Why look beyond Microsoft Planner?
The limitations add up fast
Microsoft Planner comes bundled with Microsoft 365, which makes it the default choice for tons of corporate teams. Free (technically) and integrated with Teams, Outlook, and SharePoint. But honestly? After using it for 6 months at a previous job, I get why people are looking for alternatives.
The interface feels dated compared to what's out there in 2026. Everything takes more clicks than it should. Want to move a task between buckets? Click, drag, hope it lands in the right spot. Need to see dependencies? Good luck, because Planner doesn't really do task dependencies in any meaningful way.
Look, here's the thing: Planner works fine for basic task lists and simple Kanban boards. If your team just needs to track "To Do / In Progress / Done" and nothing more complex, it'll get you by. But the second you need automation, custom workflows, time tracking, or better reporting, you'll start feeling the limitations.
The mobile app is clunky. I remember trying to update tasks from my phone during a commute and it was just... frustrating. Slow loading, weird UI decisions, and the iOS app crashes more than it should for a Microsoft product.
Reporting is another pain point. Planner's built-in charts show you basic progress, but if you need actual insights (who's overloaded, what's blocking projects, where time is going), you're stuck exporting to Excel or using Power BI. Which defeats the point of having project management software.
Maybe you're just tired of the Microsoft ecosystem. That's totally valid. Or maybe your company is finally letting teams choose their own tools instead of forcing everything through Microsoft 365. Whatever the reason, there are way better options that cost about the same (or less) and actually feel good to use in 2026.
monday.com
Best visual, modern alternative
monday.com is probably the most popular Planner alternative for corporate teams making the switch. The visual boards immediately feel more modern and flexible than Planner's basic Kanban setup. You get color-coded columns, multiple view types (Board, Timeline, Calendar, Gantt), and automations that actually work without needing IT to set them up.
What sets monday.com apart from Planner is how customizable everything is. Need a custom field for budget tracking? Add it. Want to automate notifications when a task hits a certain status? Two clicks. Planner makes you work around its limitations; monday.com adapts to how your team actually works.
The collaboration features are stupidly good. Comments, @mentions, file attachments, updates feed. Everything you'd expect from a modern project tool. Planner has some of this, but monday.com's implementation feels way more polished. The mobile app is actually pleasant to use, which is rare.
Pricing is where it gets interesting. monday.com starts at $8/user/month (billed annually), which is technically more than "free" Planner. But if you factor in how much time you save with better automation and reporting, most teams break even within a month or two. Plus, for teams already paying for Microsoft 365, you're not really saving money by using Planner: you're just using what you already paid for.
The reporting dashboards are what sold my last team on monday.com. We could actually see project health at a glance, track time spent on different initiatives, and spot bottlenecks before they became problems. In Planner, we were guessing based on incomplete data and manually updating spreadsheets.
Downside? monday.com can feel overwhelming at first. There are SO many features and customization options that new users sometimes freeze up. Planner's simplicity is actually an advantage for very small teams who just need basic task tracking. But once you push past the learning curve (usually a week or two), most people don't want to go back.
Integrations are excellent too. Slack, Google Drive, Zoom, Salesforce: all the tools your team probably already uses. Planner only really plays nice with other Microsoft products, which gets limiting fast if your team uses a mix of tools.
Motion
Best AI-powered alternative
Motion takes a completely different approach than Planner. Instead of you manually organizing tasks into buckets and boards, Motion's AI does most of the scheduling work for you. Type in your tasks, set deadlines and priorities, and Motion auto-schedules everything on your calendar based on what you can actually accomplish.
This is game-changing if you're coming from Planner, where you have to manually figure out when to work on what. Motion looks at your calendar (meetings, blocked time, etc.) and slots tasks into available gaps. As things change throughout the day, it automatically reschedules. No more Sunday night panic trying to plan the week.
The project management side is solid too. You can create projects, assign tasks to team members, set dependencies, and track progress. It's not as visually customizable as monday.com, but honestly, the trade-off is worth it because the AI scheduling saves ridiculous amounts of time.
Motion also handles meeting scheduling, booking links, and team calendars. So you're replacing not just Planner, but also Calendly and some of the manual scheduling you were probably doing in Outlook. For busy professionals who live in back-to-back meetings, this consolidation alone is worth it.
Here's the catch: Motion is expensive. $19/month per user for teams (or $34/month if you pay monthly instead of annually). That's roughly 2-3x the cost of other alternatives on this list. But if your team's time is valuable and the AI scheduling genuinely saves hours per week, the ROI makes sense.
I've been testing Motion for about 3 months and the auto-scheduling still feels like magic. Tasks I'd procrastinate on in Planner just... appear on my calendar with dedicated time. Turns out I get way more done when the app tells me "work on this now" instead of leaving it as a floating task card.
Motion works best for individuals and small teams (5-15 people). If you need heavy collaboration features or complex project structures with 50+ people, tools like monday.com or ClickUp make more sense. But for focused teams who want AI to handle the busywork of scheduling, Motion wins.
Asana
Best for team workflows
Asana is probably the closest "like-for-like" replacement for Planner in terms of team collaboration and project management. Both use task cards, both have multiple views, both focus on getting teams aligned on work. But Asana is just... better at almost everything.
Task dependencies actually exist in Asana. You can set up workflows where Task B can't start until Task A is complete. Planner doesn't have this, which becomes a nightmare for complex projects where timing matters. I remember manually tracking dependencies in a spreadsheet alongside Planner because the app couldn't handle it. Never again.
Asana's Timeline view (Gantt charts) is beautiful and actually useful for planning. You can drag tasks to adjust dates, see how changes ripple through dependent tasks, and get a real sense of project health. Planner's timeline view is... well, it exists, but it's not great.
The free tier is surprisingly generous. Up to 15 team members can use Asana for free with unlimited tasks and projects. Planner is technically free too (if you have Microsoft 365), but Asana's free plan honestly offers more functionality. Premium starts at $10.99/user/month, which is competitive.
Custom fields and templates are where Asana pulls ahead for teams that run similar projects repeatedly. Create a template for "Product Launch" or "Client Onboarding" with all the standard tasks, dependencies, and assignees pre-configured. New project? Copy the template and adjust. In Planner, you're recreating this structure manually every time.
Collaboration features are solid. Task comments, file attachments, @mentions, project status updates. Everything works smoothly. The mobile app is way better than Planner's: faster, cleaner UI, fewer crashes.
Where Asana falls short compared to Planner: Microsoft 365 integration. If your team lives in Teams, Outlook, and SharePoint, Planner's tight integration is convenient. Asana has integrations for Microsoft products, but they're not quite as seamless. So if you're staying in the Microsoft ecosystem, this might be a minor downside.
Also, Asana can get overwhelming. There are lots of features, and new users sometimes complain about the learning curve. Planner's simplicity (even if limited) makes it easier to onboard new team members who aren't tech-savvy. Your call on whether more features are worth the initial complexity.
ClickUp
Best all-in-one powerhouse
ClickUp is what happens when a project management tool tries to do everything. Tasks, docs, wikis, goals, time tracking, chat, whiteboards, and probably five other features I'm forgetting. If Planner feels too basic, ClickUp is the opposite extreme.
The customization is ridiculous. You can configure views, statuses, fields, automations, and workflows to match exactly how your team works. Want 47 custom fields and a purple status called "Waiting on Bob"? Go for it. Planner gives you buckets and that's about it.
Multiple views are ClickUp's strength. List, Board, Calendar, Gantt, Timeline, Workload, Table, Mind Map, and more. Planner has Board, Grid, Schedule, and Charts. The difference is night and day for teams that need different perspectives on their work.
Time tracking is built-in, which is huge if your team bills hours or just wants to understand where time goes. Planner has zero time tracking capabilities. You'd need to use Harvest, Toggl, or Motion separately.
The free tier is incredibly generous. Unlimited tasks and members with most core features included. Paid plans start at $7/user/month, which undercuts most competitors while offering way more features than Planner.
Here's the problem: ClickUp is overwhelming. The first time you open it, you'll see approximately 500 options and wonder what half of them do. The learning curve is steep. I've watched teams adopt ClickUp, get confused by all the options, and actually switch back to simpler tools because they just wanted to track tasks, not learn a new operating system.
Performance can be sluggish too. With all those features running, ClickUp sometimes feels slower than lighter-weight tools. Loading boards with hundreds of tasks takes longer than it should. The mobile app works, but it's not as snappy as Asana or monday.com.
But if you want maximum flexibility and your team is willing to invest time in setup and training, ClickUp can replace Planner plus three other tools you're probably using. The ROI is there if you actually use the features. If you just need basic task management, it's overkill.
Trello
Best simple alternative
Trello is probably the simplest alternative on this list. If Planner feels too complicated or cluttered (which... fair, honestly), Trello strips project management down to the basics: cards, lists, and boards. That's it.
The Kanban-style boards are clean and intuitive. Even non-technical team members can figure out Trello in about 5 minutes. Drag cards between lists, add comments, attach files, set due dates. It does the essentials really well without overwhelming you with features.
Trello's free tier is solid for small teams. Unlimited cards and members, up to 10 boards per workspace. Planner is technically free (with Microsoft 365), but Trello is actually free regardless of what other software you're paying for.
Power-Ups (Trello's name for integrations) extend functionality. Need calendar view? Add the Calendar Power-Up. Want custom fields? Add that Power-Up. Free users get 1 Power-Up per board, paid users get unlimited. This modular approach means you only add complexity you actually need.
Where Trello falls short: advanced project management features just aren't there. No Gantt charts, limited reporting, no built-in time tracking, basic automation. If your projects need sophisticated dependency tracking or resource management, Trello won't cut it. It's better than Planner for simple task tracking, but worse than Planner if you need enterprise features.
The mobile app is excellent though. Fast, simple, works offline. This is where Trello beats most competitors, including Planner. I've updated Trello boards from spotty wifi on trains without issues.
Trello works best for smaller teams (5-20 people) doing straightforward projects. Marketing campaigns, content calendars, simple product development. If that's you, Trello's simplicity is a feature, not a limitation. For complex projects with 50+ people and interdependent tasks, look elsewhere.
Basecamp
Best for team communication
Basecamp takes a different approach than most project tools. Instead of focusing on individual tasks and status updates, Basecamp emphasizes communication and project context. It's project management meets team communication tool.
The to-do lists are straightforward. Create tasks, assign them, set due dates, mark them complete. No fancy Kanban boards, no complex workflows. Just lists. If Planner feels too corporate and rigid, Basecamp feels more human and flexible.
Message Boards replace the endless email threads that plague most corporate teams. Instead of task updates buried in Outlook, everything lives in Basecamp organized by project. The Hill Charts feature is genuinely unique: it visualizes project progress not as percentage complete, but as work moving "uphill" (still figuring it out) or "downhill" (executing on a clear plan).
Docs & Files gives you a shared space for project resources without bouncing between SharePoint and OneDrive and Teams and email. Everything related to a project lives in one place. For teams drowning in the scattered Microsoft 365 file system, this consolidation is honestly refreshing.
Pricing is flat-rate: $15/user/month (or $299/month for unlimited users). If you have a large team, that unlimited plan becomes cost-effective really fast. Planner scales with your Microsoft 365 seats, Basecamp doesn't. But for small teams (under 20 people), the per-user pricing might cost more than just sticking with Planner.
Basecamp's philosophy is deliberately simple. They're not trying to be ClickUp with 10,000 features. They're trying to be a calm, organized workspace for project collaboration. Some teams love this. Others find it limiting compared to the power features in Asana or monday.com.
No time tracking, no Gantt charts, no advanced automations. If you need those, Basecamp isn't the move. But if you're tired of complexity and just want a straightforward place for your team to coordinate work and communicate, Basecamp is worth exploring.
The mobile app is clean and functional. Better than Planner's, not as feature-rich as some competitors, but perfectly adequate for checking in on projects and responding to updates.
Choosing the right Microsoft Planner alternative
Picking the right Planner replacement depends on what frustrated you about Planner in the first place. Not all alternatives solve the same problems.
If Planner feels too basic
Go with monday.com or ClickUp. Both offer way more customization, better reporting, and features that scale with complex projects. monday.com is easier to learn; ClickUp has more power if you're willing to invest the time.
If you want AI to handle scheduling
Motion is the only real option here. The auto-scheduling is legitimately game-changing if you struggle with figuring out when to work on what. Expensive, but worth it for busy professionals.
If Planner feels too complicated
Wait, does Planner feel complicated? If so, try Trello. It's simpler, cleaner, and does the basics really well. Basecamp is another option if your team needs better communication tools alongside simple task management.
If you need better team collaboration
Asana or monday.com. Both nail the collaboration features that Planner sort of has but doesn't implement well. Task comments, status updates, file attachments: all work smoothly.
If you're on a tight budget
Trello and ClickUp have generous free tiers. Asana's free plan works for up to 15 people. Basecamp's unlimited plan ($299/month) is cost-effective for larger teams. monday.com and Motion are the priciest options, though both justify the cost with features.
If you're stuck in Microsoft 365
Honestly, all of these tools integrate with Microsoft products to some degree. But none of them will feel as "native" to the Microsoft ecosystem as Planner does. If that integration is critical (like, your IT department requires it), you might be limited to Planner or need to get approval for third-party tools.
If you need enterprise features
Asana, ClickUp, or monday.com for advanced reporting, custom workflows, and the ability to scale to hundreds of users. Trello and Motion are better for smaller teams.
Bottom line: most teams outgrow Planner eventually. The question isn't if you should switch, but which alternative fits your team's workflow best.
Tips for migrating from Microsoft Planner
Switching from Planner to another tool is less painful than you'd think, but there are some gotchas to watch for.
Export your data first
Planner doesn't have a great export option (classic Microsoft). You can export to Excel, but it's clunky and doesn't include comments, file attachments, or bucket structure. Screenshot important boards before migrating. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it beats losing context.
Don't migrate everything at once
Start with one project or team. Test the new tool, work out the kinks, then migrate other projects once you've figured out what works. Trying to move your entire organization in one weekend is a recipe for chaos and angry team members.
Most tools offer CSV import
Asana, ClickUp, and monday.com can import from Excel/CSV, which means you can export from Planner and import to your new tool. It won't be perfect (you'll need to manually recreate some structure), but it beats retyping everything.
Accept that some work will need manual recreation
Bucket names, custom labels, task descriptions with formatting: some of this won't transfer cleanly. Budget time for cleanup after migration. Usually a few hours depending on how many projects you're moving.
Train your team before the switch
Schedule a 30-minute walkthrough of the new tool before you migrate. Show people where to find their tasks, how to update status, how to communicate. The #1 reason migrations fail is people getting frustrated because they don't know how to use the new system.
Keep Planner in read-only mode for a week
Don't delete Planner boards immediately after migrating. Keep them around (read-only, no new updates) for a week or two so people can reference old tasks and comments as they adjust to the new tool. Once everyone's comfortable, then you can archive or delete the old boards.
Integrations need updating
If you have Power Automate flows, Teams integrations, or other automation connected to Planner, you'll need to rebuild those in your new tool. Most alternatives have Zapier or native integration options, but expect to spend some time reconfiguring workflows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is monday.com better than Microsoft Planner?
For most teams, yes. monday.com has better automation, cleaner design, more customization, and way better reporting. Planner wins if you absolutely need tight Microsoft 365 integration and don't want to pay extra. But if you care about features and user experience, monday.com takes it.
What's the cheapest Microsoft Planner alternative?
Trello and ClickUp have solid free tiers that beat Planner's free offering (which isn't really free since you're paying for Microsoft 365). Asana's free plan works for teams up to 15 people. If you need more than that, ClickUp at $7/user/month is probably the best value.
Can I switch from Planner without losing data?
Sort of. You can export tasks to Excel/CSV and import to most alternatives. But comments, file attachments, and some structure will need manual recreation. It's not seamless, but it's doable in a few hours depending on how much data you have.
Which alternative works best for large teams?
Asana or monday.com for traditional project management. ClickUp if you want maximum customization. Basecamp if you have 20+ people and want the unlimited pricing plan. Motion doesn't scale as well to large teams (it's better for small focused groups).
Do any alternatives integrate with Microsoft Teams?
Yes. Asana, monday.com, ClickUp, and Trello all have Microsoft Teams integrations. They're not as "native" as Planner (which is built into Teams), but they work fine for notifications, task creation, and updates.
Is Microsoft Planner actually free?
Technically yes, if you have a Microsoft 365 subscription. But you're paying for Microsoft 365, so it's more accurate to say Planner is "included" rather than "free." If you're not using other Microsoft 365 apps and only need project management, you're probably overpaying.
Which alternative is easiest to learn?
Trello, hands down. The Kanban boards are intuitive and simple. Basecamp is also pretty straightforward. Asana and monday.com have more features so there's a bit more learning curve, but nothing too steep. ClickUp is the most complex and takes the longest to master.