Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
ActiveCollab
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Active Collab is a project management solution built around features such as task management, collaboration, time tracking, and invoicing.
$8
per member/per month
Asana
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Asana is a web and mobile project management app. With tasks, projects, conversations, and dashboards, Asana lets an entire team know who's doing what by when, enabling workload balancing. Users can also add integrations for GANTT charts, time tracking and more.
$13.49
per month per user
Microsoft Project
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Project is a project management software. It provides core PM functionality, including agile workflow support and resource management. Project can be deployed in the cloud or on-premise.
$120
per year per user
Pricing
ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
Editions & Modules
ActiveCollab Project Management
$8
per member/per month
Self-Hosted Plan
$999.00
license
Starter
$13.49
per month per user
Advanced
$30.49
per month per user
Enterprise
Contact Sales
Personal
Free
Project Server
$0
Planner Plan 1
$10
per month per user
Planner and Project Plan 3
$30
per month per user
Planner and Project Plan 5
$55
per month per user
Project Standard 2024
$679.99
one-time fee per installation
Project Professional 2024
$1,129.99
one-time fee per installation
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
Free Trial
YesYesYes
Free/Freemium Version
YesYesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesYesNo
Entry-level Setup Fee$6.25 per member, per month, annual billingOptionalNo setup fee
Additional DetailsA discount is offered for annual billing.Plans are billed annually.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
Considered Multiple Products
ActiveCollab
Chose ActiveCollab
ActiveCollab is easier to use and simpler in its setup. It has the right mix of features and simplicity. It's also project-oriented which is important for our workflow. Other tools are often too task-oriented, making it hard to track projects. Overall, ActiveCollab has a great …
Chose ActiveCollab
ActiveCollab is 100% better than any of the other tools we have used. We had previously spent thousands of dollars trying out different software that was comparable, but this has been one of the best decisions we have made as a company. It's also the cheapest ongoing option, …
Chose ActiveCollab
Certainly, each of them has a particular advantage, which in the end makes it unique. ActiveCollab also belongs to a group of platforms created to be represented in particular, its way of project management is superior to JIRA or Trello. With this software, the work is more …
Chose ActiveCollab
ActiveCollab has all the functions that are in these services, unlike them. Not everywhere there is a diagram of gantt. And somewhere the interface is very rewarded and in general looks obsolete.
Asana
Chose Asana
I view Asana as a lightweight PM tool, more for task management and collaboration.
Chose Asana
Comparing to other not so complex project management solutions (which does not include Primavera, for example), Asana is way better due to the experience it provides to users and the alignment with the new trends of project management approaches such as Agile. Therefore, the …
Chose Asana
Trello - great but a bit young. Good integration points. I think it could be a good too to integrate with. Some people enjoy the KanBan type view and Asana doesn't have that currently.
Basecamp - more project manager focused but also a good integration point.
JIRA - Better for …
Chose Asana
Asana is much simpler to use that Microsoft Project or Zoho Projects. Anyone can jump in and start using the software. There are also tutorial videos available on their website if you need any sort of clarification. You also can't beat free or low cost, depending on how many …
Chose Asana
We also use Active Collab to track tasks and issue work tickets. I find this to be a much harder tool to use vs. Asana. It was not in the drop down menue above but its a tool we actively use and I can tell you its hard to find tickets once you have created them and assigned …
Microsoft Project
Chose Microsoft Project
MS project stands up over Asana because it is more formal. When you realize that you need to submit a proposal to a huge company or federal organization, you must use the most complete software to do that. In addition, MS Project helps to integrate costs and human resources in …
Chose Microsoft Project
It has many advantages over Asana. It's cheaper but can still give effective presentations. Sharing information is easy and the support is great.
Chose Microsoft Project
Better suited for everyone in the team due to an existing partnership with Microsoft for access to other software suite provided by them.
Chose Microsoft Project
Microsoft Project had the strongest integrations and Gantt chart qualities. As a team that uses Outlook, Skype, DevOps and the Office Suite, it became clear that Project suited our needs best. Additionally, testing found that the user interface and security features pleased …
Chose Microsoft Project
While many of the above tools are extremely well-versed, Microsoft Project's largest advantage comes from it being related to the largest business productivity company in the world. Project does have its sharing limitations - but regardless, offers one of the most robust tools …
Chose Microsoft Project
I selected Microsoft project because we use many other Microsoft products. The advantage it has over competitors is the data visualization, which gives it a good return on investment. The project management tools are good, but other platforms have more features and integrations.
Chose Microsoft Project
The strength it has is that it's the best complete solution for project planning. I would choose Microsoft Project over cloud solutions only if the requirements specify self-hosted solutions or that it allows integration with the AD and other corporate tools. But be prepared to …
Features
ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
Project Management
Comparison of Project Management features of Product A and Product B
ActiveCollab
3.6
13 Ratings
73% below category average
Asana
8.3
179 Ratings
7% above category average
Microsoft Project
8.0
111 Ratings
3% above category average
Task Management5.112 Ratings9.2179 Ratings8.2110 Ratings
Resource Management1.08 Ratings8.0152 Ratings7.7107 Ratings
Gantt Charts3.07 Ratings9.061 Ratings9.0107 Ratings
Scheduling1.011 Ratings8.4162 Ratings8.4109 Ratings
Workflow Automation7.01 Ratings9.0132 Ratings10.083 Ratings
Team Collaboration6.113 Ratings9.4178 Ratings7.398 Ratings
Support for Agile Methodology7.07 Ratings8.57 Ratings4.883 Ratings
Support for Waterfall Methodology7.01 Ratings8.57 Ratings7.783 Ratings
Document Management3.08 Ratings8.2150 Ratings9.077 Ratings
Email integration4.09 Ratings8.2142 Ratings5.082 Ratings
Mobile Access1.110 Ratings8.7149 Ratings10.067 Ratings
Timesheet Tracking2.09 Ratings6.16 Ratings10.073 Ratings
Change request and Case Management1.08 Ratings8.44 Ratings7.764 Ratings
Budget and Expense Management2.07 Ratings7.077 Ratings7.686 Ratings
Professional Services Automation
Comparison of Professional Services Automation features of Product A and Product B
ActiveCollab
5.7
8 Ratings
30% below category average
Asana
6.5
48 Ratings
17% below category average
Microsoft Project
8.8
79 Ratings
13% above category average
Quotes/estimates6.97 Ratings00 Ratings7.755 Ratings
Invoicing6.96 Ratings00 Ratings10.045 Ratings
Project & financial reporting1.07 Ratings5.51 Ratings7.476 Ratings
Integration with accounting software7.94 Ratings7.647 Ratings10.050 Ratings
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ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
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Score 8.9 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
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User Ratings
ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
Likelihood to Recommend
1.6
(13 ratings)
9.0
(208 ratings)
8.1
(111 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
9.6
(34 ratings)
10.0
(3 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(36 ratings)
8.7
(9 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
8.4
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.1
(3 ratings)
5.0
(42 ratings)
8.2
(34 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
ActiveCollabAsanaMicrosoft Project
Likelihood to Recommend
ActiveCollab
Scenarios where ActiveCollab works well 1) ActiveCollab works well for small teams specifically T&M teams.Its invoicing feature is unique & can make your life easy. 2) It is very easy to use & posses good range of filters like on the task list, we can drag/drop tasks, Filter by assignee's,
tasks lists, due dates, or completed tasks. 3) It has some simple but awesome features like when you're in
the middle of writing something i.e a comment on story and get interrupted,
it retains what you wrote. 4) It allows you to tag team members in threads of comments to grab their attention, its really needed when teams are distributed. Thus helping team members to collaborate easily & stay on same page. 5) It integrates pretty well with other web apps like quickbooks , Slack, Trello, HubSpot, Zapier etc Scenarios where ActiveCollab did not work well 1) Tasks can not have multiple assignee's here so if two members are working on same task it did not allow you to reflect that. 2) Sorting capability is not their under invoicing 3) It did not work well for larger teams 4) Search option is not very detailed & you may end up wasting lot of time searching one particular bug or issue.












Read full review
Asana
The usability of Asana is broad since it's available in a variety of platforms that are widely used nowadays. I think that it would be great for people who are constantly on the move and switching devices, since it has allowed me to work from my phone, too. I also think that Asana has proven itself to handle a large quantity of work
Read full review
Microsoft
Microsoft Project Online is suited to Turnkey Projects where more Collaboration is required in Project Progress monitoring, risk assessment and conveying, issue recording and tracking. It is less appropriate when ERP Suites other than MS Dynamics are used, i.e when Enterprises need to integrate Finance / Accounting with It and having straight project management workflow
Read full review
Pros
ActiveCollab
  • Great for project and task assignments, project workflow and communications.
  • Solid web-based platform that doesn't require software downloads, also includes great mobile platform.
  • Great reporting tools for managing billing, estimating, project workflow and other essential project details.
  • Allows for both the agency and its clients to interact on a single platform using role-specific permissions.
Read full review
Asana
  • Through it, we were able to communicate and cooperate with the rest of the team to complete the work in the required manner and at the appropriate time.
  • Available for free on Android and iPhone.
  • Asana has a simple and easy user interface
Read full review
Microsoft
  • I love the Gantt Chart that Microsoft Project offers me, because it provides me with a view from various aspects, it provides me with exact details about the fulfillment of tasks over a period of time, it also allows me to make comparisons with the necessary data and the fulfilled data. by the employees, in order to know exactly if the project's expectations have been met.
  • I love the Gantt Chart that Microsoft Project offers me, because it provides me with a view from various aspects, it provides me with exact details about the fulfillment of tasks over a period of time, it also allows me to make comparisons with the necessary data and the fulfilled data by the employees, in order to know exactly if the project's expectations have been met.
  • The alert system for the fulfillment and delay of assignments is perfect. Microsoft Project allows me to configure the task system, I can assign the necessary tasks to fulfill the project, and the software alerts me immediately if the managers are fulfilling the assignments.
Read full review
Cons
ActiveCollab
  • It isn't possible to set members of staff as part time, so if someone is unavailable on certain days you must manually enter them as OOO every single day that they are not in, that other teammates work. Hours also can't be edited individually - everyone is treated as working the same hours in a day, rendering capacity planner useless for flexi working teams
  • Subtasks cannot be assigned their own hours and deadlines, meaning the To Do list view can't be seen in actual date order and capacity planner does not reflect all time allocated to an individual's schedule unless every task is set up as a separate task rather than subtask
  • There is no way to see all tasks of a certain type across multiple campaigns (e.g all copywriting tasks vs all technical tasks) - support team suggested exporting data and making spreadsheets
  • Kanban view isn't available for people's own task lists ('board' view here shows a list)
  • Not possible to have one task be assigned to more than one person
  • Notifications are not sent when tasks are updated, so you have to leave comments and tag people each time
Read full review
Asana
  • Asana is not really a project management tool, it is good for simple projects only
  • UI has some glitches (doesn't save preferences, etc.)
  • Integration with other tools (Office 365, MS Project)
  • No reminders if the working period you entered is on holidays
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Seems overly complicated for users sometimes in using Project and its functionalities
  • Hard to share files for those folks who do not have MS Project, and then have to print out for them
  • Can be confusing since it looks and feels like MS Excel
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
ActiveCollab
No answers on this topic
Asana
  • Mobile + Desktop capabilities - Able to use it anywhere, anytime.
  • Task management - Easy to view projects and their progress.
  • Time management - Easy to see what elements require time / how they interrelate and manage the project on an overall basis.
  • Company management - Be able to see from a master dashboard perspective where each project is in its stages of completion.
  • Clear communication - It's visually documented who is doing what at what time so that the whole project gets done.
Read full review
Microsoft
I like using Microsoft Project. It simplifies building a schedule
Read full review
Usability
ActiveCollab
No answers on this topic
Asana
It is very user-friendly. Takes a new employee an hour to start figuring out how the system works. That's an important factor. You don't want to encounter the issue where employees need a week to understand how the system works. For example, JIRA, I tried using it for a week and I still don't understand the complicated layout. Asana has a simple interface. Once you see it, you get it type of program.
Read full review
Microsoft
Microsoft
Project is easy to operate because data could be inserted, changed and
deleted like you are in an Excel timesheet. Besides, it provides a great
level of automation beween his fields allowing few data changes. Also, its
funcionalities are well defined and grouped in upper menus, so you can find a
funcionality quickly
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
ActiveCollab
No answers on this topic
Asana
Working with Asana on a daily basis
Read full review
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
ActiveCollab
We have not required support for ActiveCollab as it works pretty seamlessly. We didn't have any issues with using the platform or with any billing issues. The self-service aspect of the platform is robust and easy to navigate so we have not encountered any errors that required assistance from the support team.
Read full review
Asana
I haven't had to use their support so I can't rate it. The fact that I haven't needed them reflects the ease of use of the product. I would recommend that any new users schedule a complete demo of the product to ensure that they are using it to it's fullest (there's a lot of useful features).
Read full review
Microsoft
Microsoft in recent years has transformed itself and gives a positive feeling when one interacts with the company. The company is focusing on its customers and willing to go extra mile to make customers happy.The company continues to invest in its products and bringing new features from time to time. Overall it is a positive feeling to be associated with such an iconic company.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
ActiveCollab
No answers on this topic
Asana
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
I wasn't part of it so I don't know
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
ActiveCollab
ActiveCollab is easier to use and simpler in its setup. It has the right mix of features and simplicity. It's also project-oriented which is important for our workflow. Other tools are often too task-oriented, making it hard to track projects. Overall, ActiveCollab has a great mix of simplicity with good features.
Read full review
Asana
Asana is a top-tier project management software that helps us organize and track projects from start to finish. It allows us to apply tasks/to-dos to multiple projects without duplication, divide complex projects into smaller tasks, and track project progress. It also helps us organize work on Kanban boards or linear lists. It stands out from the crowd in a big way compared to the competition.
Read full review
Microsoft
While many of the above tools are extremely well-versed, Microsoft Project's largest advantage comes from it being related to the largest business productivity company in the world. Project does have its sharing limitations - but regardless, offers one of the most robust tools in the market today. Microsoft Project is built with large-scale projects in mind but is more than up to the task for smaller projects as well. However, there are options available (especially cloud-based options) that may be more fitting for higher-level projects that do not require going into the weeds.
Read full review
Scalability
ActiveCollab
No answers on this topic
Asana
I used this tool on a daily basis at work and it runs as a solid rock
Read full review
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
ActiveCollab
  • Allows our team to stay organized and keep conversations on tasks.
  • The To-Do List email every morning helps me mentally prepare and know exactly what I should be doing as soon as I start work.
  • Powerful and useful integrations save lots of time (Google Drive, Slack, Dropbox, Zapier and more!).
Read full review
Asana
  • Productivity - Most of all, it allows me to be more productive and have a good sense of where I am with projects and deadlines.
  • Easy to use - I can make the most of my time to get up (and stay) up and running.
  • Project coordination - Allows me to assign tasks to my interns and communicate directly within the platform to keep the work train moving.
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Project saved me, as the project manager, countless hours of digging through tickets and schedules to plan everything out. It also saved me time in adjusting the project triangle as needed, since it does so much automatically.
  • It is costly, and since it requires extensive training to master, it's not just the high licensing cost that you need to take into account.
  • The reporting features - even just printing out Gantt charts - makes it far easier to communicate with stakeholders. That means less time for PMs doing all of this manually, and it means less follow-up questions and delays moving forward.
Read full review
ScreenShots

ActiveCollab Screenshots

Screenshot of the dashboard with an overview of projects.Screenshot of multiple task views currently showing a Kanban view of the tasklists and tasks.Screenshot of Overview of all recent activity.Screenshot of Calendar view with task dependencies.Screenshot of Permission settings (owner, member, client, client+).Screenshot of List of available Add-ons.

Asana Screenshots

Screenshot of Product HomepageScreenshot of Team ConversationsScreenshot of Project CalendarsScreenshot of InboxScreenshot of List ProjectScreenshot of Portfolios