Backlog Project Management Alternatives | Developer.com

Backlog can help software development teams manage projects and code, track bugs, and allocate resources. But does that mean Backlog is right for you? That depends on your needs, which is why we will share some project management alternatives to Backlog to give you various options when making your choice.

Why Choose A Backlog Alternative?

Many software development teams use Backlog to plan and track projects and collaborate with other departments in their organizations (design, marketing, IT, etc.) so they can release high-quality deliverables in minimal time.

How does Backlog help project managers and developers achieve this? By providing a plethora of features, including:

• Gantt charts
• Kanban boards
• Android and iOS apps
• Tasks and subtasks
• Collaboration (comments, feedback, file sharing, wikis)
• Bug tracking
• Version control
• Integrations with third-party apps like Slack, Microsoft Teams, Redmine, and others

Beyond those features, Backlog has many pros in its favor that make it popular with project managers, such as a robust free version, pricing flexibility, a user-friendly and intuitive interface, and seamless bug, issue, and project tracking.

What could make project managers seek something besides Backlog to keep their development teams on the same page? The software’s cons, which include storage limits, trouble moving issues between projects, and problems tracking time.

For more information about Backlogs pros, cons, features, and pricing – and to make sure you are taking advantage of all of its feature – check out our Review of Backlog Project Management Software.

Alternatives To Backlog Project Management Tool

Before choosing Backlog for your project management needs, look at these alternatives. Many project managers and development teams use these PM software solutions to stay organized and productive, and you can do the same. Our top picks for alternatives to Backlog include:

• Jira
• Zoho Projects
• Axosoft Scrum
• Asana
• GitLab
• GitHub Issues
• Todist
• Jira
• Airbrake

Zoho Projects

Zoho Projects is an easy-to-use Backlog alternative that makes it super simple to add tasks, milestones, and the like to start planning projects. The project management software has customizable dashboards, task lists, Kanban boards, Gantt charts, and integrated time tracking. Zoho Projects also has issue management capabilities and bug tracking, just like Backlog, and it integrates not only with third-party tools like Slack and Excel, but also a host of Zoho tools, such as Sprints and Analytics, to extend functionality even more. Regarding collaboration, development teams can use Zoho Projects to communicate via chat, email, mentions, forums, and feeds.

Like almost any PM software (Backlog included), Zoho Projects also has areas where it could improve. Those are with its Kanban boards and Gantt charts that could be more user-friendly, and its reporting that could be more robust.

You can learn more about Zoho Projects in our Zoho Projects Review.

Axosoft Scrum

Agile development teams may find Axosoft Scrum to be their ideal Backlog alternative, as it can help minimize delays and ensure bug-free products get released on time with its sprint and release planning, interactive Kanban boards, daily Scrum mode that shares daily progress and possible obstacles, plus reports that include burndown charts, item charts, projected ship date, cycle time, and more.

Axosoft Scrum integrates with GitLab, GitHub, Slack, Bitbucket, and other third-party apps, a handy help desk and email ticketing feature to keep customer conversations or issue statuses from slipping through the cracks.

Axosoft’s strengths beyond its full set of features are that it is user-friendly, flexible, highly scalable, and customizable. Its weaknesses are sometimes slow support and performance.

To learn more, check out our Axosoft Scrum Project Management Tool Review.

Asana

It is tough to discuss project management software without mentioning Asana, as it is one of the top PM solutions on the market. Its Free Forever plan can suit development teams on a budget with support for up to 15 members. Other Asana highlights that make it a suitable Backlog alternative include collaboration (private messages, conversations, task comments, etc.), multiple views (calendar, list, timeline), Kanban boards, custom templates, fields, dashboards, and charts, task dependencies, a workflow builder, automation for recurring tasks, budget tracking, file sharing, app integrations, workload management, and more.

Like some other Backlog alternatives on this list, Asana works well for Agile teams since it offers Scrum and Kanban support, sprint planning, bug tracking, feedback, roadmaps, work requests, product launches, and so forth.

With so many strengths, you may wonder where Asana falls short. Some say it could be overwhelming for some to learn, while certain features like assigning tasks can be tough to execute. Asana’s mobile app could also be better, and its notifications could be less distracting.

We have a great review of Asana if you want to learn more about its features, benefits, weaknesses, and pricing: Asana Project Management Software Review.

GitLab

GitLab makes our list of alternatives to Backlog project management software because it can help development teams in many ways. The DevSecOps platform offers issue tracking, code review, task assigning, time tracking, collaboration, and more. In doing so, developers can stay on the same page, increase productivity, decrease costs and cycle times, and accelerate the delivery of high-quality software.

Agile development teams will enjoy GitLab’s Kanban and Scrum boards that offer instant insight into what is done and what needs to be done. Other highlights worth mentioning include Gantt charts, bug tracking via the issues feature, milestones for tracking progress, burndown charts for meeting deadlines, and a solid free forever version.

Where does GitLab fall short as a Backlog alternative? Its user interface could use an upgrade in terms of look and intuitiveness. The PM software has some bugs occasionally, plus sluggish performance here and there. More integrations and better support would also be welcome additions.

Learn more about this popular PM tool for developers in our GitLab Project Management Review.

GitHub Issues

As you can tell by its name, GitHub Issues is a Backlog alternative and project management software that focuses on issue tracking. Some of its highlights include custom workflows and fields, Kanban boards to track progress, issue forms, task lists, collaboration, burnup charts, and more.

Where could GitHub Issues improve as a Backlog alternative? It could have faster performance, a more intuitive interface for beginners, and a better mobile version. And if you have a larger or growing team, you may yearn for more affordable pricing from the software, as it can get costly as the number of team members increases.

We discuss GitHub Issues in greater detail in our GitHub Issues Review.

Todoist

While it may sound like Todoist is nothing more than a to-do list, the software offers much more. What can you expect from this Backlog alternative that calls itself the number one task manager and to-do list app in the world? Something that is easy to use and includes features like templates (bug tracking, issue tracking, product roadmap, product launch, etc.), collaboration, reminders, drag-and-drop boards, task priorities, tons of integrations, and more.

What is Todoist’s major downside? You will need to pay for one of its pricier plans to unlock all of its features, and many have complained that prices have increased too much as of late.

Read our Todoist Task Management Review for more.

Jira

Another Backlog alternative for Agile software development teams is Jira. It can help you get started quickly with customizable templates for bug tracking, Scrum, DevOps, Kanban, etc., and it also has drag-and-drop automation to save time. While its bug-tracking capabilities are tough to beat, Jira also offers custom fields, roadmaps, and integrations with thousands of popular third-party apps.

Besides those features, reasons to choose Jira as a Backlog alternative include flexibility, customization, scalability, multiple views, solid reporting, and superb security. However, Jira is complex and takes time to learn, and its pricing can get high on some of its plans.

We have an excellent review of Jira to help you get acquainted with its pricing, benefits, and features: Jira Project Management Software Review.

Airbrake

Development teams can rely on Backlog for all their project management needs, but some simply use the software for its bug-tracking features. As such, we list Airbrake as a Backlog alternative since it is bug-tracking software used by Netflix, Cisco, and other huge names.

Airbrake can help your development team monitor bugs across multiple languages, such as Java, Python, Rails, and Magento. Beyond monitoring your code, Airbrake can also monitor performance and offers 24/7 alerts to keep you up to speed.

Project Management Software for Developers

Looking for other project management tools and software for development teams? We have a few developer tool round-ups that can help you find the right collaboration and project management tool for your projects: