Microsoft Project review

Microsoft Project is for the people who build schedules for a living. Microsoft now sells it alongside Planner: Planner and Project Plan 3 costs $30 per user per month paid yearly and includes the Planner app in Teams, the Planner web app and the Project desktop app. On top of Planner Plan 1, it adds task history, an assignments view, portfolios, baselines, critical path and dependencies with lead and lag. Organizations that prefer a perpetual license can buy Project Standard 2024 for $679.99 or Project Professional 2024 for $1,129.99, which adds resource management and timesheets. The strength is depth and the fit with Microsoft 365 security and sign-in. The weakness is cost and complexity: most team members only need Planner, so license Project for the few schedulers and let everyone else work in the plans from Teams.

Who it is for

Project managers who need baselines, critical path and portfolios in the Microsoft stack.

Price

Planner and Project Plan 3 $30 per user per month paid yearly; Project Standard 2024 $679.99 one-time.

Powerful web and Teams apps for advanced project execution with portfolios, baselines and critical path, and advanced dependencies. $30.00 user/month, paid yearly
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 10, 2026.

Key features

• Portfolios, baselines and critical path in Planner and Project Plan 3
• Advanced dependencies with lead and lag
• Project desktop app included with Plan 3
• Assignments view and task history
• Project Professional 2024 adds resource management and timesheets

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Deepest scheduling features on this list
• Strength: Runs in Teams through Planner and alongside the desktop app
• Strength: One-time desktop purchase available
• Weakness: Plan 3 costs $30 per user per month
• Weakness: Steep learning curve for occasional users
• Weakness: Desktop editions cost $679.99 to $1,129.99 per license

Key facts

• Subscription: Planner and Project Plan 3, $30 per user per month paid yearly
• Desktop editions: Project Standard 2024 $679.99, Project Professional 2024 $1,129.99, one-time
• Includes: Planner in Teams, Planner web app and Project desktop app

Where it ranks

Microsoft Project is No. 9 in our Best Project Management Tools for Microsoft Teams verdict.