Best Gantt Chart Software

A powerful Gantt chart software helps a project manager plan, track, and manage projects, estimate delivery dates and the budget, and see the impact of ongoing changes on the whole project in one place.

This guide will talk about the importance of Gantt chart software, how to choose the best Gantt chart software, the features of Gantt software, and the top 5 Gantt chart tools to help you make an informed decision for your organization.                     

What is Gantt Chart Software?

A Gantt chart software is a project planning and scheduling tool that helps you visualize the actual work completed over a period of time in relation to the work planned over a period of time.

The purpose of the Gantt chart is to create an impeccable project schedule so that a project can be completed on time.    

A Gantt chart typically includes two sections: the y-axis on the left that outlines a list of tasks in a project and the x-axis on the right that shows a timeline with schedule bars to visualize work.          

The typical element of a Gantt chart includes tasks, timelines, dependencies, and milestones.

• Tasks: All the tasks in a project are listed in a vertical column on the y-axis. It provides complete information on tasks such as progress status, assignee, and start & end date.

• Timeline: A timeline allows you to visualize the progress of tasks on the project timeline. Tasks are represented as horizontal bars in the timeline on the x-axis. 

• Dependencies: It talks about how one task is connected to another. Lines or arrows on the chart depict the dependencies between tasks.

• Milestones: Diamonds or stars are used to represent milestones. A milestone shows an important point in a project.               

In a nutshell, a Gantt chart program provides you with a complete overview of the project to help you know exactly what’s going on in the project, when work is due, and who is doing which tasks.

What are the Benefits of Gantt Chart Tools?

The primary purpose of a Gantt chart project management software is to plan projects and track work progress against the set plan. This results in a wide range of benefits due to enhanced visibility and a detailed overview of a project. Have a look at the key benefits of using Gantt chart tools for project management.

1. Improve Team Productivity

   Gantt chart clearly defines the roles and responsibilities of every team member and the start and end date of each task. This provides clarity to the team members who are working on what. The detailed information and streamlined workflow allow teams to work efficiently and collaborate better resulting in improved productivity.

2. Improve Communication

   Gantt chart software brings all the project information to a centralized and transparent place. All the project stakeholders, a project manager, and team members can see the project details, timelines, dependencies, and ongoing changes at a common centralized point. This fosters better communication and eliminates the chances of misunderstanding.

3. Measure the Progress of Projects

   Gantt charts allow you to compare the actual work completed with the work planned over a period of time. This helps you measure the project progress at any point in a project and make decisions accordingly. You can easily find out whether or not the project is on schedule. 

   If not, you can adjust the due dates or allocate resources accordingly to complete projects on time. Apart from that, it also helps stakeholders gain an understanding of the work progress.

4. Boost Flexibility

   Gantt chart project management software is used to manage projects with dependent relationships, external influences, and many moving parts. It boosts flexibility by providing you with a clear view of how one change can impact the overall progress of a task. Thus, you can easily make changes to task dates, set dependencies, and allocate resources accordingly to respond to change effectively.

5. Avoid Resource Overload

   Gantt chart software provides you with a bird’s eye view of all the tasks and resources allocated to each task. You can clearly see the workload on each resource and the task schedule of each resource. If a team member is overburdened or not available leading to too many concurrent tasks, you can distribute the work or resources accordingly for effective resource planning.

6. Practice Better Time Management

   Gantt chart software provides a clear depiction of tasks on a timeline. Thus, every team member has a clear idea of the start and end date of tasks and the dependencies between tasks. This helps them in better task prioritization and time management. Team members can see how their tasks impact the timeline of the project and focus first on the most critical tasks to the project's timeline and success.

What are the Features of Best Gantt Chart Software?

The best Gantt chart software allows you to create a project schedule, keep track of tasks, manage resources, perform predictive analysis, and collaborate with team members effortlessly in a single place. Certain core Gantt chart features make Gantt chart software powerful and easy to use.

1. Progress Tracking

   There is no Gantt chart software without a timeline for progress tracking. A timeline runs horizontally on the x-axis and shows the months, weeks, days, and years. It helps track the progress of the tasks by comparing the real-time status of the task to the time planned.

2. Task List

   A task list is another main component of a Gantt chart that includes all the information related to tasks. It is a vertical column on the y-axis that includes all the tasks. A task list can have multiple columns or subgroups that include all the information required to complete a task, such as assignee, priority, and status, and help keep a Gantt chart organized.

3. Dateline

   Dateline is a vertical line that highlights the current date on the Gantt chart. It makes it easy to navigate and read the chart. Some Gantt chart tools allow you to auto-adjust the dateline so that it adjusts to today’s date every time you open the chart.

4. Dependency Tracking

   You see the lines or arrows connecting the different bars. These are used to set and demonstrate the dependencies between tasks. You can simply draw the lines by clicking and dragging the cursor from one bar to another to set task dependencies.

5. Project Scheduling

   A Gantt chart should allow you to create a roadmap for the project, create, edit & delete tasks, set task priorities & dependencies, identify the critical path, add milestones, and assign tasks to team members to create a project schedule. This provides team members with all the information required to complete a task.

6. Milestone Management

   A milestone allows you to mark a crucial point in a project. It is usually represented as a diamond or star on the Gantt chart. Milestone planning involves finding the critical points in a project and adding milestones so that the team understands key deliverables, activities, or phases. Gantt software should allow you to add and plan milestones.

7. Bar Chart

   A bar chart represents a task on the timeline. It is primarily used to demonstrate the progress of the task usually by bar shading or displaying the percentage of work. It also shows you the details of task duration, start and end dates, and more.

How to Choose the Right Gantt Chart Software?

There are numerous Gantt chart tools available. To choose the right Gantt chart tool, it is very important that you ask the right questions. It will help you find the best Gantt software that fulfills your project needs or work requirements. Here are a few tips:

1. Project Requirements

   First of all, define why you are using the Gantt chart and what you need it for. If you need Gantt for complex project planning, you should look for in-built features like critical path analysis and task dependencies.

   On the other hand, if you need a Gantt for project cost forecasting and invoicing, you should look for a Gantt that can run project estimates, create work reports, track time logged, and create invoices for billable hours. 

   Create a list of features and functionalities you need to fulfill your project requirements.

2. Ease of Use

   Earlier versions of Gantt chart software were hard to use. But now, Gantt charts have evolved a lot. A good Gantt chart should be easy to use and come with a user-friendly interface.

   For example, you should be able to drag and drop the tasks to change the start and end dates of tasks. Similarly, setting dependencies between tasks by drawing a line is one of the most desired features of top Gantt chart software.

3. Collaboration Capabilities

   A Gantt chart tool should have powerful collaboration capabilities so that multiple team members can work together productively. Simultaneous editing of a chart by multiple team members, tracking edits, adding comments, attaching files, and sharing the chart are some of the important collaboration features you need to look for in online Gantt chart software.

4. Customization

   Most companies using Gantt chart software for project planning also use it for work management. Customization capabilities such as custom fields, custom columns, and custom roles make it easy to manage and track work using Gantt. 

   For example, the ability to customize the Gantt by the team members to visualize the task schedule and progress makes it easy for a project manager to check status updates. Look for a customizable Gantt chart tool.

What are the Challenges Faced in Gantt Chart Tools?

Gantt chart software is great for project planning and scheduling, but due to the very design and framework, even the best Gantt tool poses a series of challenges. Have a look at some of the commonly faced challenges in Gantt chart tools.

1. Very complex in design

   Gantt charts by design are complex. It takes time for beginners to understand and learn to use Gantt charts. Especially, if you are using a basic Gantt chart program, it is hard to read. One can easily get confused due to plenty of information about tasks, subtasks, & dependencies, and end up misreading the details. 

   However, modern-day Gantt chart tools make it easy to read Gantt charts with colorful bars and a user-intuitive interface.

2. Setup

   One of the biggest challenges of using Gantt chart software is it requires a lot of information upfront to set it up. You need to add task details, determine task dependencies, set milestones, allocate resources, highlight the most critical task, add constraints, and input other project-specific information to use a Gantt chart effectively. This requires extensive knowledge of a Gantt tool on how to perform each action.

3. Customization Limitations

   Modern-day Gantt chart tools have evolved a lot, but it does not provide the level of customization other project management tools offer. For example, if you want to make changes in the project plan to accommodate changing requirements, it gets really difficult to make changes as you have to reschedule the entire plan. Gantt chart is a good tool to manage projects with fixed project requirements such as the construction of a house.

4. Incomplete visibility of tasks

   Gantt software is primarily a project planning tool. It connects one task to another and shows how they are dependent on each other. And when you add information on subtasks and set dependencies, the Gantt chart easily gets overloaded and complex. Due to limited visibility on screen, it gets difficult to visualize the progress at a glance. Something, you can easily do with Kanban.

Market Trends in Online Gantt Chart Software

Gantt chart has been in existence for over 100 years, and it is probably one of the oldest planning tools. It has its own share of disadvantages due to the very times it is developed in. However, the advent of technologies and market dynamics have changed Gantt charts a lot to adapt to current working requirements. Here are the key latest trends Gantt chart software is witnessing.

 

1. Automation and AI Integration

   AI and Machine learning have changed the Gantt charts a lot. It has made the Gantt chart software more useful and accurate. For example, you can perform better risk analysis of your project roadmap based on historical data and predictive analysis. It will help you create a risk-proof project plan. 

   Similarly, AI can provide you with in-depth insights for resource optimization and workflow automation makes it easy to create project roadmaps in less time with minimal effort.

2. Cloud-based Gantt chart applications

   Cloud-based Gantt chart applications are witnessing a huge rise in popularity because now multiple team members can use the Gantt chart simultaneously from anywhere. There is no need to export and share the Gantt chart, make edits, and then again share the Gantt chart. Users with an internet connection can access their cloud-based Gantt charts from anywhere, on any device.

3. Agile Integration

   Gantt charts are ideally designed to adapt to fixed working environments, but agile teams are making use of the Gantt chart where they need to set dependencies and perform work in sequential workflow. Gantt charts have become a valuable tool in breaking down large tasks into smaller tasks, setting dependencies, and facilitating collaboration in Agile environments.

Conclusion

Gantt chart software is a great project planning, scheduling, and management tool that provides you a great control over project management. Especially, when you are working on large and complex projects with dependent relationships and many moving parts, it allows you to break projects into easily manageable small tasks, set task dependencies, estimate project delivery, forecast project costs, and create a detailed roadmap. 

By investing in the right tool, you can ensure that you work with a team efficiently, control the project better, and make sure that you complete the project within budget and time.