Asana vs. Monday: Which Project Management Tool Wins for Freelancers?
It is an absolute favorite among freelancers and companies, including Pinterest, Dropbox, and Airbnb. It remains my preferred project management tool, as it offers a highly customizable interface.
Highlights
Get insights into how these top project management tools stack up, particularly for freelance writers.
Discover key features for freelancers, tailored for efficient project management.
Find out which platform wins out based on ease of use, customization, and essential functionalities for freelance writing.
Not long ago, my client came to me with a project managing dilemma. As more and more freelance writers were coming in and the projects started to accumulate, managing a team without a project management platform quickly turned into a nightmare. Since I am familiar with both Asana and Monday, he wanted me to briefly compare the two tools and save him the trouble of research.
Being a fan and user of both platforms, I relied on the good ol’ cons and pros system, comparing the two software solutions in the most crucial aspects for freelance writing. Here’s what I found.
Introducing Asana
Created by former Facebook executives, Asana is an excellent project management platform that simplifies the process both for freelancers and clients who hire them. It has become one of the leading project management software in managing remote teams and monitoring their collaboration.
Asana, just like the majority of project management tools, allows you to have all tasks, files, and messages in one place, instead of having to dig through hundreds of emails and links. It is an absolute favorite among freelancers and companies, including Pinterest, Dropbox, and Airbnb.
Introducing Monday
Monday is yet another top-tier project management option, offering over 200 workflow templates for different teams. In case none of the templates match your project requirements, you can simply create the workflow from scratch.
Monday offers full transparency in the project overview, including assignees, status updates, the level of completion, as well as priority. Similarly to Asana, it is a platform that combines all essential elements of a project, including discussions, tasks, and objectives.Â
Asana vs. Monday for Freelance Writers
When comparing two popular, renowned project management platforms, the difference is in the details. As marginal as they may appear, it is these tiny differences that can determine which tool is more suitable for your projects. Â
Task Management
Asana offers:
task categorization with tags for better organization
task dependency, as certain tasks can be dependent on the completion of others
subtasks, so a single bigger task can be broken down into smaller items to ensure no step is neglected
recurring tasks for ongoing project elements, such as weekly or monthly tasks
priority field for urgent tasks
Monday provides:
multiple view options, including board, calendar, timeline, and list modes
customizable status labels for progress tracking (like stuck, completed, or working on it)
dashboard customization including widgets for deadlines, workload, and progress monitoring
guest access for clients or freelancers you want to invite as collaborators in particular projects or tasks
automation that allows users to schedule reminders, but also moves tasks to different boards after changing the status, or notifies users of status changes
Communication
If you like to keep communication brief and straightforward, Asana will be your best friend. It is an excellent solution for freelance writers who prefer to base project-related communication with their clients on task comments and project updates. It does, however, offer email integration to keep all communication in one place, which is always a plus in the hectic world of freelancing.
Monday, on the other hand, offers more interaction in communication, and it is ideal for discussions. In case you prefer to engage in more detailed conversations about tasks with your clients, Monday might be a better choice. Guest access is another valuable feature that keeps the client in the loop without overwhelming them with every aspect of the project.Â
Time Tracking and Deadlines
With Asana, you get:
reminders for due dates and deadlines
calendar and timeline view of tasks
task dependencies so you can’t move on to the related task before completing all the steps, which isn’t available in this form with Monday
transparent due dates and updates for each task
Monday, on the other hand, offers:
built-in time tracking, which isn’t available with Asana
calendar and timeline view of tasks
reminders for due dates and deadlines with notifications
transparent time logs and progress
Therefore, if your freelance project heavily relies on time tracking and you don’t want to use integrations, Monday may be a more suitable option.Â
Asana, on the other hand, made project management much more focused with their task dependency feature, as it prevents you from neglecting important elements.
Limitations for Freelance Writing
While Asana rules the project management world, it may not be the best option for freelance writers since it lacks time-tracking features. In this case, freelancers need to pay for third-party integrations on top of paid advanced features such as reports that clients may request.
Monday is a go-to tool in many freelancers’ project management strategies. However, it often isn’t worth investing in if you’re not taking advantage of all of its complex features. Integrating more users can be quite pricey for a single freelancer, especially when on a tight budget.
Final Thoughts
After presenting both options with all their pros and cons, and giving my client a minute to gather his thoughts, I couldn’t help but point out my favorite.
Asana remains my preferred project management tool, as it offers a highly customizable interface, allowing clients and writers to streamline the process easily. I am sold on its task dependency feature, straightforward discussions in form of comments, and the priority field which makes task management a breeze.
