monday reviews is our latest blog series where we provide the facts about different project management tools—no BS and no hyperbole needed. Keep scrolling for our analysis and to learn more about all the project management tools out there. Enjoy! 😊
If you’re a project manager, there’s a good chance that you’ve heard of a Gantt chart.
A Gantt chart helps project managers organize, plan, and navigate their project through change and uncertainty.
You might currently be using a Gantt chart in Excel or some other simple spreadsheet software to manage your workflow.
But as your team grows, and projects get more complex, you might need additional functionality.
Maybe, as your company scales, you need the ability to share files and collaborate easily with a growing team.
This is exactly when you should be using a Gantt chart online (rather than a program on your computer).
Online Gantt chart software offers a gamut of features that can increase team productivity and collaboration.
If you’re looking to find a different Gantt chart tool to make it easier for you to manage your project plan, you’re in the right place.
This article will answer some of the most common questions that surround Gantt chart online software. We’ll also check out the best Gantt chart online maker out there (Psst: it’s monday.com) and see how we can use the platform to create a Gantt View.
What is Gantt chart online software?
You might be used to basic spreadsheet software that relies on plugging in data and formulas to generate a Gantt chart for your project.
However, compared to modern Gantt chart online software, these are limited in both functionality and convenience. This becomes all the more apparent when your team grows and projects become more complex and cross-functional.
You might find it challenging, for example, to share, update, and make changes to your Gantt chart when there’s a large team of both internal and external stakeholders involved.
An online Gantt chart, which is available with most cloud-based project management software, takes care of this by giving your entire team access to files and storage. It will also automatically update data in real-time.
Something like this (from monday.com):
An interactive Gantt chart (like the one above) lets you create boards, assign tasks, share files, collaborate with your team members, and visualize project progress from start to finish.
Why use online Gantt chart software?
Using an online Gantt chart will make your daily workflow a lot easier to handle.
A few benefits to creating an online Gantt chart using a project management tool include:
- Providing a simple, visual overview of your project plan and schedule
- Keeping your project team on the same page regarding their task lists
- The Gantt timeline keeps you aware of critical tasks and project deadlines
- Makes you aware of task dependencies for better project management
- Helps you track progress in real-time to plan projects better
How do I create a Gantt chart online?
All it takes is a few clicks to create a Gantt chart online using most modern project management solutions.
It also includes many convenient features that make your workflow easier, such as color-coded charts to keep track of project progress, and the ability to easily share your chart, add notes, and get notifications on updates.
How can I make a Gantt chart online for free?
There are many project management tools that offer you the ability to make a free Gantt chart.
But if you’re working on multiple projects and want a large number of users to be able to view and edit your chart, you’ll have to switch to a paid tool.
Paid plans range anywhere between a few dollars to hundreds of dollars per month. This pricing is usually based on both the number of users you have and the functionality you need.
How do I choose the right Gantt software for my team?
Okay, so we’ve seen how life-changing using Gantt chart online software can be.
There are countless benefits, such as efficient task management, customized reporting, automated notifications, sharing and exporting at the click of a button, attractive visualization options, just to name a few.
Whether you prefer a simple Gantt chart or need dynamic Gantt charts to track multiple tasks across projects, we believe we have the right platform for you.
Enter monday.com
Why use monday.com software for creating a Gantt chart online?
monday.com’s intuitive and visually appealing project management platform specializes in helping teams get organized and efficient via an impressive array of features.
Features like our Gantt chart…
Features
- Build your Project Board by easily adding and updating a list of tasks, items, owners, status, and priority. Have it automatically update based on project progress.
- Ensure open collaboration with the Updates section. Click any tasks on the board to communicate with your team, making sure that all conversations are in one place.
- Select from a range of fully customizable automations to better manage your workflow.
- Visualize projects your way by customizing your own board, changing your chart type, and choosing custom colors.
- Use a flexible and easy-to-understand interface that allows you to move and reassign tasks while managing your team’s workload.
- Save time by picking one of our customizable ready-made templates and make it your own. Go ahead and try out our Weekly To Do list template.
- Integrate easily with the tools and apps you already use. monday.com supports integrations with 40+ apple and tools.
Pricing
monday.com has a range of pricing plans suited for all kinds of teams — from those who are just getting started to those who want to manage a complex workflow.
Head to the pricing page for more details.
How to make a Gantt chart online with monday.com?
You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to use the Gantt View at monday.com
With monday.com, you needn’t switch to whole new external software to visualize your project data using a Gantt chart.
The Gantt View is now available as part of your project board, making it easy to transform your project data into a clear and organized visualization within the same tool.
In this section, I’m going to take you through the steps.
1. Set up the Gantt
Once you’ve created a board on monday.com, you have to ensure that it has the following columns.
Timeline: chart out the timeline of each task
Dependency: set which tasks are dependent on another
People: assign the task to one in the team
Status: update task status
Once you’ve added the above details to your board, it’s time to add the Gantt View to our project board.
2. Add the Gantt View
Find ‘All Views’ on the top left corner of the board, and select ‘Gantt’ from the list as shown below.
To switch back and forth easily between different board views, you can pin this to the top of the board, by clicking the 3-dot-menu next to ‘Gantt’.
3. Customize as needed
Once you’ve applied the Gantt View, you’re free to play around with the settings to fully customize your board to reflect exactly what works for you.
Simply click on the cogwheel icon at the top right corner to open Settings.
You can then updated or make adjustments to your project board Gantt View to make it right for your needs.
For instance, you could:
- Customize the time and date
- Highlight dependencies
- Organize items the way you like it
- Show a group summary (which is the total amount of time each group spans across)
- Add custom colors to your timeline bars
- Set up and track milestones
- Filter and sort items as needed.
4. Share your Gantt View
That’s about it.
Now you can export your Gantt View project board to Excel if needed with a click.
You can do this by clicking ‘Export to Excel’ from the 3-dot-menu at the top right corner.
Alternatively, you can choose to share your Gantt View with team members or external stakeholders.
Simply click the ‘All Views’ tab again, hover over the Gantt View from the list and click ‘Share’ from the drop-down menu.
Wasn’t that a breeze?
All in all
Once you’ve decided on your budget and exactly what features are required for your team, you’ll be in a better position to decide on the right online Gantt chart maker for your needs.
By the way, did you know thousands of teams agree that monday.com’s Gantt chart tool is brilliant?
Yep. We’re in total agreement. monday.com has the best combination of features to suit any project schedule. Here’s all the reasons why we’re awesome.
Get started