Several years ago, I started using Basecamp, a popular project management tool for keeping track of projects, while supporting group collaboration. At the time, their free version offered the essential components for project management.
However, when Basecamp shifted away from their bare-bones free version, I started to explore alternatives and Freedcamp was a great discovery. Yes, the name is a tongue and cheek stab at Basecamp, but it offers comparable features with a free price tag. In my opinion, Freedcamp is the best alternative out there with a clean interface, and many options to manage projects.
Similar to Basecamp, Freedcamp has the same structure of assigning milestones with associated tasks. Notification options include both email and mobile text messaging, making it a great way to keep team members informed of activity. So, when you assign a task or benchmark to a user, they will receive a notification. I also like the full integration with Google calendar as well as the full suite of plugin applications, like the time tracker. You can also toggle many different views, including their sticky note display option. Even the drag and drop interface makes it that much easier to delegate and change statuses of tasks.
Is it really free?
Yes, but like most free applications, Freedcamp made some cutbacks in certain areas, including storage. The basic standard package comes with 200MB (formerly 20MB – updated 7/13/15) of space, with options to upgrade for additional storage. So, if you need more space for files, it’s only $2.49/month for an additional 1GB of storage – well worth the upgrade.
Although a little long, this video highlights the core features of the application:
As an added value, their premium product is free to non-profits, teachers and students. Click here for blog post with details.
I encourage you to try it out, and I think you will find that Freedcamp is a solid alternative to Basecamp with a nice range of features and options. Let’s hope they stay true to their name and remain free.
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Not sure if I totally agree with you as Basecamp offers much more around task management.
Thank you for the wonderful write up Carl. Just wanted to add that we actually upgraded our storage to 200MB for free now! The 20mb before was obviously too little, we launched more than 5 years ago and since then data has become much bigger part of our lives.
@Byron not sure what Basecamp offers around task management more than Freedcamp does… when it comes to features we most definitely have more than our competitor. I think if you gave Freedcamp a try you would be pleasantly surprised!
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Thank you Angel, and I think that extra storage will make a difference. I updated the post to reflect this update. @Byron – I wish you could elaborate a little more on your comment, as I really believe Freedcamp offers much more for less.
I have not heard about freedcamp before, Few months ago we switched to proofhub from basecamp which fits us best as basecamp alternative. I will check it out.
I would like to mention proofhub here. Best basecamp alternative. It has more features than any other PM software. It has everything that is missing in Basecamp. Look and feel is also good. Try https://www.proofhub.com