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The seamless collaboration of your colleagues, volunteers, and donors is crucial for achieving your organization’s goals, so using the right project management software is essential. You’ll need a platform that’s easy to use and provides practical features, such as prebuilt templates to help you set up projects quickly and reporting tools to monitor your progress.
But in many cases, project management software can cost a lot – and keeping a nonprofit afloat is especially difficult when you’re low on funds. After all, your main goal is to use your money to help people, not spend it on overpriced software.
I compiled this list of the best affordable project management software for nonprofits to help you get organized. In fact, my top pick, monday.com, even has special discounts for nonprofits, meaning you can get enterprise-level solutions at a fraction of the price.
Try monday.com risk-free or read on to see what other great options can help your organization stay on track.
What We Look For in the Best Project Management Software for Nonprofits
While testing project management software for this article, I focused on the features your nonprofit needs to keep operating at its most productive level.
User-friendly interface. Be it an employee or a volunteer, it’s essential to choose a PM software that’s easy to use for anyone coming into your organization. All the project management software for nonprofits I selected have a beginner-friendly interface you can grasp quickly.
Customizable project templates. I only included software for nonprofits with ready-made templates to help you get started. You can customize these templates to fit the specific needs of your projects, whether it’s campaign planning or grant management.
Efficient reporting. Advanced reporting tools can help you oversee your tasks and projects and measure the performance of your activities. My picks can do all that and more.
Cost-effective. All the nonprofit project management software on my list have free plans, including access to most features or affordable paid plans.
Useful built-in features. I selected software with additional features your organization may need, such as document storage, collaboration tools, and time tracking.
monday.com has a dedicated template category for nonprofitsmonday.com offers nonprofit-focused project templates1 to plan fundraising campaigns and manage donors and volunteers. Templates have boards you can customize by adding columns for different data types, such as dates and files. You can embed recruitment forms, see volunteer availability, manage grant applications, and more. Plus, monday.com’s intuitive, brightly colored interface makes the work more fun.
monday.com lets you communicate with your team members via discussion threads on projects and tasks. Interestingly enough, you can also reach out to other nonprofits and exchange ideas. Thanks tothe dedicated forum section for nonprofits on monday.com’s website, you can see how other organizations used the software to manage their initiatives.monday.com’s pricing model includes discounts for eligible nonprofit organizations. The Nonprofit plan is a good option for smaller organizations – the first 10 seats are free, and after that, you get a 70% discount. You also gain access to private boards, private docs, and time tracking. The Enterprise plan is better suited for large organizations, as you get advanced reporting and analytics, multi-level permissions, and enterprise-grade security features.
Features
Nine task views. To suit the different visual preferences of your team members, monday.com offers nine ways to see your tasks, including Kanban (displays your tasks as cards on a board), Gantt (shows your tasks on a timeline with goals), Calendar, Workload, and more.
Reporting dashboards.com’s reporting tools let you create dashboards that display data from multiple boards, which gives you a high-level overview of your projects and lets you track progress.
Time-saving automations. com has a rich set of automation features to help you save time on repetitive actions. For instance, you can use automation to create personalized fundraising emails and texts.
Unlimited free viewers. This tool will allow your volunteers, donors, and other team members that don’t require editing access to view all your boards, open files, and read your updates.
Despite the abundance of features, ClickUp’s interface is easy to navigate
ClickUp is one of the most customizable project management platforms and provides the flexibility you need to manage your organization’s needs. For instance, you can add multiple assignees to your tasks, set subtasks, and use the Custom Fields and Formulas features to calculate donations and create budget reports. Also, you can create forms for volunteer applications and collect feedback among team members on areas that need improvement.
One notable highlight is ClickUp’s built-in Docs app1. Not only will you be able to create, edit, and store all organization documentation in one place, but you’ll also be able to edit documents with your collaborators and communicate in real time. Another useful built-in tool is the time tracker, which you can use to manage volunteer hours. ClickUp’s sheer number of features can be intimidating for beginners, but the functionality you get is worth the effort.
ClickUp has one of the most comprehensive free plans, with limitations only in the number of times you can use specific features. The cheaper plans include most premium features, such as automations and guest access. Also, ClickUp offers discounts for some nonprofit organizations, so you can contact them to inquire about customized pricing.
Features
Flexible task management. ClickUp keeps you organized by allowing you to set up task priorities and add different types of columns (e.g., for attachment files or additional notes).
Whiteboards. ClickUp’s Whiteboards function like mind maps, allowing you to brainstorm ideas and turn them into tasks. You can connect project goals by drawing or inserting lines and adding images, sticky notes, and files.
Bulk action toolbar. This time-saving tool lets you edit multiple tasks, subtasks, or documents in bulk. You can update statuses, adjust due dates, merge similar tasks to declutter your workspace, and more.
Critical Path & Slack Time. ClickUp’s reporting features include the Critical Path and Slack Time tool, which displays tasks with a rigid or flexible deadline.
Smartsheet may not have the prettiest design, but it’s incredibly efficient
Smartsheet is a dynamic spreadsheet-based platform for nonprofit projects. Though its grid interface might look crude and unwelcoming, it works surprisingly well to let you process large volumes of data quickly. You can add columns for dates, contact lists, and checklists and attach documents to individual rows. Aside from the grid view, you can visualize your projects in Kanban, Gantt, and Calendar views.
Smartsheet lets you create dynamic dashboards1you can customize by dragging and dropping widgets. For instance, you can add widgets for charts, images, or rich text formatting to bring focus to updates. You can use dashboards to organize fundraising events, monitor field team status, or track grant fulfillment. Smartsheet dashboards will help you keep expense records and maintain transparency around finances, which ensures donor confidence.
Smartsheet does not have a free plan, but it does offer a 30-day free trial with all premium features unlocked. Smartsheet’s Pro plan will likely be enough for nonprofits of any size. You get unlimited sheets, dashboards, reports, all project views, task alerts, notifications, and more.
Features
Baselines. With Smartsheet’s Baselines feature, you can establish the start, finish, and variance of dates for individual tasks. This helps you compare your planned and actual work schedules.
Proofing. Smartsheet’s Proofs feature lets you edit files such as images and videos and add comments to specific sections, which can be helpful if you’re working on design prototypes.
Roll-up reporting. This helpful feature can summarize progress across projects to keep everyone up to date on shared goals.
Robust mobile app. Smartsheet’s mobile app has nearly every functionality of the web version. Dashboards automatically adapt to your screen size, and you can directly import data from your phone’s calendar to your sheets.
Jira’s flexible Kanban boards help you visualize your workflowJira Software is an efficient project and issue-tracking tool designed to streamline workflows. Its effective project and task management allows you to plan work and track progress easily. In addition to these core features, Jira offers a robust suite of 3,000+ integrations, with apps like Tempo for time tracking and Slack for team communication.
However, when it comes to built-in features, Jira can’t quite keep up with monday.com and ClickUp. That’s because Jira focuses on agile project management, which involves fixed workflows and timed sprints to address particular aspects of a project, such as issue or bug tracking. Consequently, Jira provides limited project templates and project views. Also, if you’re unfamiliar with agile methodology, there may be a steeper learning curve.
Jira’s free plan accommodates up to 10 users and includes unlimited project boards and reporting tools. For larger nonprofits requiring advanced features, the paid plans provide additional capabilities such as automation and priority support. Eligible nonprofits can benefit from a 75% discount on Jira Software’s Standard and Premium plans, making advanced project management features accessible at a reduced cost.
Features
Scrum boards. Jira’s Scrum boards allow you to break large, complex projects into manageable pieces of work so your team can work faster for attainable goals.
Roadmaps. Similar to Gantt charts, this tool keeps your organization in sync by giving you complete visibility of your projects and helps you set dependencies between tasks and long-term goals.
Drag-and-drop automation. Jira Software’s feature allows you to automate any task or process in just a few clicks. For example, you can create automations to notify team members about high-priority issues, close a parent task when all subtasks are done, summarize logged hours, and more.
Jira reports. Jira’s extensive reporting tools provide customized solutions for Scrum and Kanban teams. You also get out-of-the-box reports for issue analysis, time tracking, and workload management.
Teamwork lets you personalize your dashboard by changing colors and even adding a project logo
Teamwork is easy to use, even if you’re new to managing projects online. It helps keep your team organized and on track with features like task lists, customizable dashboards, and real-time collaboration. Additionally, Teamwork offers a comprehensive file management system that allows nonprofits to securely store, share, and access documents.
Though you won’t get the most advanced reporting tools, you can use Teamwork’s budgeting features to monitor expenses and keep spending in check. Plus, with built-in time tracking, you can ensure your volunteers focus their energy where it counts.
Teamwork’s free plan is ideal for small teams, providing essential task management and collaboration features. Larger nonprofits or those with complex project requirements would benefit most from the paid plans, which unlock advanced functionality, including time tracking, budgeting, and intake forms.
Features
Customizable task management. Teamwork lets you bulk edit, save task lists as templates for future use, and filter data, which is great if you’re working on many projects at once.
Search Everything. Teamwork’s Everything tool lets you search all active and completed tasks, links, milestones, messages, comments, files, and time logs so that everything is within easy reach.
Free collaborator seats. If you’re working with a handful of collaborators on a project, you can add free seats and set user permissions.
Useful product suite. Additional good-to-have tools include Teamwork Chat for instant messaging and Teamwork Spaces for content collaboration.
Zoho Projects lets you visualize your projects in Kanban and Gantt chart view
Zoho Projects’ milestone system lets you break every project into smaller chunks – milestones, list tasks, tasks, and subtasks. You can set priorities, add reminders, and set dependencies between related tasks to ensure you always stay on schedule.
That said, Zoho’s interface isn’t always intuitive, and advanced features will take time to master. This makes it less than ideal for large companies, but Zoho Projects works well for smaller nonprofits that manage simple projects.
Zoho is especially convenient for collaborating with colleagues, volunteers, and donors. There’s a built-in chat function and a forum feature, which lets you interact via discussion threads. Zoho’s App Market will also let you integrate the Zoho Meeting app for video meetings.
The free plan includes built-in messaging and three project views, but Zoho’s features are somewhat limited. You’ll unlock more with paid plans, which are pretty cheap compared to the competition. For instance, Zoho’s Premium plan includes unlimited projects and features like time tracking and automation.
Features
Blueprints. The Blueprints feature lets you define every step of your work process. You only need to create a blueprint once and you can reuse it as necessary to save time on similar tasks.
Zoho Encyclopedia. Zoho’s Pages allow you to create your project’s own Wikipedia-like page to keep all information in one place.
Resource utilization. This tool shows you how much work each team member has so you can assess workloads and adjust if needed.
Create and share content. You can keep everything in one place with Documents, which allows you to either upload files or create them from scratch using Zoho Writer (for text docs), Zoho Sheet (for spreadsheets), or Zoho Show (for slide presentations).
Choose the Best Project Management Software for Nonprofits to Complete Your Mission
All the project management tools on this list enable you to stay on top of your projects and keep team members, donors, and volunteers in the loop. However, it’s important to note that the best project management software for your nonprofit is the one that will best cater to your specific needs.
If you’re looking for the perfect combo between ease of use and extensive capabilities, monday.com is my top recommendation1. You’ll get a high-level overview of your projects, nine unique project views, and discounted plans for nonprofits.
If fluid collaboration is your main priority, ClickUp is an excellent option1. ClickUp offers multiple ways for teams to coordinate and connect, from chat apps and real-time document editing to Whiteboards. Plus, you can customize your workspace to the tiniest detail.
If you prefer a more comprehensive software solution suitable for larger organizations, go with Smartsheet1. It gives you everything you need to manage large amounts of data and can easily centralize information from global teams.
Here’s a quick recap of all my recommended project management tools for nonprofits:
Can I use project management software for nonprofits for free?
Absolutely. Project management software such as ClickUp and Jira offer generous free plans that include basic and advanced features. ClickUp, for example, makes most of its features available on the free plan, but it limits the number of times you can use them. ClickUp’s paid plans are affordable and offer great value if you need more.
Can you use project management software for fundraisers?
Yes, project management software is very helpful when you want to raise money for your nonprofit. It can help you track your finances and keep in touch with your donors, thus making everything transparent and increasing your visibility.
How much does monday.com cost for nonprofits?
If you’re an eligible nonprofit, monday.com has generous discounts available. The first 10 seats are free, and any additional users get 70% off their plan. This plan includes all Pro features plus Enterprise features like Private Workspaces and 50 boards per dashboard – all at just a fraction of the cost.
Which is the best project management software for nonprofits?
monday.com is the best project management software for nonprofits. In addition to being extremely easy to use, you can also set up custom dashboards and time-saving automations. Plus, it has special discounts for nonprofits.
That said, the best PM software for your organization will depend on your needs. If monday.com isn’t what you’re looking for, check out our list of the best project management software for 2024 to explore other feature-rich but user-friendly solutions.
Ana specializes in writing about web building platforms, project management software, and other digital tools. She has been a freelance writer for 7 years, and has published countless product reviews and comparisons in that time. Ana has a passion for language and all things tech, and she combines the two to provide accessible and insightful resources for anyone interested in building websites or managing projects.
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