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Microsoft Project vs Smartsheet comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 19, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.6
Microsoft Project enhances resource utilization and ROI, despite some expertise challenges, leading organizations to prioritize license renewals.
Sentiment score
7.3
Smartsheet streamlines operations, reduces administrative tasks, enhances collaboration, and boosts productivity with an easy-to-use, cost-effective interface.
Microsoft Project does help save time and money due to its completeness as a project management solution.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.6
Microsoft Project support varies, with mixed reviews; users utilize in-house resources, partners, community, and online assistance.
Sentiment score
7.4
Smartsheet's customer support is praised for responsiveness and resources but criticized for ticket tracking and lacks phone/chat options.
There is a website and a connection to AI for support.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Microsoft Project is scalable for large projects, but server limitations, license issues, and integration challenges can affect performance.
Sentiment score
7.6
Smartsheet excels in scalability and integration but faces challenges with large tasks, depending on user proficiency and adoption.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Microsoft Project is stable for small to medium projects, with some issues on larger projects affecting performance and synchronization.
Sentiment score
8.1
Users praise Smartsheet's stability and reliability, noting minor issues that don't significantly affect their overall satisfaction.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Project needs improved integration, user interface, collaboration, scalability, and cost-effectiveness for better resource management and automation.
Smartsheet requires UI improvements, better integrations, enhanced functionality, and increased user-friendliness, with superior training and support.
The worst part is handling too many items, like 1,000 items, which Microsoft Project struggles with, especially when printing.
Microsoft Project tends to become very unstable on large project plans with more than 400 lines.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Project's pricing varies by user volume and features, ranging from affordable to expensive, often bundled with other solutions.
Smartsheet offers flexible pricing with various plans, seen as cost-effective compared to competitors, with customizable features and support.
The issue with Microsoft is that the license is per personnel, making it expensive.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Project offers comprehensive task management, integration, visualization, and adaptability, making it ideal for diverse industry use.
Smartsheet excels with cloud accessibility, real-time collaboration, and robust integrations, offering customizable project management and intuitive interfaces.
This tool is the most accurate project management tool, allowing me to run a full set of project activities without having to switch between different tools for scheduling and other tasks.
The most valuable features are in the successor and predecessor determination and the tracking tools, such as obtaining data on the S curve financial curve.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Project
Ranking in Project Management Software
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
81
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Smartsheet
Ranking in Project Management Software
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
40
Ranking in other categories
Project Portfolio Management (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Project Management Software category, the mindshare of Microsoft Project is 8.0%, down from 12.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Smartsheet is 4.6%, down from 6.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Project Management Software
 

Featured Reviews

Nurul Asyikin Wahab - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient project management with robust data tracking and an easy setup
When I have too many elements or items in a project, it becomes cumbersome, especially during printing. Non-technical users do not need all the data, so it's primarily for technical personnel. Without guidance, it's challenging to use the app. With guidance and expert knowledge, it becomes manageable, however, it's not for non-technical teams. The worst part is handling too many items, like 1,000 items, which Microsoft Project struggles with, especially when printing. Printing on A3 size is quite burdensome, so I prefer viewing it on a tablet or computer. On a tablet or phone, I can see the full project elements depending on the screen size.
PaulDiaz - PeerSpot reviewer
Needs to improve baselines and changing dates can be frustrating
I like the dashboarding feature best, as it lets me assemble a workspace with source sheets, dashboards, and reports simultaneously. The standard reports and worksheets are most useful for team collaboration. People look at dashboards during presentations, but they go to the sheets to update projects, add comments, or make notifications. It's automated, so changes come to me or whoever needs to see them. I can send notifications from specific line items. The worksheet is key for tracking project progress, though we track it at a higher level rather than detailed work breakdown structures. Subject matter experts say when they'll deliver things, and that's what we track.
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Answers from the Community

Eire Zimmermann - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 3, 2022
Aug 3, 2022
Hi @Eire Zimmermann, I helped an organization evaluate both MS-Project and Smartsheet when they were conducting their PM tool RFP. The short of it is this, MS Project is not caught up with the modern automation and low-code capabilities that you will see in many SaaS PM tools today (Smartsheet, Asana, Workfront, etc.). Being able to add simple automation with logic like, "If 'Project Status'...
2 out of 4 answers
EB
Jun 23, 2022
Hi @Deborah Gamelin, @Donee Damore, @Ian Herzing ​and @Andrea Bracken, Can you please chime in and share your thoughts/advice with @Eire Zimmermann?​  Thanks.​
Ian Herzing - PeerSpot reviewer
Jun 23, 2022
Hi @Eire Zimmermann,  I helped an organization evaluate both MS-Project and Smartsheet when they were conducting their PM tool RFP. The short of it is this, MS Project is not caught up with the modern automation and low-code capabilities that you will see in many SaaS PM tools today (Smartsheet, Asana, Workfront, etc.). Being able to add simple automation with logic like, "If 'Project Status' = 'Red', then Alert XYZ Stakeholder" is made simple with Smartsheet. With this type of low-code functionality, you can begin to remove that robotic, manual work of typing up emails and sending messages from your day-to-day. Moreover, Smartsheet's reporting capabilities are something that I have yet to see any other PM tool on the market compete with. Think reports for important launch dates, milestones, past due tasks, or at-risk items.  Then when you add the capabilities of the Smartsheet's logic-driven forms for project intake, you really have a system that can become a pseudo-ERP/workforce management tool. Not to mention Smartsheet's cost is much lower compared to MS Project since you only pay for licenses that manipulate data. Hope this helps in some regard, Ian
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
69%
Computer Software Company
4%
Manufacturing Company
3%
Government
3%
Educational Organization
44%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Healthcare Company
6%
Government
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Has anyone moved from Microsoft Project to Smartsheet? How has your experience been with Smartsheet?
Hi @Eire Zimmermann, I helped an organization evaluate both MS-Project and Smartsheet when they were conducting their PM tool RFP. The short of it is this, MS Project is not caught up with the mo...
What do you like most about Microsoft Project?
The product's initial setup phase is easy.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Project?
The issue with Microsoft is that the license is per personnel, making it expensive.
What do you like most about Smartsheet?
The tool creates shareable dashboards. These dashboards allow us to display project deliverables' status, their position in the queue, expected delivery timelines, and more. The best part is that t...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Smartsheet?
The pricing is great and reasonable enough that I maintained my copy and bought it for my team independently.
What needs improvement with Smartsheet?
Although I can't pinpoint anything specific right now, there is always room for improvement. Initially, there were issues like dropdowns. Those have been overcome.
 

Also Known As

Project Pro, MS Project
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aston Martin, ABANCA, Airbus Group, Capita, Cardiff University, City of Saskatoon, Intel, Pegasus Airlines, South Australia Power Network (SAPN), Israeli Ministry of Construction and Housing
Sony Music, ESPN, Hilton, Unisource, Colliers, Extreme Networks, Groupon, Netflix
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Project vs. Smartsheet and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,640 professionals have used our research since 2012.