What are the best free Gantt chart project tools for a small PMO tracking multiple projects?

For a small PMO tracking multiple projects, the best free Gantt chart tools are usually the ones that balance multi-project visibility, dependencies, collaboration, and a simple learning curve. Here are the strongest options:

Best free options

1. ClickUp (Free plan)

Best for: Small teams wanting one place for tasks, timelines, and lightweight portfolio views.
Pros:

• Gantt-style timeline view
• Multiple projects/workspaces
• Task dependencies
• Good collaboration features
• Lots of custom fields and views

Cons:

• Free plan has limits on storage and advanced reporting
• Can feel a bit crowded/complex

Why it’s good for a PMO:
Good if you need to track several projects in one system and want a more modern, all-in-one tool.

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2. TeamGantt (Free plan)

Best for: Simple, clean Gantt charts with easy scheduling.
Pros:

• Very intuitive Gantt interface
• Good for project scheduling and dependencies
• Easy to learn
• Nice for PMs who want clarity over complexity

Cons:

• Free plan is limited to a small number of users/projects
• Less robust for portfolio-style reporting than some others

Why it’s good for a PMO:
Excellent if you want straightforward Gantt charts without a steep learning curve.

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3. Trello + Planyway / Mermaid / other Gantt add-ons

Best for: Teams already using Trello and wanting a free-ish Gantt extension.
Pros:

• Easy if you already use Trello
• Familiar Kanban workflow
• Add-on can provide timeline/Gantt view

Cons:

• Gantt functionality depends on the add-on
• True multi-project PMO tracking is limited
• Free tiers may be restrictive

Why it’s good for a PMO:
Only worth it if your team already lives in Trello.

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4. OpenProject Community Edition

Best for: PMOs that want a true project management platform and can tolerate self-hosting or technical setup.
Pros:

• Real Gantt planning
• Multiple projects
• Work packages, milestones, dependencies
• Open-source and free

Cons:

• More technical to deploy/manage
• UI is less polished than some commercial tools
• Requires IT/admin comfort if self-hosted

Why it’s good for a PMO:
One of the best free choices if you want serious project controls and can handle setup.

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5. GanttProject

Best for: Offline desktop-based Gantt scheduling.
Pros:

• Free and open-source
• Good for creating and editing Gantt charts
• Dependencies and resources
• Runs locally

Cons:

• Not ideal for team collaboration
• No strong cloud-based multi-project collaboration
• More of a planning tool than a PMO platform

Why it’s good for a PMO:
Useful for creating schedules, but not the best for a shared multi-project environment.

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6. Airtable (Free plan)

Best for: Custom PMO trackers with timeline/Gantt-style views.
Pros:

• Flexible database-like structure
• Timeline view works well for project tracking
• Good for custom PMO dashboards
• Easy to build your own workflow

Cons:

• Free plan limits records/attachments
• Gantt-style management is less traditional than dedicated tools
• Can get messy without good governance

Why it’s good for a PMO:
Great if you want a lightweight portfolio tracker and are willing to build it yourself.

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Quick recommendation by use case

• Best overall free tool for a small PMO: ClickUp
• Best simple Gantt experience: TeamGantt
• Best free open-source enterprise-style option: OpenProject
• Best for custom tracking: Airtable
• Best offline option: GanttProject

What to look for in a PMO tool

For multiple projects, make sure the free tool includes:

• Cross-project visibility
• Dependencies
• Milestones
• Resource/workload tracking if possible
• Filters and tags
• Shared updates/comments
• Exporting to PDF/Excel

My practical shortlist

If I were choosing for a small PMO, I’d start with:

1. ClickUp if you want a modern cloud tool with multiple projects
2. OpenProject if you want a more formal PMO approach and can self-host
3. TeamGantt if simplicity is the top priority

If you want, I can also give you:

• a comparison table
• the best free option by team size
• or a recommendation based on your PMO needs (for example: dependencies, resource management, reporting, or client-facing tracking).