Microsoft Project Online is ending: What UK PMOs need to do now

What Microsoft has announced, and Why it matters

Microsoft has been clear about its direction. Project Online is being phased out, and customers are being guided towards a combination of newer tools within the Microsoft ecosystem, including:

• Project for the web
• Planner
• Power BI, Dataverse and Power Automate
  

• October 2025 — End of sale for Project Online-only licences for new customers
• August 2025 — Project for the web and Roadmap apps in Teams retired, with users redirected to Planner
• April 2026 — Existing customers can no longer create new Project Online tenants
• July 2026 — Project Server 2016/2019 reach end of extended support
• 30 September 2026 — Project Online fully retired and access to projects and data ends

This timeline matters because it creates pressure long before the final retirement date. Organisations will need to plan, assess and transition in a considered way, rather than reacting at the last minute.

And perhaps most importantly, the recommended alternatives are not a like-for-like replacement.

Project Online was designed as an enterprise PPM platform. Project for the web, by contrast, is a modern task and lightweight project management tool. The architecture, philosophy and intended use are fundamentally different. That distinction becomes critical when you consider how deeply embedded Project Online has become within public sector operating models.

Why This Is a Bigger Issue for the UK Public Sector

Private sector organisations often have more flexibility to adapt their processes around tools. The UK public sector typically does not.

PMOs operate within formal governance and assurance frameworks. They are accountable for audibility, transparency, financial oversight and benefits realisation. Many are managing complex portfolios that span departments, agencies and delivery partners.

Over time, Project Online became more than just a planning tool. In many organisations, it evolved into the system of record for:

• Portfolio status reporting and executive dashboards
• Resource allocation and capacity decisions
• Programme governance and assurance
• Cross-department visibility of delivery

When a platform sits at the centre of that much activity, replacing it is not simply a matter of moving projects from one system to another. It means protecting the operating model that has grown around it.

Project Online vs Project for the Web: The Reality

Microsoft’s recommended direction makes sense in the context of its broader strategy. Project for the web offers a modern interface, strong integration with Teams, and a simple, accessible experience for managing individual projects.

In many environments, it will work well for:

• Day-to-day task planning
• Team-level coordination
• Lightweight project tracking

However, for public sector PMOs managing large, complex portfolios, there are clear capability gaps. Areas such as cross-project dependencies, advanced resource planning, financial oversight and mature governance workflows are handled very differently — and in some cases, not at the same level of depth.

This does not make Project for the web a poor tool. It simply means it was built for a different purpose.

For many organisations, the real question is not “Can we move our projects?” but “Can we preserve how we run our portfolios, governance and reporting?”

The Hidden Risk: Fragmentation

One of the most common patterns already emerging is the gradual spread of responsibility across multiple tools.

On their own, each platform is capable and well-designed. But when stitched together to replicate enterprise PPM capability, the result can be fragmentation. Tasks might sit in one place, risks in another, reporting somewhere else, and portfolio oversight held together in spreadsheets.

Individually, these tools are strong. Collectively, they can fracture:

• Data ownership
• Audit trails
• Accountability
• Confidence in reporting

PMOs can quickly find themselves spending more time reconciling information than managing delivery. The effort shifts from oversight to coordination, and from insight to consolidation.

That is where risk begins to build quietly.

What UK Public Sector Organisations Should Be Doing Now

The most effective response isn’t to rush into a replacement decision. It’s to step back and understand what Project Online is really doing for your organisation today.

Start by looking beyond how the system was originally intended to be used, and focus on how it is actually supporting delivery. Consider:

• Which reports leadership genuinely rely on
• Which processes depend on centralised data
• Where manual reconciliation already exists
• What would break if information became fragmented

It’s also important to separate two decisions that are often treated as one.

Remaining aligned with Microsoft 365 is a sensible and strategic choice for many organisations. But assuming that Project for the web can replace Project Online one-for-one is a different question entirely. These decisions should be made independently, based on capability rather than familiarity.

Most importantly, this should be treated as a portfolio change, not a technical upgrade. Transitioning away from Project Online will affect processes, governance, reporting, and operating models. Handled well, it presents an opportunity to modernise and simplify. Handled poorly, it risks creating long-term complexity and hidden inefficiencies.

Where Enterprise PPM Platforms Come In

This is why many public sector organisations are beginning to reassess their approach more broadly.

Rather than attempting to rebuild enterprise PPM capability across multiple tools, some are exploring dedicated platforms that integrate with Microsoft 365 while preserving the governance, reporting and assurance models they already depend on.

In particular, organisations are looking for solutions that support:

• A single, trusted view across portfolios and programmes
• Clear auditability and data lineage
• Real-time reporting without manual consolidation
• Public sector governance models from the outset

This isn’t about replacing Microsoft. It’s about ensuring that the capabilities PMOs rely on remain intact.

A Final Word from a CTO’s Perspective

Microsoft ending Project Online is not a failure of the platform. It reflects a strategic shift. Technology moves on.

The real risk lies in assuming that a strategic decision made by a global vendor automatically aligns with the operational realities of the UK public sector.

PMOs that act early, understand their true requirements and evaluate their options carefully are likely to come out of this transition stronger. Those that delay may find themselves forced into compromises that reshape how delivery works, often in ways that only become clear over time.

If there is one key takeaway, it is this:

Treat the retirement of Project Online as a portfolio decision, not just a tooling decision.

Before committing to any path, start with a clear migration checklist and an honest capability gap analysis. The organisations that take the time to understand what they really need now will be in a far stronger position for what comes next