop.

Trello is a great opportunity for a new business since it provides affordable options that include many advanced tools. As a result, every firm would benefit greatly from having an endless user base and board.

Features

• Zero-cost hosting service.
• Adding a new function to the task cart is an available customization option.
• Simple, drop-and-drag interface.
• Make a calendar available.
• Task-related commenting is available.

Pros

• Rapid-fire management of a checklist.
• Includes email alerts for reminders.

Cons

• There is no task chart view at this time.
• There is no means of monitoring how long a job takes.

Pricing 

• Free: Perfect for low-budget startups and brainstorming sessions.
• Professional: The monthly fee for each pro user is $9.
• Enterprise: A custom plan tailored to the number of users.

Monday

Monday is a one-stop platform for managing projects, making it ideal for startups in any section, including those that offer web and mobile app development services. It ranks as one of the most widely used project management applications because of its scalability, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes. Monday's project management features make it the greatest option for startups because of how well it supports teamwork, customization, cost-effectiveness, and client satisfaction.

The platform recently announced the upcoming beta release of "Monday AI assistant" in May 2023. This feature would allow users to more easily create tasks, write and rewrite emails, explain complicated activities, and create equations. This is helpful for any business, but particularly for small companies that want to streamline their processes via automation.

With Monday, startups can easily organize their assets, organize work effectively, assign financial assets, evaluate progress, and measure hours worked on tasks and projects, in addition to managing projects. It lets you see and report on operation records, tasks, kanban, timetables, and Gantt Chart views.

Features

• Self-service database.
• Over fifty other apps may be used in conjunction with it, too. These include Slack, HubSpot, Zendesk, GitHub, and others.
• Options for managing both a portfolio and available resources.
• Apps for both iOS and Android.

Pros

• Storage space available up to 1TB.
• Hundreds of sample documents are available.
• All plans provide round-the-clock assistance from helpful staff.
• 2FA authentication.
• The Basic version is free to use.

Cons

• Only two people on the team are eligible for the individual package.
• Only the Professional and Enterprise packages have a time-logging option.

Pricing

• Basic: $10/month, dropping down to $8 if billed annually.
• Standard:$12/month, dropping down to $10 if billed annually.
• Pro:$20/month, dropping down to $16 if billed annually.
• Enterprise: Depends on client requirements.

Zoho Projects

Zoho Projects is a web-based startup software program for managing and coordinating group projects. It's a great tool for growing businesses of all sizes.

Planning projects and delegating work to team members are both possible in Zoho Projects. Functions like collaborative job allocation, job alerts, and time scheduling are only the tip of the iceberg. Managers can prevent over- or underutilizing workers using time monitoring and resource utilization tools.

Automated job transitions and workflows, comprehensive reporting, and expenditure management tools are all available to users. There is an administrative document management section, a discussion area for going over ideas and solutions, a social media feed for keeping up with all your project events, and a conference tab for facilitating online meetings. There are also mobile apps for this.

Zoho Projects can work alongside various Zoho tools like Zoho CRM and with external apps such as Microsoft Teams and Zendesk

Features

• There are seventeen language options.
• Bug detection and issue tracking.
• Email notifications on pending tasks.
• Teams can work together with comments, chats, blogs, boards, and more.
• The ability to automate routine tasks, such as setting up a notification system or a notification trigger, or even an escalation method to solve problems quickly.

Pros

• Excellent graphs and analysis of data.
• Ability to manage users and permissions.
• Zia is an AI chatbot.

Cons

• Capacity issues.
• It can do better when reporting bugs.

Pricing

• Free: Up to three people may access it for free.
• Premium: Pricing for the premium plan is $4/user/month when paid yearly or $5/user/month when paid monthly.
• Enterprise: Pricing starts at $9/user/month when paid yearly or $10/user/month when paid monthly.

ClickUp

Clickup's enticing customization options help every company solve its budgetary problems. However, finances are a concern for every new business, so they are always trying to get the most possible value for their dollar.

Clickup's many useful features will make your life easier and more productive. Any completed work may be exported and imported, and comments can be converted into tasks.

Clickup's free tier allows an infinite number of users, with just 100MB of storage. They also provide a tailored package with unlimited features for expanding startups.

Features

• Managing several tasks and processes online.
• Fully adaptable infrastructure.
• Function for setting a timetable.
• Transform feedback into action.

Pros

• Kanban, Agile, and Scrum are all supported.
• Facilitates process automation.
• Data may be imported and exported. 

Cons

• Problems with integration and monitoring 
• No task dependency

Pricing

• Free: Any number of users may use 100MB of space at no cost.
• Unlimited: No limits on anything. Annual subscriptions cost $5 per user every month. If not, it will cost you $9/month. The trial is free of charge.

Wrike

Wrike is a free tool that may help software startups stay on top of their to-do lists. They may upgrade to the software's higher-level features as their needs change. Wrike may be used for a wide variety of purposes, including but not limited to product development, business services, designs, advertising and sales, and any other situation needing a shared workspace.

You'll get access to helpful alert and project management tools, as well as workflow automation features like automated approvals. Pipelines may be created to meet the workflow of the project, allowing you to assign tasks to the proper people at a suitable time. You may further increase your adaptability to changing project conditions by making your own dashboards and submission forms. The software is compatible with common business programs including Microsoft Project, Salesforce, and Tableau.

Features

• Supporting Waterfall & Agile methodologies
• Available for Android and iOS 
• Offering different view options, such as Gantt charts
• Timesheet tracking

Pros

• The free plan includes an infinite number of projects.
• No restriction on the depth of subtask nesting
• Multiple additional views: Kanban, Table, and others.
• Modifications made especially for business and advertising teams

Cons

• Only premium accounts have access to the Gantt chart view.
• The Business plan and above is the only tier that includes an in-app timer for recording hours.

Pricing

Pricing for premium accounts begins at $9.80 a month per user.

Asana

Asana allows entrepreneurs to keep tabs on their projects, manage individual tasks, organize their work into sprints, and link with other applications. While Asana's paid plans start at $99 per month for up to 15 users, the company recognizes that small businesses often have tighter budgets. The basic functionality for managing even the simplest of projects is included in the free plan. Users get daily reminders of their work, including due dates, thanks to this feature.

Project participants may work together in Asana by commenting on tasks and tagging them with @mentions to get their attention. Asana is the ideal project management tool if you want one person to finish the job of 10. It works well for small rapidly expanding businesses like software startups and advertising firms.

Features

• Helps organize projects and their components.
• Timeline for keeping projects on track.
• Supports Kanban.
• Reminding notifications.
• Actual time status reports on work underway.
• Use 'hearts' to indicate your approval of various efforts.

Pros

• Android and iOS apps.
• Packed with features.
• Views and reports on workloads.
• Unlimited space for storing files.

Cons

• There is a lack of task status options.
• Absence of a built-in meeting planner.

Pricing

• Free: Standard features with ten users maximum.
• Premium: 30+ people. If paid yearly, each user's monthly rate drops to $9.99. If not, you'll pay $11.99/month.
• Business: Has all of the features of Premium and more. Annual pricing starts at $19.99/month for every user. Without a discount, the price is $23.99/month.
• Enterprise: Tailored to client requirements.

Nifty

With Nifty, you can see the big picture of your team's tasks in one place while maintaining visibility into individual projects. Small and big teams in the creative sector both have experienced success with Nifty.

Features like cross-department communication, member tasks, bespoke chat software, built-in Docs & Files, and job Milestones demonstrate this tool's value in providing a scalable and structured environment for project management.

Nifty's free tier allows up to three users and two projects while upgrading grants access to three more paid plans and a 14-day trial period.

Features 

• Integrated Google Docs, Sheets, and Presentations
• Monitoring the Progress of a Project
• Group Message Boards
• Discussions Regarding Projects

Pros

• Automatic time management for tracking billable hours worked on various jobs
• Task board with Kanban chart
• Automatic reporting of project progress based on completed tasks
• Multi-device support

Cons

• limited support for external tools
• Nifty is great for those who wish to consolidate their work into a single, shared workspace and streamline their processes via automation.

Pricing

• Free: up to 3 users with 2 projects and 1 GB per user.
• Standard: The regular monthly cost is $10 per user if paid yearly, or $8 with a free trial period of 14 days.
• Premium: $12/month on the annual plan; a two-week free trial; $15/month if paid monthly.
• Enterprise: Depending on client requirements

Teamwork

Teamwork is an integrated platform for managing client projects for teams providing innovative professional services. When it comes to marketing teams, Teamwork is among the finest project management software available because of its capacity to control project assets, monitor time, handle invoicing, and manage budgets.

Teamwork allows entrepreneurs to coordinate their efforts and monitor their initiatives in real-time. It has a reporting panel, cooperation abilities, and project templates.

Features

• View your projects in a variety of forms, such as a Gantt chart, a list, a table, or a board.
• Billable timesheets.
• Support for a broad range of third-party apps, including Slack, Quickbooks, and others.
• The tool is accessible through a Google Chrome extension and a Gmail add-on that enables users to set tasks directly from inside their inboxes.

Pros

• The ability to create budgets, manage billable hours, monitor expenses, and issue invoices is a major bonus.
• Ability to automate processes.
• Task fundamentals like subtasks and dependencies are included.

Cons

• The free version of Teamwork does not include any kind of customer service.
• Its free tier doesn't allow users to do enough.

Pricing

• Free: There is no charge for up to 5 users.
• Starter: The annual plan costs $5.99/month, but if you decide to pay monthly, the fee is $8.99/month
• Deliver: $9.99/month per user when paid annually; $13.99/month when invoiced monthly.
• Grow: If paid annually, your monthly fee is only $19.99, but it will increase to $25 if paid monthly.
• Scale: Depending on client requirements

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Now that we’ve covered some of the best project management solutions that can help you with software development, it’s time to answer a few common questions about this topic.

How can we find the right project management software for our startup?

You need to define what your startup needs. Based on your current and future scale, you go and research different options, sign up for a trial or a demo, and see if it resonates with your operation.

What are the main types of project management tools for startups?

Based on your needs and operation, you can categorize project management tools in different ways, but generally, when you get a startup software program, it helps you with:

• Operation scheduling
• Resource management
• Collaboration
• Budget management

What are the essentials of the best project management tools?

When it comes to choosing project management apps for startups, you need to know that they all come with certain special or unique features. But, there are also some essential features that separate them from the rest. These are:

• Flexibility
• User-friendly interface
• Automation
• Collaboration features
• Sophisticated reporting
• Cutting-edge security 

Where can I check the reviews for these project & task management tools?

Never subscribe to a project management tool before reading the reviews. Besides the testimonials, there are several other places you should definitely check to see what users have to say about the startup software:

• Online forums like Reddit and Quora. 
• Specialized communities like G2 Crowd.
• Industry blogs that count as a reliable source of information. These offer user reviews and systematic reviews.