Microsoft Project vs ProjectManager
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Microsoft Project
Desktop project scheduling for Windows with Gantt charts
ProjectManager
Gantt-based project and portfolio management with resource planning
Where they differ
- Microsoft Project starts at $30.00 per user / month, paid yearly (Plan 3), or $679.99 one-time (Standard 2024). ProjectManager starts at $15 per user / month, billed annually.
- Only Microsoft Project lists a Windows app.
- Only ProjectManager lists a web app.
- Only ProjectManager lists iOS and Android apps.
- Microsoft Project can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Microsoft Project also covers templates.
- ProjectManager also covers kanban boards, workflow automation and time tracking.
At a glance
| Microsoft Project | ProjectManager | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $30.00 per user / month, paid yearly (Plan 3), or $679.99 one-time (Standard 2024) | $15 per user / month, billed annually |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | One-month free trial of Planner and Project Plan 3, credit card required. No trial is listed for the one-time licenses | 30-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Microsoft Corporation | ProjectManager.com, Inc. |
| Price read from | microsoft.com | projectmanager.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Microsoft Project
- Project managers who build detailed schedules with dependencies and baselines
- Organizations that prefer a perpetual license to a subscription
- Teams that keep project and portfolio data on their own servers
ProjectManager
- Teams that plan with Gantt charts, dependencies and critical path
- Managers balancing workloads and budgets across a portfolio
- Organizations moving plans over from Microsoft Project
- Field teams updating tasks and logging hours from a phone
Worth knowing
Microsoft Project
- Project desktop's requirements list only Windows 11, Windows 10 and Windows Server 2019, and no Mac or mobile version appears on the pricing page.
- Project for the web was retired in August 2025 and Project Online's retirement date was September 30, 2026; browser-based plans now live in Microsoft Planner.
- Project Standard 2024 and Project Professional 2024 are each licensed for one user on one PC.
- Project Server Subscription Edition has no list price and needs SharePoint Server Subscription Edition, which is not included.
ProjectManager
- There is no free plan; when the 30-day trial ends the account and its project data are locked until a paid edition is bought.
- Team is capped at 10 users and 20 projects; resource management, timesheets, budgeting and automation start on Business.
- Slack, Microsoft Teams and two-way Jira and Azure DevOps sync are sold as an Integration Bundle at $5 per user / month.
- SAML single sign-on, custom permissions and audit logs are limited to Enterprise, which is quoted on request.
Key features
Microsoft Project
- Automated scheduling
- Tasks are scheduled from start and end dates, effort, lead and lag times and dependencies, and dates fill in automatically as those dependencies change.
- Gantt, calendar and network views
- Project Standard 2024 includes Gantt Chart, Calendar, Network Diagram and Task Sheet views, plus multiple timelines for presenting a complex schedule.
- Baselines and critical path
- Baselines compare actual progress with the original plan, and the critical path shows the tasks that form the longest path through a project.
- Resource management
- Resource leveling resolves conflicts and overallocations automatically. Project Professional 2024 adds fuller resource management and timesheets for payroll and invoicing.
- Built-in reports
- Prebuilt reports such as Burndown and Resource Overview summarize project and resource data, and a project file can be saved as a PDF.
- Project Server connection
- Project Professional 2024 can connect to Project Server Subscription Edition, an on-premises portfolio management server that runs on SharePoint Server.
ProjectManager
- Five views of one plan
- Every plan includes Gantt, list, sheet, board and calendar views of the same project, with data updating in real time across them.
- Gantt charts with critical path
- The Gantt chart supports dependencies, milestones, baselines and critical path, and existing plans can be imported, including Microsoft Project files.
- Resource and workload planning
- On Business, managers define working days, set labor rates and balance workloads, while team members log hours on tasks and submit timesheets.
- Portfolio dashboards and roadmap
- Business adds a portfolio dashboard that rolls up tasks, cost and workload across projects, and a roadmap view of the whole portfolio in Gantt format.
- Workflow automation
- Rules built from triggers and actions update status, assignee, priority or tags without code: 5 rules per workflow on Business and 20 on Enterprise.
- AI Project Insights
- Available from Business, it generates summaries of project progress and tips on risk, resourcing and task execution.
Plans
Microsoft Project
Planner and Project Plan 3$30.00
per user / month, paid yearly
Subscription that includes the Project desktop client on up to five PCs, plus premium plans in Microsoft Planner on the web and in Teams.
Project Standard 2024$679.99
one-time purchase, licensed for 1 PC
Perpetual desktop license with schedule, task and cost management, Gantt Chart, Calendar and Network Diagram views, baselines, critical path and resource leveling.
Project Professional 2024$1,129.99
one-time purchase, licensed for 1 PC
Everything in Standard plus fuller resource management, timesheets and the ability to connect to Project Server Subscription Edition.
Project Server Subscription EditionCustom
On-premises project and portfolio management server built on SharePoint Server Subscription Edition, bought through a Microsoft partner.
ProjectManager
Team$15
per user / month, billed annually ($18 billed monthly)
Up to 10 users and 20 projects, with Gantt, list, sheet, board and calendar views, a project dashboard, 5GB of storage and API access.
Business$28
per user / month, billed annually ($32 billed monthly)
No user limit and up to 100 projects. Adds resource and workload planning, timesheets, budgets, portfolio dashboards, AI Project Insights and automation.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited projects and storage, SAML single sign-on, custom permissions, audit logs, Power BI and Excel integrations, and priority support.
Ways to pay less
Microsoft Project
No public discounts listed.
ProjectManager
- Annual discount
Save up to 17% by paying annually
Team is $15 per user / month billed annually against $18 billed monthly, and Business is $28 against $32. The pricing FAQ puts the saving at up to 17%; the toggle on the same page says up to 16%.
