Free Software Project Plan Templates

By Kate Eby | November 7, 2022

In this article, you’ll find the most useful free software project plan templates for software project managers, Scrum masters, Agile team members, business systems analysts, QA managers, and others. 

On this page, you'll find many helpful software project plan templates, including a software development project plan template, a software deployment project plan template, an Agile software development project plan template, and a software rollout and implementation plan template, among others. Plus, find tips for using software project plan templates.

Simple Software Project Plan Template 

Simple Software Project Plan Template

Download a Simple Software Project Plan Template for 
Excel | Microsoft Word | Google Sheets

This simple software project plan template helps you successfully execute software development and offers you a task-based guide for future software project planning. Enter your software project’s name, main deliverable(s), scope-of-work statement, project manager, and start and end dates. The template comes pre-built with sprint-by-sprint swimlanes under which you can put your project’s primary tasks. For each task, assign a software team member, set a due date, document the status, and track the percentage toward completion. 

For more project plan templates and resources, see this article on project plan templates in Microsoft Word.

Software Development Project Plan Template

Software Development Project Plan Template

Download a Software Development Project Plan Template for 
Excel | Google Sheets

Master your software project planning with this comprehensive software development project plan template that includes a Gantt chart. This sprint-by-sprint software project planning template provides the following: a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) column, so you can assign a unique number to each task; a Task Owner column, so you can assign individual tasks to specific team members; an Estimated Work in Hours column; and a Due Date column. The Gantt chart offers a visual timeline of each sprint’s tasks and progress, so you can track them by week or by sprint. 

A unique burndown chart displays the amount of work remaining and completed for each sprint, so it’s clear, at a glance, whether or not your team can complete a given sprint’s tasks on time.

Software Deployment Project Plan Template

Software Deployment Project Plan Template

Download a Software Deployment Project Plan Template for 
Excel | Google Sheets

Use this software deployment project plan template to ensure that your project deliverables are on track for completion. You can utilize the template as an Agile or Waterfall tool, depending on which methodology suits your software project requirements. For each task, enter story points, the status (i.e., Planned, Ongoing, Released), and the deployment due date. An At Risk column allows you to check any task that might not be completed by the deployment due date.

Agile Software Development Project Plan Template

Agile Software Development Project Plan Template

Download an Agile Software Development Project Plan Template for 
Excel | Google Sheets 

This all-inclusive Agile software development project plan template offers everything you need to plan a successful Agile software project. Sprint and task-specific swimlanes guide you through the process of accounting for every feature and component that you must complete by the end of a sprint or by the conclusion of the overall project. Include story points for each sprint’s feature and task, so you can weight these factors adequately and then accurately determine how relevant each deliverable is to project success. 

An overall progress field helps you keep tabs on the percentage of the project’s completion. A Gantt chart provides a horizontal, color-coded bar graph of your sprints, so you can track the individual progress of each one.

Software Rollout and Implementation Plan Template

Software Rollout and Implementation Plan Template

Download a Software Rollout and Implementation Plan Template for 
Microsoft Word | Google Docs 

Designed to account for every element of a software rollout, including its successful implementation, this template provides instructive explanations of each step of the software delivery process. In the template’s Purpose section, describe the reason for the software rollout plan, and identify the system that you and your team will implement. Use this template to account for everything in your software project, including its assumptions and constraints, description of implementation, points of contact, implementation schedule, security and privacy, performance monitoring, documentation, acceptance criteria, and more.

Software Migration Plan Template

Software Migration Plan Template

Download a Software Migration Plan Template for
Excel | Google Sheets | Smartsheet

This software migration plan template offers you the high-level overview you need when you’re planning a major software migration. The template includes built-in software migration-specific tasks, such as defining the opportunity, evaluating the potential risks, and more. Under each task, you can choose from a dropdown menu of subtasks, such as Identify Needed Resources, Identify Operating Costs, or Review Implementation Strategy

The related Checklist Prior to Migration Project Launch template below helps you confirm that you’ve accounted for all your software migration plan’s components, so you can rest assured that your migration project goes off without a hitch.

Checklist Prior to Migration Project Launch

Migration Planning Checklist Template

Download the Migration Planning Checklist Template

Microsoft Word | Adobe PDF

Check out these free IT project plan templates and resources to help ensure that your IT team is on track.

What Is a Software Project Plan Template?

A software project plan template provides a comprehensive framework that allows you and your software team to accurately document, anticipate, list, and monitor all stages of your software project — thus, keeping your deliverables on track for completion. 

Successful project status report templates and dashboards provide instant insight into project progress, and they clearly show which project components are on track, at potential risk, or creating roadblocks. A customizable template enables you to modify your document to fit your needs, while also offering default text to help you implement and monitor your project. Though project status template types vary, they include the following universal sections: 

  • Project Name: Enter the name of your software project, so you can easily identify it and distinguish it from your other software projects. 
  • Project Manager: List the name of the project manager who is primarily responsible for making sure that the team completes all software project tasks and successfully delivers the project. 
  • Project Deliverable: Describe the software project’s primary deliverable so that the focus of the project plan is clear. 
  • Scope Statement: Define the project’s scope, specifying what is out of scope.  
  • Start/End Dates: Enter the software project’s start and end dates. 
  • Task Name: Name each project task. 
  • Assignee: List the name of the project team member who is responsible for completing a particular task. 
  • Status: Select the status of each task from the dropdown menu (i.e., Not Started, On Hold, In Progress, Overdue, or Complete). 
  • Overall Progress: Review the combined percentage-of-completion progress for all tasks in the sprint, while also noting the progress of each individual task. 
  • Work Breakdown Structure: Enter the unique work breakdown structure ID to assign a exclusive number to each task.

Turbo-Charge Your Software Project Planning with Smartsheet for Project Management

From simple task management and project planning to complex resource and portfolio management, Smartsheet helps you improve collaboration and increase work velocity -- empowering you to get more done. 

The Smartsheet platform makes it easy to plan, capture, manage, and report on work from anywhere, helping your team be more effective and get more done. Report on key metrics and get real-time visibility into work as it happens with roll-up reports, dashboards, and automated workflows built to keep your team connected and informed.

When teams have clarity into the work getting done, there’s no telling how much more they can accomplish in the same amount of time. Try Smartsheet for free, today.

 

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