Top 10 Best Capacity Planning Tools for Resource Management in 2023
Burnout and cramming when completing any kind of project and task can be the result of poor planning.
Being able to manage your team’s workload and work limits is one way to ensure that your team is able to delivery projects within the deadline while hitting goals and without compromising their quality of work.
A simple way to properly manage your team’s workload and work capacity is with the use of capacity planning tools.
These tools and applications are a simple yet effective way to manage a smooth capacity planning process and avoid overloading your resources which can affect productivity and result in delays.
Address quick changes to work demands and resource constraints by finding the best capacity planning tool that will match your team’s work requirements and demands.
We compiled a list of 10 different capacity planning software with their benefits, limitations, and cost to help you decide!
1. ClickUp
ClickUp is a workload management platform that allows users to plan, schedule, and allocate resources more effectively. It is complete with tools and functions to manage resources, workload, hours, and team members.
Plan your work over time and create visual roadmaps in Timeline View to keep your unscheduled, assigned, and overdue tasks visible. Then manage your team's work capacity in Workload view to ensure you're allocating tasks appropriately. To get an even higher-level overview of your resources, simply use the Box view and Dashboards to get a completely unique view that lets you see workload and capacity at a glance.
ClickUp can also be connected to over 1,000 other work tools to help bring all your work in one place, keep your most-used apps together, and streamline your workflow. Teams, businesses, and organizations can use ClickUp to manage and understand their current capacities for better work and resource allocation.
Best Features
- Choose from customizable views to manage your resources and workflow
- Improve communication and collaboration with real-time comments and notifications
- Hit project goals by creating your own custom dashboard with visual widgets for tasks, sprints, time tracking, statuses, documents, and more
- Library of templates to support resource planning, SOP creation, and capacity management
Current Limitations
- Short learning curve due to number of customization features
Pricing
- Free: Free forever
- Unlimited: $5 per user per month
- Business: $12 per user per month
- Business Plus: $19 per user per month
- Enterprise: Contact sales
Get started with ClickUp for free, no credit card required
2. Float
Float is a great capacity management and planning application that helps provide clarity and understanding to any team or individual’s assigned projects. Assign titles and roles to your team members to give your entire organization or department visibility and context of their work and assigned projects. Use Float to set default hours and availability of each person to give everyone an overlook at their current workload.
Best Features
- Integration with common systems such as Slack and Asana
- Reporting on resource allocation and utilization to optimize your team’s work capacity
- Scenario planning to identify possible constraints and bottlenecks
Current Limitations
- User interface and scrolling can be confusing
- Does not come in a free version
Pricing
- Free trial available
- Resource planning: $6/person per month
- Resource planning + Time Tracking: $10/person per month
- Plus pack: Additional $6/person per month
3. ResourceGuru
Handle human resources with ease using Resource Guru. This project management tool offers capacity management features to help manage how all of your resources are utilized. Monitor and track each resource using the app’s toolbox. Keep track of their availability, time offs, assigned projects, and more all from the application and get visibility of their current capacity and workload.
Best Features
- Single calendar view of a team’s entire schedule
- Centralized resource pool and employee directory
- Approval Workflow allows you to assign approvers for high-priority work
Current Limitations
- Limited integrations with tools such as Asana
- File sorting and organization can be improved
Pricing
- Grasshopper Plan: $4.16/person per month
- Blackbelt Plan: $6.65/person per month
- Master Plan: $10/person per month
4. Forecast App
Forecast is a full-feature resource management software that utilizes AI to provide insights and forecasts for capacity planning. Aside from capacity planning, it is also a project management and project account application. Forecast helps users centralize work and improve resource management. Manage your entire company’s workload and get total visibility as well as powerful AI-driven insights to help identify areas for improvement.
Best Features
- Advanced warnings to mitigate risks when projects are off track
- Follow project progress by managing all aspects of each project
- Intelligent resource allocation with holistic Schedule view
Current Limitations
- Mobile version is currently unavailable
- Features such as budget pages can be improved
Pricing
- Lite: €27/seat/month
- Pro plan: €46/seat/month
- Plus plan: Contact Forecast for plus pricing plans
5. Saviom
Reduce resource costs, bottlenecks, and constraints with Saviom. This capacity and resource management software offers multi-dimensional resource scheduling and optimization. The software offers various features and functions that make it easy to scale your project management and workforce planning with real-time dashboard analytics, scenario-based modeling, and integration with common business ecosystems.
Best Features
- Capacity planning and utilization through powerful forecasting
- 360-view of upcoming projects and their workforce requirements
- Drag and drag capability for scheduling and distributing workload
Current Limitations
- License fee can be hefty for small teams and organizations
- Limited integration capabilities with tools such as MS Project
Pricing
- Pricing quotation available upon request, depending on user type and number of users
6. Meisterplan
Meisterplan is a powerful software tool to support resource management and capacity planning by allowing you to align your resources with your strategic goals and objectives. This software helps coordinate various stakeholders and teams through various functions such as portfolio stimulation and demand prioritization. Meisterplan’s resource management helps you work with realistic capacity and demand data to anticipate and prevent resource constraints and bottlenecks. This software highlights a strong focus on customer solutions delivery, product development, agile development, corporate IT, and business transformation.
Best Features
- Reliable forecasting to support agile teams
- Supports customer projects with consideration to factors such as availability, dependencies and important milestones and deadlines
- Supports increase of profit margin through realistic planning effort to improve project completion
Current Limitations
- Steep learning curve due to enterprise-level functions and features
- Customization features can be improved
Pricing
- Basic: Starts at $99/month
- Pro: Starts at $792/month
- Premium: Starts at $2,960/month
7. Runn
Get an overview of your team’s workload from a single, shared view with Runn. This capacity management software helps optimize your team’s workload to avoid project delivery delays and time constraints. The tool features functions such as tags, filters, timesheets, reporting, API and integrations.
Best Features
- Easy drag and drop resource scheduling when allocating work
- View projects at a glance and assign new tasks without overbooking and overlapping
- Dynamic reporting with charts, graphs, and tables to provide actionable insights about your business
Current Limitations
- Learning curve due to number of tools and integrations
- Limited customization options for project notes
Pricing
- Free for up to 5 people
- Pro: $8/person per month
- Enteprise: Contact for custom pricing
8. Wrike
Wrike is a cloud-based project management software that can be used for capacity planning. Whether you’re a small team or an enterprise-level user, Wrike offers robust project management tools and capacity planning functions. Its project resource planning helps set priorities so you and your team can focus on your goals. Enable high quality work outcomes by assigning the right people and easily aligning your team with organizational goals.
Best Features
- Built-in chat function that allows you to keep tabs with your teams
- Easy to use resource management tools to estimate project resource needs
- KPI monitoring and reporting to track deliverables
Limitations
- Learning curve due to customization features
- Paid plans can be pricey
Pricing
- Free
- Professional: $9.80 per user/month
- Business: $24.80 per user/month
9. Mosaic
Mosaic is an AI-powered resource management software and project planning tool. It offers users a new way to connect and align all teams and people in an organization for better project planning and execution. Get high-level visibility of everyone’s current tasks and balance all workload with the help of this tool. Take action and avoid bottlenecks with the tool’s real-time reports and budget forecasts. Mosaic is a resource planning software that will support efforts to increase efficiency and profitability.
Best Features
- Visualize workload across teams and departments to ensure everyone is at capacity
- Prioritize work by combining project schedules with resource plans
- Agile resource management which allows you to quickly move things around when needed
Current Limitations
- Limited third-party integrations
- Interface can be slow and clunky
Pricing
- Risk-free trial available
- Team plan: Starts at $9.99/user per month
- Business Plan: Starts at $14.99/user per month
- Enterprise: Contact for pricing
10. Kantata
Kantata is a capacity planning software that supports team collaboration through a visual dashboard that provides team members real-time reports for resources, time, project status and more. Its dynamic resource management comes with reporting and forecasting capabilities to set every resource and project for success. Its analytics and reporting also helps users understand how to make better resourcing decisions that can impact performance and profit.
Best Features
- Analytics for better and smarter staffing decisions
- Align the right resources with specific project demands through optimized staffing
- Anticipate bottlenecks and prevent burnout with efficient forecasting tools
Current Limitations
- Difficult workaround with integration tool
- User interface and website navigation can be improved
Pricing
- Pricing available upon request
Benefits of Using Capacity Planning Apps and Tools
There are a lot of benefits to using capacity planning tools for capacity planning and resource management. Here are a few key benefits:
- Better resource allocation. Capacity planning tools can help you identify how much work each team member or department can handle within a given timeframe.
- Improved project planning. By accurately estimating project effort and analyzing capacity, you can better plan and schedule your projects while improving the quality of the work delivered.
- Increased productivity. Identify areas where you may have excess capacity or where resources are underutilized.
- Enhanced decision-making. Capacity planning tools provide real-time data and insights that can help you make more informed decisions when it comes to resource allocation, budgeting, and forecasting.
- Improved collaboration. Help teams collaborate more effectively by providing a centralized platform for project and resource management.
Overall, capacity planning tools can help organizations optimize their resources, increase productivity, and improve project outcomes.
Achieve Effective Capacity Planning with ClickUp
Most project managers, team leaders, and business owners miss the mark when it comes to managing how resources are allocated.
Improve your team’s productivity, prevent workload burnout, and avoid wasting resources and time with the help of a robust capacity planning tool.
With ClickUp’s planning tools, views, reporting, task priorities, and task dependencies, you are able to start identifying gaps with your resource capacity and identify any opportunities for improvement.
Discover how ClickUp can optimize the way you utilize, handle, and manage resources to achieve business goals and objectives. Sign-up for a free account to learn more!
