10 Excel Project Management Templates

Looking for Excel project management templates? Use these free Microsoft Excel spreadsheet templates to track any project with ease.

Project management templates are an essential part of replicating a successful project. With free Microsoft Excel templates you can turn a simple spreadsheet into a powerful project management tool.

In this article you will find some of the most useful free Microsoft Excel project management and tracking templates that you will want to use for your next project. If you are looking for the right Microsoft Office licence to unlock Excel and every other Office app, browse our full range.

Below you will find the best Microsoft Excel project management templates.

Note: We cover both native and third-party templates here. To find a pre-installed Excel spreadsheet template, open Excel and search for the appropriate keyword on the New Document screen.

If you are already in Excel, go to File > New to open the template search. See the Microsoft Excel Template Management section below for more details. Excel ships with several timeline and Gantt chart templates provided by Microsoft, but also integrates templates from Vertex42, one of the most popular third-party resources for spreadsheets.

The work plan timeline template is suitable for a basic project with multiple phases. When you enter your data into the worksheet, the roadmap updates automatically. This template comes pre-installed with Microsoft Excel 2016 and later.

Gantt charts are a staple in every project manager's toolkit. They help you visualise the flow of your tasks and track progress.

This template lets you create a complete Gantt chart with minimal effort. For each task, simply enter its description, the person assigned, the percentage to show progress, the start date and the number of days allocated to complete it. This template is included with Microsoft Excel by default.

If you want to combine milestones with a basic timeline, this template from Vertex42 is ideal. It merges the best elements of a Gantt chart — the visual task flow — with milestones displayed along the timeline.

Simply fill in the relevant tables to populate the visual. You can find this template by searching within Excel.

When you search the Excel template library, you will mainly find different variations of Gantt charts, including this Simple Gantt Chart from Vertex42. What sets it apart from the chart above is the inclusion of project phases. This template is included with Microsoft Excel.

A project plan is not something you would usually create in Excel. However, if you are planning a small project such as a party, all you need is a one-page template that lists the key tasks and lets you set a schedule and budget. This template from Office Templates Online is a good starting point.

This tracking template helps you get an overview of the direct, indirect, overhead and administrative costs associated with a product or project.

This Vertex42 template is essential if you manage several different clients, projects or deliverables. It combines project details, expenses, task status and due dates in one place.

Microsoft Excel 2016 had its own category for business plans. You could search for "business" and select the Business Plans category on the right. In Excel 2019 and later you can still run either query, though some templates may not appear depending on the search term. We recommend exploring the options below.

Creating a business plan can be a complex project in itself. This checklist helps you cover all the bases by guiding you through the process using a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis. Note that you will find two similar templates in Excel; both are identical SWOT analysis checklists, differing only in their formatting.

This template is an excellent starting point for any budding entrepreneur who needs help projecting business costs. It guides you through the most common goods and services a new business might need.

Once you have filled in all the potential expenses, you will have a much clearer idea of the funding required to get your business off the ground. For more business plan templates, take a look at our dedicated article.

All of the templates above work best when you have a full version of Microsoft Excel. To discover how Excel 365 can further boost your productivity, read our guide to Microsoft Excel 365. You can also extend Office with powerful add-ins — see our list of the top 10 Office 2019 add-ins.

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