The main difference between Smartsheet and Trello is the approach for handling projects. From layout to user experience and even automations these tools offer are somewhat different from one another. In the ‘battle’ of which tool is better – Smartsheet or Trello, choosing a winner would be pretty subjective as it would mostly depend on your work style and the specific needs your team might have.
It is no news that the project management tools are here to help companies enhance their products and services. They organize tasks and keep employees comfortable and focused on the actual work. In other words, these tools enable companies to focus on their core missions instead of task management. Project management solutions significantly impact work progress so today we will discuss two popular ones: Smartsheet and Trello. Which one is the best for you? And what are the main differences between them?
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Smartsheet is a collaborative tool that helps manage projects and increases productivity, and it gives users the ability to use sheets in a collaborative environment. It feels like using an improved version of Microsoft Excel in one way or another. It offers a lot of templates for different fields such as accounting, IT, HR, finance, and many others. Furthermore, users can change the interface from sheet to lists with cards and reorder information. Smartsheet vendor also provides free tutorials to teach users how to get all the benefits from it.
Trello is one of the most popular management tools you can find online, with its friendly user interface and simplicity. Trello has Kanban-style boards, which makes the workspace organized and customizable. Furthermore, Trello offers many features even with its free plan, including automation. The most significant advantage Trello has is being compatible with all user requirements. From individual use to big-sized corporates.
| Features | Smartsheet |  Trello |
|---|---|---|
| Concept | Project management tool | Project management too |
| Layout | Similar to Excel, and there is a Kanban board | Kanban-style boards with lists and cards |
| User experience | Needs some training if the user is not familiar with sheets | Simple and easy to understand, could be fuggy for bigger projects |
| Mobile app | Available on Android and iOS | Available on Android and iOS |
| Automation | Available to replace repetitive actions | Butler power-up is available for free with basic features |
| Real-time update | Cloud-based with real-time update | Cloud-based with real-time update |
| Assigning Tasks | Multiple members for each task | Multiple members for each task |
| Pricing | Free trial for a limited time, and three paid plans | Four plans, one free and three are paid with reasonable costs |
There are many differences between Trello and Smartsheet, starting with interfaces and ending with the targeted clients. So, it’s essential to know the pros and cons of each one. That becomes helpful when you decide which solution to implement in your business. However, we will discuss the essential differences that will help choose the right one.
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You can view Smartsheet as a combination of Microsoft Excel and a project management tool, which means the user interface has a lot of settings to use. However, if you are familiar with Excel, Smartsheet will be much easier to use. Moreover, you can choose how you want to display data, whether in sheets or Kanban boards. Also, you can find many tutorials on how to use Smartsheet here.
On the other hand, Trello is known for its simplicity, and it’s easy to understand. The board consists of lists and cards, and you can simply add colored labels, tags, attachments, and descriptions for each card. Also, Trello provides a powerful filter that makes it easy to find a specific task depending on the color, tag, or the card’s name.
Overall, Trello wins when we talk about the simplicity of use, but Smartsheet is also easy to use if you are familiar with how to use sheets. However, sheets can be useful in complex projects, which are unavailable on Trello.
If you want to pick the best one out of these two it all depends mostly on the complexity of your project. However, Smartsheet has a well-organized interface, even if the project is big and complicated because spreadsheets can be converted into Kanban boards. Moreover, spreadsheets have a lot of configurations and options that make the work easy and fast. Smartsheet allows visualizing data as graphs, and it provides statistics which can be very helpful in big projects.
Trello focuses on simplicity, so there are no spreadsheets. The Kanban-style boards are great and easy to use, and it offers power-ups that enable more customization settings, including some automation. Unfortunately, Trello can be messy when the project gets complicated, so it’s better to use it in small projects and small to medium companies; freelancers can use it in free plans to increase productivity.
Both Trello and Smartsheet are available on Android and iOS. Trello’s app has a nice-looking interface with great functionality. You can add lists, cards, and edit them the way you wish, for example, by adding attachments, setting labels, and comments. Also, you can add members from your contacts.
Smartsheet also has a great mobile app for displaying boards and editing them. Its app allows seeing graphs, statistics, and Gantt charts also. You can take photos and add them to your spreadsheet in an easy way.
Overall, the Smartsheet app is more powerful than Trello’s app, adding photos, viewing statistics, and visualizing data.
Price is a primary factor when choosing the right tool. However, Smartsheet is a great tool, especially for complex projects, but it’s not available for free. There are three plans:
On the other hand, Trello offers a free plan with basic features, including automation, which is considered a big advantage for Trello. Besides Trello’s free plan, there are paid plans with more features:
Overall, both Trello and Smartsheet have a good price, but it’s better to pick Smartsheet in big and complex projects because Trello can be messy in these kinds of projects.
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Integration is another important factor you should keep in mind when choosing between Smartsheet and Trello.
To list a few native integrations that Smartsheet has:
And such native integrations for Trello are:
Integration enables automating and exchanging data with other platforms with the help of an integration company like Integrately.
When it comes to Trello, Integrately offers ready-to-activate integrations besides the ones users can create manually, and all this for a reasonable price that is less than other integration platforms.
On the other hand, Smartsheet is also supported by many platforms, including Integrately with ready-to-activate integrations, which will enhance productivity and save time by activating integration with one click.
Productivity and reliability are the goals of any successful company, and these goals can be achieved by improving the workspace and providing the best tools for employees. However, project management tools are important tools that should be used.
Trello and Smartsheet are powerful tools, but the right one depends on the type of projects and employees. Overall, if you have a small business with simple projects, Trello is the right one for you, but if you have a large business with big projects that need to be done, Smartsheet is better to get the work done.
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