Helpful Summary

• Overview: We recommend five of the best Kanban tools that can help you improve your productivity and organization skills.
• Why trust us: We have helped hundreds of Agile teams improve their Agile workflows with the right tech.
• Why this is important: Kanban is a proven project management framework, and Kanban tools help you execute it effectively.
• Action points: Our top Kanban tools are Asana, Trello, monday.com, Jira, and Wrike. We also recommend checking out Teaminal for an async Agile meeting tool that integrates with many of the tools on this list.
• Further research: Check out the Teaminal blog for more insights into Agile methodologies.

Looking for the Best Kanban Tools?

Kanban has been around for ages, but that doesn’t mean this project management framework doesn’t hold up today. Kanbad tools have modernized this approach and helped countless Agile teams streamline their workflows and improve their efficiency.

Want to know which tools in particular are leading the pack? We’ve got you covered. In this Teaminal article, we introduce five options to consider when selecting a Kanban tool for your team.

But first…

Why Listen to Us?

Teaminal is a leading async Agile meeting tool that has helped hundreds of teams at companies like Angi, Medium, Hello Fresh, and more work better together. Our platform is designed to facilitate remote collaboration, which makes us uniquely qualified to assess the best Kanban tools for distributed teams.

What Are Kanban Tools?

Let’s start simply—what’s Kanban? It’s a project management method created by Toyota back in the 1940s. It’s all about visualizing your work, limiting how much work you have in progress, and focusing on finishing tasks.

The Kanban loop is simple. There are (at least) three columns—“To Do,” “In Progress,” and “Done.”

You start by adding tasks to the “To Do” column as cards. Then, as you work on each task, you move it to the “In Progress” column and eventually complete it and move it to the “Done” column. When a task is moved to “Done”, a new one can be added to the “To Do” column.

This used to be done with paper cards, but modern Kanban tools have made this process even easier and more effective. Now, you can integrate your Kanban board with data sources to automatically sync tasks, invite team members to collaborate, and track progress in real-time.

Benefits of Using Kanban Tools

Simple (but Effective) Task Management

Kanban is a beautifully simple system for getting work done. It stops you from biting off more than you can chew, limits the amount of lag time between finishing one task and starting another, and makes it easy to spot bottlenecks in your team’s workflow.

One of the key benefits of using Kanban tools is their simplicity. With a visual representation of your tasks on a board, it becomes easier to manage and prioritize work. The clear columns of “To Do,” “In Progress,” and “Done” make it easy to see what needs to be done next and what has already been completed.

Better Documentation

Every task has context—especially in a software development environment. Kanban tools let you document that context directly on the task card, including:

• Comments
• Attachments
• Links
• Screenshots
• Deadlines

This allows the entire team to understand each task, reducing confusion and miscommunication completely. This also helps with accountability as everyone can see who is responsible for each task and when it needs to be completed by.

Integrated Tech Stack

Handling repeated data entry by hand is anti-productivity. It’s a task where there’s no upside whatsoever. At best, it’s a waste of time—at worst, it can lead to errors and discrepancies (which waste even more time). 

With Kanban tools, you can integrate with other tech tools like: 

• Project management software
• Time tracking software
• Messaging tools
• Agile meeting tools like Teaminal

This means less manual information transfer between different systems, reducing the risk of errors and saving time for your team. It also allows for a more streamlined workflow, as tasks can be automatically updated and synced across various platforms.

Criteria To Consider When Choosing A Kanban Tool

When choosing a Kanban tool for your team or organization, several criteria must be considered to ensure that the tool aligns with your specific needs and preferences. 

Here are some key criteria to consider:

• Ease of Use: Look for a Kanban tool that is intuitive and user-friendly, with a simple and clear interface. The tool should be easy for team members to navigate and use without extensive training or technical expertise.
• Customization Options: Consider the level of customization offered by the Kanban tool. Look for features that allow you to customize boards, columns, cards, labels, and workflows to match your team’s specific requirements and workflow processes.
• Collaboration Features: Evaluate the collaboration features provided by the Kanban tool. Look for features such as real-time updates, commenting, file attachments, @mentions, and integration with communication tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams to facilitate seamless collaboration among team members.
• Integration Capabilities: Check the Kanban tool’s integration capabilities with other software applications and services commonly used by your team, such as project management tools, time-tracking software, issue trackers, version control systems, and cloud storage services. Integration with these tools can streamline workflow processes and improve productivity.

5 Best Kanban Tools To Consider

Check out our list of the best Kanban tools that you should check out:

1. Asana
2. Trello
3. monday.com
4. Jira
5. Wrike

1. Asana

Asana is a well-rounded project management tool that’s popular with all kinds of teams—from marketing to engineering, design, and more. It isn’t strictly a Kanban tool, but Kanban boards are one of the core “views” that Asana offers.

Asana’s Kanban boards let you visualize your tasks in the familiar columned layout, making it easy to see the progress of each task and identify bottlenecks. The tool also allows for easy collaboration, with features like commenting, tags, file attachments, and real-time updates.

With our Asana integration, recently closed tasks from your Kanban boards will automatically be added to each team member’s daily standups and retro contributions.

Key Features

• Views: View your tasks and projects as Kanban boards, calendars, Gantt charts, lists, and three additional layouts to quickly switch between different perspectives.
• Custom Fields: Create custom fields to add extra data to your tasks, such as priority levels or due dates.
• Automation: Automate repetitive tasks with Asana’s rules feature, which allows for automated actions based on triggers and conditions you set.
• Integrations: Connect Asana with other apps like Google Drive, Slack, and Teaminal for seamless workflow management.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Customizable board layout
• Enhanced task management
• Increased visibility and communication
• Flexibility in viewing and managing work

Cons

• Learning curve
• Risk of creating overly segmented workflows

2. Trello

Trello is a popular project management tool managed by Atlassian. It uses a card-based system that maps very easily to Kanban boards. Trello is known for its user-friendly interface and simplicity, making it a popular choice for teams of all sizes.

In terms of features, Trello is a bit more bare-bones than Asana. It supports tags, comments, due dates, and a few integrations, but you won’t find many advanced features here. Still, it’s a popular tool for a reason—lots of teams like to keep things simple and straightforward.

Key Features

• Boards, Lists, and Cards: Divide your projects into categories, projects, and tasks to keep things organized and moving forward smoothly.
• Butler Automation: Built-in no-code automation within every board to automate tasks and workflows, reducing manual effort and increasing efficiency.
• Power-Ups: Add extra functionality to your boards with Power-Ups, like integrations with other tools like Google Drive and Slack.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Designed for Kanban
• User-friendly
• Customizable boards
• Effective automation

Cons

• Limited features

3. monday.com

monday.com is a “work management platform” that offers a flexible set of products that you can shape into a toolset that meets your needs. It’s known for its customizable interface and dynamic boards, making it a popular choice for teams in various industries.

monday.com’s Kanban boards are part of a broader suite of work management solutions that cater to various team needs. These boards are designed to help teams track work progress, manage workflows efficiently, and keep all team communications centralized in one place.

Like Asana, monday.com integrates with Teaminal to enrich your async daily standups and retros with important data from your boards.

Key Features

• Customizable Templates: Get started quickly with pre-made templates for different projects and workflows, or create your own from scratch.
• Automation: Automate repetitive tasks and streamline processes by setting up rules and triggers.
• Integrations: monday.com integrates with popular tools like Slack, Zoom, Teaminal, Google Drive, and more to keep all your work in one place.
• Collaboration Tools: Communicate and collaborate with team members through comments, @mentions, file sharing, and more.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Intuitive interface
• The boards are highly visual and customizable
• Effective workflow management
• Boards can be applied across various industries and project types

Cons

• Setup can be complex

4. Jira

Jira is the most popular project management tool globally. 

It’s a powerhouse offering various features for agile project management, issue tracking, and team collaboration. Jira is highly customizable and can be tailored to fit the specific needs of your team or organization.

Jira’s Kanban board feature allows for a highly visual and flexible workflow management system. You can easily track progress, prioritize tasks, and assign work to team members. One of the main pros of Jira is its intuitive interface. 

It’s easy to navigate and use, making it suitable for teams of all sizes and levels of technical proficiency.

Key Features

• Integrations: Seamlessly integrates with third-party tools like monday.com and Teaminal to extend the capabilities of Jira and improve team collaboration.
• Issue Tracking: Allows you to track bugs, tasks, and other project-related issues in one centralized location (and can populate Teaminal’s daily standups and retros with this information).
• Customizable Workflows: Offers highly customizable workflows that can be tailored to the unique needs of different teams and projects.
• Reporting and Analytics: Provides powerful reporting and analytics features, enabling teams to gain visibility into project progress, identify bottlenecks, and make data-driven decisions. 

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Enhanced project visibility and transparency
• Optimized efficiency
• Flexibility and customization
• Improved team collaboration
• Streamlined task management

Cons

• Learning curve

5. Wrike

Last but not least—Wrike.

Wrike is another well-rounded project management tool that offers Kanban boards as one of its many project views. It also offers Gantt charts, task lists, and calendars to help teams stay organized and on track. 

One standout feature of Wrike is its time-tracking capabilities. It’s easy to set up timers for each task and track time spent on projects, making it a great tool for teams who need to accurately bill clients or track their own productivity.

Key Features

• Visual Kanban Boards: Create customized workflows to visually track project progress across different stages from “To Do” to “In Progress” and “Complete”​​.
• Flexibility and Customization: Tailor work items with custom item types and dynamic request forms, powered by conditional logic, to fit specific workplace needs​​.
• Time-Tracking: Track time spent on tasks and projects, set deadlines, and monitor progress in real-time to improve efficiency and productivity​​.
• Integrations and Automation: Offers over 400 app integrations and the ability to automate workflows, streamlining proofing, and collaboration, and reducing duplicate work.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Improved visibility and efficiency
• Enhanced flexibility
• Comprehensive integration options

Cons

• Potentially overwhelming set of features
• UI could be simpler

Teaminal: A Tool To Enhance Team Collaboration

Teaminal has come up as an integration for a few of these tools, so it’s time to introduce ourselves a bit more formally. Our tool is designed to give distributed Agile teams a simple, effective way to hold async Agile rituals, including:

• Daily standups
• Planning poker sessions
• Backlog refinement meetings
• Retrospectives

How does this work? Simple. Teaminal works as both a standalone web app and a Slack integration for teams already using Slack. When you need to hold an Agile meeting, you set it up with Teaminal and your team can contribute on their own time.

Our integrations with Kanban tools (and a range of other Agile tools) let us pull in information about closed issues, moved cards, or added comments in real time. That means your team can see what’s happening with the backlog without having to manually update it during meetings.

Conclusion

Kanban tools offer a wide range of benefits for teams looking to simplify their work processes. With so many options to choose from, it’s important to find the tool that best fits your team’s needs and workflow.

Teaminal is designed to streamline Agile processes for remote teams by offering async standup, retro, and sprint planning meetings. It supports seamless integration with various tools, ensuring that updates, planning poker, and backlog refinement are centralized and efficiently managed.

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