Free interactive planning tool
Online WBS Maker: build, edit and share your work breakdown structure
Turn your project scope into a diagram you can work with. Add deliverables, break them into work packages and rearrange branches. WBS Explorer redraws the structure and updates the numbering for you.
No sign-up. No installation. No macros.
Try the WBS Explorer
Start with the website launch example below. Select a card, change its name and choose Apply changes. You have your first edit.
Need more room? Apply your changes, then use Open full explorer inside the tool to continue with your current project in a new tab. On a small screen, this gives you more space to edit.
If the embedded tool does not load, open WBS Explorer directly. JavaScript must be enabled.
Build your first WBS
- Name the project. Select the top card and describe what the project includes. Choose Apply changes to update it. Use the File menu to start a blank project if you prefer.
- Add your main deliverables. Choose Add branch for each main area of work. For a website launch, these might include design and content, the website platform, and handover.
- Break each branch down. Select a card and choose Add child. For example, split handover into a handover pack and support transition. Repeat where you need more detail.
- Make the work clear. Record the owner, scope, exclusions and acceptance criteria. Describe what someone needs to deliver and how you will know it is acceptable.
- Adjust the structure. Change Belongs to to move an item and its children. Use Move up or Move down to reorder it. The WBS numbers update automatically.
The top card counts workstreams and work packages. Workstreams are the main branches directly below the project. Work packages are items with no children, excluding the project itself. A main branch with no children counts in both totals. Collapsing a branch does not change the counts.
Use the diagram in a scope review
Open the explorer during a planning discussion and work through one branch at a time. Ask the people doing the work: what is missing, what overlaps and who will accept each deliverable?
Use the minus button to hide a card's children and the plus button to show them again. Choose a branch in Show to focus the discussion, or switch to Outline for a table view.
The explorer helps you organise the scope. Your team still needs to check that the work is complete and not counted twice.
Save, share and export your work
| I want to... | Use this option |
|---|---|
| Continue editing later | Save project file downloads a .wbs.json file. Load it with Open project file. Save this editable copy before you leave. |
| Send the WBS to someone | Share & embed creates a link to a snapshot. Recipients can edit their own copy. Later edits do not update a link you have already sent. |
| Put the WBS on another page | Copy the embed code from Share & embed. It displays an interactive snapshot with a link to open the full explorer. |
| Review the details in Excel | Export an Excel workbook containing the register and a diagram image. Editing its cells does not redraw the image. Excel files cannot be imported back into the explorer. |
| Use the diagram in a report | Export SVG or PNG, or use Print to print or save as PDF. Diagram exports include the complete, expanded project. |
Check before sharing: anyone with the link can read the included fields, including owners and scope notes. For a project too large for a share link, send the saved project file instead.
Choose the right WBS resource
Use the explorer to build and discuss your diagram. These resources help with the other parts of planning:
- Work breakdown structure examples: browse structures from different projects when you need ideas for what to include.
- WBS Excel template: use a downloadable spreadsheet when you want to maintain your WBS as a table in Excel.
- WBS dictionary template: develop fuller records for individual components, including resources, costs, dependencies and quality criteria.
You can use them together: look at an example, build your own structure in the explorer, then develop the supporting package details in the dictionary.
Questions about the explorer
Does it save my project automatically?
Use Save project file for a copy you can keep and reopen. The full explorer also offers Remember on this device, which saves applied changes in that browser. Browser storage can be cleared, so keep a project file as your backup.
Can several people edit the same WBS at once?
No. Shared links contain a snapshot, and each person edits their own copy. For a workshop, nominate one person to update the diagram while the team reviews it.
Does it calculate dates, costs or the critical path?
No. Use it to define and organise the work before scheduling. It does not calculate dates, costs, dependencies or the critical path. Status is entered manually and does not roll up from child packages.
How large can my WBS be?
The explorer supports up to 300 items and eight levels below the project. Use branch focus, collapse controls and Outline to review a larger structure.