Written by Zara Chechi Reviewed by James Macey Published on October 5, 2022 On this page monday.com - Best SmartSheet Alternative ClickUp - Best for Ease of Use Zoho Projects - Best Price Asana - Best for Integrations Jira Software - Best for Customer Support Is a SmartSheet competitor the right option for me? What's the best free alternative to SmartSheet? How did we find the best alternatives to SmartSheet? Verdict FAQs Expand Our site is reader-supported – by clicking our links, we can match you with a potential supplier, and we may earn a small commission for this referral. monday.com is the best alternative to SmartSheet because of its customizability, team collaboration features, and post-project feedback capabilities. With such a large variety of features, it is suitable for various projects, and its interface is easy to use.While monday.com is our top SmartSheet alternative, it may not the right choice for you. That’s why we’ve delved into four other project management systems for small businesses so you can easily compare and find the right software for your needs.We know how important it is to find software that is within budget, easy to use, and offers great support, so our independent research team compared 14 different project management software programs. From these 14, we’ve picked five providers that we think can rival SmartSheet. To find the cream of the crop, we looked at several factors, including, price, usability, and customer support. Swipe right to see more 0 out of 0 backward forward Smartsheet monday.com ClickUp Zoho Projects Asana Jira Software Price $7 – $25 per month Price $9 – $19 per month Price $5 – $19 per month Price $4 – $9 Price $10.99 – $24.99 per month Price $7.75 – $15.25 Key features Email customer supportGantt chartKanban boardCustom project templatesCustom automationsTeam instant-messenger Key features Gantt chartOver 200 templates for projects and itemsSub-task milestones and dependencies Key features Preset chartsCustom project templatesCustom automationsGantt chartMilestones24/7 live support Key features CRM integrationsEmail customer supportGantt chartKanban boardIssue logPreset widgets Key features CRM integrationsKanban boardCustom project templatesProject message boardTask commentsCalendar Key features Time tracking and turndown chartsBest support for Agile project managementCustom and preset templates and automationsGantt chartKanban board Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Try Smartsheet Try monday.com Try ClickUp Try ZohoProjects Compare Compare In a Rush to Find the Best Project Management Software for Your Business? Use our comparison chart and save time See Our Comparison Chart monday.com – Best Smartsheet Alternative monday.com 4.6 Pricing $9 - $19 per user, per month Try monday.com Quick overview monday.com scores the highest for user satisfaction (4.5/5), thanks to its well-designed interface and wide range of features and functions. It also scores highly in the usability area (4.1/5), which is a key feature to ensure that your projects run smoothly.Its features score a 4.2/5 in our research, as it includes custom and preset charts and automations, Gantt charts, Kanban boards, task dependencies, and milestones.It gives a weak performance in the customer support category (2.8/5) because it pretty much only offers email support, which isn't super speedy or efficient. It means that any time-sensitive issues may take a while to resolve. Read more + Read less - monday.com vs SmartSheet – PricingSmartSheet starts at a lower price, however, monday.com offers a free version. It’s worth noting that the free version does not enable projects to be created, it can only be used to track tasks. This is helpful for clients or individuals outside of the project who want to track the progress of a project without incurring extra costs.monday.com’s lowest price starts from $9 (when paid annually) and $12 (when paid monthly). monday.com also offers a wider range of plans, so businesses have a variety to choose from. SmartSheet only offers three tiers: Pro, Business, and Enterprise.SmartSheet’s Pro plan has a limit of 10 users, 20GB of storage, and 100 projects per user compared with monday.com’s similarly priced Basic projects plan. This plan allows for an unlimited number of users, 5GB storage, and an unlimited amount of projects.monday.comFree projectsBasic projectsStandard projectsPro projectsEnterprise projects$0.00$12 (paid monthly)$9 (paid annually, per user)$14 (paid monthly)$12 (paid annually, per user)$24 (paid monthly)$19(paid annually, per user)TailoredSmartsheetProBusinessEnterprise$9 p/m; $7 p/a(per user)$32 p/m; $25p/a(per user)Tailoredmonday.com's Calendar Is monday.com Really SmartSheet’s Best Equivalent?Both are customizable, although SmartSheet’s prepopulated spreadsheet templates offer more capabilities for workarounds. These spreadsheet templates include columns for a task name, the duration, start and finish dates, and assignee, making it straightforward to mark the progress of a project.monday.com offers ‘Items’, which are customizable rows that can be used to represent tasks. Almost anything that is created on a monday board can be edited with a few clicks, making it easy to set up and edit projects.Both offer very similar features, although SmartSheet does not have a stand-alone time tracking feature, so you’ll need to rely on a third-party integration to include one in the software. For any post-project feedback, Smartsheet does not have an online whiteboard functionality, whereas monday.com does. A whiteboard feature makes it easier to gather post-project feedback, discuss errors, and implement new learnings.monday.com offers a free plan, which is one of the reasons it scores just a tad higher than SmartSheet in our research. However, you can’t actually create projects on the free plan, it exists purely to track tasks.monday.com and SmartSheet have similar capabilities, features, and scores, so monday.com is the closest equivalent to SmartSheet. ClickUp – Best for Ease of Use ClickUp 4.6 Pricing $5-$19 per user, per month Try ClickUp Quick overview ClickUp is a close competitor with monday.com, although it lacks some key features, such as data and reporting integrations. It is, however, more affordable than both monday.com and Smartsheet, scoring a 4.4/5 for price.All of its plans come with a Gantt chart, Kanban board, custom and preset templates, and a spreadsheet view. ClickUp scores a 4/5 for ease of use, and its customer satisfaction is a high 4.3/5. This is due to its user-friendly interface and 24/7 live support.Unlike monday.com, ClickUp includes a team instant messaging feature, which can be found on Smartsheet. However, for post-project collaboration and feedback, you'll need to rely on workarounds. Read more + Read less - ClickUp vs SmartSheet – PricingAlthough both providers offer a package priced at $9 per user, per month, ClickUp’s higher tiers are lower than SmartSheet’s. Two of ClickUp’s lower plans don’t include a customer chart and widget builder, whereas all of Smartsheet’s plans include these.ClickUp has a free plan that includes an unlimited number of users. ClickUp’s free plan may only have a storage limit of 100MB (which isn’t a lot), but the rest of its plans do have an unlimited amount of storage. SmartSheet does not offer a free plan, and its Pro plan has a user limit of 10. Smartsheet’s cheapest plan also has a limit of 20GB, so ClickUp is a better choice in terms of storage data and number of users.ClickUpFreeUnlimitedBusinessBusiness PlusEnterpriseFree$9 p/m; $5 p/a(per user)$19 p/m; $12 p/a(per user)$29 p/m; $19 p/a(per user)TailoredSmartsheet ProBusinessEnterprise$9 p/m; $7 p/a(per user)$32 p/m; $25p/a(per user)TailoredClickUp's List View Is ClickUp really SmartSheet’s best equivalent?CickUp is a great equivalent, but it does lack some key post-project features that SmartSheet has, such as the ability to share the project, and create forms and surveys.Our independent research team scores ClickUp a 4.6/5, a notch higher than SmartSheet’s score of 4.5/5. SmartSheet scores higher than ClickUp for usability, with a 4.3/5, and we especially recommended it for users who are used to using Excel or Google sheets. If you aren’t a big fan of these, you might be better off with ClickUp which is user-friendly, and has a usability score of 4/5.ClickUp includes a ‘List View’ which means tasks can be easily amended, it also includes a bookmark-style bar at the top of each project so you can easily access different tools. SmartSheet also has a similar sidebar, which includes access to tools such as ‘Conversation’, so messages can be quickly sent to other team members. ClickUp also includes team collaboration features, such as an instant messenger, so the two are similar in this respect. Zoho Projects – Best Price Zoho Projects 4.1 Pricing $4 - $9 per user, per month Try Zoho Projects Quick overview Zoho's biggest advantage is just how affordable it is, which is why it scores a 4.7/5 for its price. Starting from $4 per user, per month (paid annually) Zoho is the cheapest platform out of all the Smartsheet alternatives we tested.Zoho offers various other platforms, such as CRM, HR services, and accounting. Despite having its fingers in many pies, it boasts a solid customer score of 4.2/5. However, it does lack customer service options, and has a score of 1.8/5 because it lacks onboarding assistance, phone, live chat, and 24/7 support.The various Zoho platforms can all be integrated to service several parts of your business in one place. If you're a current Zoho customer, it makes sense to include Zoho projects to encourage seamless integration. Read more + Read less - Zoho Projects vs Smartsheet – PricingZoho’s biggest win over SmartSheet is its affordability, with pricing starting from $4 per user, per month (paid annually), compared with SmartSheet’s, which starts at $7 (also paid annually). Smartsheet’s next tier up starts from $25 per user, per month, whereas Zoho’s most expensive starting price is $10 per user, per month.Zoho also includes a free plan, although it’s fairly limiting with a storage limit of 10MB, and a user limit of three. However, this could be suitable for small scale-projects that don’t warrant a big budget for software.Zoho Projects FreePremiumEnterprise$0$5 p/m; $4 p/a(per user)$10 p/m; $9 p/a(per user)SmartsheetProBusinessEnterprise$9 p/m; $7 p/a(per user)$32 p/m; $25p/a(per user)TailoredZoho Projects Reporting Is Zoho Projects really Smartsheet’s best equivalent?The only area in which Zoho trumps SmartSheet is pricing. In every other area including usability, features, and customer score, SmartSheet wins out.Zoho definitely lacks in the post-project department because it cannot be used for this function, Smartsheet, on the other hand, provides solid features for retro sessions.Zoho includes other drawbacks, such as the inability to provide a snapshot of project progress vs time remaining. It’s also complicated to update budget info because this can only happen via employees logging their hours. Smartsheet, on the other hand, is fairly easy to update, and budget updates can be done easily through the spreadsheet view.Overall, SmartSheet is a better option than Zoho. But, for those with tight budgets, Zoho is still a good option because it receives high scores for features, usability, and customer support. Asana – Best for Integrations Asana 4.5 Pricing $10.99 - $24.99 per user, per month Compare Prices Quick overview One of Asana's key offerings is the sheer number of integrations it has. Its integrations include CRM, marketing, data/reporting, and communication. These integrations offer you the ability to personalize the platform to suit your projects.It does lack in the customer service department, scoring an above-average 2.8/5 because it only offers email support. It does receive a high score for features (4/5) because it offers preset templates, Gantt chart, a Kanban board, and a project message board.Its free plan is pretty limited because it lacks automation, dashboards, and custom chart and widget builders. It does, however, offer unlimited storage. Read more + Read less - Asana vs Smartsheet – PricingAsana provides a free plan, which has an unlimited amount of storage, and a user limit of 15. Smartsheet lacks a free plan, although its paid plans start from $7 per user, per month compared to Asana’s lowest of $10.99 per user per month.All of Asana’s plans include an unlimited number of users, projects, and storage. Smartsheet only offers this on its Enterprise plan, where pricing is tailored.Asana BasicPremiumBusinessEnterprise$0$13.49 p/m; $10.99 p/a(Per user)$30.49 p/m; $24.99 p/a(Per user)Tailored SmartsheetProBusinessEnterprise$9 p/m; $7 p/a(per user)$32 p/m; $25p/a(per user)TailoredAsana Timeline Is Asana Really SmartSheet’s Best Equivalent?Asana shares some similarities with SmartSheet’s spreadsheet design because it has a ‘List View’ for projects that resembles a spreadsheet. It provides a system of custom rows and columns that are easily edited.Asana has a dashboard functionality to create and present data visualizations. Doing this is a bit trickier with SmartSheet because you’ll need to learn how to build charts within the platform to showcase project data. However, once you’ve picked this up, you’ll be able to view project data. It is unfortunate that Smartsheet just lacks preset charts to easily set this up. Both offer similar capabilities for post-project feedback sessions, so neither one trumps the other in this department. Overall, both offer a range of features, are easy to use, and are similarly priced. However, Asana does have a free plan and a larger number of integrations when compared with SmartSheet. Jira Software – Best for Customer Support Jira Software 4.2 Pricing $7.50 - $14.50 per user, per month Compare Prices Quick overview Jira is best-suited to the Agile method of project management then, if Agile is your choice of methodology, Jira is a great choice. Jira offers a free plan that includes several features, such as a Gantt chart, milestones, custom fields, burndown charts, and time tracking.Jira also provides integrations, such as CRM, data and reporting, and communication. However, it is lacking when it comes to collaboration because you only gain access to task comments and resource management on the higher paid-for plans.Jira lacks a little in the usability area because there is a learning curve you need to take to make sense of the software. The interface is well-designed on the surface, however, you'll need to dive around a little to complete some tasks. For example, assigning responsibilities takes a fair amount of time when compared to the other software platforms on this list. Read more + Read less - Jira vs Smartsheet – PricingOverall, Jira is cheaper than SmartSheet, and its Enterprise plan is transparent, whereas Smartsheet’s Enterprise pricing plan is tailored. Unlike SmartSheet, Jira offers a free plan that includes an unlimited number of projects and users, and a storage limit of 2GB.JiraFreeStandardPremiumEnterprise$0$7.50 p/m(per user)$14.50 p/m(per user)$128,00 to $1,006,000 p/a(minimum of 801 users)SmartsheetProBusinessEnterprise$9 p/m; $7 p/a(per user)$32 p/m; $25p/a(per user)BespokeJira RoadmapIs Jira Really Smartsheet’s Best Equivalent?SmartSheet is fairly easy to set up, especially for users who are familiar with using spreadsheets, whereas Jira has a steep learning curve. Jira’s system is a little more complex than SmartSheet’s, for example, it’s difficult to set up basic workflow notifications.SmartSheet is a better choice for team collaboration, offering a feature called ‘Conversations’ found on the sidebar, which enables you to quickly send a message to other team members. Team collaboration on Jira is limited to sending comments on certain tasks.Jira lacks a guest access feature, so anyone who needs to see the project counts as a ‘seat’ and incurs an additional charge. However, SmartSheet does not have this restriction. You can easily share the project with others and restrict editing access.Jira triumphs over SmartSheet in the customer support department, scoring a 4/5, compared with SmartSheet’s 2.5/5. Jira offers more options, including live chat, and its Enterprise plan goes all in and offers 24/7 live chat, phone, and email support.Jira is a good choice if you’re concerned with customer support and want to utilize Agile project management, however, SmartSheet’s software performs better overall. Is a SmartSheet Competitor the Right Option for Me?Our research scores place two providers above SmartSheet: monday.com and ClickUp. We’ve included three other competitors in our list above to give you more options to choose from. Zoho Projects, for example, scores lower than SmartSheet in our research, however, its price can’t be beaten by any other provider we’ve looked at.We recommend SmartSheet for users who are transitioning from using spreadsheets and don’t want a huge learning curve. As a bonus, SmartSheet has a high usability score of 4.3/5. The highest of the 14 different providers we looked at.Of these 14, SmartSheet came third, making it one of the best on the market. There are, however, better options based on our research, so the final decision rests on your project management needs and other requirements, such as price, features, and customer support. What’s the Best Free Alternative to SmartSheet?We recommend ClickUp’s free plan as an alternative to SmartSheet. ClickUp’s free version includes an unlimited number of users, five projects, and a storage limit of 100MB. While 100MB is fairly low, it’s handy for small-scale projects, and the unlimited number of users is super handy because it means multiple people can have access to the project.The free plan doesn’t include custom chart and widget builders, however, for smaller projects, this might not be necessary. ClickUp’s free plan includes more customer support options compared with that of SmartSheet, as well as 100 uses of ‘Resource Management’, which is only available on SmartSheet’s higher tiers.You can use the free version as a trial if you want to test out the software for an extended period of time. However, it does have some limits, such as only allowing 100 actions per month. But if the free version works well, upgrading to a paid plan only starts from $5 per user, per month. How did we find the best alternatives to SmartSheet?We've tested and researched 10 market-leading project management software platforms, evaluating their functionality, usability, integrations and customer support so we can make the most useful recommendations to US businessesOur rigorous testing process means these products have been scored and rated in five main categories of investigation and nine subcategories. We then gave each category score a ‘relevance weighting' to ensure the product's final score perfectly reflects the needs and requirements of Expert Market readers.Our main testing categories for project management software are:Pricing: The financial considerations associated with using a project management solution, e.g. licensing fees, subscription plans, or additional charges for advanced features or add-ons.Ease of use: This is where we get people just like you to test out the products to focus on evaluating the ease of use and user experience of the project management solution. We assess factors such as the user interface, navigation, and task organization.Features: The functionalities and capabilities offered by the project management solution, including features such as task management, team collaboration, and project planning and scheduling.Integrations: The number of third-party software platforms the system integrates with, and whether it easily connects with market-leading providers.Security: The number of security measures offered by the providers, as well as accreditations for data security.Customer Support: The assistance and resources provided by the project management solution provider to users, including phone support, email or chat support, and online forums. Verdict monday.com performs better in our research, and has a slightly higher overall score (4.6/5) when compared with SmartSheet (4.5/5). The difference is not substantial, but monday gets its biggest edge in the features area because it includes more collaboration features, such as an online whiteboard for retro sessions, as well as time tracking for tasks. If the collaboration and time tracking features are important to you, monday is your best choice but, if you’re a spreadsheet fan, and you can do without these, we recommend SmartSheet because it’s easy to use, includes several features, and has a good customer score (3.8/5).If you want to compare even more providers, you can use our handy guide to compare them. It’s important to consider several options and compare pricing, features, and relevant research, before hitting ‘purchase’. FAQs What is SmartSheet comparable to? SmartSheet is comparable to monday.com and ClickUp. Both offer a similar amount of features, customer support, and all three are easy to use.SmartSheet’s main feature is that it resembles a spreadsheet design so, in terms of customizability, monday would be its biggest competitor. monday.com allows for extensive customization and makes it super easy to amend and edit projects.Price-wise, both ClickUp and monday.com score higher in this department, meaning they cost less than SmartSheet. SmartSheet has a similar starting price to monday and ClickUp, however, it only offers two tiers of transparent pricing, whereas the other two providers have more pricing tiers available. Is there a free version of SmartSheet? No, there is no free version of SmartSheet. However, it does offer a 30-day free trial (no credit card details required), so you can try it completely free of any obligation. What are the limitations of SmartSheet? SmartSheet lacks functions to carry out interactive post-project feedback sessions. You can use a workaround to set this up, however, it’s not an ideal set up.There’s also no preset charts to present project data – you’ll need to learn how to build these yourself. However, you can pull any data within the software. For example, you can view budget metrics despite the fact that SmartSheet doesn’t have a dedicated budgeting feature. Written by: Zara Chechi Business Services Expert Zara is a Payments Expert, specialising in writing about Point of Sale systems. With a Law Degree from City University of London, she has used her legally-honed research and analytical skills to develop expertise in the Business Services world. Featured in FinTech Magazine, she quickly became an expert in payroll, POS systems, and merchant accounts. Reviewed by: James Macey Senior Business Software Researcher James draws on his 4+ years experience as a researcher to offer specialized advice on a wide range of categories from CRM to Fleet Management. He believes all businesses can grow if they use the right tools and services.