Nonprofits deal with a range of projects and initiatives that need to be managed simultaneously to achieve the benefits they are trying to offer to society.
These projects involve a lot of moving parts and many individuals and teams to make them happen.
Managing all these aspects can be quite challenging and can spend both time and resources that could otherwise be put to better use.
Non-profit project management software is a great way to organize resources, break down tasks, create automated workflows and execute projects with higher chances of success.
According to a Project Management Institute, non-profits consider 53% of their projects as challenging and not meeting the set goals. Therefore, the need to have project management software to handle all the project operations is predominant.
A failed project for a non-profit is not only a great loss for the organization itself but also for the contributors. With digitalization, the need to have a great tool in place to handle all aspects of the multiple projects in your organization is even more.
That is where nonprofit project management tools come into play. But with so many options the choice can often be quite confusing and daunting.
That is why we have listed down our top picks for the best nonprofit project management tools that are available for you to choose as well as what they can offer your nonprofit organization.
So, let’s get right to it. But first, why should you even consider a nonprofit project management tool?
Why Do You Need Nonprofit Project Management Tools?
A nonprofit organization often deals with a variety of different yet important projects that go through several teams before they can reach their conclusion. Having a centralized platform to keep these projects and teams organized and on the same page is therefore imperative.
Nonprofit project management tools can help the teams involved in the projects streamline their processes and stay on top of their work.
There are multiple things to gain from project management tools for nonprofit organizations. Here are a few of the reasons why you need nonprofit project management tools for your organization.
Project Management Tools Offer Overviews and Allow You to Keep Up-to-Date
Nonprofits have many different moving parts and those in managerial positions need a means by which they can view and keep track of the many different initiatives that are underway.
With project management tools you can gain transparency of all running projects and those being considered all within a single centralized platform. Such tools offer things such as Kanban boards. Summary views, and portfolio views to gain a holistic picture of what is in the works for the organization.
Project Management Tools Offer Easy Communication for Nonprofits That Operate Remotely
For nonprofits that operate remotely, one of the biggest challenges is a lack of effective communication which in turn leads to plenty of issues and problems.
Project management tools provide a platform where team members no matter their geographical location can easily communicate and collaborate on projects and tasks.
Using a project management tool to communicate allows you to contain all correspondence where it is easily accessible for all those involved and you avoid the risk of overlooking important information which is possible when you communicate via emails.
Project Management Tools Help Future Projects by a Look at Past Projects
Dealing with multiple initiatives, it can be beneficial for nonprofits to look back on past projects and see what worked and what could be improved on. It also allows them to have a reference for making budgets and schedules.
Project management tools offer a way to view past projects and track how they progressed as well as get a quick overview of different projects at once.
Project Management Tools Help with Document Management
Project Management tools are a centralized platform to organize all the elements associated with a project. This involves any relevant documents and files.
Project management tools allow you to manage, share, and collaborate on files and have them stored within the application.
The Best Nonprofit Project Management Tools of 2023
Here are our top picks for the best nonprofit project management tools available for you to choose from.
1. nTask
Our first pick is nTask. nTask is a project and task management tool that provides all the features you could need to easily manage and streamline your projects and all the initiatives you and your team are working on in your nonprofit organization.
The tool allows you to separate what is referred to as “workspaces” as well as projects to allow you and your team to separate different initiatives and ensure that there is no confusion between projects being worked upon.
The tool also has different pricing options including a basic plan which is entirely free of cost. Since nonprofits are organizations that are not aimed at making money and therefore saving money to be otherwise spent on beneficial projects is an added advantage of this project management tool.
Key Features:
- Gantt charts
- Kanban Boards
- Task management tools
- Communication and collaboration features
- Access controls and user management
- Timesheet modules
- Issue tracking and risk management
- Meeting management features
- Budget tracking
- File storage and sharing capabilities
Pricing:
nTask offers four different pricing plans.
- The Basic plan is free of cost
- Unlimited tasks
- Unlimited workspaces
- 100 MB storage
- Issues tracking
- Timesheets
- Meetings
- Limit of 5 members per team
- The Premium plan costs $3 per month per user
- Everything provided in the basic plan, plus
- Projects and Gantt charts
- Kanban Boards
- 5 GB storage
- Bulk Actions
- Custom filters
- The Business plan costs $8 per month, per user
- Everything that is provided in the premium plan, plus
- Custom roles and permissions
- 10 GB storage
- Risk management
- Finally, the Enterprise plan is customizable
- Everything in business, plus
- Dedicated cloud
- Custom onboarding
- Dedicated account manager
-
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2. Monday.com
Monday.com is another great free software for non-profits. The best part is that if you fit the eligibility criteria of a non-profit organization, Monday.com offers 10 seats on WorkOS for free.
Moreover, the software comes with various features to help you handle your small projects and collaborate with your team effectively. The software focuses on enhancing teamwork, automating workflows, managing deadlines, and organizing tasks.
Therefore, visualize and handle all your tasks in one place with the best project management software for non-profits.
Features
- 1000 GB Storage
- 5 years Activity log
- Private boards and documents
- Chart view
- Time tracking
- Formula and dependency column
- Up to 250,000 automation and integration actions
- 50 boards per dashboard
- Private Workspaces
- Pivot table
Pricing
- Individual- 10 Free seats and 70% on any additional seats
- Enterprise- Customized (Contact the team)
3. Trello
The next one on our list of nonprofit project management recommendations is Trello. Trello is primarily task management rather than a project management tool and is created by the Australian company Atlassian based on the Kanban framework.
With Trello, you and your team can organize everything that needs to be done following the basic to-do list format. Therefore, the tool is simple and straightforward to use and will be easy to incorporate into your organization.
The tool streamlines your organization’s workflow by outlining clearly what is in the works, what has been completed, and what is yet to be started. You gain constant updates as to the progress of tasks and projects with a clear overview at a quick glance.
Key Features:
- Data Filtering
- Progress Meter and checklists
- Categories, labels, and tags for proper organization
- File and attachment management
- SSL data encryption
- Activity dashboards
- Collaboration tools
Pricing:
- Trello offers four pricing plans.
- The first is the free plan. You can then choose to upgrade to the standard or premium plan which costs $5 per user, per month, and $10 per user, per month respectively.
- Finally, you have the Enterprise plan which is for organizations that wish to connect across teams with more control and security. The pricing for this plan depends on the number of users you have.
Find out more Trello Alternatives:
The 22 Best Trello Alternatives for Kanban Project Management
4. Beesbusy
Beesbusy is a planning and work management tool that provides you with the tools you need to organize, plan, and collaborate with team members to deliver successful projects and accomplish tasks with ease.
The tool is simple to use with a user-friendly interface and allows your team to start using the application right away without wasting valuable time on onboarding and other procedural steps.
The Beesbusy platform comes with an array of features to help you manage and organize your team and your projects within one software.
Key Features:
- Client portal
- Progress tracking
- Resource management
- Status tracking
- Kanban boards
- Collaboration tools
- Gantt charts and timeline views
Pricing:
- Beesbusy offers adaptable rates according to the way your organization functions and keeping in mind that not all users are active and while some are always active certain employees only occasionally use such software.
- The application also offers special pricing for nonprofit organizations that are separate from their usual pricing plans. to find out more about these discounted rates contact their sales team.
5. Freedcamp
Freedcamp is next and is a flexible and versatile project management tool making it a great platform to help manage your projects for your nonprofit organization.
The tool offers flexible views according to your needs. Therefore, allowing you to organize your projects and tasks in a way that suits you and your team. Whether you are used to making to-do lists, writing sticky notes, or using calendars Freedcamp has something for you.
The software offers a range of features in their free plan or you can choose to upgrade your Freedcamp account to gain access to advanced features such as invoicing tools, CRM, and more.
Key Features:
- Collaboration tools
- Gantt charts
- Kanban boards
- Task management features
- Status tracking
- Time and expense tracking
- Resource management
Pricing:
- Freedcamp offers a free plan with unlimited projects and tasks. You can also choose to upgrade to the Pro plan, the Business plan, or the Enterprise plan. These plans cost $1.49 per user, per month, $7.49 per user, per month, or $16.99 per user, per month respectively.
6. Hive
Hive is a campaign management and project management tool. The tool is aimed at making the lives of its users simplified and organized.
The tool claims to have been created by users for users and offers a range of features including flexible project layouts, file sharing, and group messaging to name a few.
The tool connects all aspects of your project management to provide you with the solution to manage your nonprofit initiatives with ease.
Key Features:
- Content management
- Collaboration and communication tools
- Budget management features
- Flexible project views
- Portfolio and summary views
Pricing:
- Hive offers a 10% discount for nonprofit organizations which is why it had to be included on our list of nonprofit project management tools.
- Hive offers three pricing plans. the first is Hive Solo which is a plan for individuals to use free of cost. The second pricing plan is Hive Team which costs $12 per user, per month. Finally, you have Hive Enterprise which is a custom plan for larger companies and organizations.
7. Zoho Projects
Zoho Projects is free software for non-profits that drives change and increases the impact of your programs. Moreover, it is great to handle all aspects of your projects effectively. So, whether it is fundraising, budgeting, event planning, or communicating with the volunteers, Zoho Projects is your one-stop software for all.
Therefore, increase transparency, boost communication, and plan your events perfectly with Zoho Projects. The best part is that with Zoho Projects, you can also create your solution with zero coding and hassle.
So, get started with the 360-degree solution for all your non-profit management needs.
Features
- Volunteer Engagement
- Event management
- Expense management
- Fundraising activities
- Donor management
- Automate donor receipts
- Monitor campaigns with dashboards
- Keep track of donors, volunteers, and sponsors
- Managing multiple events
Pricing
- Free Trial for 15 days
- Professional- $25 per user per month
- Ultimate-$400 per user per month
8. ClickUp
ClickUp also provides a great solution as free software for non-profits. It is one of the best solution providers for handling all aspects of your project. Including fundraising, communicating, event planning, or managing the daily tasks.
Moreover, it comes with a variety of features to calculate and track funding, share and create volunteer schedules, or promote teamwork. Thus, organize and manage your projects smoothly with the 1000+ integrations in ClickUp.
Features
- Calculate and track funding
- Create and share volunteer schedules
- Track volunteer hours
- Create customizable forms
- Assign tasks and subtasks
- Multiple integrations
- Time tracking
- Cloud storage
- Calendars
Pricing
- Free forever
- Unlimited-$5 per user per month
- Business-$12 per user per month
- Business plus-$19 per user per month
- Enterprise-Customized plan
9. Asana
Asana is also one of the best project management software for organizing projects. It is free software for non-profits that helps to handle multiple tasks and complex projects flexibly.
So, map out your projects step-by-step and visualize all the progress in real-time. Moreover, you can also prioritize tasks, manage deadlines, track time and identify bottlenecks effectively.
Therefore, get started on creating the best projects for your non-profit organization with Asana now.
Features
- Workflow builder
- App Integrations
- Automation
- Timeline
- Reporting
- Boards
- Calendars
- Workload
- Forms
- Desktop and mobile apps
- Milestones
- Custom fields
Pricing
- Basic- Free of cost
- Premium- $10.99 per user per month
- Business-$24.99 per user per month
10. MeisterTask
MeisterTask is another great free software for non-profits. It offers unlimited functionality with free apps, customizable dashboards, and several integrations. Moreover, even if your non-profits are handling projects remotely, connect your team flexibly with this software.
Therefore, collaborate and brainstorm with your teams remotely effectively now. It has its free plan and paid plans as well according to your company’s needs and requirements. It has a rather long list of features, including:
Features
- Unlimited sections
- Filters
- Timelines
- Automation
- Recurring tasks
- Task limits (WIP limits)
- Time tracking
- Custom fields
- Attachments
- Multiple checklists
- Due dates
Pricing
- Basic- Free plan
- Pro-$4.19 per month
- Business-$10.39 per month
- Enterprise- Custom plan
11. Jira
Jira is also one of the best free software for non-profits. It provides teams with fluid collaboration and optimized workflows. Moreover, it is considered a great software for assigning tasks and tracking issues as well.
It helps teams to automate several tasks and save plenty of time to focus on other important tasks. Therefore, executing projects, creating campaigns, and managing events are adequately flexible with Jira.
So, get all your operations on track and execute projects successfully with Jira.
Features
- Roadmap
- Backlog
- Sprint
- Reporting
- Project workflows
- Tracking
- Timelines
- To-do checklists
- Real-time updates
Pricing
- Free for up to 10 users and 3 agents
- Standard-$7.50 per user per month
- Premium-$14.50 per user per month
- Enterprise-Customized plan
12. Basecamp
This is the ninth great free software for non-profits on our list. Basecamp is indeed one of the best project management software. It helps to keep the teams on track and accountable for every action.
Moreover, it also helps organizations to make to-do checklists, file storage, report options, and customizable dashboards as well.
So, maximize your efforts with smooth operations and take a step closer to achieving your project’s goals.
Features
- Manage boards
- To-dos
- Schedule
- Docs and files
- Group cha
- Automatic check-ins
Pricing
- Free trial for 30 days
- Basecamp Business-$99 per month
13. Britix24
Bitrix24 is another free software for non-profits. It is powerful project management software with a highly interactive user interface. It provides teams with real-time notifications and updates to help them stay on track and never miss out on anything important.
Moreover, it also increases the project’s scalability with its variety of features. Including creating smooth workflows, employee workload management, and email integrations, etc.
So, get Britix24 now to boost your project’s chances of success and elevate growth.
Features
- Assigning tasks
- Projects
- Gantt charts
- Kanban board
- Time tracking
- Task automation
- Google Analytics integrations
- CRM integrations
- Workflow automation
Pricing
- Free- Unlimited Users
- Basic- $39 per month
- Standard-$99 per month
- Professional-$199 per month
Conclusion
Project management is a crucial work for non-profit organizations (NGOs). They require robust project management tools to manage their team’s daily tasks, manage and collaborate with stakeholders, manage donors, and other project integrations.
Choose the software that works well with the goals and needs of your organization and start optimizing your operations now. All these platforms can help you to execute your projects successfully in the most agile manner.
Feel free to share your feedback on the above-mentioned PM tools for NGOs. So, what are you waiting for? Begin Now!
Further Readings:
- 17 Best Agile Tools for Project Management in 2023
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- 9 Effective Marketing Project Management Tips That Actually Work
- Program Manager Vs Project Manager: An Analysis from a Cursory Perspective
- 8 Essential Management Tools for Content Marketing Projects In 2023
