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Microsoft Project Server vs RationalPlan 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
6.9
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Project Portfolio Management (3rd)
RationalPlan
Average Rating
10.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.4
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Project Management Software (48th)
 

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.
reviewer1976010 - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to understand with fair pricing and lots of unique features
We use the desktop version of RationalPlan, and It seems some desktop software has the ability to share a document as a web view. This would be a nice feature allowing us to share our plans with clients without needing additional software. This may be something that is offered in the RationalPlan cloud plan. However, it would be nice for the desktop version to have this ability to bring it one more step ahead of the competition. As a side note, RationalPlan does have a free viewer as well.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution is stable."
"It's stable and reliable."
"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 solution, overall, is excellent for project planning."
"The ability to track a project's progress using Microsoft Project Server is the most valuable aspect. It depends, especially when managing multiple projects."
"The solution offers excellent resource allocation tools and is flexible, particularly in portfolio management."
"A single place for all our organisation's project records."
"SharePoint site integration"
"Support is top-notch whenever help is needed."
 

Cons

"Project Server could be improved by simplifying how tasks are assigned and reviewed on a daily basis."
"The solution's synchronization with Jira Projects should be improved."
"The solution could have more compact dashboards, such as one finds with Planview."
"We need to be able to compare milestones, calls, and other variables regarding the projects we are working on. I have to contract developers to make reports, which is where things get complicated. They need to develop personal and custom fields for us."
"It may be considered expensive."
"Resource management has room for improvement because it uses a lot of resources."
"We are on the on-prem version. The cloud, however, gives more regular updates that we can take advantage of."
"The product's UI is not very user-friendly."
"We use the desktop version of RationalPlan, and It seems some desktop software has the ability to share a document as a web view. This would be a nice feature allowing us to share our plans with clients without needing additional software. This may be something that is offered in the RationalPlan cloud plan."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an inexpensive product."
"I would rate the price a six out of ten."
"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."
"It is on the expensive side."
"It's not subscription-based, we purchased the on-premises version."
"There is a licensing cost."
"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."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Government
9%
Energy/Utilities Company
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

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?
Microsoft Project Server is on the expensive side due to high licensing costs, but it is mainly accessible to project managers. Online tools are cheaper and present competition.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Project Server?
The main drawback of Microsoft Project Server is that it is offline. Having it online would offer better access to other managers.
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Also Known As

MS Project Server
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Overview

 

Sample Customers

Magnachip, Gwinnett County Schools, CLEAResult, Medbit Oy, Intelbras S.A., ETS, CORE Construction, Keller Foundations
James Cook University, NASA, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Teleflex, Garmin, University of Missouri, BEA, Eurocoating, Adidas Group, Termoemcali, Solid Power
Find out what your peers are saying about ServiceNow, Broadcom, Microsoft and others in Project Portfolio Management. Updated: May 2025.
859,438 professionals have used our research since 2012.