OpenProject vs Smartsheet

What OpenProject is

OpenProject is open-source project management with Gantt charts, agile boards and time tracking, self-hostable or cloud. Self-hosting puts roadmaps, requirements and time data inside your own network, which is often a hard requirement in public sector and regulated work. The cost is that you run the upgrades and the database.

What Smartsheet is

Smartsheet manages work in a spreadsheet-like grid with automations, dependencies and reporting layered on. The grid is deliberate: teams that already run projects in spreadsheets can move across without learning a new mental model, then gain Gantt views, approval workflows and cross-sheet reporting they could not build in a spreadsheet. It suits operational and portfolio work more than software development, where board-based tools fit the rhythm better.

What OpenProject is built to do

Gantt and agile boards

Supports classic scheduling and board-based work in one project.

Self-hosted deployment

Runs entirely on your infrastructure with an open-source core.

Time and cost tracking

Records effort and budget against work packages.

What Smartsheet is built to do

Grid, Gantt and card views

The same data shown as a sheet, a timeline or a board without duplicating it.

Cross-sheet reporting

Roll many project sheets into one portfolio view for reporting upward.

Automated workflows

Approval chains, reminders and status updates triggered by field changes.

Forms

Collect structured requests from people who never open the sheet itself.

Choose OpenProject if

• Organisations needing formal project planning without commercial licensing.

Choose Smartsheet if

• Teams that think in spreadsheets but need automation, forms and dashboards on top
• Small groups: Pro starts at $9/member/month billed annually
• Trying it fully first — 30 days with no card

Skip Smartsheet if

• You need unlimited automations or timeline view; those start at Business, $19/member/month annual
• You want a free tier; Smartsheet has none, only a trial
• You are an existing customer hoping to move to Pro — the vendor lists Pro as available to new customers only

OpenProject: pros & cons

• Classic project management and agile in one tool
• Self-hostable with no per-seat licence
• Gantt and baseline features included
• Enterprise features are behind the paid edition
• Self-hosting is real maintenance
• Interface is functional rather than fast

Smartsheet: pros & cons

• Familiar to anyone comfortable in spreadsheets
• Handles dependencies and resource views
• Strong automation and forms
• Interface is dense
• Per-user pricing with feature gates
• Spreadsheet metaphor breaks on complex work