- ClickUp: Best for security-minded teams
- monday.com : Best for unique enterprise-level features
- Asana: Best for task management
- Zoho Projects: Best for automation
- Smartsheet: Best for spreadsheet-style project management
- Notion: Best for content creation
- Airtable: Best for customization
- Teamwork.com: Best for agency enterprises
Updated: Sep 13, 2024, 3:13pm
Due to all the moving parts and pieces, it can be a real challenge to manage and complete enterprise-level projects. That’s where enterprise project management software comes in. With the right solution, you can remove silos, improve communication and streamline workflows.
Enterprise project management software is well worth the investment if your goal is to efficiently and effectively plan, track and manage projects across various departments and resources. To make your search a bit easier, Forbes Advisor has done the heavy lifting and compiled this list of the best enterprise project management software of 2024.
The Best Enterprise Project Management Software of 2024
Why You Can Trust Forbes Advisor Small Business
The Forbes Advisor Small Business team is committed to bringing you unbiased rankings and information with full editorial independence. We use product data, first-person testing, strategic methodologies and expert insights to inform all of our content to guide you in making the best decisions for your business journey.
Our team analyzed 16 project management platforms with 33 factors such as pricing, features, access to customer support and customer ratings to organize this list of the eight best enterprise project management software. All ratings are determined solely by our editorial team.
Forbes Advisor Ratings
How To Choose the Best Enterprise Project Management Software
As you shop around for enterprise project management software, think about which features are most important for your business. These factors can guide you in your search and help you make the most informed decision.
Essential Features
Most quality enterprise project management software include the following features:
- Task management: You should be able to manage multiple projects and team members across different departments with the ability to create, assign and track tasks.
- Collaboration tools: Tools such as messaging and commenting can help you communicate in real time with team members, no matter where they’re located.
- Timelines: Project timelines are intended to keep projects on schedule and visually show milestones and deadlines.
- Calendars: Calendars allow you to schedule and monitor appointments and meetings.
- File sharing: File sharing is key as most projects involve a variety of files and documents, such as notes, pictures and videos.
- Mobile access: Mobile apps are particularly important if you have a remote workforce and/or would like to stay connected through smartphones and tablets.
- Customization: With customization options, you can tailor the software to your specific enterprise project management needs.
- Integrations: Since your business likely uses a number of other tools, integrations are vital for streamlined workflows.
Ease of Use
When you invest in an enterprise project management software, make sure it’s easy to use for everyone in your business, regardless of their technical experience or what department they’re in. It should help keep every project on track and allow for easy communication and collaboration. There are a number of features that can help make a solution more intuitive, including drag-and-drop functionality, time tracking, search functionality, file sharing, task prioritization and customizable dashboard.
Integrations and Device Compatibility
Jot down the other tools and applications your business uses. Then, look for solutions that can seamlessly integrate with them. Some of the most common integrations are Google Drive, Slack, Microsoft Office 365 and Slack.
The ideal software should also be compatible with both desktop and mobile devices, allowing for in-office and on-the-go access. Lastly, it’s also important that it’s compatible with the devices and operating systems most of your team members use.
Security
While security should always be top of mind, it’s particularly crucial for larger businesses that invest in software that will be used across multiple departments in different locations. Some advanced security features you should look for include:
- User authentication: Your software should support multiple types of authentication, such as Google OpenID, ADFS, SSO and SAML2. It should also offer customizable password settings and two-step verification.
- Role-based control: Role-based control means you can specify who can access what data. This will allow you to ensure that sensitive or confidential information is only accessible by those who truly need it.
- Data encryption: Data encryption is a method of protecting data by converting it to encoded information that can only be decoded with a unique key. At a minimum, your data should follow the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES).
Methodology
To find the best enterprise project management software, Forbes Advisor researched providers in the space and narrowed it down to the top eight. The best enterprise management software had the best overall scores based on our methodology. Here are the main metrics we used to help us come up with our ranking.
Pricing
For pricing, we considered the cost per user per month for all paid plans. We also looked at free plans, the availability of free trials, free trial length and money-back guarantees. Pricing accounts for 11% of our total score.
General Features
We analyzed each enterprise project management software based on key features, such as task creation and assignment, timelines, Gantt charts, software integrations, dependencies and budgeting. These features make up 26% of our total score.
Additional Features
In addition to the general features, we also devoted 20% of our score to whether or not unique features were included. A few examples of these features include customizable templates, milestone tracking, expense tracking, Kanban boards, billing and invoicing, and guest/client access.
Reviews and Ratings
We also sorted through plenty of customer reviews to uncover if user experience aligns with marketing promises. We looked at each provider’s rating, how many reviews each had, and weighed them at 9%.
Expert Score
Lastly, we included our expert opinion based on our firsthand experience using these different solutions to access various use cases. We also considered factors such as ease of use and value. This accounts for 20% of our score.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Who should use enterprise project management software?
Enterprise project management software is designed for larger businesses with workflows in multiple departments. These organizations often have multiple locations as well as hundreds or even thousands of employees.
How does enterprise project management software work?
Enterprise project management software helps businesses manage various projects and tasks in real time. It can be customized to achieve your organization’s unique goals and timelines.
Is enterprise project management software worth the investment?
If you’re a larger organization with projects that span numerous departments, enterprise project management is likely worthwhile. This is particularly true if you’d like to reduce inefficiencies and increase productivity.
Is enterprise project management software secure?
Similar to most types of software, the best enterprise project management software programs offer many levels of security. When choosing enterprise project management software, you want to look for security features, including 2FA or multifactor authentication (MFA), documentation that shows frequent security updates and patches, data encryption privacy protection, the monitoring of user activities and intrusion detection.