Quick answer: In 2026, choose Microsoft Planner for team and project work inside Microsoft 365, and Microsoft Project desktop for large, detailed schedules managed by a specialist scheduler. The comparison has changed since most articles on it were written. Project for the web was folded into Planner in August 2025, where it became Planner's premium plans, and Project Online retires on 30 September 2026. Neither Planner nor Project desktop gives you portfolio management across many projects, which was the job Project Online used to do.
This article reflects the lineup as it stands today. If you read a comparison that still describes Project for the web as a separate product, it predates that change.
What changed since 2023
Four changes redrew the map, and all four come from Microsoft's own Planner FAQ and product pages.
- August 2025: Project for the web and the Project and Roadmap app in Teams were retired and moved into Planner. Project for the web's plans became Planner's premium plans.
- 1 October 2025: Project Online stopped being sold to new customers.
- 1 April 2026: creating new Project Web App sites was blocked.
- 30 September 2026: Project Online retires.
The licences were renamed too: Planner Plan 1, Planner and Project Plan 3, and Planner and Project Plan 5, formerly Project Plan 1, 3 and 5. So when someone asks "Planner or Project?" today, they are usually choosing between Planner's two plan types and Project desktop.
The Microsoft lineup in 2026
| Product | What it is | How you get it | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Planner (basic plans) | Task boards for teams, in Teams, Outlook and the web | Included with Microsoft 365 | Current |
| Planner (premium plans) | Structured project plans: timeline, dependencies, sprints, goals | Planner Plan 1 ($10/user/month) or higher | Current; formerly Project for the web |
| Project desktop | Detailed scheduling application for Windows | Included with Plan 3 and Plan 5, or bought once as Project Standard or Professional 2024 | Current |
| Project Online | Cloud portfolio and project management with Project Web App | No longer sold | Retires 30 September 2026 |
| Project Server Subscription Edition | On-premises portfolio and project management on SharePoint Server | Through a Microsoft partner | Current, customer-managed |
Planner vs Project desktop, side by side
Most people comparing the two are really comparing Planner Premium with Project desktop. Here is how they differ on the things that decide the choice.
| Planner (premium plans) | Project desktop | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Project teams who collaborate in Microsoft 365 | A scheduler or project manager building a detailed plan |
| Scheduling | Timeline (Gantt), four dependency types, milestones; critical path, baselines and lead/lag on Plan 3 | Full scheduling engine with Gantt, network diagram, baselines and critical path |
| Resources | People view on Plan 1, Assignments view on Plan 3 | Resource leveling; Professional adds fuller resource management |
| Cost | Not tracked in the plan | Task and cost management |
| Collaboration | Real-time, shared plans inside Teams, with task chat | A schedule file owned by its author |
| AI | Copilot and the Project Manager agent (preview), with a separate Copilot licence | Microsoft lists Copilot features for Planner, not for desktop |
| Where the data lives | Dataverse in your tenant | Project files, or Project Server if connected |
| Price | $10 or $30 per user per month | Included with Plan 3, or $679.99 / $1,129.99 one-time for Standard / Professional 2024 |
When Planner is the better choice
Planner wins when the plan is shared work rather than a specialist's model. If the people doing the tasks update them themselves, if the team already lives in Teams, and if the schedule needs dependencies and a timeline but not resource leveling, premium plans are the better tool. Basic plans are enough for teams that only need to track who is doing what by when. For what each licence tier unlocks, see Microsoft Planner Premium explained.
It is also the direction Microsoft is investing in. New capabilities, including goals, sprints, task chat and the Project Manager agent, are arriving in Planner.
When Project desktop is the better choice
Project desktop wins when one person or a small scheduling team owns a complex plan: hundreds of tasks with constraints, resource leveling, cost loading and formal baselines. Construction, engineering and regulated programs often need that depth, and Planner does not replace it.
The trade-off is collaboration. A desktop schedule is a file, so the people doing the work usually report progress to the scheduler rather than updating the plan themselves.
What neither of them does
Both tools manage projects. Neither manages a portfolio, and that matters now because Project Online was the Microsoft product that did.
Planner's Portfolios roll up premium plans only, show progress and dates rather than capacity or cost, and do not include Azure DevOps or Project Online projects. Project desktop manages one schedule at a time. So a PMO that has to answer "do we have the people for this?", "are we on budget across the portfolio?" or "which of these proposals do we fund?" will not find the answer in either one. We cover the Microsoft options for that job in Microsoft PPM in 2026: the four options and in portfolio management for Microsoft Planner.
The right question is rarely Planner or Project. It is which tool each team should plan in, and what sits above all of them.
If you are still on Project Online
With the retirement date weeks away, many organizations are splitting their Project Online estate: lighter projects into Planner premium plans, complex schedules into Project desktop, and the portfolio functions somewhere else, because neither destination has them. Our Project Online migration playbook walks through that decision.
How PPM Express Enterprise fits
PPM Express Enterprise is the portfolio layer above both tools. It reads Planner basic and premium plans, and it connects Microsoft Project desktop, Project Online, Azure DevOps, Jira, Smartsheet and monday.com into the same portfolio. Teams keep planning in whichever tool suits the work. Nothing moves and nothing is rebuilt.
Above those plans, it holds the data neither tool has: resource capacity across projects, budgets, forecasts and benefits, risks and issues, and what-if scenarios for funding decisions. It is priced as a flat annual subscription with unlimited users, so portfolio access is not rationed by seat.
Frequently asked questions
Is Microsoft Planner replacing Microsoft Project? Planner replaced Project for the web in August 2025, and Microsoft's cloud project management investment is going into Planner. Project desktop is still sold and still included with Planner and Project Plan 3 and Plan 5. Project Online, the cloud portfolio product, retires on 30 September 2026.
Is Project for the web still available? No. It was retired in August 2025 and its functionality moved into Planner as premium plans. Existing Project for the web plans are now premium plans in Planner.
Can Microsoft Planner do critical path and baselines? Yes, in premium plans with a Planner and Project Plan 3 licence or higher. Planner Plan 1 includes the timeline view and dependencies but not critical path or baselines.
Does Planner and Project Plan 3 include Project desktop? Yes. Microsoft lists the Project desktop client with Plan 3, with installation on up to five PCs per user.
Which is better for a PMO, Planner or Project? Neither on its own. Both manage individual projects well at different levels of depth. Portfolio questions about capacity, cost, benefits and prioritization need a portfolio layer above the tools teams plan in.
The short version
The Microsoft lineup is simpler than it was. Planner is where team project work happens, with premium plans for real schedules. Project desktop is for deep, specialist scheduling. Project Online, the product that tied projects into a portfolio, retires at the end of this month. Pick Planner or Project per team, based on how detailed the schedule is and who updates it. Then decide separately how you will run the portfolio, because neither tool will. That is the gap PPM Express for Microsoft Planner is built to close.
Last verified 15 September 2026 against Microsoft's Planner FAQ, plans and pricing pages. Prices are US list prices and change without notice. Microsoft, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Planner, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Teams, Dataverse and Copilot are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. PPM Express is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.
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