Free Excel template

Free Excel project task tracker template

Q: How do I calculate days late in Excel?

Subtract the due date from the completion date (or from the status date if the task is still open) and wrap it in MAX(0,...) so early tasks show 0: =MAX(0,$B$3-D6).

Q: Why use a status date instead of TODAY()?

A typed status date keeps the report fixed to the day you reviewed it, so a saved copy still shows what was late at that point. Change B3 when you update the tracker.

Q: Can this replace project management software?

For a project with a few owners and up to a few dozen tasks, yes. Once you need dependencies, shared editing with notifications or many projects at once, a dedicated tool is easier. You can also put the file in OneDrive or Google Sheets to share it.

For project leads and small teams who run projects from a spreadsheet instead of a paid tool. List each task with its owner, start and due dates and status; the template calculates how many days late each task is, flags what is overdue, due soon, blocked or should already have started, and summarizes progress and workload by owner.

cellwise-project-task-tracker-template.xlsxExcel workbook · 5.8 KB · works in Excel, Google Sheets, Numbers and LibreOffice · no signup

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Preview and try it

This is the template's sheet, calculated by the same engine as the Cellwise app. Change any number to see the formulas react before you download.

	A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H	I
1	Project task tracker
2	Project	Website relaunch
3	Status date	Nov 2, 2026		Due soon = within (days)			7
4
5	Task	Owner	Start	Due	Done on	Status	% done	Days late	Flag
6	Kickoff and goals	Maya	Sep 1, 2026	Sep 5, 2026	Sep 4, 2026	Done	1	0	Done
7	Content audit	Luis	Sep 8, 2026	Sep 18, 2026	Sep 23, 2026	Done	1	5	Done late
8	Sitemap and navigation	Maya	Sep 14, 2026	Sep 25, 2026	Sep 25, 2026	Done	1	0	Done
9	Wireframes	Tara	Sep 21, 2026	Oct 9, 2026	Oct 8, 2026	Done	1	0	Done
10	Visual design	Tara	Oct 5, 2026	Oct 23, 2026		In progress	0.8	10	Overdue
11	Copywriting: product pages	Luis	Oct 5, 2026	Oct 30, 2026		In progress	0.6	3	Overdue
12	Copywriting: blog migration	Luis	Oct 19, 2026	Nov 13, 2026		Not started	0	0	Late start
13	Product photography	Jess	Oct 12, 2026	Oct 28, 2026	Oct 27, 2026	Done	1	0	Done
14	CMS setup	Omar	Oct 12, 2026	Oct 30, 2026	Oct 29, 2026	Done	1	0	Done
15	Front-end build	Omar	Oct 26, 2026	Nov 20, 2026		In progress	0.25	0	On track
16	Product data import	Omar	Nov 2, 2026	Nov 6, 2026		Not started	0	0	Due soon
17	Redirect map (old to new URLs)	Maya	Oct 26, 2026	Nov 6, 2026		Blocked	0.3	0	Blocked
18	Analytics and tracking	Jess	Nov 9, 2026	Nov 13, 2026		Not started	0	0	On track
19	QA and browser testing	Tara	Nov 16, 2026	Nov 25, 2026		Not started	0	0	On track
20	SEO checks	Maya	Nov 16, 2026	Nov 24, 2026		Not started	0	0	On track

How the formulas work

Days late, for open and finished tasks

H6=IF(A6="","",IF(F6="Done",MAX(0,E6-D6),MAX(0,$B$3-D6)))

For a finished task, days late is the completion date minus the due date. For an open task, it is the status date in B3 minus the due date, so it keeps growing until the task is done. MAX(0,...) shows 0 for anything early or on time. Update B3 each time you review the project.

One flag per task

=IF(A6="","",IF(F6="Done",IF(H6>0,"Done late","Done"),IF(H6>0,"Overdue",IF(F6="Blocked","Blocked",IF(D6-$B$3<=$G$3,"Due soon",IF(AND(F6="Not started",C6-$B$3<0),"Late start","On track"))))))

The checks run from most to least urgent, so a task that is both overdue and blocked shows Overdue. Due soon means due within the number of days in G3 (7 in the sample). Late start catches the quiet problem: a task still Not started after its start date, like the blog migration here.

Open tasks per owner

E29=COUNTIFS($B$6:$B$25,D29,$F$6:$F$25,"<>Done")

COUNTIFS counts rows where the owner is the name in D29 and the status is anything except Done ("<>Done" means not equal to). Next to it, Overdue and Days late (total) show who is overloaded: in the sample Maya owns three open tasks, including the blocked redirect map, and Luis has run up 8 days late across two tasks.

Overall progress

B36=IF(B29=0,0,SUM(G6:G25)/B29)

The average % done across all tasks. Every task counts equally here; if tasks differ a lot in size, add an Effort column and use =SUMPRODUCT(effort,% done)/SUM(effort) for a weighted figure.

Make it yours

Add a Status drop-down so the flags always work: select F6:F25, Data > Data Validation > List, and type Not started,In progress,Blocked,Done.
Color the flags: select I6:I25, Home > Conditional Formatting > Highlight Cells Rules > Text that Contains, and add rules for Overdue (red), Blocked (orange) and Due soon (yellow).
Turn the list into a table (Ctrl+T) and filter the Flag column to show only Overdue and Due soon before a status meeting.
For a quick Gantt view, add a column per week to the right and use conditional formatting with a formula like =AND(J$4>=$C6,J$4<=$D6) to shade the weeks each task runs.

FAQ

How do I calculate days late in Excel?

Subtract the due date from the completion date (or from the status date if the task is still open) and wrap it in MAX(0,...) so early tasks show 0: =MAX(0,$B$3-D6).

Why use a status date instead of TODAY()?

A typed status date keeps the report fixed to the day you reviewed it, so a saved copy still shows what was late at that point. Change B3 when you update the tracker.

Can this replace project management software?

For a project with a few owners and up to a few dozen tasks, yes. Once you need dependencies, shared editing with notifications or many projects at once, a dedicated tool is easier. You can also put the file in OneDrive or Google Sheets to share it.

Functions used

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Updated November 2, 2026