The Inside Scoop on the Best Project Management Tools (From the People Who Actually Use Them!)

Project management software: the bane of many web designers and agency owners’ existence. Many tools make big promises about saving you from drowning in a sea of Post-it notes and endless email threads. But one thing I know for sure? They can make or break your sanity. 

Whether you’re a one-person show, juggling it all by yourself (go you!), or you have a team to share the workload with, finding the right project management tool for your agency is a must.

Your perfect PM match is like a trusty sidekick, keeping everything organized and running smoothly, streamlining your workflow, and keeping stress levels under control.

If you want to simplify project planning and make more time for the important things like writing great content (wait, just me?!), then you’ve come to the right place.

Today, I’m sharing some of the best project management software options out there. Not only will I show you why they’re worth your time, but you’ll hear from real digital agency owners who use them daily.

Ready? Let’s get started.

3 project management software options you could be using

If you Google ‘project management software’ or ‘best project management tools’, you’ll get a mile-long list of different options – each with different pros, cons, and price points. It can get overwhelming pretty quickly. How do you figure out which one is right for you?

We’re here to help! I’ve spoken to some of our lovely TABLE Mastermind members about which PM tools they’re currently using and why. Drumroll, please…

Basecamp

An oldie (in tech years, at least) but a goodie, Basecamp is a firm favorite among project managers and agency owners. 

Each project gets its own dedicated space, so you can see everything you’re working on at a glance. And with a simple, user-friendly interface, it doesn’t overwhelm you with excessive features. 

Its straightforward, no B.S. design was what attracted Trevor Sather of Square Eye to Basecamp many moons ago. His clients aren’t the ‘techiest’ folks and can be “suspicious of new online tools.” Basecamp made it possible for Trevor’s clients to “understand a threaded discussion board, and get their heads around a shared checklist with comment threads.” Sounds like a success story to us!

Trevor does admit that Basecamp’s simplicity can be a double-edged sword. He says that while it’s super user-friendly, it lacks personalization options like custom fields or a layout designer. So, if your philosophy is ‘the more features, the better’, Basecamp may not be the best project management software for you.

Basecamp Pricing

Basecamp offers a free plan, but you can only run one project at a time, and you’re limited to 1GB of storage space, so most agencies will likely need an upgrade sooner rather than later. The cheapest paid plan is $15 per user per month – a great option for smaller teams.

Teamwork

Teamwork is a solid project management tool, and it happens to be the one I use myself!

It has an easy-to-navigate interface where you can assign projects, chat with your team members, and customize tasks in just a few clicks.

Teamwork makes invoicing clients, tracking project timelines, and team collaboration a breeze. The built-in timer lets you track the time spent on each project right from the start. And if you forget? No sweat – you can log your time after the fact (just make sure it’s accurate).

Personally, I love that you can create task list templates, assign tasks to multiple users, and bulk edit tasks so you can organize your workflow exactly how you want. You know what they say: Teamwork makes the dream work! (Sorry, it was right there.)

At the end of the day, what I love in a project management tool, you may hate. Every brand and business owner has different needs, so the perfect software for you will depend on the unique goals and challenges you face.

Teamwork Pricing

Apart from the free plan, which can accommodate up to 5 users at a time, there are 4 paid options ranging from $10.99 per user per month at the low end, to $54.99 per user per month.

ClickUp

Some reviews have called it the “best task management software on the market right now.” High praise, eh? 

ClickUp is one of the most popular project management software options among agency owners for a reason. It acts as a centralized location for handling multiple projects – from task management to communicating with your team to clients raising support tickets. No more switching between 12,000 apps and tabs every day!

Melissa Breau from Click and Repeat is a fan of ClickUp for its “flexibility to set up a system that worked for our existing systems and processes.” Plus, the platform gives you a quick overview of the progress of each project and a more detailed look if needed, which Melissa says is a huge bonus.

Matt Schwartz of Inspry agrees with the ClickUp hype. He feels it’s intuitive to use and it just clicked with him and his team (I see what you did there, Matt!). A big selling point for Matt was how ClickUp could seamlessly integrate with third-party time tracking and invoicing software, so they never had to worry about projects not being billed properly.

And if you need to manage complex projects on the go, ClickUp also has a mobile project management app!*

*Do remember to take a break every so often, though. Project managers and digital agency owners aren’t superhuman. Clock out. Pet a dog. Have some tea. Giggle at a meme. You’ll be better off.

ClickUp Pricing

Like Airtable, it has a free plan with slightly fewer project management features than the paid plans. But even the basic plan offers enough for many people to get by, and upgrades are available from as little as $7 per user per month.

Bonus tools! 

The heavy-duty PM software above can handle all tasks, big and small. But we’ve got a couple of honorable mentions up our sleeves, too! These aren’t traditional PM tools per se, but they can help you keep track of certain tasks and tick things off as you complete them!

Airtable

Airtable is a cloud-based project management platform with a spreadsheet-database hybrid format. It allows you to organize your workflow and data in an easy and flexible way. 

It’s great for managing projects, customer relationship management, or even your personal to-do list. 

Rick Heijster of Bureau RAM says Airtable is the right choice for him because it’s fully customizable to his needs. His favorite feature? The “friendly messages to clients” when tasks change status and the “suggestions for email text when certain milestones are completed.”

However, Rick does mention that if you don’t consider yourself a software development wizard, then Airtable may not be for you, as it can be a little tricky to navigate.

Kyle Van Deusen (OGAL Web Design) also runs all his project management through Airtable, but warns that it might not be for everyone: “Adding a license for every collaborator adds up quickly. But the flexibility to build the system exactly like you want and automate virtually everything makes it perfect for my little agency of one.”

Airtable Pricing

Paid plans start from $20 per user per month if you go with the annual billing option, which comes with extra features like Gantt charts and more storage space for extra databases.

If your budget is tight – or you just don’t want to splash the cash on a tool you’re not sure is right for you yet – Airtable offers a free project management software option. It’s a little more basic than some of the paid options, but it’ll get you up and running.

Todoist

This may be a slightly controversial option, as some still consider Todoist better suited to managing personal tasks. But it’s the preferred project management tool of lots of solopreneurs and web designers out there!

That said, while it can handle both work and life admin, as a project management solution, it’s generally better for lightweight tasks. 

Sandy Wiles from Sandra Lee Creative loves Todoist because of the “clean, simple user interface and flexibility it offers,” and because she doesn’t feel overwhelmed by too many extra features. 

One of Sandy’s favorite things about Todoist? The reminder option. You can give certain tasks higher priority and tell Todoist to send you a reminder at a specific time for each task. No more scribbling reminders on Post-its and sticking them all over your desktop at random! (…no? Just me?)

Sandy’s final piece of advice for getting started with Todoist is to take some time to “map out your processes and think about how you want your projects and tasks to be organized.” Todoist is flexible enough to let you adjust things as you go, but like Sandy says, “having a solid foundation ensures you can hit the ground running and set things up more efficiently from the start.” Wise words, Sandy!

Todoist Pricing

Like all the other tools listed so far, there’s a free plan available, and if billed yearly, the ‘Pro’ and ‘Business’ options are priced at $4 and $6 per user per month, respectively.

Todoist’s free plan comes with some handy task management features – like filters and templates – and Karma adds gamification to the mix! Earn points for completing tasks on time to advance through different levels. If you want to make crossing things off your to-do list a little more fun and a lot less meh, then Todoist may be the right fit for you.

Project management can be complicated. Luckily, all of the tools I’ve listed above have free options with flexible features, so you can explore your options to find what works before you commit.

Want to connect with people who just *get it*?

Looking for the lowdown from people who’ve been in your shoes? Look no further! The Admin Bar Facebook group is a supportive online group of digital agency experts who’ve been right where you are. Have questions? Need advice? Or just want to share your experience? We’d love to help you out in any way we can!