Excel alternatives for project planning in 2026

Almost every project starts in a spreadsheet, and that is not a mistake: Excel is fast, everyone can use it, and for twenty rows it is unbeatable. Switching only pays off at a clearly recognisable point — and that point rarely has to do with features.

Where the spreadsheet tips over

Not on missing formulas but on three things: concurrency (two people, two versions, one fewer truth), state (a "status" column everyone fills differently) and memory (nobody knows why row 34 is red). Once the file is called "final_v3_FIXED.xlsx", the point has passed.

The alternatives

1. Zuuna

The switch is literally the spreadsheet: upload, map the columns, done — the status column becomes your board columns. Afterwards the data is still available as a table view, just with real fields instead of agreed-upon columns. Hosted in Germany, with a DPA.

2. Smartsheet

The closest thing to a spreadsheet there is — if you want to keep row logic, it is there. Paid Members, unlimited free Contributors.

3. monday.com

Colourful, flexible, good for cross-department processes. Basic €9, Standard €12, Pro €19 per seat/month billed annually excl. VAT, 3-seat minimum.

4. Trello

The smallest step away from a list: cards in columns, understood in five minutes. Standard $5, Premium $10 per user/month billed annually.

5. Stay with Excel

If one person maintains it, the list stays short and nobody asks about history: stay. It is free and already installed.

Prices at a glance

All prices from each vendor's own pricing page, accessed 3 August 2026 (Smartsheet model 14 August 2026). Currencies are not converted — each figure carries the symbol the vendor publishes it in. Prices change; check before deciding.

The move

Out of Excel it is not a migration but an import: 15 MB per file, 50 columns, 10,000 rows, 30 status columns, delimiter detected automatically — a German Excel export full of semicolons works unchanged. And back out the same way: any board as Excel or CSV, on every plan.