Microsoft Project vs. MindManager

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Microsoft Project
Score 7.5 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.
$10
per user/per month
MindManager
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
MindManager is a mind mapping and project management tool that aims to boost users’ productivity. It is designed to facilitate a wide range of project types, and includes cross-platform functionality and 3rd party integrations.
$105
per year
Pricing
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Editions & Modules
Project Plan 1
$10
per user/per month
Project Plan 3
$30
per user/per month
Project Plan 5
$55
per user/per month
MindManager for Microsoft Teams
$105
per year
Annual Subscription
$179
per year
Organizations
Contact sales team
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Considered Both Products
Microsoft Project

No answer on this topic

MindManager
Chose MindManager
Visualization is one of the biggest benefits of MindManager vs. other Project Management solutions such as Microsoft Project. It is easy to visualize a project from beginning to end and see every topic/subtopic/tasks/resources. When there are changes that occur during a …
Chose MindManager
Mindnode will be my choice if MJ opt to keep the expert to PPT feature out.
Chose MindManager
MindManager is a more mature product than most other products that we have reviewed or tried for mind mapping and project planning. It is very feature-rich, and since it has similar styles to the Microsoft suite of products, users are familiar with the interface and find it …
Chose MindManager
MindManager is much easier to modify and add to and it is much easier to see how all the different topics interact.
Chose MindManager
Project is OK for scheduling things, but it lacks the free space concepts that MindManager brings to the table. Project has some characteristics that are better than MindManager, but overall, MindManager is much more flexible and easier to use for other things beside projects. …
Chose MindManager
MM integrates better with Office vs Novamind. MM is the recommended mapping software for our company. We have colleagues already using MM so it is easier to share maps across the organization.
Chose MindManager
As mentioned earlier, the flexibility and integration of Mindjet was nice, but it wasn't specialized. We had destincly different needs from two different business units (process engineering and project management) Other programs were built for these specific tasks and were …
Top Pros

No answers on this topic

Top Cons

No answers on this topic

Features
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Project Management
Comparison of Project Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Project
8.0
107 Ratings
6% above category average
MindManager
-
Ratings
Task Management9.0106 Ratings00 Ratings
Resource Management6.9103 Ratings00 Ratings
Gantt Charts10.0103 Ratings00 Ratings
Scheduling9.9105 Ratings00 Ratings
Workflow Automation8.582 Ratings00 Ratings
Team Collaboration7.795 Ratings00 Ratings
Support for Agile Methodology7.679 Ratings00 Ratings
Support for Waterfall Methodology8.279 Ratings00 Ratings
Document Management7.276 Ratings00 Ratings
Email integration6.081 Ratings00 Ratings
Mobile Access7.966 Ratings00 Ratings
Timesheet Tracking8.472 Ratings00 Ratings
Change request and Case Management8.462 Ratings00 Ratings
Budget and Expense Management6.382 Ratings00 Ratings
Professional Services Automation
Comparison of Professional Services Automation features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Project
7.0
76 Ratings
6% below category average
MindManager
-
Ratings
Quotes/estimates7.053 Ratings00 Ratings
Invoicing7.044 Ratings00 Ratings
Project & financial reporting6.973 Ratings00 Ratings
Integration with accounting software6.949 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Small Businesses
Stackby
Stackby
Score 9.8 out of 10
SmartDraw
SmartDraw
Score 6.3 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
SAP Ruum
SAP Ruum
Score 9.0 out of 10
Freehand by InVision
Freehand by InVision
Score 7.8 out of 10
Enterprises
Quickbase
Quickbase
Score 9.2 out of 10
Miro
Miro
Score 9.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Likelihood to Recommend
6.6
(107 ratings)
9.4
(194 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(3 ratings)
8.2
(21 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(5 ratings)
7.6
(16 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(5 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(4 ratings)
Support Rating
8.2
(34 ratings)
8.2
(13 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
6.4
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
5.0
(1 ratings)
7.3
(4 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(3 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
3.6
(2 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(4 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(3 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(3 ratings)
User Testimonials
Microsoft ProjectMindManager
Likelihood to Recommend
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
Alludo
I love to outline in MM and its ability to link related maps. Great help to me as a writer! I don't love the export of the outlines. Needs to be a cleaner, simpler look. I work around it, though. I rated the above question 6 only because it's too expensive. I've had it for years and, until recently, got almost every upgrade. I can't afford it now and may have to look for an alternative to keep updated software. Bummer!
Read full review
Pros
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
Alludo
  • Great to segment things out (projects, organizational charts, processes, workloads, etc) and gives you a full picture of the job.
  • It is user friendly, simple to use, and powerful.
  • MS Office and Teams integration is great. Allows for easy collaboration.
  • Great GUI and visuals
  • Excellent method for project planning and brainstorming
Read full review
Cons
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
Alludo
  • I find formatting a challenge. Example, make all the boxes the same format and fonts so when you add a box, it understands the format of the top level box.
  • I have played around with some of the templates but find creating my own each time is better route. The project plan template is very good but I find myself deleting boxes and again, takes more time than creating a new map every time.
  • I try to get colleagues to use MM but they are intimidated by the UI. I am really comfortable with it but to them it can look more complex than it really is.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Microsoft
I like using Microsoft Project. It simplifies building a schedule
Read full review
Alludo
I feel the main issues of the old Mindjet seem to be gone with the
Corel purchase. With the huge advance of sharing via browser HTML even 1
user can affect many. And, actually, using MM kind of forced my rigid
brain to rethink how I categorize and classify information/projects.
The
idea of paying $69USD for an annual cost is more than fair and a great
model for Corel/Mindjet to keep rolling out improvements!
Read full review
Usability
Microsoft
Microsoft Project was for many years the reference tool when you were talking about project management software, even if it has some gaps. However, in the last several years, other tools emerged and covered those gaps and are getting more and more users. Microsoft needs to keep up with the trends as they did with adding Project Server. However, that needs a significant rework.
Read full review
Alludo
MindManager is very intuitive. The user interface is not cluttered and the ribbon icons are easy to understand. Several excellent "how-to" videos are available on the MindManager site as well as on YouTube. MindManager starts quickly and the user interface is very responsive. Launching other programs from MindManager such as Excel is very fast and issue free. The browsing feature is lightning fast. The drag-and-drop capability is also very fast and reliable.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Alludo
Almost perfect.
Read full review
Performance
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Alludo
The application is quick and responsive. We are able to produce mindmaps and reports with ease. The program is not complicated at all and integrates well with software and programs like Microsoft Outlook and Teams, which we truly appreciate.
Read full review
Support Rating
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
Alludo
I have called technical support a few times. During the COVID Crisis, I called a few times repeatedly due to a rush request. The technical support guy called me back in minutes. He somehow knew that I had called repeatedly and wanted to make sure my issue was resolved immediately
Read full review
Online Training
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Alludo
The videos are not well categorized...I had to do a bit of digging to get what I wanted and many videos on older versions. If Mindjet was to improve the titles used that would help.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Microsoft
I wasn't part of it so I don't know
Read full review
Alludo
Wasn't involved but works great for me.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
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
Alludo
Both are equally good. Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is used to get the models in a more technical format in comparison to the MindManager. MindManager is easier to use in comparison to Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect. MindManager makes collaboration easy and can be understood by a layman and does not need to have specific software training.
Read full review
Scalability
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Alludo
A team can collaborate on the same project but cannot create a shared project file. It would be helpful for that feature to be added.
Read full review
Return on Investment
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
Alludo
  • When scope planning before I was introduced to this tool, I needed to make one master Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) for the entire project and move on. With MindMapper, I typically generate about 20 WBS-like charts throughout the project, which encouraged conversation with staff members. The major key in such ease of use has been some well thought out and very intuitive keystroke planning that allows me to keep up with the free flow of ideas.
  • This software's cross-functional capability allowed 10 engineers to create their projects directly within their own environment without use of a virtual machine.
Read full review
ScreenShots

MindManager Screenshots

Screenshot of MindmapScreenshot of Reverse BrainstormingScreenshot of MindManager for Microsoft TeamsScreenshot of MindManager SnapScreenshot of MindManager GoScreenshot of Mind Maps in MindManager