Asana Reviews

“Searchable project history”

Pros

One of the best parts for me is how searchable everything is. We've been using Asana for around four years and every project and task we've worked on is still stored in one place and easy to pull up. That has been especially helpful when new team members join and need a quick way to get up to speed.

Cons

There are probably additional features we haven't explored yet since we've only used the free version so I cannot really comment much on that.

“Teamwide visibility”

Pros

Asana has been really helpful for keeping our team connected and current on everyone's projects. It gives us a simple way to see where things stand without having to check in with each person at every stage. We also get a lot of value from the reporting tools since they help us make sure resources are distributed properly and that we're supporting all areas of our School.

Cons

One challenge with this platform is that it only works well when the entire team actually uses it. If even one person stops updating their tasks, it can disrupt the workflow for everyone else. To get the full benefit, people need to use and maintain it consistently, otherwise it loses its purpose. In our case some older team members have struggled to understand the system and have eventually given up on trying to use it.

“Better project connection”

Pros

Nearly a year into using this program, it has helped our team stay connected across projects and made it easier to keep things moving forward and make better progress.

Cons

At this point there really have not been any downsides to mention. We mainly use the program to keep lab members updated on our progress for specific projects.

“Very task tracking”

Pros

Assigning tasks and subtasks to teammates or to myself works well and it's convenient to see everything completed that day along with end-of-day tasks in one place.

Cons

The platform seems a bit more complicated to use than other task management and assignment tools available on the market.

“Great clean design”

Pros

The clean and simple layout made this software feel very easy to use. I can create a task in just a click, then quickly add the project title, description, due date and assign it to the right category. As a Graphic Designer, my projects usually span different types of work so being able to label and organize each one is extremely useful. It's also very convenient to add people to the account, assign or hand projects off to them and even look at their project lists when needed. On top of that it only took a few minutes for someone to show me how everything works which made getting started both convenient and time saving.

Cons

One thing I'd really like to see is a built-in instant chat feature for teammates or friends. Having a chat box inside the platform would make it much easier to discuss project details right there, instead of opening another browser tab just to send an email. I think adding chat would make communication more direct and much faster.

“Flexible visibility for teams”

Pros

It gives us a really good structure without forcing us into a complicated way of working so it fits well with our workflow and internal processes. We can look at things from a big-picture view or dig all the way down into the details when needed. It is especially useful for marketing teams and agencies that need full transparency with external or internal clients since you can invite them into projects and even assign tasks to them when necessary.

Cons

there's not much to complain about. Any features we've felt were missing have usually already been in development and they roll out valuable updates on a regular basis.

“Fun visuals”

Pros

The visual interface is phenomenal, it doesn't take much effort to keep things organized and the little graphics that appear when you finish a task really add to that satisfying sense of accomplishment.

Cons

There is a slight learning curve at first. My contract developers use it and I am following their system for adding tasks and leaving feedback so getting started was a little confusing. That said I realize part of that may come from working within their internal process and there could be a better way to handle it. I also wish that when creating tasks in list view and moving through columns with the tab key, you could immediately start typing into the next field. Right now you have to click into the next column first and then type. It's a small issue but it could save quite a bit of time especially when assigning multiple tasks.

“Collaboration across every board”

Pros

Working in Asana is very collaborative and well structured. I can switch back and forth between my personal board, the team board and the department board without any hassle which makes it really convenient to stay aligned.

Cons

It comes with a lot of features so getting familiar with everything has taken some time. Even now, there are still quite a few tools and functions I haven't fully figured out yet.

“pretty easy to use”

Pros

This tool is easy to use and it gives me a clear view of everything that needs to be done, what should be prioritized and makes collaboration with anyone involved really simple.

Cons

One thing that gets annoying is adding attachments. A lot of the time I want to upload a file along with a comment or some context but there isn't really a built-in way to tie those two together.

“Helpful updates”

Pros

Asana feels very user friendly and getting email updates is something I really appreciate. They're always working to improve the platform by introducing new features which keeps it feeling current. It also helps us stay on top of every task across all projects, while still letting me manage my own personal checklist.

Cons

I am not really a fan of the way completed and incomplete tasks are shown.

“Efficient task organization”

Pros

Creating projects, tasks and subtasks is easy and assigning work to yourself or other team members is very efficient.

Cons

Tagging teammates can definitely help but it's often easy to miss when someone tags you in a task unless you have a lot of notifications turned on.

“Collaboration powerhouse for teams”

Pros

As a collaboration tool, Asana really shines when working on projects with a team. It is centered much more on collaboration and productivity than on full project management and its project management features feel more limited by comparison. One big advantage is that the free version supports up to 15 users and still comes with very few restrictions. If you move to the Premium or Business plan which is billed annually per user, you unlock extra features like the timeline view, customizable dashboards, custom forms and fields, milestones and an admin control panel for managers.

Cons

It does not include built-in document editing, time tracking or live chat although you can usually cover those gaps through integrations with other tools.

“Powerful project management platform”

Pros

Asana seems like a very capable tool although the learning curve at the beginning is pretty steep especially for anyone who hasn't worked with project management software before. Once people are properly trained, it can be scaled up without much trouble and works really well for growing teams.

Cons

Getting started with it can feel cluttered and a bit confusing, particularly for users who don't have any PM experience. A few parts of the interface also aren't as clear or user friendly as they could be.

“Powerful task tracking for teams”

Pros

Keeping up with individual and project tasks feels really organized with Asana. It makes it clear who is responsible for what and when everything is due. The free version also includes a surprisingly generous amount of functionality.

Cons

I do wish the interface felt more visual and relied less on text. Some competing tools offer a more visually engaging platform.

“Nice interface, frustrating setup”

Pros

it is difficult to point out many positives because the overall experience was pretty bad but one thing I can give them credit for is the design team. The interface looks well made and is probably the only part of the product I actually appreciated.

Cons

Getting started as a user is really difficult because the setup process is hard to deal with. On top of that the product feels buggy almost the entire way through, starting from the moment they send the account setup link and continuing through the rest of the experience.

“Priority boards keep everyone aligned”

Pros

After using it for just under a year, one thing I really appreciate is being able to set priorities on tasks and requests. We use it alongside a third-party vendor and we've created separate boards for different projects, including one specifically for questions. My team puts all of our vendor-related questions there, assigns a priority and then waits for a response that everyone can see. It works really well. We also separate questions by type and track whether they've been answered using swim lanes which the whole team finds incredibly helpful. Another feature I enjoy is being able to see who's currently online and set a status, kind of like Slack.

Cons

At the beginning it took me a little while to understand how everything worked and it felt somewhat confusing at first. Once I got familiar with it though it started to feel user friendly and turned into a really valuable tool. My biggest wish is around the calendar feature. It shows tasks and due dates which is useful but I'd really like the option to merge or sync it with my personal calendar so new tasks line up better with everything else I already have scheduled.

“Versatile project views”

Pros

Having multiple project layouts is a big plus especially being able to look at the same work in different formats like timelines and boards while also assigning roles to team members. That flexibility makes it much easier to manage projects the way different people prefer.

Cons

One thing that seemed to be missing was the option to assign a single task to more than one person although I am not completely sure whether that was an actual product limitation or just something restricted by the account I was using.

“Visual task views that click”

Pros

Having multiple ways to look at my tasks is one of my favorite parts of Asana. I am very visual so being able to switch to a card view and also see the images attached to each task really helps. It makes it much easier to move through my workload and keep the bigger picture in sight.

Cons

I'd love to move up to the Business plan but as a freelancer, the current pricing options feel a little too expensive for just one person right now. I can absolutely see the value if you're working with a team though. I am hoping they eventually add an upgrade option that fits freelance users better.

“Clean project collaboration”

Pros

Getting new projects set up is very easy and bringing in team members or clients to collaborate is just as simple. It also gives clients a convenient way to check the status of their own projects whenever they need to.

Cons

I do wish there were an option to import from and export to other Mac apps that don't currently have integrations. That said this isn't really a fault of the platform itself.

“Clean task tracking”

Pros

The tool is pretty easy to use and being able to create folders made it simple to keep everything separated. It really helped me stay on top of my tasks and made sure nothing slipped through the cracks.

Cons

I didn't run into anything I disliked about this software. Everything felt well organized, clean and I had no issues using it.