Best Project Management Software For Designers | Expert Recommendations

Hive is a leading project management platform for creative teams due to its comprehensive, best-in-class proofing and approval capability, document and time management skills, and ability to consolidate and centralize workflows. For creative teams, it’s one of the best tools available. A variety of project views in Hive allow creative teams to see tasks and projects in the way that most suits their needs. Clients can gain access to high-level information in Hive via external users, and there’s even an Adobe Photoshop Plugin for Hive just launched.

Asana’s visually pleasing UI is a favorite among designers and creatives all over the world. When working with Asana, creatives can simply search and share files, track and manage work across various projects, or utilize a Kanban board to plan out the launch of a creative project with ease. For the most aesthetically pleasant project management tools for creative teams, Asana wins the prize for being one of the most visually appealing, which is why it’s one of our top picks for the best project management tools for creative teams in 2018.

UpStream is the best project management software for web designers to manage almost all their projects. Most designers love it because it offers assistance with a minimalistic budget. Users can use it inside any WordPress website without ever paying a dime. I would advise any user to familiarize themselves with the free demo version before finalizing their decision. The excellent part is web designers get many extensions to maximize their productivity. It is the best at managing multiple projects and tasks with several users. Its backend setup will surely blow your mind, and it is ideal for designers who don’t want to spend a lot of money to manage their tasks properly.

Project.co is one of the greatest project management tools available for designers. Project.co was created expressly to assist in managing creative teams and projects – and includes a slew of sophisticated tools to assist you in doing so. Each project is simply a collection of ‘tools’ for collaboration, communication, file sharing, time tracking, and money collection. Where Project.co truly shines as a platform for creatives focuses on client communication. In addition to letting you add your team, it was developed with client communication in mind. This means you can include your clients’ team and cooperate in one convenient location, with everything documented. All communications written and received on a project are recorded in chronological order in the ‘Discussion’ feed, so you always know who agreed on what and when.

If you love working with WordPress, then this software is gonna be the best fit for you. It’s a simple yet powerful open-source project management software where your teammates will experience a memorable ride. Designers must concentrate on the deadline, presently processing work, completed tasks, and the creation of new projects with the entire team. Apart from that, one of the most significant factors for creatives is time management, which WP project manager excels in. Without a doubt, I feel this is one of the greatest graphic designer PM tools available. WP is designed for those who wish to spend less time operating their business and more time doing things that are more productive. So just run after your thoughts and ideas and let this software help you.

This project management tool’s main advantage is its simplicity. You can see all of the projects and their current status in a single view. The revolutionary Power Up features are a game-changer. Many of these add-ons are plug-ins for other apps and software you may be using. It also contains a lightweight calendar on which you can check the deadlines for your work.

Podio isn’t only a project management tool. It functions as a database for your entire company. Podio can be used to hold your company’s CRM. Trello is a good example of a web design project board. In Podio, you can even create a support desk app. Furthermore, the solution is adaptable. So, depending on your business model, you may easily develop a customizable project management system. Additionally, the automation and templates come in handy.

Zoho Projects is a project management software that works well for small teams. The excellent integration feature assists the designers to collaborate on any platform hassle-free. The time tracking option helps to meet the deadlines of the project. Use the free plan to discover the in-built features of this project management software.

Collato was created as a solution for designers and creators to manage their assets and collaborate with other team members as well as externals on visual projects. With multiple templates for asset review and approval, creative file sharing, video production workflow, brand style guides, and creative project management, Collato has designers covered for any type of project or workflow. With the creative project managment template, for example, designers can map out milestones and track project progress with both a Kanban board and a calendar view. External or internal stakeholders can easily be involved with just a simple URL, so that they can collaborate without having to sign up for yet another tool. Assets can be added to cards, which support any file type as well as provide a screen recording function, precise commenting on visual assets and videos, and more.

Basecamp, the granddaddy of project management tools, features a basic and easy-to-use UI that makes collaborating with your team and clients a breeze. It allows you to organize dates for scheduling, establish numerous projects, start conversations, write to-do lists, manage files, create and distribute papers, and manage files.

Monday is ideal for all types of entrepreneurs, regardless of size. It is extremely common with freelance designers because it can break down tasks into smaller subtasks, has hundreds of visual and customizable templates, and is integrated with Google Drive, Slack, Jira, and Gitlab.

Most of the capabilities you’d expect to find in full-featured, pricey project management software are accessible on the forever free plan with nTask. Still, a surprising number of them are available on the forever free plan. Meanwhile, the premium plan starts at $2.99 per month, fairly reasonable.

Jira is one of the well-known tools preferred by design firms and big corporations. Its highly customizable task management tool is suitable for graphic designers. Jira offers a kanban board in which the tasks can be planned and suitably delegated to team members, which helps teams clearly track the project. Jira is also known to have the most user-friendly interface in its mobile application. Jira will cost $14 per user per month for a team of up to 5000 users.

ProofHub is considered to be the most productive tool that offers a number of options, especially for designers. It offers a proofing tool in which the designer team and their clients can jointly contribute to enhance the project outcomes. Just like Jira, ProofHub offers a Kanban board that shows all the tasks in a process that enables any stakeholder to learn the status of the project. Time tracker, Invoice designer, and productivity analyzer are the additional features available with this software. It costs $89 per month billed annually for unlimited users.

Brandfolder helps you find which asset you need when you need it. You can waste a chunk of time hunting down various clients’ brand logos and images each week. But Brandfolder is like your own Google Image Search, enabling you to quickly find all brand assets in one central, organized location. This allows for better project collaboration when you’re working with various team members and clients. While Brandfolder enables you to share assets with partners and vendors, it also ensures assets aren’t duplicated, mislabeled, or accidentally deleted. And because you can see who is engaging with and downloading your content, you can be confident that no one is doing so without your permission.

FunctionFox can assist you in organizing all of your creative projects and chores. It is one of the greatest pieces of software for collaborative teams. It has a lot of features that may benefit designers, marketing teams, and anybody else in the creative industry. To keep ahead of the curve, you may examine all of the progress being made and complete assignments. FunctionFox gives you comprehensive control over every work as a project manager, allowing you to keep an eye on your team and finish tasks more quickly.