Best Project Management Software For Remote Teams In 2024 (1).avif

Remote work offers numerous benefits, but it also comes with distinct challenges, especially in terms of communication and collaboration within teams. As an increasing number of people transition to remote or hybrid work models, choosing the right project management tool has become essential.

Finding a tool that fits your team’s needs and workflows can improve collaboration, boost project productivity, and drive better results. This blog explores the best project management software for remote teams, highlighting key features to consider when selecting software.

Key Takeaways

Our top picks for best remote project management software:

Project Management Software Features For Remote Teams

Project management tools for remote teams are designed to support project planning, execution, monitoring, and communication, through advanced software functionalities. They prioritize needs like:

    • Collaboration: Any software incorporated remotely should include strong communication features such as instant messaging, video conferencing, and discussion boards. These facilitate real-time collaboration, allowing team members to communicate easily regardless of their location.
    • Resource Management: This feature allows project managers to allocate key resources—like personnel, equipment, and materials—across different projects, optimizing resource use and contributing to overall project success.
    • Document Management: This involves centralizing files for easy sharing and collaboration. A centralized document repository ensures that team members can access the latest files, collaborate on edits, and work with the most current project information.

Here are the best project management software for remote teams with their features, pricing, and limitations:

1. Asana — Best For Visual Organization Of Projects

Asana is a powerful project management tool featuring an intuitive Kanban board layout. It is designed to help remote teams stay organized. Project managers can create tasks, assign them to members, set deadlines, and monitor progress seamlessly. Additionally, Asana offers advanced management features that make it easier to track and manage large, ongoing projects for teams working remotely.

Top Features

    • ‘Status Updates’ keep remote teams on track with clear and consistent project updates. Project managers can easily switch between overview and dashboard views and set project milestones, all from a single interface.
    • ‘Custom Fields’ highlight the most critical tasks and can be shared across departments and teams to maintain consistency throughout the organization.
    • ‘My Tasks’ feature allows project managers to manage all work in a single view. They can also switch between list, board, and calendar views based on their preferences.

Limitations

Asana lacks bi-level reporting and can be expensive for smaller teams who want to use its more advanced features.

Pricing

Asana offers two distinct pricing categories: one focused on individuals and small teams and another option for larger businesses and enterprises:

    • Personal: $0/user/month
    • Starter: $8.50/user/month
    • Advanced: $19.21/user/month
    • Enterprise: Custom Pricing
    • Enterprise+: Custom Pricing

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

2. Jira — Best For Task And Project Management

Jira is a project management tool with features that break down complex projects into manageable tasks, prioritize workloads, and adapt to changes seamlessly. Jira's robust customization options allow project managers to customize their workflows to suit their needs.

Top Features

    • ‘Custom Fields’ enable teams to capture and monitor details related to issues and user stories, offering valuable insights for better project planning and execution.
    • ‘Code Reviews’ are crucial for sharing knowledge across teams, making support and maintenance easier. If a production issue arises when a team is offline, another team can step in and resolve it, thanks to insights gained from cross-team code reviews.

Limitations

The software’s free plan doesn’t include an AI feature, requiring project managers to use the paid version for this functionality.

Pricing

The software offers the following pricing plans for a team of 300 users:

    • Free: $0 (Up to 10 users)/user/month
    • Standard: $7.53/user/month
    • Premium: $13.53/user/month
    • Enterprise: Custom Pricing (Billed Annually)

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

3. Trello — Best For Its Kanban Visualization

Trello is a free, Kanban-style project management tool ideal for small projects. The software offers a range of customizable templates designed especially for remote teams, such as ‘Work From Home Daily Planner’ and ‘Remote Team Hub’.

Top Features

    • Project managers of remote teams can create separate boards for different projects and use Kanban cards to represent individual tasks, facilitating easy tracking and management.
    • Trello's integrated automation simplifies repetitive daily tasks, allowing your team to prioritize other aspects of their workflow.
    • Trello offers a ‘Remote Team Bonding Template’ where every member of your remote team can add a card to share their experience, regardless of their location.

Limitations

The software lacks the desktop notification feature. Different project views are only available in the paid version.

Pricing

Trello offers four pricing plans for teams:

    • Free: $0 free for up to 10 collaborators per workspace
    • Standard: $6/user/month
    • Premium: $12.50/user/month
    • Enterprise: Starts at $17.50/user/month (billed annually) (for 50 users)

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

4. Notion — Best For Documentation Management

Notion is a productivity tool best known for its comprehensive document management feature and is designed to support seamless collaboration for remote teams. It includes integrated Kanban boards, which help visualize project roadmaps and track progress efficiently.

Top Features

    • Project managers can create customized databases to organize and share company data or project information, making it easy to manage and access information across the team, irrespective of their location.
    • Notion offers a wide range of pre-made templates such as ‘Remote Team Collaboration Hub’ and ‘Remote Work Management’, assisting project managers in creating a shared knowledge base.
    • Integrated ‘Notion AI’ Assistant allows managers to search, generate, analyze, and chat within one platform and receive instant responses.

Limitations

Managing multiple projects in the software can become overwhelming. Notion’s free plan also offers limited features.

Pricing

The software provides four pricing tiers:

    • Free: $0/seat/month
    • Plus: $12/seat/month
    • Business: $18/seat/month
    • Enterprise: Custom Pricing

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

5. Wrike — Best For Collaboration With Remote Teams

Wrike is a work management software designed to help project managers coordinate with their teams who are working remotely. The software brings teams together by providing real-time collaboration, seamless time-tracking, and customizable workflows.

Top Features

    • Wrike’s ‘Request Forms’ allow project managers to receive and manage requests from other departments, define required work, and assign tasks to team members.
    • The ‘Time Tracking’ feature helps teams efficiently log hours, monitor task durations, and ensure accurate billing for their work.
    • Customizable ‘Workflows’ and ‘Statuses’ enable project managers to create and switch between specific workflows based on their task and project life cycle.

Limitations

User accounts may deactivate without prior notice causing inconvenience.

Pricing

The software offers five pricing plans along with a free 14-day trial:

    • Free: $0/user/month
    • Team: $10/user/month
    • Business: $24.80/user/month
    • Enterprise: Custom Pricing
    • Pinnacle: Custom Pricing

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

6. ClickUp — Best For Its Customizable Workflows

ClickUp provides features designed to help you manage your work and collaborate effectively with your remote teams. With a variety of customizable options, ClickUp allows managers to tailor their workspace to meet their project requirements.

Top Features

    • Project managers can track sprints and backlogs with the software’s ‘Agile Chart’, which makes it simple to track progress and achieve project goals.
    • ClickUp’s ‘Team View’ allows one to see what each team member is working on, making it ideal for project managers who need to oversee workloads and assign tasks.
    • ClickUp's ‘Time-Tracking’ features let you track time spent on each project and tasks.

Limitations

Sometimes, an error occurs when creating a new list, and there is no training material available to address this issue.

Pricing

The software has four pricing plans:

  • Free Forever: $0/user/month
  • Unlimited: $10/user/month
  • Business: $19/user/month
  • Enterprise: Customized Pricing

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

7. Smartsheet — Best For Comprehensive Spreadsheet Feature

Smartsheet is a versatile platform that enables cross coordination within the team. Project managers can plan and track overall progress, while team members can report on their individual tasks. It utilizes cloud-based spreadsheets and automated workflows to accommodate various teams.

Top Features

  • The software offers a set of ‘Remote Work Templates’ with a 30-day free trial, allowing project managers and teams access to various templates.
  • Smartsheet’s AI feature assists with automating repetitive tasks, getting valuable project insights, and optimizing workflows.

Limitations

When handling large spreadsheets, the page lags.

Pricing

Smartsheet has four pricing plans:

  • Pro: $12/member/month
  • Business: $24/member/month
  • Enterprise: Custom Pricing
  • Advanced Work Management: Custom Pricing

Disclaimer: Prices are subject to change.

Finding The Best Remote Project Management Software For Your Team

Tools like Jira, Wrike, and ClickUp integrate task management features with built-in chat options, making them invaluable for teams looking for project management software that facilitates remote collaboration.

For managers who want to visualize overall project goals clearly, Trello and Asana are excellent choices. If document management is the primary concern for remote teams, Notion is the ideal solution. For those who prefer working with spreadsheets, Smartsheet is the optimal option.

Without effective project management software, managers may find it difficult to stay organized and keep their remote teams aligned and productive. Hence, remote project management tools are essential in today’s business environment, ensuring that projects progress efficiently.