Guide
Project Online retirement: what changed and how to keep status reporting running
Microsoft Project Online retired on September 30, 2026. Here is what changed, the paths Microsoft recommends, and how to keep weekly status updates flowing while your schedule finds its new home.
Updated 2026-11-01. Facts checked against Microsoft's message center notices (see Sources).
Short answer: Project Online is gone, but Project desktop, Project Server and Planner are not. Pick where your schedule lives now (Planner, Project Server Subscription Edition, Project Operations, or an .mpp file in Project desktop), then collect status against that one schedule on a fixed cadence so the move doesn't cost you a month of visibility.
What changed, and when
- September 5, 2025: Microsoft announced that Project Online would retire (message center MC1148537).
- September 24, 2026: final reminder (MC1478955). Users still on Project Online saw an in-app retirement banner.
- September 30, 2026: Project Online retired for all customers, in Worldwide, GCC, GCC High and DoD. No admin action was needed for the shutdown itself.
After the retirement, Microsoft says users can no longer access their projects or any associated data in the service. Its notices told customers to finish migrating beforehand and don't state a read-only or data-retention period. If your organization didn't finish, Microsoft's advice was to contact a Microsoft partner and your Microsoft account team.
What still works
Microsoft says the change is exclusive to Project Online and doesn't affect Project desktop, Project Online desktop, Project Server or Planner. If your team kept its schedules in .mpp files, those schedules, their baselines and Project desktop itself carry on as before. What disappeared is the shared web workspace many PMOs used to collect updates and roll them up.
The paths Microsoft names
| Option | Microsoft positions it for | What to weigh |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Planner | Cloud-first teams. The new Planner combines Planner, Project for the web, To Do and Copilot; premium features (portfolios, baselines, dependencies, Gantt charts) need the Planner and Project Plan 3 or Plan 5 license. | Check that the features your PMO relied on in Project Online exist at the license level you buy, and who on the team needs a premium license. |
| Project Server Subscription Edition | Advanced project and portfolio management, or a short-term step before moving to the cloud. Built on SharePoint Server. | You run the servers and SharePoint yourself, so it suits organizations that already operate on-premises SharePoint. |
| Dynamics 365 Project Operations | Dynamics ERP customers, especially those focused on timesheets and resource scheduling. | Part of Dynamics 365, so it's a bigger decision than how you collect status. |
| Project desktop (not retired) | Teams whose schedule already lives in an .mpp file. Microsoft says Project desktop isn't affected. | You lose the shared web workspace, so status collection and reporting need another home. |
Migration tools and licensing details change, so confirm current specifics with Microsoft or a Microsoft partner before you commit. The choice above is about where the schedule lives. Status reporting is a separate job, and it's the one that usually breaks during a move. Weighing the two Microsoft options most teams land on? See Microsoft Planner vs Microsoft Project.
Keep weekly status reporting running, whichever path you take
The risk in any migration is a few weeks where nobody asks task owners whether their dates still hold. PingCadence collects that answer from the schedule you have today, so you don't need to wait for the new tool to be fully set up.
Your schedule is an .mpp file in Project desktop
In Project, choose File, then Save As, and pick XML Format. Import the file into PingCadence. It reads the task hierarchy (asking about real tasks, not summary rows), resources and their email addresses, start and finish, % complete and your saved baseline. Re-import whenever the schedule changes; your baselines are kept. PingCadence doesn't write into the .mpp file, so you update the schedule yourself after deciding on each proposed date. How the Microsoft Project import works.
You moved the plan to Microsoft Planner
Connect Microsoft Planner with your work account and pick a plan. PingCadence reads tasks, assignees, start and due dates and % complete, and when an owner proposes a new date you can apply it back to Planner with one click. That connection covers basic plans; premium plans aren't available through Microsoft's Planner API yet, so for a premium plan use Export to Excel in Planner and import the file instead. If your organization only lets admins approve new apps, send your IT admin the IT admin page. How the Planner connection works.
The plan is somewhere else, or still in transit
Export it to Excel or CSV and upload that. You confirm which columns hold the task, owner, email and dates before anything is imported, and you can re-upload as the plan moves. Excel and CSV import.
In every case, each task owner gets a short check-in from your own Outlook or Gmail after you approve the batch, answers in about 30 seconds without an account (on track, hard to say, or not on track with a new date), and nothing in your plan changes until you decide. See how it works.
A short checklist for status reporting during the move
- Name one source of truth. Two live copies of a schedule during a migration is how dates drift. Decide which copy owners are asked about.
- Save a baseline before you move. Then slip is measured against the plan you committed to, not last week's dates. See when to re-baseline.
- Check owners have email addresses. Exports often drop them. See Microsoft Project resource email addresses.
- Keep the cadence you had. Weekly or every two weeks, same day and time, with answers due within a couple of working days.
- Report slip in days. Baseline finish versus current finish, in calendar or working days. The free schedule slip calculator does the math.
Questions
When did Microsoft Project Online retire?
On September 30, 2026, for all customers (Worldwide, GCC, GCC High and DoD). Microsoft announced it in September 2025 (message center MC1148537) and sent a final reminder on September 24, 2026 (MC1478955).
What happens to Project Online data after the retirement?
Microsoft's notices say users can no longer access their projects or any associated data in the service, and told customers to migrate before the retirement date. The notices don't state a read-only or data-retention period.
Is Microsoft Project desktop affected?
No. Microsoft says the change is exclusive to Project Online and doesn't affect Project desktop, Project Online desktop, Project Server or Planner. An .mpp schedule keeps working.
What does Microsoft recommend instead of Project Online?
Three paths: Microsoft Planner (premium features such as portfolios, baselines, dependencies and Gantt charts come with the Planner and Project Plan 3 or Plan 5 licenses), Project Server Subscription Edition (on-premises, for advanced portfolio management or as a short-term bridge), and Dynamics 365 Project Operations (for Dynamics ERP customers focused on timesheets and resource scheduling).
How do I keep weekly status updates going after Project Online?
Keep one schedule as the source of truth, wherever it now lives, and collect status against it. PingCadence imports a Project desktop schedule (Save As XML), connects to basic Microsoft Planner plans, or reads an Excel or CSV export (including a premium Planner plan exported to Excel), then emails each task owner a short check-in from your own Outlook or Gmail.
Start without waiting for the migration
PingCadence is free for one active plan and up to 10 people. See pricing, or start free with the schedule you have today.
Sources
- MC1478955: Final reminder: Microsoft Project Online retires on September 30, 2026 (published September 24, 2026)
- MC1148537: Microsoft Project Online is retiring: What you need to know (published September 5, 2025)
- Microsoft Planner Blog: Microsoft Project Online is retiring, the announcement linked from MC1478955
Microsoft, Project, Planner and Dynamics 365 are trademarks of Microsoft. PingCadence is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.