NeoGantt vs Microsoft Project and Planner
Stay with Microsoft if you need critical path, baselines, .mpp files or Microsoft 365 integration: the Gantt view now sits in Planner Plan 1 ($10 per user per month, paid yearly) and critical path in Plan 3 ($30). Choose NeoGantt if you need a clear timeline to share with clients through a link, without guest accounts: $99 a year for up to 5 people, against $600 on Plan 1.
A note on bias: NeoGantt is our product, so weigh this page accordingly. Facts about Microsoft Planner and Project come from its own website and help centre, linked at the bottom of this page, and were checked on 29 September 2026. Prices and features change, so check before you buy. If something here is wrong, tell us and we’ll fix it.
What “Microsoft Project” means now
Microsoft has renamed and retired several products, so it helps to be precise about what you’re comparing. As of our last check:
- Project for the web was retired on 1 August 2025 and folded into Planner.
- The paid web plans are Planner Plan 1 and Planner and Project Plan 3. Plan 3 includes Project desktop. Plan 5 no longer appears on Microsoft’s pricing page.
- Project Online reached its retirement date on 30 September 2026. Project Online-only plans stopped selling on 1 October 2025.
- Project desktop is still sold as a one-time purchase for 1 PC: Standard 2024 at $679.99, Professional 2024 at $1,129.99.
This page compares NeoGantt with the Planner plans, since that’s where Microsoft’s Gantt view now lives on the web. If you’re weighing more than two tools, Microsoft Project alternatives covers seven, from GanttPRO to the free GanttProject.
Microsoft Project and Planner pricing compared
| Topic | NeoGantt | Microsoft Planner / Project |
|---|---|---|
| How it’s priced | Flat per team, set by headcount. The same features on every plan. | Per user per month, paid yearly: Plan 1 $10, Plan 3 $30. Copilot is a $30 per user add-on. |
| Free option | Free plan: 1 person, up to 5 charts. | Basic Planner comes with Microsoft 365 but has no Gantt view. One-month trial of Plan 1 or Plan 3, credit card required. |
| 1 person | Free, or Small at $99/year. | Plan 1 $120 · Plan 3 $360. |
| 5 people | Small: $99/year. | Plan 1 $600 · Plan 3 $1,800. |
| 15 people | Medium: $199/year. | Plan 1 $1,800 · Plan 3 $5,400. |
| Desktop licence | No desktop app; it runs in the browser. | Project Standard 2024 $679.99, Professional 2024 $1,129.99, one-time, per PC. Project desktop is also included in Plan 3. |
Features side by side
| Topic | NeoGantt | Microsoft Planner / Project |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | A clear timeline for people outside your organisation, built quickly and shared by link. | Work and project management inside Microsoft 365, from task boards up to full scheduling in Project desktop. |
| Dependencies, critical path, baselines | None. Durations count working days and skip the holidays you define. | Plan 1: finish-to-start dependencies and milestones. Plan 3: baselines, critical path, and dependencies with lead and lag. Up to 3,000 tasks per project. |
| Sharing with outsiders | Live view-only link on every plan. Viewers need no account and can save their own PDF. Revocable. | No public link documented. Outsiders are added as guests to a Microsoft 365 group, then accept an invitation and create a guest account. |
| Branding | Your logo replaces NeoGantt’s on share pages and PDFs. Client-owned tasks can carry the client’s logo. | No custom branding documented. |
| Version history | Automatic snapshots you can restore, plus named iterations that summarise what changed. | Task history and baselines on Plan 3. |
| Exports and imports | Export: vector PDF only. Import: TeamGantt CSV only. | Planner documents export to Excel; we found no documented PDF or image export of the timeline. Project desktop opens .mpp files natively. |
| Resources and workload | None. | People view for workload on Plan 1; assignments view on Plan 3. |
| Integrations and API | None, and no public API. | Teams, Outlook, Loop, Power Automate and APIs. Power BI with a separate licence. |
| Where it runs | In the browser; the editor wants a laptop-sized screen. | Planner on the web and in Teams. Project desktop is installed software, licensed per PC. |
Where Microsoft is the stronger choice
It’s already in your organisation. If your company runs Microsoft 365, Planner sits inside Teams and Outlook, uses the same sign-in and follows the same compliance rules. Nobody has to approve a new vendor.
Scheduling depth. Plan 3 adds baselines, critical path and dependencies with lead and lag, and includes Project desktop, the industry-standard scheduler and the home of the .mpp format. NeoGantt has no dependencies at all.
People and capacity. The People view (Plan 1) and assignments view (Plan 3) balance work across a team. NeoGantt doesn’t manage resources.
Automation and AI. Power Automate, APIs and Power BI connect plans to the rest of your systems, and Copilot is available as an add-on.
Where NeoGantt is the better fit
Clients who aren’t in your tenant. A NeoGantt share link opens in any browser and always shows the latest version. With Planner, each outside viewer becomes a guest in one of your Microsoft 365 groups, which is a lot to ask of a client who wants to check a date.
Something to print or attach. NeoGantt exports a vector PDF fitted to one A4 page, with your logo in place of ours. Planner’s documented export is an Excel file.
Small teams outside the Microsoft stack. Studios, consultants and agencies can start with an email address. Five people pay $99 a year in total.
Leaving Project Online
Project Online’s retirement date was 30 September 2026. Microsoft’s nearest replacement is Planner and Project Plan 3 at $30 per user per month. If your team relied on critical path and resource assignments, Plan 3 or another scheduler is the right move, and NeoGantt isn’t. If what people opened each week was the Gantt chart, you may not need a scheduler at all.
Microsoft Project alternatives sorts seven options by that question: Project-grade scheduling, a team platform with a Gantt view, or a plan to present.
Microsoft or NeoGantt: which to choose
Choose NeoGantt if…
- You’re a small team working outside Microsoft 365
- Clients need to see the schedule without becoming guests in your tenant
- The plan is a timeline people read, and nothing needs to reschedule itself
- You want a branded one-page PDF
Choose Microsoft if…
- Your organisation already runs on Microsoft 365 and wants plans inside Teams
- You need critical path, baselines or resource assignments
- You have to deliver or open .mpp files
- Power Automate, Power BI or Copilot are part of how you work
NeoGantt vs Microsoft Project questions
What happened to Microsoft Project for the web?
Microsoft retired Project for the web on 1 August 2025 and folded it into Planner. Its features now sit in the premium Planner plans: Planner Plan 1 and Planner and Project Plan 3. Project Online retires on 30 September 2026. Project desktop (Standard and Professional 2024) is still sold.
Does Microsoft Planner have a Gantt chart?
Only on the premium plans. The Planner included with Microsoft 365 has grid, board, schedule and chart views but no Timeline (Gantt) view. The Timeline view needs Planner Plan 1 ($10 per user per month, paid yearly) or above, and critical path needs Plan 3 ($30).
Can I share a Planner timeline with a client?
Not with a public link, because Microsoft doesn’t document one. External people are added as guests to a Microsoft 365 group, and each guest accepts an invitation and creates a guest account. A NeoGantt share link opens in any browser with no sign-in.
Can NeoGantt open Microsoft Project files?
No. NeoGantt can’t open or produce .mpp files, and it imports TeamGantt CSV only. If you need to exchange Project files, GanttPRO and the free GanttProject both handle them; our Microsoft Project alternatives page compares them.
Sources
- Microsoft Planner plans and pricingwww.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/planner/microsoft-planner-plans-and-pricing
- Microsoft Learn: Project for the web service descriptionlearn.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/servicedescriptions/project-online-service-description/project-web-service-description
- Microsoft Support: Guest access in Microsoft Plannersupport.microsoft.com/en-us/office/guest-access-in-microsoft-planner-cc5d7f96-dced-4da4-ab62-08c72d9759c6
- Microsoft Support: Export a plan to Excelsupport.microsoft.com/en-us/planner/export-a-plan-to-excel
- Microsoft Store: Project Standard 2024www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/p/project-standard-2024/cfq7ttc0prmx
- Microsoft Store: Project Professional 2024www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/p/project-professional-2024/cfq7ttc0ph40
Checked 29 September 2026.
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