I built schedules like this by hand long before software made it easy. Build a Gantt chart in minutes here. No account, no download, completely free. Add tasks, set start and end dates, assign owners, track progress and export to PDF. Click any bar to edit task details.
📊Visual drag-to-build chart
🖨️Export to PDF
📅Auto-scaled timeline
🔓Free. No login needed.
Load a Project Template
Start with a realistic example and edit any task, or scroll down and build from scratch.
View:
Add:Show:
today
TaskDatesOwner
Task
In Progress
Complete
Milestone
Group
Click any bar to edit. Today line = today
Edit Task
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How to Use This Tool
Building Your Gantt Chart: Quick Guide
1. Add tasks: Click "Add Task" or load a template. Each task appears as a row in the left panel and a bar on the timeline to the right. Click any bar or task row to open the edit panel where you can set name, dates, owner, progress and colour.
2. Set dates: Start and end dates control the bar width and position on the timeline. The timeline auto-scales to show all your tasks. Use the Earlier and Later buttons or the zoom dropdown to navigate the timeline.
3. Track progress: Set each task's completion percentage. Bars fill left to right showing how much is done. Tasks at 100% turn grey. The today line (blue vertical line) shows where you are in the timeline relative to planned tasks.
4. Export: Click "Export PDF" to open your browser's print dialog. Select "Save as PDF" as the destination. For best results, set the page orientation to Landscape and margins to Minimum.
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Milestones vs Tasks: Use Task for work that has duration. Use Milestone for a single key date, a go-live, a sign-off, a delivery, which appears as a diamond. Use Group for a phase header that spans multiple tasks below it. I use this exact split on every schedule I build, from software launches to construction fit-outs.
FAQ
Gantt Charts: 4 Common Questions
A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart showing a project schedule over time. Each row represents a task. The bar shows when it starts and ends. Gantt charts communicate timelines to stakeholders, identify schedule conflicts, show task dependencies and track progress against plan. First developed by Henry Gantt in the 1910s, they remain the most widely used schedule visualisation in project management. I have relied on them throughout my career, from construction sites to software rollouts.
Use this tool. No account required. Click "Add Task", set your start and end dates and type a task name. The bar appears immediately on the timeline. When you are done, click "Export PDF" and save from your browser's print dialog. For a downloadable spreadsheet version, see our guides on Gantt charts in Excel and Google Sheets.
A complete Gantt chart should include task name, start date, end date, duration, assigned owner, progress percentage and milestones for key deliverables. For stakeholder-facing charts, also add a project name, date range header, legend and version or date stamp. Phase grouping (Group rows) helps organise large charts into readable sections.
A project schedule is the full time-phased plan of all activities including resources, costs and dependencies. A Gantt chart is a visual representation of that schedule. It shows tasks as bars on a timeline. All Gantt charts represent schedules, but not all schedules are visualised as Gantt charts. Tools like MS Project generate Gantt charts from a full scheduling engine with critical path analysis. Simpler online tools like this one create visual-only charts. See our PM guides for more on scheduling methods.