# Choosing project management software for a dev team

> How to choose project management software for a software team: the questions to ask, the kinds of tool on offer and how to test one on real work.

The right tool is the one your team will keep up to date. Decide what you need it to do, test two or three on real work and look at what the price does as you grow.

Web page: https://kansohq.app/guides/choosing-project-management-software

Updated: 5 October 2026

## Start with the job, not the tool

Write down what has gone wrong: work nobody could see, specs that no longer match the tasks, a launch where support was not told. Those are the jobs the tool has to do. A feature list that does not touch them can be ignored.

## The questions to ask

1. **Does it show the work?** A board, a list and a calendar of the same tasks, without copying them.
2. **Where do the specs live?** If they live in another tool, how do they stay linked to the tasks?
3. **Does it show dates?** For one release, with owners and blockers, and for each person’s week.
4. **Where does the talk happen?** If it is in a separate chat tool, does a message link to the task and show its status?
5. **How many people can use it, and at what price?** Look at the price at your team’s size today and at twice that size.
6. **Who can see and change what?** Roles, guests and private pages.
7. **Can you get your data out?** An export or backup you have actually tried.
8. **Is it fast?** A tool people wait for is a tool people stop using.

## The kinds of tool on offer

| Kind | Good at | Watch for |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Issue trackers | Detailed workflows and reporting for engineering | Docs and chat are usually separate products |
| General work managers | Flexible views for any kind of team | Can be heavy to set up for a small team |
| Wikis and docs tools | Writing and sharing knowledge | Task tracking can be an add-on |
| All-in-one workspaces | Specs, boards, dates and chat in one place | Fewer integrations and advanced reports |

Kanso is in the last group. Read the honest side-by-side tables: [Kanso vs Jira](https://kansohq.app/compare/jira.md), [vs Notion](https://kansohq.app/compare/notion.md), [vs Linear](https://kansohq.app/compare/linear.md), [vs Trello](https://kansohq.app/compare/trello.md) and the [others](https://kansohq.app/compare.md).

## Test it on real work

1. Pick two or three tools that look right on paper.
2. Take one real project, with its real tasks, and run it in each for two weeks.
3. Ask three people who did not choose the tool whether they would open it unprompted.
4. Check what you needed to ask someone that the tool could not tell you.
5. Look at what leaving would cost. Export your data and open it.

## Watch the price as you grow

A tool that is cheap for five people can be expensive for fifty if it charges per person. Another may charge a flat fee but limit projects. Compare the cost at your size now, at double the size and with the extras you actually need, such as permissions and history.

## A scorecard you can use

Score each tool from 0 to 3 on what matters to you, then multiply by how much each matters. The numbers are crude, but writing them down exposes what you actually care about.

| Question | How much it matters (1 to 3) | Tool A | Tool B | Tool C |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Shows work as board, list and calendar |  |  |  |  |
| Keeps specs linked to tasks |  |  |  |  |
| Shows each release with owners and blockers |  |  |  |  |
| Chat links to tasks |  |  |  |  |
| Price at our size and at double |  |  |  |  |
| Roles, guests and private pages |  |  |  |  |
| We can export everything |  |  |  |  |

## Red flags

- You cannot see the price without talking to someone, and you are a team of ten.
- Setup takes longer than the trial lasts.
- The people who will use it every day were not asked.
- The demo uses data that looks nothing like your work.
- You cannot find out how to leave.

## Choosing a tool in Kanso’s terms

If your main pain is that specs, tasks, dates and conversations live in four places, try Kanso on one project. The [Free plan](https://kansohq.app/pricing.md) does not expire, and Team has unlimited members in one workspace with roles and permissions. If you need heavy reporting or a large integration marketplace, check that against what you use today.

## Questions

### How do I choose project management software for a software team?

List what has gone wrong, turn that into questions about work, specs, dates, chat, price and permissions, then test two or three tools on a real project for two weeks.

### Should a software team use one tool or several?

Fewer is simpler, but there is no rule. What matters is that the specs, tasks, dates and conversations stay linked, whether through one tool or through links between several.

### How much does project management software cost?

Prices range from free plans to tens of dollars per person per month. Check the price at your team’s size now and at twice that size, and which features sit behind the paid plans.

### What should I check before committing to a tool?

That you can export your data, that permissions fit how you work, that it stays fast with your real data, and that people who did not choose it will use it.

## Keep reading

- [Project management for software teams, explained](https://kansohq.app/guides/project-management-for-software-teams.md): Project management for software teams in plain words: what to manage, a light system that works at any size, the rhythm to keep and the mistakes to avoid.
- [Project management for growing software teams](https://kansohq.app/guides/project-management-for-growing-teams.md): What breaks as a software team grows from 5 to 50 people, and the small changes that fix it: owners, written decisions, shared dates and a steady rhythm.
- [Project management for large software teams](https://kansohq.app/guides/project-management-for-large-software-teams.md): How to manage software work across many people and teams: clear ownership, one view of cross-team launches, roles, written decisions and the right tools.
- [PRD template: a free product spec to copy | Kanso](https://kansohq.app/templates/product-spec.md): A free PRD template for software teams: problem, solution, who it is for, scope, success measure and open questions. Copy it, or start it in Kanso.
- [Software launch checklist template to copy | Kanso](https://kansohq.app/templates/launch-checklist.md): A software launch checklist template covering product, quality and go-to-market, launch day and after launch. Copy it, or start it in Kanso.

## Parts of Kanso used

- [Kanso Docs](https://kansohq.app/product/docs.md): Pages with headings, to-dos, tables and code, kept inside the project they describe, next to its board and its release.
- [Kanso Boards](https://kansohq.app/product/boards.md): A board for each piece of work. Cards carry a priority, an owner, a due date and the criteria that say when they are done.
- [Kanso Chat](https://kansohq.app/product/chat.md): Channels and direct messages that link straight to the task, page or release being discussed.

[Kanso home, with plans and prices](https://kansohq.app/index.md)