Microsoft Project
TL;DR
Microsoft Project is the veteran project management tool — the gold standard for detailed scheduling, Gantt charts, and resource management, now cloud-first under Microsoft 365 Planner. It is powerful and deeply integrated with the Microsoft ecosystem; the learning curve, the cost, and Microsoft’s messy product transition are the trade-offs.
Pricing
Starting at $10/user/month
Details
What is Microsoft Project?
Microsoft Project has been the project management standard for decades, and TrustRadius scores it 7.8 out of 10 across 736 reviews. It is the benchmark for serious scheduling work: advanced Gantt charts, critical path analysis, dependency management, and resource management that rivals find hard to match, all integrated tightly with Microsoft 365 and Teams. Reviewers love those core scheduling and resource tools; they criticize the steep learning curve, the cost for small teams, and a dated interface. The big story in 2026 is transition: Microsoft is retiring Project Online and folding Project for the web into Microsoft Planner, while the desktop Professional edition remains a separate purchase. For enterprise PMOs already inside Microsoft it remains a safe choice; for everyone else, modern alternatives are friendlier and cheaper.
Key Features
- Advanced Gantt charts and timeline visualization
- Task dependencies and critical path analysis
- Robust resource management and allocation
- Collaborative task assignment
- Portfolio management for enterprise PMOs
- Baselines and progress tracking
- Reporting and customizable dashboards
- Integration with Microsoft 365 and Teams
- Agile and waterfall support
- On-premises Project Server for enterprises
Who is it for?
- Professional project managers running complex, resource-heavy projects
- Enterprise PMOs that need portfolio-level visibility
- Organizations already deep in the Microsoft 365 ecosystem
- Teams that need the industry-standard Gantt and scheduling depth
Who is it NOT for?
- Small teams who just need simple task tracking — it is overkill
- Teams that want a modern, friendly interface with no training
- Organizations with mixed tooling that includes non-Microsoft users
- Budget-conscious buyers who balk at per-user licensing plus add-ons
The Bottom Line
Microsoft Project scores 3.9 out of 5 across 736 reviews, and that rating is honest: the scheduling and resource management are still best-in-class, but the product is expensive, hard to learn, and stuck in a messy transition to Planner that Microsoft has not made easy to follow. My verdict: if you are an enterprise PMO already on Microsoft, it still earns its seat. If you are anything smaller or newer, the learning curve and cost are not worth it — start with Smartsheet or monday.com, and check back on Planner once the transition is actually finished.
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