Smartsheet Review: Is it the Best for Customization?

Looking for project management software? Smartsheet software makes use of the spreadsheet-esque interface we all know and love with added automation, custom reports, and color-coded graphs, charts, and lists for A+ project management. In this Smartsheet review, we explore the platform in-depth, let’s take a look.

Table of Contents Table of Contents

1. Smartsheet Pricing
2. Smartsheet Features
3. Smartsheet Integrations
4. Smartsheet Customer Reviews
5. What is a Smartsheet Good for?
6. Smartsheet vs Top Competitors
7. How We Test Project Management Tools
8. How to Choose the Best Project Management Solution
9. FAQs
10. References

Show Full Guide

Table of Contents

1. Smartsheet Pricing
2. Smartsheet Features
3. Smartsheet Integrations
Show Full Guide
4. Smartsheet Customer Reviews
5. What is a Smartsheet Good for?
6. Smartsheet vs Top Competitors
7. How We Test Project Management Tools
8. How to Choose the Best Project Management Solution
9. FAQs
10. References

Smartsheet Pricing

With a free plan and a paid plan that costs just $7, Smartsheet is an affordable tool with great functionality. Here’s how the plans compare:

Smartsheet Features

From impressive analytics capabilities to in-app conversations, Smartsheet is more than just an Excel replica. Here are the key standouts that we found during our Smartsheet review.

Multi Views

Smartsheet goes way beyond spreadsheets, giving you several ways to visualize and access your data. Views include grid, Gantt, card, and calendar — giving you full flexibility in reviewing your data.

You can customize your charts and sheets with a few clicks — changing information like assigned, due date, and more. We also liked how easy it was to switch between each different view.

In addition, you can also view forms and content from other plans like Power BI and Google Docs on the Smartsheet dashboard. Plus, you can add comments and @mentions to your graphs, charts, and sheets if you need someone on your team to weigh in on something.

You can also access multiple views in the Smartsheet app, which we found to be a nice addition.

Document Management

Want to send contracts and proposals without leaving the platform? You can use Smartsheet to create custom PDFs and send documents for signature.

Smartsheet automates document creation, sending, completion, signing, and storage. You can use the data stored in your sheets to help populate your PDFs and automate form population, too.

You can also track signing statuses automatically from your sheets — keeping you in the loop when it comes to the status of your contracts, proposals, purchase orders, and more.

This is a standout feature among other providers, but while we found in our Wrike review that you can integrate an eSign platform with the platform, for example, this feature isn’t in-built.

Reports

Smartsheet project management capabilities are enhanced by their reporting and analytics features. You can easily filter and combine your sheet data to create customized reports, for example.

You can pool data from multiple sheets and apply filters by column values or metadata to get a granular view of your projects and teams’ performance.

We liked how easy reports were to share, send, add to the dashboard, and export to PDF. We also liked that they’re bi-directional — sheets update reports and vice versa, you don’t need to do this manually.

While the custom reports are a super valuable feature, if you’re looking for deeper analytics on risk, then you may want to check out project management platforms like Wrike, for example.

54% of companies surveyed are using GenAI, and Wrike offers an in-built AI assistant that you can use to perform an in-depth analysis of your data and risk.

Conversations

16% of companies are fully remote, meaning online communication is more important than ever. Ditch emails and messenger, and keep your conversations on the platform with Teamwork’s conversations.

Conversations are an easy way to ask questions or make comments about different phases of your projects. We were big fans of the flexibility, you can leave comments in a sheet, row, or workspace.

The Conversations feature is also integrated with email — your colleagues can reply to @mentions in the sheet or via email, depending on their preferences.

Smartsheet Integrations

Like its main competitors, Smartsheet integrates with most cloud-based tools out there — including HubSpot, Slack, DocuSign, Teams, and Google Drive.

Integrating your go-to apps with Smartsheet is relatively easy using the Smartsheet API, however, unlike most, Smartsheet isn’t transparent about how many tools you can integrate with.

Smartsheet Customer Reviews

Smartsheet has a 4.5 rating on G2, with most boasting that they love how easy the platform is to use and how you can jump between different sheets and graphs.

Across the board, Smartsheet boasts a stellar reputation online, with most Smartsheet reviews being incredibly positive. This is a true testament to this tool’s functionality and usability.

Users liked how they could connect data between sheets and easily find relevant information with filters, too. Plus, many are big fans of Smartsheet’s automated reminders.

However, some note that they want more features than what it provides, and others mention sheet limitations, like how it’s sometimes tricky to combine data from several sheets into one.

Other Smartsheet reviews note that it only allows 500 lines to be copied at one time, too, making it somewhat time-consuming to transfer data from sheets on Excel if they were moving over.

What is a Smartsheet Good for?

It has an incredibly intuitive UI and ample other project views if you need added flexibility. It’s highly customizable, but there are limitations you wouldn’t get with tools like Monday, for example.

Albeit, very minor.

Smartsheet vs Top Competitors

How does Smartsheet compare to top competitors? Here’s an overview of how it fares against the best Smartsheet alternatives:

Smartsheet vs Asana

Asana is a leading Smartsheet competitor. Both are great for managing your projects, giving you access to Gantt and calendar views as well as Kanban Boards to track all your projects.

You can also create custom fields on both platforms, but Smartsheet offers additional project insights, including the Nifty Critical Path feature, which logs the start and finish dates of each of your projects.

This gives you a clear view of your project’s schedule in real-time. When it comes to pricing, however, Smartsheet is the more budget-friendly option at just $7/month compared to Asana’s $10.99/month.

Recommended Read: A Full Asana Review for 2024

Smartsheet vs Excel

Excel is an awesome piece of software that can be used to efficiently organize information, but while Smartsheet is a spreadsheet-style tool, it offers several additional capabilities for project planning.

Smartsheet gives you access to a number of views (from charts to graphs) from a centralized digital dashboard, custom reporting, integrations, and automations.

If you’re looking for a tool to help you keep track of all your projects rather than a tool for data entry and management, then Smartsheet is the one to go for.

Smartsheet vs Monday

Monday is known for its super visual and easy-to-use interface — getting rave endorsements from users across the web.

While Smartsheet offers several views and intuitive features, some have noted a learning curve when using the platform. In terms of pricing, though, both are incredibly affordable.

Monday offers some additional features that are worth noting, too, like the social media management feature that lets you manage your social media accounts without leaving the platform.

In addition, they also offer hundreds of customizable templates.

Read More: Our Comprehensive Monday.com Review

How We Test Project Management Tools

For over 13 years, we’ve been testing and comparing the best tools on the market spanning various categories, including CRMs, project management tools, and even AI products.

We provide a thorough analysis of all the top tools — navigating dashboards, trying out automations, and testing integrations to ensure we offer well-rounded overviews of each one.

To ensure we don’t miss anything, we also provide a synopsis of what reviewers are saying online to ensure you know exactly what to expect when you sign up.

How to Choose the Best Project Management Solution

What do you need to consider before saying “yes” to a particular piece of project management software? Here are some key factors to take into account when choosing the best project management app:

FAQs