RGPM’s survey of 220+ project managers revealed that 85% of project managers run multiple projects simultaneously. 59% of managers handle between 2–5 projects, 11% run between 6–10 projects, and 15% run 11–15 or more projects at once. 

With attention divided into a portfolio of projects, it’s only natural for managers to lose track of certain tasks and the associated resources. However, for a company, it translates into huge financial losses that could easily be prevented with project tracking.

At its core, tracking a project bridges the gap between an ideal project plan and the realistic turn of events when executing it. However, it’s almost impossible to track simultaneous projects manually, so you'll find plenty of project trackers in the market. 

In this guide, you’ll learn; 

• What is a project tracker?
• What are our picks for the top 5 project tracker tools?
• What qualities define a good project tracking tool? 

Let’s get straight into it. 

What is a project tracker?

Project tracking compares the resources used in a project and the progress made with the original project plan. Without a clear tracking system in place, it’s easy for simultaneous projects to get unnecessarily delayed or go out of budget. 

A project tracker keeps an eye on the following aspects of a business project: 

• Timeline
• Tasks to be done
• Team and individual responsibilities 
• Budget
• Cumulative progress

The tool updates in real-time, so any changes made to a project are reflected in a central database that everybody working on that project can see. 

Project trackers provide transparency in teamwork. Each team member is aware of their responsibilities and is accountable for delays when task assignments are clear. They also allow for better, data-driven decision-making to keep the project on course based on real-time data. 

Explore this free task management app

Discover a free project tracking and task management template. Assign tasks, track progress, and monitor project timelines seamlessly.

Top 5 project tracker tools for 2024

Now that you know how to track projects with a project tracker and why it is needed, here are some of the best tools for project tracking you will online. 

Asana

Asana, launched in 2012 and currently trusted by over 100,000 businesses across the globe, was founded to reduce the “work about work”. Its biggest selling point is the super-simple user interface that anyone can use, regardless of their tech expertise.

Within Asana, you can set up custom workflows based on project progress. It lets you create cards based on specific tasks and assign those cards to the team member responsible for completing them.

The workflows can be integrated with Slack, Google Workspace, Jira, OneDrive, you name it. 

Key features

Here are some of Asana’s best features: 

• Asana displays your current projects in different, switchable modes like a list, calendar, timeline, Gantt chart, or Kanban board.

• You can add custom fields to your tasks for easy sorting and filtering. 

• It measures time spent on different tasks for effective resource allocation 

• Individual team members can set up portfolios to view connected projects 

• Asana also allows for creating custom forms for projects to collect relevant information within the platform. 

Pricing

Asana offers 3 pricing plans: 

1. The Personal plan is for small teams under 10 users and is free. 

2. Asana Starter costs US$10.99 per user/month with annual billing.

3. Asana Advanced is priced at US$24.99 per user/month with annual billing.

There are two custom pricing models for large-scale companies, the Enterprise plan and the Enterprise+ plan, both of which require contacting sales for a quote. 

Asana also provides a 50% discount to nonprofits. 

Trello

This Kanban-style project tracker from Atlassian is used by over 2,000,000 teams and tracks everything from project teams, due dates, checklists, and project documents, all from one place. 

A Trello board consists of lists and drag-and-drop cards where team members can be added. The app allows for custom, built-in automation commands that run specific actions based on triggers.

Key features

Some features that set Trello apart include: 

• The Kanban board shows all attachments and current/pending tasks in a dashboard, table, map, and timeline views.

• Trello provides hundreds of PowerUps, aka integrations, most of which are free.

• With premium plans, you have full control over who have view and edit your project cards.

• There’s no in-built time tracker in Trello, but you can add a PowerUp for this functionality.

Pricing

Trello offers a free plan with essential features for individuals or teams. Paid plans include: 

1. Standard plan for $5 per user/month

2. Premium plan for $10 per user/month

3. Enterprise plan for $17.50 per user/month

ClickUp

This feature-rich project tracking tool comes with a customizable interface and an all-in-one approach to project management including time tracking and employee scheduling.

You can create tasks, assign them, set a deadline, create documentation, make video demonstrations, and much more with ClickUp.

ClickUp also has an AI assistant, ClickBrain, which quickly retrieves relevant data and extracts information. Despite having an in-built time tracker, ClickUp allows for integration with other time trackers such as Toggl and Everhour. 

Key features

The best project tracking features of ClickUp include: 

• Smart time tracking, where you can add time estimates, track actual time spent, and generate reports comparing both 

• Task management cards with task descriptions, due dates, assignees, and attachments 

• Collaborative documents and whiteboards to brainstorm and share ideas in real-time 

• Breakdown of resources allocated to each task card 

• Searchable documentation database for documents created within ClickUp 

• Pulse app to track the activity of users, their online status, and the recent tasks they worked on 

Pricing

ClickUp has a free forever plan for personal use, which includes 100MB storage and unlimited tasks. The paid versions include: 

1. Unlimited plan for $7/user/month

2. Business plan for $12/user/month

3. Enterprise plan for large teams with custom pricing 

Monday.com

Monday.com is easily one of the most intuitive project tracker tools you’ll find. It organizes and views simultaneously running projects in 10+ different views. 

There are hundreds of customizable templates for different use cases and the platform connects with 25,000+ other apps that integrate and enhance its functionality. 

Key features

Here are some of the best features of Monday.com: 

• The most number of board views you will find in any project tracker tool, including table, timeline, Kanban, chart, calendar, map, forms, dependencies, and broadcast

• Collaborative document editor where multiple users can add input without overriding each other

• Platform-wide search engine for easy information retrieval

• Hundreds of workflow templates that automate everyday tasks

• Integrations with 200+ third-party applications 

Pricing

Like most other project status tracking apps, Monday.com also has a free plan for up to 2 users. Their paid plans include: 

• Basic: $9/seat/month

• Standard: $12/seat/month

• Pro: $19/seat/month

• Enterprise: Custom pricing with advanced security, reporting, and enterprise-level automation

BaseCamp

Basecamp is a simple project tracking tool that helps small teams work faster by keeping everything in one place. Each project has its own page, with tasks, files, and messages easily accessible across 13 weeks. 

The platform also consolidates billing, cuts costs, and simplifies onboarding. 

Key features

The features of BaseCamp teams love the most include: 

• Basecamp has solid collaborative features; group chats, comments, forums, wikis, slack-like chats, you’ll find all of it on Basecamp 

• Integrates with 72 other software that improves its functionality 

• The role assignment and timeline features keep track of teams responsible for certain tasks and the time they take to complete them 

• Customizable to-do templates and workflows 

• “Boosts” are Basecamp’s emojis to celebrate each other’s progress upon completion of tasks

Pricing

Basecamp has two plans; 

1. The first plan is ideal for freelancers or small teams, priced at $15/user/month. 

2. The second plan, Basecamp Pro Unlimited, is priced at $299/month (annual billing) for unlimited users. 

A 30-day trial is available for both plans. 

What qualities define a good project tracker?

The core qualities a good project tracker tool should have include: 

• Task boards: Dashboards to view the exact progress of different subtasks in a project

• Budget tracker: A holistic view of the real-time expenses and the upcoming projected costs

• Time tracker: The number of hours taken by each section of a project and an estimate of the hours needed to complete a certain project 

• Centralized calendar: To keep track of the start and finish dates of projects with milestones that define the projects’ progress between the two dates 

• Collaboration features: Where team members working on a similar project can discuss ideas and share resources 

• Documentation: A centralized repository for creating and sharing documents like SOPs, templates, etc, needed by multiple people working on a project 

• Automated workflows: Simple, logic-based workflows that follow an action based on specific, preset triggers

How can Formaloo help?

Having a reliable project tracking tool at your disposal makes your life as a project manager ten times easier. Following a successful project, 54% of employees report finding their work more fulfilling, and 54% also experience reduced stress levels.

Project progress tracker tools are great, but it is much more efficient to have one tool that can cater to all your project needs, from:

• Planning
• Resource management
• Applicant tracking
• Client management
• Account management
• Product management
• And task records in one central location. 

Formaloo is a one-stop, no-code management system with a customizable project tracking template for different teams.

You can easily create project and task entries, organize your tasks in tables and Kanban boards, monitor key project metrics, and generate reports that summarize project progress. 

Try Formaloo today for free, and you’ll not regret it. 

FAQs

What are the benefits of project tracking?

Project tracking has many benefits, some of which include: 

• Better communication between teams 
• Real-time progress updates that lead to better decision-making
• Centralized project data that leaves little room for errors 
• Improved transparency in teamwork

Why is it important to track project progress?

It is important for companies to track project progress for effective resource and time allocation. Tracking projects promptly also allows businesses to discover and manage risks quickly as they arise rather than wait for the entire project to complete.