Best workload management tools
Teamdeck ranks first on published price, with its Light Member seat at $2 a month. PeopleMuster is second at $3 per person a month, and that price shows every person's load by day as under, partial, full or over, with approved leave and holidays already on the plan.
How this was judged
Ranked on the lowest paid per-person monthly price each vendor publishes for planning and balancing people's workload.
Six workload tools were compared on 24 September 2026, with each price read from the vendor's own pricing page that day and quoted as printed. Teamdeck's page doesn't label whether its figures are monthly or yearly billing, and it's ranked on the figure as shown. Float and Runn tie at $7 and appear in alphabetical order. Disclosure: PeopleMuster is our product, and it sits where the method puts it.
The ranking
Teamdeck
Light Member $2, Full Member $6 per member a month; the page doesn't label the billing term. 14-day trial. Checked 24 September 2026.- Who it suits
- A team that wants the lowest per-seat figure and can mix light and full seats.
- Where it wins
- The lowest published seat price in this set, with two seat types.
- Where it falls short
- A full seat is $6, and the page leaves the billing term unstated.
PeopleMuster
$3 per person a month, every module included, no tiers. $30 per person a year on annual billing.- Who it suits
- A team that wants workload, leave and logged hours on one record, so the plan stays true.
- Where it wins
- The capacity grid shows each person by day, with hours per cell and bands for under, partial, full and over. The bands follow your expected working day. Leave and holidays are marked on the grid, and approved leave clears the plan at once. You can view it by person or by project, and filter billable work.
Resource Guru
Grasshopper $5, Blackbelt $8, Master $12 per person a month. Annual billing gives two months free. No setup fee. Trial with no card. Verified 24 September 2026.- Who it suits
- A team that wants a dedicated scheduler with a card-free trial.
- Where it wins
- Three published tiers, no setup fee and a trial you can start without a card.
- Where it falls short
- The middle tier is $8 and the top one $12, so the headline $5 is the entry rung.
Float
Starter $7, Pro $12 per scheduled person a month. Enterprise custom. Guests free. Verified September 2026.- Who it suits
- An agency or studio that schedules people onto projects and wants a specialist tool.
- Where it wins
- Priced per scheduled person, so guests who only view the plan cost nothing.
- Where it falls short
- Pro is $12 against Starter's $7, and Enterprise needs a quote.
Runn
Lite $7, Standard $11 per resource seat a month billed yearly ($9, $13 monthly). Advanced custom. 20-seat minimum. 30-day trial. Verified 24 September 2026.- Who it suits
- A team of 20 or more that wants a dedicated resource planner.
- Where it wins
- Two published tiers and a 30-day trial.
- Where it falls short
- A 20-seat minimum, so a smaller team pays for seats it doesn't fill.
Productive
Essential $10 per user a month billed yearly ($12 monthly), Professional $25 ($29 monthly), Ultimate custom. Three-seat minimum. 14-day trial. Verified 24 September 2026.- Who it suits
- An agency that wants workload planning inside project delivery software.
- Where it wins
- Built for agencies and consultancies, with capacity planning and time off in it.
- Where it falls short
- A three-seat minimum, and employee records live in an HR system it connects to.
Questions people ask
What is a workload management tool?
It shows how much work each person has on each day, so you can spot who's overloaded and who has room before a deadline slips. PeopleMuster's grid marks every day as under, partial, full or over against the expected working day. It's part of the $3 per person a month, with the rest of HR.
How does leave show up on the workload plan?
Approved leave and company holidays appear on the grid by themselves, marked L and H. Leave is approved in the same database the plan reads, so nobody updates the plan by hand. The person's hours for that day drop out of the load.
Can I compare planned hours with logged hours?
Yes. People log their day by project, and utilisation reports show those hours by project and department with a weekly trend. You can hold that next to the plan to see where the load really went. Both live on the same person record, so the numbers agree.