Microsoft Excel remains one of the most widely used tools for managing Horizon Europe projects.
Across universities, research institutes, hospitals and SMEs, countless coordinators rely on custom spreadsheets to track work packages, deliverables, milestones, budgets and reporting deadlines. For small projects, this approach can work remarkably well.
However, as projects become larger and involve more partners, maintaining increasingly complex spreadsheets often becomes a project in itself. If you're looking for an alternative to Excel specifically for Horizon Europe project management, here are some of the best options available today.
1. Grant Planner — Best for Horizon Europe Project Lifecycle Management
Best for: Universities, research organisations, consultants and SMEs managing collaborative Horizon Europe projects.
Strengths
- Designed specifically for Horizon Europe
- Project lifecycle-based workflow
- Consortium management
- Work packages, tasks, deliverables and milestones
- Budget, governance and reporting
- Integrated with the Grant 360 ecosystem
Limitations
- Designed for collaborative European projects rather than generic project management
- More structured than fully custom spreadsheets
2. EMDESK — Best for Established Horizon Europe Teams
Best for: Organisations looking for a mature project management platform dedicated to European collaborative projects.
Strengths
- Comprehensive Horizon Europe functionality
- Financial management
- Reporting support
- Well-established user community
Limitations
- Can require a learning period
- Interface exposes many features from the beginning
3. Kronis — Best for Financial Compliance
Best for: Organisations where financial management and audit readiness are critical.
Strengths
- Budget monitoring
- Time reporting
- Financial compliance
- Audit support
- Horizon Europe expertise
Limitations
- Strong emphasis on finance
- Less focused on the overall project lifecycle
4. OpenProject — Best Open-Source Alternative
Best for: Organisations looking for an open-source and self-hosted project management platform.
Strengths
- Open source
- European company
- Strong project planning capabilities
- Gantt charts
- Excellent for organisations prioritising digital sovereignty
Limitations
- Not specifically designed for Horizon Europe
- Requires customisation for grant management workflows
5. Microsoft Project — Best for Advanced Scheduling
Best for: Project managers requiring sophisticated planning and resource management.
Strengths
- Industry-leading Gantt charts
- Resource allocation
- Dependency management
- Mature project planning capabilities
Limitations
- General-purpose software
- No native understanding of Horizon Europe concepts
6. ClickUp — Best for Highly Customisable Workflows
Best for: Teams wanting to build their own project management processes.
Strengths
- Highly configurable
- Multiple project views
- Powerful automations
- Rich integration ecosystem
Limitations
- Requires configuration
- No Horizon Europe-specific functionality
7. Monday.com — Best for Visual Project Management
Best for: Organisations looking for an intuitive and visual project management platform.
Strengths
- Modern interface
- Visual dashboards
- Easy onboarding
- Flexible workflows
Limitations
- Requires adaptation for Horizon Europe
- Limited grant-specific features
8. Asana — Best for Team Collaboration
Best for: Research teams focusing primarily on task coordination and collaboration.
Strengths
- Excellent collaboration
- Intuitive interface
- Easy to adopt
- Strong integrations
Limitations
- Limited grant management functionality
- Financial and reporting features require complementary tools
Comparison Summary
| If you need... | Consider... |
|---|---|
| Horizon Europe project management | Grant Planner |
| A mature Horizon Europe platform | EMDESK |
| Financial compliance and audit readiness | Kronis |
| Open-source project management | OpenProject |
| Advanced project scheduling | Microsoft Project |
| Highly customisable workflows | ClickUp |
| Visual project management | Monday.com |
| Team collaboration | Asana |
Final Verdict
Excel has earned its place as one of the most widely used project management tools in research organisations. Its flexibility explains why so many Horizon Europe teams have developed sophisticated spreadsheets tailored to their own processes.
The challenge is that, as projects become more collaborative and administrative requirements increase, spreadsheets often evolve into complex systems that require significant maintenance.
Dedicated project management platforms offer different approaches to solving this problem. Some focus on financial compliance, others on scheduling or highly configurable workflows.
If your organisation is looking for software specifically designed around the complete lifecycle of Horizon Europe collaborative projects, from consortium setup to work packages, governance and reporting, Grant Planner provides a purpose-built alternative that helps teams move beyond spreadsheet-based management while remaining aligned with the realities of European research projects.