Keep your stakeholders informed with our free project status report templates. Available in Excel and PowerPoint formats, these templates provide structured weekly and monthly reporting with RAG (Red/Amber/Green) status indicators, key accomplishments, upcoming milestones, risks and issues, and action items — everything your project sponsor and steering committee need to see at a glance.
Consistent status reporting builds trust with stakeholders and helps you catch problems early. Instead of creating reports from scratch every week, download one of our professionally designed templates below, fill in your project details, and send a polished update in minutes.
What is a project status report?
A project status report is a project management document that captures the current health and progress of a project at a specific point in time. It communicates essential information — what has been accomplished, what is coming next, what risks or issues exist, and whether the project is on track for its deadlines and budget.
Project status reports are typically shared on a weekly or monthly basis with project sponsors, steering committees, clients, and team members. They serve as the primary communication tool between the project team and stakeholders who need visibility into project progress without getting into task-level detail.
Project status categories
Every project moves through a series of status stages. Understanding and consistently using these categories across your reports ensures clear communication with stakeholders:
- New: The project has been accepted but work has not yet started. Project managers use this status to identify projects in the pipeline that need team assignment and kickoff planning.
- Open: The project has been assigned to a team or specific resource. Open projects are awaiting the start of active work.
- In Progress: Active work is underway. The team is executing tasks against the project plan and timeline. This is where most of your status reporting effort is focused.
- On Hold: Work has been temporarily paused due to dependencies, resource constraints, scope changes, or external factors. The report should explain the reason and expected resumption date.
- Completed: All deliverables have been tested, accepted, and handed over to the client or operations team. The project is in closeout or transition phase.
- Cancelled: The project has been terminated before completion. The report should document the reason and any lessons learned.
RAG status indicators
RAG (Red, Amber, Green) indicators are the universal shorthand for communicating project health. Every status report should include RAG ratings for the overall project and for each key dimension:
- Green: On track. The project is progressing as planned with no significant risks or issues.
- Amber: At risk. There are concerns that could impact the project if not addressed. Action is needed but the situation is manageable.
- Red: Off track. The project has significant issues affecting scope, schedule, or budget that require escalation and immediate action.
Apply RAG ratings to each of these dimensions in your report: overall project health, schedule adherence, budget status, scope control, resource availability, and risk level. This gives stakeholders a quick visual summary before they read the detail.
What to include in a project status report
A well-structured status report covers these key sections:
Project information: Project name, report date, reporting period, project manager, sponsor, and overall RAG status.
Executive summary: A 2-3 sentence overview of the project’s current state. This is often the only section senior stakeholders read — make it count.
Key accomplishments: What was completed during this reporting period. List specific deliverables, milestones achieved, and decisions made.
Upcoming activities: What is planned for the next reporting period. Highlight critical deadlines and dependencies.
Milestones: A table showing all project milestones with planned dates, actual dates, and status. Link this to your Gantt chart for detailed scheduling.
Risks and issues: Active risks with their probability, impact, and mitigation plans. Open issues with owners and target resolution dates.
Budget status: Planned vs. actual spend, forecast to complete, and any variance explanations. For detailed budget tracking, see our project cost estimator template.
Action items: Open action items with owners, due dates, and status from the current and previous reporting periods.
Weekly vs monthly status reports
Weekly status reports are designed for quick team updates — they should take no more than 15 minutes to complete. Focus on what was done this week, what is planned for next week, and any blockers or escalations. Use our Excel template for data-driven weekly tracking with built-in formulas.
Monthly status reports provide a more comprehensive view suitable for steering committee meetings and executive reviews. They include trend charts showing progress over time, cumulative budget tracking, resource utilisation metrics, and a forward-looking risk assessment. Use our PowerPoint template for presentation-ready monthly updates.
Project status chart
A project status chart provides a visual summary of progress across all project dimensions. The most effective status charts use a combination of RAG indicators and progress bars to show completion percentages alongside health ratings.
You can create status charts in Excel using conditional formatting and built-in chart types, or use our project dashboard template which includes automated status visualisations that update as you enter data.
Project status dashboard
For teams managing multiple projects, a status dashboard rolls up individual project reports into a single executive view. The dashboard shows RAG status, completion percentage, budget health, and key milestones for every active project — allowing PMO leads and programme managers to spot problems across the portfolio at a glance.
Download free project status report templates
All templates below are free to download and use for personal and commercial projects. No sign-up required. For more free templates, browse our complete project management templates library.
Weekly Project Status Report — Excel Format (.xlsx)
Quick-fill format with RAG indicators, accomplishments, upcoming tasks, risks, and action items. Built-in formulas and conditional formatting — takes 15 minutes to complete. Works with Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Microsoft 365 on Windows and Mac.
Monthly Project Status Report — Excel Format (.xlsx)
Comprehensive format with trend charts, budget tracking, milestone table, risk register, and resource summary. Ideal for monthly governance meetings and steering committee reviews.
Project Status Report — PowerPoint Format (.pptx)
Presentation-ready format for steering committee meetings and executive reviews. Includes RAG summary slide, milestone timeline, budget overview, and risk heatmap. Works with PowerPoint 2007 and later on Windows and Mac.
Need advanced status reporting?
Our free templates cover most weekly and monthly reporting needs. But if you need automated RAG calculations, multi-project portfolio dashboards, executive presentation decks, and integrated resource tracking, explore our premium project management templates:
- Project Status Templates Pack ($29) — Weekly and monthly status reports in Excel and PowerPoint with automated RAG indicators
- Project Dashboard Templates Pack ($49) — Automated dashboards with KPI charts, progress tracking, and executive summary views
- 120+ PM Templates Pack ($299) — Complete project management toolkit with 50+ Excel, 50+ PowerPoint, and 25+ Word templates
Frequently asked questions
What is a project status report?
A project status report is a document that communicates the current health and progress of a project to stakeholders. It typically includes an executive summary, key accomplishments, upcoming activities, milestones, risks, issues, budget status, and action items.
How often should I send a project status report?
Most projects benefit from weekly status reports for the core team and monthly reports for steering committees and executive stakeholders. The frequency depends on project complexity, stakeholder expectations, and organisational governance requirements.
What are RAG status indicators?
RAG stands for Red, Amber, and Green — a colour-coded system used to communicate project health at a glance. Green means on track, amber means at risk but manageable, and red means off track and requiring immediate attention or escalation.
What should I include in a weekly project status report?
A weekly report should include the overall RAG status, key accomplishments from the past week, planned activities for the coming week, any blockers or escalations, and updated action items. Keep it concise — it should take no more than 15 minutes to complete.
What is the difference between a status report and a status dashboard?
A status report is a periodic document (weekly or monthly) that provides a narrative update on a single project. A status dashboard is a live or regularly updated visual summary — often covering multiple projects — that shows RAG status, progress bars, and key metrics in a single view.
Can I use these templates for client-facing reports?
Yes. All templates are professionally designed with clean layouts suitable for both internal and client-facing communication. You can add your company logo and customise the colour scheme to match your brand.
