Resource Management by Smartsheet vs Zoho Projects: Complete Comparison (2026)

Why choose Resource Management by Smartsheet

• Higher Ease of Use score (7/10 vs 6/10)
• Better fit for consultancies (9/10 vs 7/10)

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Why choose Zoho Projects

• Has a free plan (Resource Management by Smartsheet does not)
• Higher Cost score (9/10 vs 4/10)
• Higher Customization score (8/10 vs 4/10)
• Better fit for small business (9/10 vs 3/10)
• Better fit for startups (8/10 vs 2/10)

Resource Management by Smartsheet

Pros

• Heatmaps and a visual schedule show availability and percentage allocation across every project in one place.
• Comes with Time + Fees, Expense, Budget, and Utilization reports, so services firms do not have to build them.
• Placeholders and role-based planning let managers staff a project before naming people, and help forecast hiring.
• Reviewers say time logging and adding projects are easy, and that teams need little training.
• Connects to Smartsheet projects through Control Center and Advanced Reporting.

Cons

• Prices are not published, and it costs extra on top of a Smartsheet Business or Enterprise plan.
• Smartsheet's documentation says it has no task-level tracking, subtasks, dependencies, or Gantt views.
• Its dashboards cannot be customized, and permissions are set only at the project or account level.
• Reviewers report that exported data lands in the wrong fields and that work items cannot be tied to subphases.
• One reviewer reports a minimum purchase of 15 licences.

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Zoho Projects

Pros

• Paid plans start at $4 per user per month on annual billing, which reviewers rank among the cheapest in the category.
• The free plan supports 5 users and 3 projects, enough for very small teams to run real work.
• Built-in timers, timesheets with approvals, and budgeting serve teams that bill for their time.
• Blueprints, automation rules and custom functions allow detailed workflow control.
• Integrates closely with other Zoho apps such as Desk, Analytics and Sprints.

Cons

• Reviewers say the learning curve is steep, especially for blueprints and custom functions.
• Client and guest access cost extra on top of the plan price.
• Users report weaker portfolio and multi-project management than enterprise-focused rivals.
• Some reviewers find the configuration screens crowded and say support can be slow to respond.
• The free plan has no project templates, and its automation limit is low at 50 actions per month.