25 Free Project Management Templates (Excel & ClickUp) 2023

Erica Chappell

Managing Editor

October 12, 2022

Max 10min read

Looking for a project management template?

Project management templates can help a project manager save tons of time when creating new projects. As they don’t have to start from scratch, the template helps them eliminate repetitive, tedious work. 

There are hundreds of templates out there in tools like excel and project management software like ClickUp. Not every free template is going to suit every project manager!

Luckily, we have compiled the best templates for your project management needs!

In this article, we’ll cover what a project management template is, why you need them, and highlight 25 useful templates for different project management needs. We’ll also cover how a project management tool can help you manage multiple projects effectively.

Let’s get started!

What Is a Project Management Template?

A project management template is a sheet with placeholders that help you document various project activities, like:

• Project planning
• Setting goals
• Creating work schedules
• Managing costs
• Assigning tasks
• Tracking project status
• Project controls

But how useful are they in real-life projects?

Let’s find out…

Here are some Excel & ClickUp templates that are designed for basic project management:

25 Free Project Management Templates

Before we highlight some useful templates, note that Excel has some limitations.

Remember:

Excel was never built for project management.

However, it does offer some free project management templates you could use to manage projects easily. 

But wait… how do you access them?

Open MS Excel, click on the ‘New’ tab and then type ‘project’ in the search bar on the right.

You’ll get access to any project template Excel has, like: 

• Tracker template
• Gantt chart template
• To-do list template
• Status report template
• Project budget template
• Project plan template 

Let’s take a closer look at some of these templates:

Project Charter Templates

Hospitals need to create a patient chart for every new patient that visits them.

Similarly, a project manager needs to create a project charter before starting any project. 

What is a project charter?

A project charter is a short formal document that describes your entire project.

Created during project planning, the charter:

• Gives the project sponsor, team and key stakeholders a clear overview of the project scope and its deliverables
• Outlines what work will be done in the project (i.e., the project plan)
• Defines the project budget

Here’s a simple template you can use to create a project charter quickly:

1. NYU Microsoft Word Project Charter Template

This is an easy and visually pleasing charter template to help you create high-level summaries of your project. You can describe your project scope and even rate project risks based on their severity (high, low, med).

Download this project template.

👉 More project charter templates!

2. ClickUp Project Charter Template

This ClickUp Project Charter template is a document that authorizes a project from initiation to closure. It sets the scope, objectives, and people involved in the project. It entails the goals and deadlines of the project.

3. ClickUp Product Brief Template

This ClickUp product brief template is a pre-made ClickUp Doc that helps you organize each element of your product development into one easy-to-navigate document.

Work Schedule Templates

As a project manager, you need to keep track of your team’s work schedule.

You need to track:

• What task each team member needs to work on
• What days they should work on
• How many hours your team has to put in to keep up with the project schedule

Based on the level of details that you require, here are two work schedule formats you could choose from:

4. ClickUp Schedule Blocking Template

Use this ClickUp Schedule Blocking template to assist you in monitoring your past, current, and upcoming activities.

5. Microsoft Word Weekly Project Schedule Template

A basic five-day schedule template that you can use to keep track of your team’s work activities.

Download this weekly schedule template.

6. Microsoft Word Daily Work Schedule Template

This daily work schedule format helps you manage your team’s day-to-day activities by the hour. It also has a to-do list template for better task management.

Download this schedule template.

Project Timeline Templates

A project timeline template can track each project phase as your project moves towards its finish line. 

This way, you’ll know what stage your project is at all times.

Here are two project timeline templates you could use:

7. Excel Four-Week Timeline Template

This template lets you color-code your project timeline to differentiate between different categories of tasks. You can also update your project status in this template. 

Download this four-week timeline template.

8. Microsoft Word Project Timeline with Project Milestones

This timeline template uses a visual project timeline chart to help track your project milestones.

Download this project timeline template. 

Want a more in-depth guide? Read how to create an Excel timeline.

9. ClickUp Roadmap with Timeline Template

This ClickUp Roadmap template helps you inform your team of a project’s timeline in a visual way. Outline what to expect and link back to designated tasks or current documentation for a better experience.

⭐️ Learn how to create a timeline in Microsoft Word!

Project Budget Templates

Patients aren’t the only ones who need to worry about bills!

In project management, determining the project budget is crucial for any project’s success.

Project budget templates can help a project sponsor and the team:

• Analyze project expenses
• Make strategic resource allocation and resource leveling decisions
• Identify potential budget risks

Here’s a budget template that you can use for software development projects:

10. Excel Axia Project Budget Template

Suitable for IT projects, this budget template considers various costs like software, hardware, network, and customer support.

Download this project budget template.

11. ClickUp Budget Template

This ClickUp Budget template gives you a way to easily visualize your spending and plan out your future budget.

Project Status Report Templates

A project manager must make a status report to regularly update the stakeholders about the project’s progress.

And the quickest way to do that is by using a report template.

It helps you:

• Map your task progress
• Alert your team about change requests or issues in the project
• Keep track of all completed and upcoming project milestones  

Bonus: Incident report templates!

Here are two pre-made templates that you could use to create a project status report:

12. Microsoft Word Basic Project Status Report Template

This report template can track the project’s main tasks, budget, and issues to keep your stakeholders updated.

Download this basic project status report template.

13. ClickUp Project Status Report Template

This ClickUp Project Status Report whiteboard template aims to keep all stakeholders up to date on the development, prevent problems before they occur, and guarantee that the project will be completed within the allotted time frame.

14. Microsoft Word Monthly Status Report Template

Use this report template to list your milestones, financial data, and other statuses at the end of each month. It also contains a separate report that can be used solely for internal reporting purposes.

Download this monthly status report template.

Bonus: Check out these RACI chart templates!

Timesheet Templates

As a project manager, you always need to keep an eye on your team’s timesheet.

Why?

Timesheet templates will not only help you monitor your team’s productivity but also help bill your clients or project sponsor accurately.

So here are two templates that can help you out here:

15. Microsoft Word Basic Timesheet Template

It’s a simple timesheet template designed to track your team’s regular and overtime hours.

Download this basic timesheet template.

16. ClickUp Timesheet Template

Use this ClickUp Timesheet template to allow team members to track their work hours on a weekly basis. The numbers tracked can be used cost tracking and payment collection purposes.

17. Microsoft Word Weekly Timesheet Template

This template helps you keep track of a team member’s activity for an entire week, including additional details about their projects, like billable hours.

Download this weekly timesheet template.

Agile Project Management Templates

18. Excel Agile Roadmap Template

Agile project plans are always changing. Use this agile roadmap template from excel to manage your team’s tasks in one spot.

Download this Excel agile project plan template.

Bonus: Project Roadmap Templates

19. ClickUp Agile Project Management Template

This ClickUp Agile project management template helps your Agile team prioritize project planning, organize project statuses, and more.

Graphic Design Project Management Templates

20. ClickUp Graphic Design Project Template

This ClickUp Graphic Design template allows you to organize your files, workflows, and deadlines, you’ll spend more time focusing on creating the work you love!

21. Excel Track My Tasks Template

Use this project tracker template from Excel to stay on track with your graphic design projects.

Download this “Track My Tasks” template from Excel.

22. ClickUp Design Guidelines Template

This ClickUp Brand Guidelines Template will list the precise hues, types, graphics, patterns, taglines, etc., of your brand so you can ensure that the brand machine functions properly.

Gantt Chart Project Management Templates

23. Excel Simple Gantt Chart Template

This simple Gantt Chart allows you to create a project schedule and track your progress within Excel.

Download this Excel simple Gantt Chart template.

24. ClickUp Simple Gantt Chart Template

Get a big picture overview of a project, visualize dependencies, and get ahead of blockers before they happen with this simple Gantt Chart template.

Download this ClickUp simple Gantt Chart template.

Check out more Gantt chart templates!

25. Excel Gantt Project Planner Template

This Gantt chart Excel template can be used as a project planner, allowing you to track and synchronize all the activities of a project.

Download this Gantt project planner template.

Using Excel, or even a Google Sheet for project management isn’t the best way to manage any project.

Let’s find out why…

3 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Use Excel for Project Management

The templates we discussed so far can help you manage your projects in Excel or a Google sheet. But remember, these tools were never built for project or task management!

But don’t just take our word for it.

Here are three reasons why you should consider Excel alternatives to manage projects:

A. Availability of free project management software

Dedicated project management tools like ClickUp offer everything you need for effective project management!

It’s what they’re made to do.

From designing a project management plan and creating a to-do list to keeping an eye on your status report or managing multiple projects — they can help you with anything you need.

Say goodbye to relying on those pre-made templates!

B. Excel templates are difficult to customize

Oftentimes, a business case may need out-of-the-box thinking.

Certain projects are going to be unique with different needs and requirements.

However, as every Excel template is pre-built, you can’t customize them according to your project needs. 

For example, if your stakeholders ask for a particular invoice format and you can’t find it online — you’re done for! 

C. There’s no automation to solve tedious manual data entry

No project manager wants to sit in front of a computer and spend hours entering project data manually!

You need to spend time on activities where your input is actually required, like signing off on project deliverables or analyzing productivity reports.

Unfortunately, all Excel templates require you to input all data manually.

For example, an Excel timesheet requires you and your project team to manually log data each time they sign in, take a break, or sign out. 

That’s like throwing your productivity out the window!

Bonus: Project Management Examples!

Why Do You Need a Project Management Template?

Excel templates can make it really easy for you to start working on projects, especially recurring projects that are similar in nature.

If you create a project outline manually, every time you start a new project, you won’t have any time left to actually work on your assignments!

Now of course, it’s unimaginably easier to manage projects with dedicated free project management tools like ClickUp.

However let’s understand how Excel templates can help in the beginning of your project management journey.

You need to create a project proposal, define your project scope, create a breakdown structure, and more!

However, if a project manager has a set of templates, they can quickly input their project data and get started immediately.

This way, you don’t have to waste time setting things up from scratch every time around.

Bonus: Project Proposal Templates & Business Proposal Templates

How a Dedicated Project Management Software Can Help

While an Excel template can help you out, they can’t eliminate all the issues with Excel project management. 

I mean, you wouldn’t put your loved ones (projects) in the hands of someone who isn’t a specialist (Excel), right?

Instead, you need to use powerful Agile project management tools like ClickUp that were built for managing multiple projects!

Conclusion

Sure, the Excel templates we listed here can help manage your project activities.

But is Excel a one-stop tool for project management?

Even with all of its pre-made templates, Excel can never match-up to a dedicated management tool like ClickUp!

There’s nothing quite like ClickUp.

From helping you assess project risk and project planning to managing project tracking and more, ClickUp can handle whatever you throw at it.

And the best part?

Just like any Excel template, ClickUp is a free project tool!

Sign up for ClickUp today and get fully equipped to diagnose and treat any project problem you face!