Best Resource Tracking Software Shortlist
Here’s the list of the best tools that I’ll cover in this article.
Resource tracking software allows us to monitor what our people are investing their time in during a project. Not only that, but it gives us a glimpse at their workload, helping us with questions like: can I schedule resources for this other project? Can they help me put out this fire, or will it delay the projects that they are already working on? Should I hire freelancers?
Tracking can help answer those questions by giving you information on resource utilization, the projects people are working on, and the tasks they are investing their time in. This, in turn, lets you actively fight burnout, better estimate future projects and have more detailed conversations with your clients once they ask why the project is going over budget (oh, how we love those convos).
The overviews below have details on how these tools can help you with project planning, metrics, and picking the right resource for each task. If you have general questions on this topic, head to the FAQ section of this article.
Overview Of The 10 Best Resource Tracking Software
Here’s a brief description of each resource tracking tool to showcase my experience with it and some noteworthy features. Feel free to check out how I picked the software on this list at any time.
Wrike
Best for real-time data about team performance
Wrike is a cloud-based resource management platform that provides teams with the tools they need to collaborate effectively and efficiently on any project. It helps teams stay organized, keep projects on track, and monitor progress from start to finish. Users can easily assign tasks, set deadlines, manage their workloads, and access real-time data about team performance. Wrike also allows users to measure performance over time by tracking resources such as time spent on tasks or money allocated for each project. This makes it easy for managers to identify areas of improvement or waste to optimize processes and maximize productivity.
Wrike offers a variety of customization options that allow teams to tailor the software to fit their exact needs. Users can create custom fields for each project or task to ensure all relevant data is captured accurately within the platform. Additionally, users can customize the look and feel of Wrike by choosing from a variety of themes and color schemes so that the platform reflects their brand identity.
Wrike's resource allocation feature gives project managers visibility into which resources are available for various tasks allowing them to create realistic timelines with reasonable deadlines. It allows organizations to analyze past projects, anticipate roadblocks related to resource saturation, and prepare teams for success. This insight enables leaders to make accurate plans about personnel scheduling, tasking, workload realism, and project velocity–all components necessary for a successful project. Wrike offers advanced analytics that gives users insight into how they use their resources over time. It allows users to view detailed information about how each team member contributes to various projects or tasks and how much time they spend on specific activities.
Integrations include 400+ pre-built native integrations, including integrations with the most popular file management software from Microsoft, Google, and Dropbox, along with sales and marketing software from Salesforce and Marketo.
Wrike costs from $9.80/user/month and offers a 14-day free trial.
monday.com
Best for its workload information both as a view and widget
monday.com is a work os that can help you handle a bunch of project management related stuff, resources included. If you want to customize your software for it though, you will have to add the timeline and number (to track hours spent on a task) columns to your table view.
Workload is both available as a view and a widget within monday.com. Both will give you a view like the one on the screenshot where you have an allocation circle chart based on your max hours per resource per week. Overallocated resources will have red circles and you can always click on the circle to reveal the tasks involved and a drag-and-drop editor.
Note: Time tracking is included in the pro version, so make sure your wallet is fat enough before making the move.
monday.com’s integrations include project management apps like Slack, Google Drive, Gmail, Google Calendar, Jira, GitHub, Trello, Dropbox, Typeform and many more, accessible through a paid plan with Zapier.
monday.com is free for up to 2 users and paid plans start at $8/user/month and offers a 14-day free trial.
Resource Guru
Best for tracking billable and non-billable work
Resource Guru is a resource management software that is extremely intuitive and easy to navigate. The interface is clean and simple, with all the features you need to handle project resources. It even gives you fortune cookie 2.0 quotes on the top-right corner!
I liked many things about the platform. First, you can build everything you need to get started from the schedule view. By everything I mean book the resource, create the project they’re working on and the client it’s for without leaving that window.
Then, booking clash gives you a warning when you are overbooking a resource and gives you the option to book it as overtime. Finally, the ‘reports’ view is comprehensive. One quick look and you’ll know where you stand.
Resource Guru integrates with Google calendar, Apple calendar, Microsoft Outlook, or your calendar software of choice, plus thousands of apps through Zapier.
There is no free version, but pricing for paid plans starts at $3/user/month and offers a 30-day free trial.
Silverbucket
Best for tracking employee time and forecasting resource needs
Silverbucket is a resource planning, management, and tracking software that helps you manage your staff's workloads and assign tasks efficiently. It provides skills mapping, absence management, and time tracking tools to facilitate better resource management across your team or organization.
You can use the project timelines in the software to see what's coming up and assign employees to initiatives based on their skill sets and availability. Because people can manage their absences in the platform, you'll be able to see who's in and who's out. Employees track their hours in the system, too, helping you understand how time is being spent and track planned vs. actuals.
The software uses the data it holds to provide you with under- and over-utilization information across your teams. You can also forecast your future needs to plan ahead. Various KPIs and performance metrics can be tracked in the system, helping you understand how work gets done and by who.
Integrations included with the software are Toggl Track, HubSpot, PowerBI, and Microsoft Azure, among others. It also has an API that can be use to build additional integrations as needed. Pricing starts at €9 /planned person/month, and a 30-day free trial is available.
Saviom
Best Real-time Resource Tracking Solution
SAVIOM is a highly customizable and scalable enterprise resource management solution. It provides 360-degree visibility that helps real-time tracking of resource allocations, utilization, availability, skill matrix, people on the bench, excesses and shortages, project vacancies, etc.
Saviom’s multidimensional resource scheduler provides a Gantt chart view with easy drag and drop to schedule competent resources and track them in real-time. It lets you maintain an up-to-date skill matrix across the enterprise for assigning suitable resources to appropriate tasks based on their roles, competencies, interests, experience, etc.
The tool offers advanced forecasting and capacity planning functionalities. Using these features, you can get foresight into pipeline project demands and track excess/shortages in terms of skillsets, competencies, head count, etc.
Additionally, the tool can analyze complex organizational data and convert them into customized reports, graphs, and dashboards on various resource indicators such as availability, utilization, capacity vs. demand, people on the bench, etc.
The multidimensional utilization reports and color-coded heat maps help you identify the over/underutilization of the employees. Besides, forecast vs. actual reports enables you to track variances and take appropriate measures to improve future resource usage. One can leverage this data to make quick data-driven decisions and maintain the resource health index.
Lastly, the ERM tool integrates seamlessly with all your critical enterprise suites, including ERP, ERM, PPM, etc., and day-to-day applications like Calendar, Excel, etc. Thus, you can maintain a single source of truth across the enterprise and avoid data redundancy.
To learn more about the software, sign up for the 60-day free trial and get a first-hand experience with this futuristic resource management software.
Custom pricing is available upon request. It also offers a 60-day free trial.
Kantata
Best for professional services companies
Kantata (formerly Mavenlink + Kimble) is a professional services platform that includes everything from project management to billing. Its resource management module includes resource forecasting, capacity management, skills management, scenario planning, and role-based planning.
Its resource scheduling allows you to see a breakdown of the tasks your resources are working on at any given time. This will help you better address over allocation and communicate priorities based on project goals.
Kantata integrates with other tools through its M-Bridge integration platform, including Salesforce, Slack, Hubspot, Expensify, and Xero, among others.
Kantata offers customized pricing upon request. You can access a free 10-day trial and request a demo.
Hub Planner
Best for large companies who want to customize their resource tracking
Hub Planner is a resource management platform that is built as a core product + extensions (different modules basically). This makes the platform both flexible in pricing and functionality which can be helpful for small businesses looking for their first, basic resource tracking tool.
This tool has a great product tour when you first start, and it gives you all the basic info you need to hit the ground running. I liked that everything is customizable from the bar heights and colors to the project tags and vacation request details. Not the prettiest UI, but I liked how intuitive and informational it is.
Tip: Hit the refresh button every time you make changes. Seems to have a problem updating automatically.
Hub Planner has an integration with Zapier, which you can use to connect to over one thousand apps including project management platforms and productivity suites from Google and Microsoft.
Pricing plans start at $7/user/month and offer a 60-day free trial.
Runn
Best for real-time resource tracking
Runn is a resource planning tool that will help you build your resource plans fast. Features that make this possible include drag-and-drop timeline, recurring bookings and bulk edits. There is also a cool little feature that calculates the time invested on a project in real time.
This UI is nice to look at, although a little crowded. Nothing you can’t solve by registering for a free trial and playing around in the demo environment they provide. If you click on the bar chart button on the top left, you will be able to see resource availability and reports at the same time. Cool, right?
Tip: Create your project, then manage your project to add phases and notes. Finally, add resources and remember to add some allocation time to them or the tool won’t save the changes when you switch tabs.
Run can be integrated with Clockify, Harvest, and WorkflowMax. Their API is also available with full documentation so you can connect it to other applications.
Run has a free version for up to 5 people. Paid plans start at $10/user/month and offer a 14-day free trial.
Parallax
Best resource tracking for its strong forecasting & analytics features
Parallax is a comprehensive resource-tracking software that provides businesses with an effective way to monitor and manage their resources. It allows users to track the status of their resources in real-time, generate reports, and provide invaluable insights into where the company’s resources are being allocated. Its user-friendly design allows organizations to manage roles, teams, resources, locations, products, and activities in one easy-to-use interface.
Parallax’s forecasting feature allows users to look ahead and identify demand areas for future projects or tasks. By proactively understanding resource needs and utilization patterns, companies can plan staffing decisions more effectively and maximize efficiency. This feature also helps users make data-driven decisions by presenting historical trends in an understandable format through graphical representations. Companies can review these graphs to estimate future opportunities and challenges so they can quickly pivot if necessary to address changing demands.
Parallax’s resource allocation feature allows users to quickly allocate resources to tasks or projects and track performance against budget. You can easily see which team members are over or underutilized and whether you're making the best possible use of your resources. With an eye on optimal expense management, Parallax ensures accurate and fair utilization of available resources with thorough breakdowns such as human resource departmental reports and current task trends.
Parallax supports various integrations with other business applications, allowing users to easily sync data between systems and ensure all information remains up-to-date.
Parallax offers customized pricing upon request.
Forecast
Best AI-driven resource tracking with project management and financial features
Forecast is an AI-driven resource management platform with time tracking, utilization reports, a skills database to better manage resources, automatic budget calculations, and invoicing. The platform also includes a kanban view for better workflow and task management.
As you can read, it has a ton of features. I played around with it for a while and the learning curve is steeper than Mount Thor, the world’s steepest cliff. Easy solution - book a demo and let them show you how to navigate the platform. Longer solution - go to their Help Center and watch as many videos as you need.
Note: I tried opening their in-app interactive guided tours located in the question mark button on the top right corner of some views in Google Chrome and Safari… didn’t work.
Forecast integrates with Harvest and over 20 other native integrations, plus thousands of apps through Zapier.
Pricing starts at $29/seat/month (minimum 10 seats) and offers a 14-day free trial.
The 10 Best Resource Tracking Software Comparison Chart
Find all the tools we just covered in a convenient table so you can compare them. If you would like to expand your research, we have a list of other tools you can consider below.
Tool | Free Option | Price | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Wrike Best for real-time data about team performance | Free plan available | From $9.80/user/month | Visit Website |
2 | monday.com Best for its workload information both as a view and widget | 14-day free trial + freemium plan available | From $8/user/month (billed annually, min 3 seats) | Visit Website |
3 | Resource Guru Best for tracking billable and non-billable work | 30-day free trial available | From $3/user/month | Visit Website |
4 | Silverbucket Best for tracking employee time and forecasting resource needs | 30-day free trial | From €9 /planned person/month (volume discount available) | Visit Website |
5 | Saviom Best Real-time Resource Tracking Solution | 60-day free trial | Pricing upon request | Visit Website |
6 | Kantata Best for professional services companies | Free demo available | Pricing upon request | Visit Website |
7 | Hub Planner Best for large companies who want to customize their resource tracking | 30-day free trial | From $7/user/month (billed annually) | Visit Website |
8 | Runn Best for real-time resource tracking | 14-day free trial and free plan available | Plans start at $10/person managed/month | Visit Website |
9 | Parallax Best resource tracking for its strong forecasting & analytics features | Free demo | Pricing upon request | Visit Website |
10 | Forecast Best AI-driven resource tracking with project management and financial features | 14-day free trial | From $29/user/month | Visit Website |
Other Options
Here are a few more that didn’t make the top list, but worth your consideration if you want to expand your research.
- Paymo
Best all-in-one resource tracking with project management, timesheets and leave management
- Retain
Almost all your information is in one view. Smart.
- Smartsheet
Resource tool ready for your project portfolio management.
- Float
Pre-filled timesheets based on your schedule for easier time tracking.
- eResource Scheduler
Resource planning that includes financials and real-time resource tracking.
- Mosaic
Resource planning with AI-powered work assignment recommendations.
- Zoho Projects
Say hello to accurate timesheets with Zoho’s automatic timers and time approval features.
- Microsoft Project
Powerful project management platform with resource management capabilities.
- KeyedIn
Agile portfolio management platform with resource allocation and utilization capabilities.
- TeamGantt
Project management software with workload and team availability features.
How I Picked The Best Resource Tracking Software
In coming up with this list, I researched the most popular resource tracking tools on the market based on user ratings and reviews. Then, I narrowed down my choices using my years of experience in project management and factors I consider important for tracking resources. Finally, I evaluated the tools on this list based on the following criteria:
Robustness
I want to look for software that allows us to do more than just one type of work. Therefore, some of the resource management tools are all-in-one solutions that have automation, team collaboration, templates, and other features.
This has to be a strong platform that supports your decision-making about resources. I want a resource management platform that justifies its price and is feature packed to make your investment worth the price.
Reporting
Usually called business intelligence, I believe reporting is crucial in resource planning software. This feature can help you track project progress in more robust solutions and display team capacity along with it, for example. You can use this information to identify dependencies and bottlenecks and analyze individual resource capacity.
Integrations
I’ll look at the ways in which these tools can connect to other SaaS solutions. Therefore, I look at pre-built integrations with project management software like Teamwork. Also, I discuss third-party software that helps you connect to additional tools, such as Zapier. Finally, I add details on custom integrations you can build using an API.
Pricing
Having a calendar view, Kanban boards, fancy notifications, and granular permissions would be amazing. However, most of the time, this translates into an increased price. Therefore, I mention monthly pricing plans, free trials, free versions and demos, if applicable. I also gather details on available discounts for non-profits or volume pricing.
Resource Tracking Software FAQs
Find answers to common questions other people ask about this topic.
What is resource tracking?
What is a resource tracking system?
What key features do I look for in resource tracking software?
What's Next?
If the next step in your research is to find specific information on project resource management, you can learn about workload capacity planning, the resource plan process, and a guide that tells you the parts of a resource management plan and what it's good for.
Related tool lists:
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