Project Management guide · Tools and software
Types of Project Management Tools: Techniques and Software
Project management tools are the techniques, documents and software that help you plan, schedule, track and control a project, from a simple RACI matrix to a full work management platform. This guide sorts the main types of project management tools by the job they do, shows which ones you need at each phase and how they fit together, so you can build a toolkit that suits your projects.
Key takeaways
- Project management tools come in three layers: techniques (methods), documents and templates (artifacts) and software (platforms that run them).
- Group tools by the job they do: planning, scheduling, task tracking, collaboration, resources, cost, risk, reporting and portfolio governance.
- Most small projects need only six tools: a scope breakdown, a schedule, a task board, a RACI, a risk log and a status report.
- Pick the technique first, start with a template if the project is small, and move to software when dependencies, people or projects multiply.
- For specific products, use our ranking of the best project management tools, where Wrike ranks first.
What are project management tools?
Project management tools are the methods, documents and software a project team uses to plan work, assign responsibilities, schedule activities, track progress, manage risks and report results. They include techniques such as the critical path method, artifacts such as a risk register or RACI matrix, and software platforms that combine these into one shared workspace.
It helps to think of them in three layers:
- Techniques are the methods: how you break down scope, calculate a schedule, estimate costs or assess risks. The critical path method, PERT and earned value management are techniques.
- Documents and templates are the artifacts a technique produces or relies on: a work breakdown structure, a Gantt chart, a risk register or a status report.
- Software is the platform that holds those artifacts, keeps them current and shares them with the team: project management software such as Wrike, Asana or Jira.
The term also has a formal history. Earlier, process-based editions of PMI's *PMBOK Guide* listed the "inputs, tools and techniques, and outputs" (ITTOs) of every process, which is why study material often talks about "tools and techniques" as one phrase. The 7th edition replaced that structure with a section on models, methods and artifacts. For day-to-day work, the practical distinction above is the one that matters.
Tools vs techniques vs software
People often use "tool" for all three layers, which causes confusion when you are choosing what to adopt. The table shows how one need runs through each layer.
| Need | Technique (method) | Document or template | Software feature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Break down the scope | Decomposition | Work breakdown structure | Task hierarchy with subtasks |
| Set realistic dates | Critical path method | Project schedule | Gantt view with dependencies |
| Show who does what | Responsibility assignment | RACI matrix | Assignees, approvers and permissions |
| Visualise flow | Kanban | Kanban board | Board view with custom statuses |
| Control risk | Risk assessment | Risk register | Custom risk fields, forms and dashboards |
| Measure performance | Earned value management | Cost and schedule report, S-curve | Dashboards, baselines and budget tracking |
The order matters. Software cannot tell you how to sequence work or which risks matter; it can only make a good method faster and more visible. If the team does not understand the technique, a more powerful tool usually adds confusion rather than control.
The main types of project management tools
The clearest way to classify project management tools is by the job they do. Most projects need something from each of the first six types; the last three matter more as projects and organisations grow.
| Type | Job it does | Typical examples |
|---|---|---|
| Planning tools | Define the goal, scope and approach | Project charter, WBS, project plan, roadmap |
| Scheduling tools | Sequence work and set dates | Gantt chart, network diagram, CPM, PERT, milestones |
| Task and workflow tools | Assign and track day-to-day work | To-do lists, Kanban and Scrum boards, workflows |
| Collaboration and communication tools | Keep people informed and aligned | RACI, communication plan, comments, shared files |
| Resource and capacity tools | Match work to available people | Resource plan, workload view, levelling, timesheets |
| Cost and budget tools | Estimate, budget and control spend | Cost estimate, budget, earned value, time tracking |
| Risk, issue and change tools | Anticipate and handle problems | Risk register, RAID log, issue log, change requests |
| Reporting and dashboard tools | Show progress and health | Status report, dashboards, burndown, S-curve |
| Portfolio and governance tools | Prioritise and oversee many projects | Portfolio dashboards, stage gates, PMO standards |
Planning tools
Planning tools turn an idea into an agreed definition of the work. The project charter authorises the project and names the sponsor, objectives and constraints. A work breakdown structure decomposes the scope into deliverables and work packages, and the project management plan records how scope, schedule, cost, risk and communication will be managed. For longer initiatives, a project roadmap shows the big phases on one page. Our free templates for each of these are listed in the templates library.
Scheduling tools
Scheduling tools work out when each activity happens. A Gantt chart shows activities as bars on a timeline; a network diagram shows the logic between them; the critical path method calculates dates and float; and PERT handles uncertain durations with three-point estimates. Milestones mark the dates stakeholders care about. In software, look for dependency links, automatic rescheduling and baselines; our guide to project scheduling explains the full process.
Task and workflow tools
These tools manage the daily flow of work: who is doing what, by when, and what is blocked. A shared task list or a Kanban board is often enough for a small team; Agile teams use Scrum boards and backlogs. In software, this is the core of every platform: tasks with owners, due dates, statuses, checklists and comments, plus automations that move work between stages.
Collaboration and communication tools
Projects fail more often from misunderstanding than from bad maths. A RACI matrix makes accountability explicit, a communication plan sets who hears what and how often, and stakeholder management techniques help you prioritise attention. Software adds comments on tasks, @mentions, shared documents, proofing and approvals, and guest access for clients and suppliers, so conversations stay attached to the work instead of scattered across email.
Resource and capacity tools
Resource tools answer "who is available, and are they overloaded?". The techniques are resource allocation, capacity planning and resource levelling. A skills matrix helps you match people to work. In software, look for workload or capacity views that show each person's booked hours against their availability; these are usually on mid-tier or higher plans.
Cost and budget tools
Cost tools estimate what the project will cost and track what it actually costs. Techniques include cost estimation, building a project budget and earned value management for performance measurement. Many teams start with the budget template or project cost estimate template; software adds time tracking, rates and budget fields that roll up across tasks and projects.
Risk, issue and change tools
These tools help you see problems coming and deal with the ones that arrive. The risk register records risks, owners and responses; a RAID log adds assumptions, issues and dependencies; an issue log tracks problems that have already happened; and change control stops scope from growing unnoticed. Start with our free risk register template.
Reporting and dashboard tools
Reporting tools tell sponsors and the team whether the project is on track. A weekly status report is the classic format; dashboards show the same information live. Agile teams add burndown charts and velocity; predictive projects use baselines, schedule variance and S-curves. The aim is to report from the data the team already maintains, not to rebuild figures by hand each week.
Portfolio and governance tools
Once an organisation runs many projects, it needs tools to choose between them and oversee them consistently. These include portfolio dashboards, stage-gate reviews, project governance frameworks and standards set by a project management office. Our guide to programme vs project vs portfolio management explains where each level of oversight applies.
Types of project management software
Software is where most of these tools now live. Vendors describe their products in many ways, but most fall into a handful of categories. The examples below come from the ten platforms in our independent reviews.
| Software type | What it is built for | Examples we review |
|---|---|---|
| All-in-one work management | Projects, resources, portfolios, approvals and reporting in one platform | Wrike, monday.com, Asana, ClickUp |
| Spreadsheet-style planning | Grid-based project plans with Gantt, automation and reporting | Smartsheet |
| Agile and software development | Backlogs, sprints, issue tracking and developer integrations | Jira |
| Office-suite planners | Task and project planning inside a productivity suite | Microsoft Planner |
| Docs-first workspaces | Wikis and databases shaped into project trackers | Notion |
| Visual boards | Simple Kanban boards for small teams and personal work | Trello |
| Communication-centred | Messages, to-dos, schedules and files per project | Basecamp |
Beyond these, you will meet more specialised categories: dedicated scheduling software for large engineering and construction schedules, project portfolio management (PPM) suites for PMOs, time-tracking and invoicing tools, and industry-specific platforms. Many teams pair one main platform with one or two of these rather than buying everything at once.
All-in-one platforms suit teams that want planning, execution and reporting in one place. In our ranking, Wrike comes first because it combines interactive Gantt charts, boards, workload views, request forms, proofing, dashboards and portfolio reporting, and scales from one team to an enterprise. Lighter tools such as Trello or Basecamp are quicker to adopt and work well for simpler needs.
Cloud, desktop and on-premises software
Most project management software today is cloud-based (software as a service): you use it in a browser or app, the vendor hosts it and updates arrive automatically. Desktop scheduling software installed on one computer is still used for complex schedules, but it is harder to share. On-premises or self-managed deployments, where the organisation hosts the software itself, are now less common and mostly chosen for specific security or regulatory reasons. Check what each vendor currently offers, because deployment options change.
Project management tools for each phase
Different tools carry the load at different points in the project life cycle. The table shows the typical toolkit for each phase.
| Phase | Main tools | Software helps by |
|---|---|---|
| Initiation | Business case, feasibility study, project charter, stakeholder register | Holding intake requests and approvals in one place |
| Planning | WBS, schedule, Gantt chart, budget, RACI, risk register, communication plan | Building the plan with dependencies, owners and baselines |
| Execution | Task boards, workflows, meeting notes, shared documents, approvals | Assigning work, automating hand-offs, keeping files with tasks |
| Monitoring and controlling | Status reports, dashboards, earned value, issue log, change requests | Live progress, variance against baseline, alerts on slipping work |
| Closing | Acceptance sign-off, lessons learned, closure report | Archiving the project and turning it into a reusable template |
A practical consequence: if your tool is strong in execution but weak in planning (or the reverse), you will end up with side spreadsheets. Check that your main platform covers the phases where your projects struggle most.
Tools for Agile, predictive and hybrid projects
The delivery approach changes which tools carry most weight.
| Approach | Core tools | What to look for in software |
|---|---|---|
| Predictive (Waterfall) | WBS, Gantt chart, critical path, baseline, earned value | Dependencies, critical path highlighting, baselines, resource views |
| Agile (Scrum, Kanban) | Product backlog, user stories, Scrum or Kanban board, burndown, velocity | Backlogs, sprints, story points, WIP limits, Agile reports |
| Hybrid | Milestone plan for governance plus boards for delivery teams | Gantt and boards on the same data, shared milestones |
Agile teams still use planning tools, just at a different level: a product backlog instead of a fixed WBS, sprints instead of a detailed activity network, and release forecasts instead of a single end date. Our guide to Agile tools and techniques covers these in depth, including the software features Scrum and Kanban teams rely on.
Hybrid is common. A construction or infrastructure project may run a critical path schedule for physical works and Scrum for the software that supports it. Platforms that show the same tasks as both a Gantt chart and a board, such as Wrike, monday.com, ClickUp or Smartsheet, make this easier than running two separate systems.
The minimum toolkit for a small project
Long lists of tools can make project management look heavier than it is. For a small project of a few weeks with a handful of people, these six tools cover most of what you need:
- A one-page scope statement or charter: the goal, deliverables, what is out of scope, the sponsor and the deadline.
- A simple work breakdown: the deliverables split into tasks small enough to assign.
- A schedule with milestones: a basic Gantt chart or dated task list showing which tasks depend on which.
- A task board: To do, In progress, Done, with an owner on every card.
- A RACI or owner list: who decides, who does the work and who needs to be kept informed.
- A risk and issue log plus a weekly status update: a short list of what could go wrong and a five-line progress note for stakeholders.
Add cost, resource and portfolio tools only when the project needs them: when there is a budget to control, people shared with other work, or several projects competing for the same team. Our free project tracker template combines several of these essentials in one spreadsheet.
Worked example: choosing tools for a website redesign
A marketing team of five is redesigning the company website over ten weeks, with an external developer and a sign-off from the head of marketing. Here is how the project manager builds the toolkit, need by need.
| Need | Technique | Document or template | Software feature used |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agree what is in scope | Scope definition | Charter and project scope statement | Project overview page with brief attached |
| Break the work down | Decomposition | WBS: content, design, build, test, launch | Folders or phases with tasks and subtasks |
| Set dates | Dependencies and critical path | Schedule with three milestones | Gantt view with dependencies and a baseline |
| Run the daily work | Kanban | Board: Backlog, In progress, Review, Done | Board view with custom statuses |
| Clarify approvals | Responsibility assignment | RACI for copy, design and launch | Approval step on review tasks |
| Handle the developer | Supplier management | Statement of work | Guest access limited to the build tasks |
| Watch for problems | Risk assessment | Risk register with five risks | Custom fields for probability, impact, owner |
| Report progress | Status reporting | Weekly status note | Dashboard shared with the head of marketing |
Notice that the team needs no resource levelling, earned value or portfolio tools: the project is small and the people are dedicated to it. If the same team later runs five websites at once for different business units, workload views and a portfolio dashboard become worth the extra setup.
Spreadsheets and templates vs project management software
Templates are a perfectly good project management tool, especially when you are learning a technique or running a small project. A spreadsheet is quick to start, everyone can open it and you can shape it exactly as you like.
Spreadsheets start to struggle when:
- Dates depend on each other and you are recalculating them by hand after every slip.
- Several people need to update the same plan at the same time.
- You have to chase updates by email before every status meeting.
- The same people work across several projects and nobody can see their total workload.
- Stakeholders want live dashboards rather than weekly attachments.
When two or three of these apply, project management software usually pays for itself in saved admin time. Many teams keep using templates for documents such as the charter, business case and lessons learned, and run the schedule, tasks and reporting in software. Browse our free project management templates, including the Gantt chart template and a Kanban board template.
AI features in project management tools
Most major project management platforms now include AI features, and the range is growing quickly. Common uses include:
- Summarising long comment threads and meeting notes.
- Drafting task descriptions, status updates and project briefs.
- Suggesting subtasks, owners or due dates from a project description.
- Flagging tasks at risk of slipping based on progress data.
- Building automations or reports from a plain-language request.
AI features are usually tied to specific plans or usage allowances, so check what is included before you rely on them. Treat AI output as a draft: the project manager still owns the plan, the estimates and what is reported to stakeholders. Our ranking of AI project management tools compares what each platform currently offers.
How to choose the right project management tools
Choosing tools is easier when you work from needs rather than features.
- List the jobs that are failing today: missed deadlines, unclear ownership, overloaded people, slow reporting.
- Pick the technique for each job from the types above, and agree how the team will use it.
- Decide where each tool lives: a template, your main platform or a specialist add-on.
- Shortlist two or three platforms that cover your phases and approach (predictive, Agile or hybrid).
- Trial them on a real project for two to four weeks with the people who will use them daily.
- Check the total cost: licences for the right plan, guests, training, integrations and admin time.
Our 7-step guide to choosing project management software goes into detail, and the software features checklist helps you score each option. If you manage several projects with shared resources and need Gantt charts, workload views and portfolio reporting together, Wrike is a strong place to start; if ease of adoption matters most, look at monday.com or Asana.
Common mistakes with project management tools
| Mistake | Why it hurts | What to do instead |
|---|---|---|
| Buying software before agreeing the method | The tool mirrors existing confusion | Agree the techniques and workflow first, then configure the tool |
| Running the project in several places | Nobody knows which version is right | Name one source of truth for tasks, dates and owners |
| Tracking every tiny task | Updating the tool becomes a job in itself | Track deliverables and tasks of roughly a day or more |
| Using every feature on day one | People feel overwhelmed and stop updating | Start with a simple structure and add features as needs appear |
| No training or champions | Adoption stalls after the first month | Train a few champions and give them time to support others |
| Ignoring permissions and guest access | Clients see too much, or suppliers see too little | Set roles and guest rights before inviting outsiders |
| Reporting by hand | Status reports go stale and take hours | Report from dashboards built on live data |
Free templates for this topic
Frequently asked questions
What are project management tools?
Project management tools are the techniques, documents and software used to plan, schedule, track and control projects. Examples include Gantt charts, work breakdown structures, Kanban boards, RACI matrices, risk registers, status reports and project management software.
What are the main types of project management tools?
By the job they do: planning tools, scheduling tools, task and workflow tools, collaboration and communication tools, resource and capacity tools, cost and budget tools, risk and issue tools, reporting and dashboard tools, and portfolio and governance tools.
What is the difference between a project management tool and a technique?
A technique is a method, such as the critical path method or earned value management. A tool is what you use to apply it, such as a Gantt chart, a template or a feature in project management software. Good tools make a sound technique faster and more visible; they cannot replace it.
What is the most commonly used project management tool?
The Gantt chart and the task or Kanban board are among the most widely used, because almost every project needs a timeline and a way to track who is doing what. Most project management software offers both views.
What are the 5 basic project management tools?
There is no official list, but five tools almost every project uses are a work breakdown structure, a schedule or Gantt chart, a task board, a RACI matrix and a risk register. Add a status report and you have a solid minimum toolkit.
What are the main types of project management software?
Common categories are all-in-one work management platforms, spreadsheet-style planners, Agile and software development tools, office-suite planners, docs-first workspaces, visual boards and communication-centred tools. By deployment, software is cloud-based, desktop or on-premises.
Is Excel a project management tool?
Yes, for small projects. Spreadsheets work well for task lists, simple schedules, budgets and risk logs. Dedicated software is better once dates depend on each other, several people update the plan or you need live dashboards. Our templates are a good starting point.
Is Jira a project management tool?
Yes. Jira is project management software designed mainly for software and IT teams running Scrum or Kanban, with backlogs, sprints and issue tracking. See our Jira review.
What tools do project managers use every day?
Typically a work management platform for tasks and schedules, a calendar, email or chat, shared documents and a dashboard or status report. Many also keep a risk or RAID log and a RACI for each project.
Which project management tools are used in each phase?
Initiation uses the business case and charter; planning uses the WBS, schedule, budget, RACI and risk register; execution uses task boards and workflows; monitoring uses status reports, dashboards and change control; closing uses acceptance sign-off and lessons learned.
What tools do Agile teams use?
Agile teams use product backlogs, user stories, Scrum or Kanban boards, burndown charts and velocity, usually in software that supports sprints and WIP limits. See Agile tools and techniques.
Are there free project management tools?
Yes. Many platforms, including Wrike, monday.com, Asana, ClickUp, Jira, Notion, Trello and Basecamp, offer free plans with limits on users, projects or features. Templates in a spreadsheet are another free option. Our tools ranking lists each free plan.
What is the best project management tool?
It depends on the job. For software, our independent ranking puts Wrike first as the strongest all-in-one platform, followed by monday.com, Asana and ClickUp. For techniques, the best tool is the one that solves the problem you actually have, such as a critical path schedule for fixed deadlines or a Kanban board for continuous flow.
Do project management tools use AI?
Many now do. AI features summarise discussions, draft updates, suggest tasks and flag work at risk, usually on specific plans. See our ranking of AI project management tools.