Resource management software shows who is working on what, who has free capacity, and whether the hours you planned match the hours your team actually logs. Spreadsheets break down once you plan more than a handful of people across several projects: bookings overlap, time off is missed, and nobody trusts the utilization numbers.
We compared nine resource management tools that agencies, software houses, consulting firms and project teams use in 2026. A note on transparency: we make Teamdeck, so it is on the list, but we describe every tool by what it is built for, including the cases where another tool is the better fit.
Quick answer: the best resource management software by team type
- Agencies and IT teams that want scheduling, timesheets and leave in one calendar: Teamdeck
- Creative agencies that want a polished visual schedule: Float
- Small teams that book people, rooms and equipment: Resource Guru
- Service businesses that forecast revenue and capacity months ahead: Runn
- Teams that need an on-premise option or very flexible scheduling: Hub Planner
- Large professional services firms that need a full PSA: Kantata
- Organizations already standardized on Smartsheet: Smartsheet Resource Management
- Agencies that want budgeting, resourcing and billing in one agency platform: Productive
- Teams whose main need is time tracking and invoicing: Harvest (with Harvest Forecast)
Resource management tools compared
| Tool | Best for | Resource scheduling | Time tracking | Leave management | Reporting | Pricing model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teamdeck | Agencies, software houses, consulting and project teams | Yes, shared calendar with capacity | Yes, timesheets with approvals | Yes, approvals, allowances, Slack requests | Utilization, budget, absence, payroll | Per seat, from $2 (Light) and $6 (Full) per person per month |
| Float | Creative and marketing agencies | Yes, visual schedule | Yes | Time off on the schedule | Capacity and project reports | Per scheduled person |
| Resource Guru | Simple booking of people, rooms and equipment | Yes, with clash management | Basic | Yes | Utilization reports | Per person |
| Runn | Capacity and financial forecasting | Yes | Yes | Time off on the plan | Forecasts, budgets, utilization | Per person |
| Hub Planner | Flexible scheduling, cloud or on-premise | Yes | Yes, timesheets | Yes, vacation management | Configurable reports | Per resource, with add-ons |
| Kantata | Large professional services organizations | Yes, skills-based | Yes | Via integrations or configuration | Financial and portfolio reporting | Quote-based |
| Smartsheet Resource Management | Teams already on Smartsheet | Yes | Yes | Availability and leave on the schedule | Utilization and budget reports | Part of Smartsheet plans |
| Productive | Agencies that want one agency management platform | Yes | Yes | Time off requests | Profitability and budget reports | Per user, by plan |
| Harvest + Harvest Forecast | Time tracking and invoicing first | Yes, in Forecast | Yes, core product | Time off entries | Time, budget and invoice reports | Per seat, Forecast billed separately |
Feature names and plans change often. Check each vendor's website for current pricing before you decide.
How we evaluated the tools
We looked at the questions a project manager, agency owner or operations lead asks before buying resource management software:
- Scheduling: can you book people on projects by hours or percentage, see overbooking and free capacity at a glance, and plan tentative work?
- Planned vs actual: does logged time sit next to the schedule, so you can compare booked hours with real hours without exporting data?
- Availability: are vacations, sick leave and public holidays part of the same calendar, so capacity is accurate?
- Reporting: can you report utilization, billable share, project budgets and payroll inputs without a spreadsheet?
- Adoption: will the whole team actually update it? Mobile apps, Slack and calendar integrations matter more than feature count.
- Cost: is pricing predictable as the team grows, and do you pay for people who only log time?
The 9 best resource management tools in 2026
1. Teamdeck: resource scheduling, timesheets and leave in one calendar
Best for: agencies, software houses, consulting firms and project teams that plan people across many projects.
Teamdeck keeps bookings, timesheets, availability and time off on the same calendar. Project managers book people by hours, see free capacity and overbooking per person, and fix conflicts before the week starts. Team members log time against their bookings, so planned and actual hours come from one source. Leave requests, approvals and allowances live next to project work, including requests sent from Slack.
Strengths:
- Resource scheduling with free capacity, overbooking alerts and milestones
- Timesheets and time tracking with approvals and a booked vs logged comparison
- Leave management with custom leave types, allowances and Slack requests
- Custom reports for utilization, project budgets, absence and payroll
- iOS and Android apps, an API and integrations
- Every feature on every plan: Full Member $6 and Light Member $2 per person per month, 10% off yearly. Light Members cost less because they log time and appear in the schedule without full app access.
Things to check: Teamdeck focuses on people, capacity and time. If you need task boards, invoicing or full PSA accounting in the same tool, pair it with your project management or finance software.
2. Float: a visual team schedule for agencies
Best for: creative and marketing agencies that plan people week by week.
Float is known for a clean, fast schedule view. Teams book people on projects, see capacity, add time off and track time. It is a common choice for design and marketing studios.
Things to check: compare how leave approvals and payroll-ready reports work for your HR process. We compare the two tools in detail in Teamdeck vs Float.
3. Resource Guru: simple bookings for people, rooms and equipment
Best for: small and mid-sized teams that want straightforward booking, including non-human resources.
Resource Guru focuses on fast scheduling with clash management, a waiting list for unassigned work and leave management. It is quick to roll out.
Things to check: how much time tracking and reporting depth you need. See our Resource Guru comparison.
4. Runn: capacity planning with financial forecasts
Best for: consultancies and service businesses that forecast revenue, margin and hiring needs months ahead.
Runn combines resource planning with project financials, so you can model tentative projects and see the effect on capacity and revenue. Timesheets close the loop between planned and actual work.
Things to check: whether your team needs forecasting depth or a simpler daily scheduling and timesheet routine.
5. Hub Planner: flexible scheduling, in the cloud or on-premise
Best for: organizations with specific scheduling rules or a requirement to host on their own servers.
Hub Planner offers resource scheduling, timesheets, vacation management and reporting, with extensions you add as needed.
Things to check: which features are add-ons, and how the total price changes as you enable them.
6. Kantata: a professional services automation platform
Best for: large consulting and professional services firms that need resourcing, project financials and delivery in one enterprise system.
Kantata (formerly Mavenlink) covers skills-based resource management, project accounting, time and expense tracking and portfolio reporting.
Things to check: implementation time and cost. Enterprise PSA platforms usually need a dedicated rollout project.
7. Smartsheet Resource Management: resourcing inside the Smartsheet ecosystem
Best for: teams that already run projects in Smartsheet.
Formerly known as 10,000ft, Smartsheet Resource Management adds team scheduling, utilization and budget tracking to Smartsheet projects.
Things to check: how well it fits if Smartsheet is not already your main project tool.
8. Productive: an all-in-one agency management platform
Best for: agencies that want sales pipeline, budgeting, resourcing, time tracking and billing in one platform.
Productive connects scheduling with budgets and profitability, so agency leaders see the financial effect of staffing decisions.
Things to check: whether you want to replace several tools at once, or add resource planning to the tools you already use.
9. Harvest and Harvest Forecast: time tracking first
Best for: teams whose main need is accurate time tracking, expenses and invoicing.
Harvest is a well-known time tracker with invoicing. Harvest Forecast, sold separately, adds a team schedule on top.
Things to check: scheduling and leave live in a second product, so check how planned vs actual reporting works across the two.
How to choose resource management software
- Start with the decision you want to make faster. "Can we take this project?", "Who is free next week?" and "Are we hitting 75% billable utilization?" need different reports.
- Put time off on the same calendar as project work. Capacity is only accurate when vacations, sick leave and public holidays reduce it automatically.
- Compare planned with actual hours. Tools that keep bookings and timesheets together show estimation gaps without exports.
- Check who needs a paid seat. Contractors and people who only log time should not cost as much as project managers.
- Test adoption with a real team. Run a 2-week trial with one team, real projects and real leave, then look at the reports.
For a deeper framework, read the Resource Management Compendium, our free guide to capacity planning, utilization and resource scheduling.
Resource management software vs project management software
Project management tools such as Jira, Asana or Monday.com organize tasks: what needs to be done, by when, and in which status. Resource management software organizes people's time: who is available, how many hours each person is booked, and whether the team has capacity for new work. Most teams use both: tasks in a project management tool, capacity, time and leave in a resource management tool.
FAQ
What is resource management software?
Resource management software helps you plan people's time across projects. It shows bookings, availability, time off and logged hours in one place, so managers can assign work, avoid overbooking and report utilization.
What is the difference between resource planning and resource scheduling?
Resource planning looks ahead: will we have enough people with the right skills next quarter? Resource scheduling is the day-to-day work of booking specific people on specific projects and dates. Good tools support both on one calendar.
Which resource management software is best for agencies?
Agencies usually need fast scheduling, timesheets for billable hours and visibility of time off. Teamdeck, Float and Productive are common choices. Teamdeck keeps scheduling, timesheets and leave on one calendar at a per-seat price.
Is there free resource management software?
Most tools offer a free trial rather than a free plan for teams. Teamdeck has a 14-day free trial with every feature and no credit card needed to start.
How do you measure resource utilization?
Utilization is the share of available hours spent on project work: logged (or booked) hours divided by available hours, after subtracting time off. Billable utilization counts only billable hours. Read more in how to measure resource utilization.
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