10 Best Project Management Software for Small Businesses in the US (2026)

monday.com, the Tel Aviv company (Nasdaq: MNDY) founded in 2012, lets teams build colorful boards for almost any workflow and includes AI credits in every paid plan. The free plan covers two seats and three boards; Basic costs $9 per seat a month billed annually ($12 monthly), but plans start at three seats, and timeline and Gantt views, guest access and automations only arrive with Standard. In 2025 it rolled out its sidekick AI assistant and monday agents, a no-code builder for AI agents. Best for: teams of three or more that want a flexible, visual tool and will pay for the Standard plan.

ClickUp, the San Diego company founded in 2017, combines tasks, docs, goals and chat in one app and is one of the cheapest ways to get Gantt charts and time tracking. Free Forever allows unlimited members but only 60 MB of storage and 100 automation actions a month; Core costs $9 per user a month billed yearly and adds unlimited Gantt charts, time tracking, unlimited storage, 1,000 automation actions and 1,000 AI credits per user. Every member of your own organization counts as a paid user, and guest seats are capped. In late 2025 it added new AI assistants and bought the AI coding company Codegen. Best for: cost-conscious teams that want tasks, docs and time tracking in one tool.

Trello, owned by Atlassian (Nasdaq: TEAM) since 2017, is the simplest tool here: drag-and-drop Kanban boards that anyone can learn in minutes. The free plan covers up to 10 collaborators and 10 boards per workspace with unlimited Power-Ups; Standard costs $5 per user a month billed annually ($6 monthly) and adds AI features, while calendar, timeline, table and dashboard views need Premium at $10. Guests who join more than one board are billed as members. Best for: very small teams that manage their work on simple boards.

Smartsheet, taken private by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners in an $8.4 billion deal completed in January 2025, works like a spreadsheet with project tools built in: Gantt and Kanban views and AI helpers come on every plan. There is no free plan, only a 30-day trial; Pro costs $9 per member a month billed yearly for 1 to 10 members with unlimited free contributors who can view and comment, and Business costs $19 with a three-member minimum. Pro is limited to 250 automations a month and has no timeline view, and time tracking needs the Resource Management add-on. In November 2026 it announced new AI agents. Best for: spreadsheet-minded teams that want Gantt charts on the cheapest plan.

Wrike, the San Diego company owned by Symphony Technology Group since 2023, has a free plan for basic task management with board and table views, and its Team plan, at $10 per user a month billed annually for 2 to 15 users, adds Gantt charts and AI features. Business, at $25 per user, is sold only on annual contracts, and time tracking and resource planning sit on higher plans priced by quote. Since February 2026 it has launched AI agents and a conversational AI agent builder. Best for: small teams that want Gantt charts and AI features at a low per-user price.

Basecamp, from 37signals, is the only tool here with flat pricing instead of per-user fees, and it released an all-new Basecamp 5 in 2026. The free plan covers one project and three users; Freelancer costs $29 a month for 3 projects and 5 users, Pro $79 for 8 projects and 10 users, Pro Plus $99 for 12 projects and 15 users with time tracking, and Pro Unlimited $199 a month billed annually ($329 monthly) for unlimited projects and users. Everyone you add, including clients, counts toward the user limit. Best for: small agencies and teams that want a predictable flat bill and a simple place to work with clients.

Teamwork.com is built for agencies and client-service firms, with Gantt charts and time logging on every plan, including a free plan for up to 5 users and 5 projects. Basics costs $9.99 per user a month billed annually with a three-user minimum and includes AI assistants; Accelerate, at $24.99 per user with a five-user minimum, adds invoicing from logged time and workload planning. AI is included in paid plans for an introductory period, with usage-based AI credits starting in November 2026. Best for: agencies and service businesses that bill clients for tracked time.

Zoho Projects, part of the Zoho business-software family, is free for up to 5 users and 3 projects, and its paid plans are among the cheapest here: Premium starts at $4 per user a month billed annually and adds timesheets and Zia AI, while Enterprise costs $9. It connects natively to Zoho Books, Zoho Invoice and Zoho Billing, but outside access is limited to read-only users on the higher plans, and resource management is an add-on. Best for: budget-conscious small teams, especially those already using other Zoho apps.

Jira, Atlassian’s tool for software teams, is free for up to 10 users with backlog, board, list, timeline and calendar views; Standard is listed at $8.48 per user a month and Premium at $15.56, with the per-user price depending on team size and billing. Paid plans include Atlassian’s Rovo AI for search, chat and agents, with monthly AI credit limits and overage billing starting in December 2026. It is built around sprints, backlogs and issue tracking, which can feel heavy for non-technical teams. Best for: small software and IT teams that plan their work in sprints.