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Microsoft Project Server vs Planview AdaptiveWork comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Project Server
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
62
Ranking in other categories
Project Portfolio Management (5th)
Planview AdaptiveWork
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Project Management Software (19th)
 

Featured Reviews

Mouloud Fourali - PeerSpot reviewer
Visual project planning enhances collaboration and proactive management
The dependency management in Microsoft Project is highly valuable, as it visually maps dependencies and impacts within a project plan. The online version facilitates easy collaboration without having to share multiple versions of the file. The Gantt chart is also a very powerful tool for a visual presentation of sequences, critical paths, and execution processes, which simplifies comprehension for users.
VishalSingh11 - PeerSpot reviewer
Has resources management and timesheets but could be more flexible
Compared to Broadcom Clarity, there was some flexibility with blueprints, etc. You can create a blueprint for different business groups or different customers. Planview AdaptiveWork doesn't have something like that. If they can build up something like a view price. It's still a traditional way where you have to create different instances for different customers. The PPM solution uses queries if I'm rolling out for different divisions. In that case, I have to create different instances for each region because each division may have a different look and feel. But if I have a blueprint, then it's very convenient. I can create multiple interfaces for different processes. Broadcom Clarity has some access control on those viewpoints.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"In the competitive landscape of project management and portfolio management solutions, Microsoft Project Server stands out significantly."
"The usability is excellent."
"Microsoft Project Server is simple to use."
"The solution offers excellent resource allocation tools and is flexible, particularly in portfolio management."
"We are able to know what we are doing, how much we have spent, how much time we've taken, and it tells us how much money is left for the project. It also tells us whether we are below or above our expenditures, whether we are below or above our budget."
"The key things are managing interactions, resource allocation, resource-leveling (enterprise) and as a collaborative tool, because we use it across multiple projects at a time."
"Using Power BI and SQL Server, I can extract a lot more data."
"There are many valuable features of this solution. It is very advanced and once you understand and learn how to use it, it can be quite powerful. The whole package can be quite powerful."
"Clarizen Slide Publisher has helped increase transparency and communication with project stakeholders for us."
"I like the project management solution. It's really nice."
"Clarizen's strength is reporting. Aside from reporting, I also like the ability to create customized workflow and custom actions. The workflow rules are handy. For example, you can create custom fields and dependent picklists."
"The feature that has improved our project planning the most is the ability to create custom workflows, which allows us to automate manual tasks that project managers need to perform. The collaboration feature enhances our team's productivity by allowing individuals to see the impact of their decisions on projects owned and managed by other teams."
 

Cons

"Microsoft Project Server's user interface is pretty average, and sometimes it can have bugs."
"Microsoft Project Server needs improvement in the integration of more tools and syncing of Blockly tools on time."
"It may be considered expensive."
"Collaboration within the tool is lacking when you compare it to online or cloud-based tools."
"The solution must provide Agile and AI features."
"The solution's synchronization with Jira Projects should be improved."
"The solution could have more compact dashboards, such as one finds with Planview."
"Exporting data from Microsoft Project, especially Gantt charts, is overly complex and not user-friendly."
"It could be more user-friendly. I think it is too overwhelming, initially, in terms of possibilities and so on."
"If I start customizing too many things, Clarizen tends to get really slow in our environment and especially if I'm tunneled in an environment, like if I'm connected to my VPN."
"One specific area for improvement could be implementing a development environment to test workflows with live production data."
"I felt like the slide publisher isn't that user-friendly. I think it wasn't that easy to use or to figure out because of formatting constraints, or maybe we need to get better at understanding some of its limitations."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the Microsoft Project Server could improve, it is expensive here in Africa. When comparing Microsoft Project Server to Oracle Primavera for us, Microsoft Project Server is quite cost-effective."
"I'm not quite sure about the licensing costs. We're probably paying somewhere in the neighborhood of about 80,000 to 90,000 a year for our current on-prem because we handle our own licensing. As far as Project Online is concerned, we're still trying to get a good handle on that. It looks like it is going to be in a neighborhood of about 120,000 to 150,000 a year, but we're getting a lot more capability out of it."
"We have an enterprise agreement with Microsoft, and our licensing is based on the agreement."
"It is on the expensive side."
"It's not subscription-based, we purchased the on-premises version."
"I cannot comment on the price as I was not responsible for purchasing the solution."
"I think they need more flexibility with licensing, because there are preconceived ideas that don't allow as much flexibility with the various licenses."
"Microsoft Project Server is an expensive solution. Small businesses will not be able to afford it."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Government
8%
Energy/Utilities Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Healthcare Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise33
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Project Server?
The ability to track a project's progress using Microsoft Project Server is the most valuable aspect. It depends, especially when managing multiple projects.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Project Server?
The pricing for Microsoft Project Server is standard, around $200-$250, but I think it's actually $80 to $100 per year. The pricing for Microsoft Project Server is relative; I would say it is cheap.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Project Server?
In order to improve Microsoft Project Server, collaborative features could be enhanced, as it is possible to improve it in a collaborative way similar to other office products, for example, using c...
What do you like most about Planview AdaptiveWork?
The feature that has improved our project planning the most is the ability to create custom workflows, which allows us to automate manual tasks that project managers need to perform. The collaborat...
What needs improvement with Planview AdaptiveWork?
One specific area for improvement could be implementing a development environment to test workflows with live production data.
What advice do you have for others considering Planview AdaptiveWork?
Integration with other tools can sometimes be a hiccup, but this isn't necessarily a limitation of Planview AdaptiveWork. It's more often a result of company policies regarding integration with oth...
 

Also Known As

MS Project Server
Planview Clarizen
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Magnachip, Gwinnett County Schools, CLEAResult, Medbit Oy, Intelbras S.A., ETS, CORE Construction, Keller Foundations
Cisco Capital, JLL, Conagra Brands, Cargill, JLL, IBM, IIROC, Siemens Energy
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Project Server vs. Planview AdaptiveWork and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
867,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.