Remote agencies juggle multiple clients, distributed teams, and timezone gaps that make project visibility non-negotiable. The wrong PM tool creates more work than it saves - context switching between Slack, email, and spreadsheets while clients ask "what is the status?" The right tool gives every teammate and client a single source of truth. See also best collaboration tools and general PM software guide.
Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you when you purchase through our links. All opinions are our own.
1. Teamwork
Teamwork Best for Agencies
Teamwork was built specifically for agencies and client service businesses. Client portals let customers view project progress, approve deliverables, and leave feedback without seeing internal discussions. Billable time tracking connects to project budgets so you know profitability per client in real-time. Resource scheduling shows who is available, overbooked, or underutilized across all projects.
Intake forms standardize new project requests. Milestones track deliverable deadlines separate from task deadlines. The Gantt view shows cross-project dependencies. For remote agencies that bill by the hour and need clients in the loop without Slack channels, Teamwork is purpose-built.
- Pricing: Free (5 users); Deliver $9.99/user/mo; Grow $19.99/user/mo; Scale custom
- Pros: Client portals, billable time tracking, resource scheduling, intake forms, budgets
- Cons: Less feature-rich than ClickUp for internal use, limited automation on Deliver
- Best for: Client service agencies needing portals, billing, and resource management
2. ClickUp
ClickUp Best Feature Depth
ClickUp packs more features into its free tier than most PM tools charge for. Unlimited tasks, docs, whiteboards, goals, and dashboards for unlimited users. Time tracking is native on every plan. Custom fields let you track client budgets, project types, and team capacity in any view - list, board, Gantt, calendar, or table.
For remote agencies, the Spaces and Folders structure organizes by client and project type. Guest access lets clients see only their projects. Automations handle recurring tasks, status changes, and notifications. The trade-off is complexity - ClickUp does everything, which means setup takes longer than simpler tools.
- Pricing: Free (unlimited users); Unlimited $7/user/mo; Business $12/user/mo
- Pros: Most features free, time tracking, docs, whiteboards, goals, custom fields
- Cons: Complex setup, performance can lag, learning curve steep
- Best for: Agencies wanting maximum features at minimum cost with custom workflows
3. Monday.com
Monday.com Best Client Dashboards
Monday.com creates the most visually appealing client-facing dashboards in any PM tool. Shareable board views let clients see project status, timelines, and deliverables in branded views without needing a login. The drag-and-drop interface is the easiest for non-technical team members to adopt - critical for agencies with creative staff.
Workload views show team capacity across all projects. Time tracking is native. Automations handle repetitive tasks like "when status changes to Done, notify client." Integration with design tools (Figma, Adobe) and development tools (GitHub, Jira) bridges creative and technical workflows.
- Pricing: Free (2 users); Basic $9/seat/mo; Standard $12/seat/mo; Pro $19/seat/mo
- Pros: Best visual dashboards, easy adoption, workload view, shareable boards, automations
- Cons: Free limited to 2 users, per-seat pricing adds up, basic time tracking
- Best for: Creative agencies wanting beautiful client-facing project dashboards
4. Basecamp
Basecamp Best Flat Pricing
Basecamp charges $299/month for unlimited users - no per-seat pricing. For agencies with 15+ people, this is dramatically cheaper than per-user tools. Each project gets a message board, to-dos, schedule, docs, and campfire chat. Clients get limited access to see updates and leave comments without seeing internal discussions.
The Hill Charts feature shows project progress as a shape - uphill means figuring things out, downhill means execution. Automatic check-ins ask "What did you work on today?" replacing daily standups for async teams. For remote agencies that want simplicity over feature depth and predictable pricing regardless of team size, Basecamp is the anti-complexity choice.
- Pricing: $299/mo flat (unlimited users); Free for students/teachers
- Pros: Flat pricing, simple UI, Hill Charts, auto check-ins, client access, async-first
- Cons: No time tracking, no Gantt charts, limited custom fields, no resource planning
- Best for: Large remote agencies wanting simplicity and flat pricing over feature depth
5. Asana
Asana Best Workflow Builder
Asana's Rules engine automates agency workflows - when a design is approved, automatically create a development task and notify the developer. Portfolios show all client projects in one dashboard with status, progress, and risk indicators. Timeline view plans cross-project dependencies across teams.
Forms standardize client briefs and project requests. Goals cascade from agency objectives to team targets. For agencies with structured processes who want automation to enforce their workflows, Asana's Rules and Portfolios are the most mature in the market.
- Pricing: Free (10 users); Starter $10.99/user/mo; Advanced $24.99/user/mo
- Pros: Rules automation, Portfolios, Forms, Goals, Timeline, mature ecosystem
- Cons: No native time tracking, expensive at scale, limited client portal vs Teamwork
- Best for: Process-driven agencies wanting automated workflows and portfolio oversight
6. Notion
Notion Best for Docs-Heavy Agencies
Notion combines project management with a wiki, making it ideal for agencies that produce heavy documentation - content agencies, strategy firms, and research consultancies. Each client gets a workspace with project databases, meeting notes, deliverable drafts, and approval workflows in one connected system.
Database relations link clients to projects to tasks to deliverables. Templates standardize project kickoffs, creative briefs, and status reports. The free tier for individuals and $10/user for teams makes it the cheapest docs-integrated PM tool. The trade-off: no native time tracking, no resource scheduling, no Gantt views.
- Pricing: Free (individual); Plus $10/user/mo; Business $18/user/mo
- Pros: Docs + PM in one, database relations, templates, wiki, affordable
- Cons: No time tracking, no Gantt, no resource planning, requires setup
- Best for: Content and strategy agencies that live in documents
7. Wrike
Wrike Best for Large Agencies
Wrike handles the complexity of large agencies with multiple departments, hundreds of projects, and enterprise clients. Cross-tagging lets a single task belong to multiple projects - a common agency need when one deliverable serves multiple client goals. Custom request forms route incoming work to the right team automatically.
Workload charts show capacity across the entire agency. Proofing tools let clients mark up documents, images, and videos directly in Wrike. For agencies with 50+ people juggling enterprise clients, Wrike scales without losing visibility.
- Pricing: Free (limited); Team $9.80/user/mo; Business $24.80/user/mo; Enterprise custom
- Pros: Cross-tagging, request forms, proofing, workload charts, enterprise-grade
- Cons: Complex UI, expensive at Business+, steeper learning curve
- Best for: Large agencies with enterprise clients needing advanced resource and proofing tools
Comparison Table
| Tool | Free Tier | Paid From | Client Portal | Time Tracking | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teamwork | 5 users | $9.99/user/mo | Yes (native) | Yes (billable) | Client service agencies |
| ClickUp | Unlimited users | $7/user/mo | Guest access | Yes | Maximum features |
| Monday.com | 2 users | $9/seat/mo | Shareable views | Yes | Visual dashboards |
| Basecamp | Trial | $299/mo flat | Limited access | No | Large teams, flat price |
| Asana | 10 users | $10.99/user/mo | No | No (3rd party) | Workflow automation |
| Notion | Individual | $10/user/mo | Guest access | No | Docs-heavy agencies |
| Wrike | Limited | $9.80/user/mo | Request forms | Yes | Large agencies |
How to Choose
Client service agency billing hours? Teamwork. Purpose-built with client portals, billable tracking, and resource scheduling.
Maximum features, minimum budget? ClickUp. Free tier with time tracking, docs, whiteboards, and custom fields.
Need pretty client dashboards? Monday.com. The most visual and easy-to-adopt PM tool for creative teams.
Large team, want simplicity? Basecamp at $299/month flat. No per-seat math, no feature creep.
Process-driven with automation? Asana. Rules and Portfolios enforce workflows across projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best project management tool for remote agencies?
Teamwork for client-facing agencies needing portals and billable tracking. ClickUp for maximum features on a budget. Monday.com for visual dashboards. The choice depends on whether client portals, features, or visual appeal matter most.
How do remote agencies track billable hours?
Teamwork and ClickUp have native billable time tracking at the task level. Monday.com includes basic time tracking. For agencies using Asana or Notion, integrate Harvest or Toggl Track for billing-grade time capture.
Do agencies need client portals in their PM tool?
Yes. Client portals reduce email by 40-60% by giving clients self-service access to project status and deliverable approvals. Teamwork, Monday.com, and Basecamp all offer client views.
What is the cheapest PM tool for a small remote agency?
ClickUp Free for agencies under 5 people. Basecamp at $299/month flat for agencies of 15+ people where per-seat pricing exceeds the flat rate.
Build AI-powered project automation with corteX SDK
Brain-inspired AI orchestration for intelligent task routing, resource optimization, and deadline prediction.
Get Started - pip install cortex-ai