Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Maker
Type an outline and get a numbered WBS chart, indented list and dictionary, checked.
Free preview.
- Free preview: the numbered structure, its checks and the dictionary on screen, and the chart with a watermark.
- Locked until you unlock it: download, copy and opening in another app.
- Unlock: Pro pass, ₹179 for 30 days, a one-time payment that never renews.
Ways to unlock shows how to get the full result.
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Outline
Only needed when the outline has several top lines: it goes above them, as 0. With one top line, that line is the project.
Indent with spaces or tabs, number the lines (1, 1.1, 1.1.1) or use bullets (-) under Markdown headings (#). After a | a line can carry its estimate, owner, deliverable and acceptance criteria, as in Wireframes | 16 | Asha: the dictionary fills them in for you.
Start from a template or a file
Work breakdown structure
The WBS dictionary describes each element. What you type here is written onto the element’s line of the outline, after a “|”.
Files
The task list has one row per work package with its code, name, estimate, owner and place in the WBS, for a Gantt chart or a schedule. The PERT calculator receives the work packages with their estimate as the most likely value.
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About the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Maker
A work breakdown structure (WBS) divides a project into everything it must deliver, level by level, until each piece can be estimated, given to someone and checked off. Type the project as an indented outline — or paste a numbered list, Markdown headings with bullets, or import a CSV or Excel list — and get a numbered WBS (1, 1.1, 1.1.1) as a chart, an indented list and a WBS dictionary with each element’s estimate, owner, deliverable and acceptance criteria.
Estimates on the work packages roll up to their parents, and the checks look at the structure: an element whose own estimate disagrees with its parts’ (the 100% rule, loosely), branches with a single part, levels deeper than you allow and two parts with the same name. Start from a template for software, construction, an event or a marketing campaign.
The structure, the checks and the dictionary always work on screen; with a Pro pass you also get the chart without the watermark, the PDF, PNG and SVG, the CSV, a task list for a Gantt chart or a schedule, the copied list and the hand-over to the PERT calculator — without one, they show as a free preview.
How to use it
- Type the project on the first line, then its parts one per line, each indented under its parent (two spaces or a tab per level). Numbered lines (1, 1.1, 1.1.1), Markdown headings (#, ##) and bullets (-) work too, or start from a template or a file.
- Put an estimate after a “|” on the work packages, as in “Wireframes | 16”, and choose the unit. Parents add up their parts; an estimate on a parent is checked against its parts.
- Read the Checks and fix what they find, then look at the Chart, the Indented list or the Dictionary, where you type each element’s owner, deliverable and acceptance criteria.
- With a Pro pass, download the PDF, PNG, SVG, CSV or the task list, copy the indented list, or send the work packages to the PERT calculator to estimate the schedule.
Examples
Website
Design
Wireframes | 16
Visual design | 24
Build | 401 Website (Σ 80 h) 1.1 Design (Σ 40 h) 1.1.1 Wireframes (16 h) 1.1.2 Visual design (24 h) 1.2 Build (40 h)
Σ marks an estimate added up from the parts.
Design | 48, with the parts Wireframes | 16 and Visual design | 24
Check: “1.1 Design: its parts add up to 40 hours, 8 hours less than its own 48 hours.”
Either a part is missing or one of the estimates is off.
1 Customer conference 1.1 Venue 1.2 Programme 1.2.1 Speakers 1.2.2 Agenda
The same codes as a chart, a list and a dictionary: 1.2 Programme with its two parts, and 1.1 Venue as a work package of its own (branches need not go equally deep).
What a WBS is, and the 100% rule
NASA’s Work Breakdown Structure Handbook calls a WBS “a product-oriented family tree that identifies the hardware, software, services, and all other deliverables required to achieve an end project objective”. Level 1 is the entire project; each level below divides the one above into more detailed parts, down to the work packages that are estimated, scheduled and given to someone. Work that is not in the WBS is not part of the project.
That is the idea behind the 100% rule: the WBS covers all of the work and nothing else, and the parts of each element add up to exactly that element. So where an element has its own estimate and its parts have theirs, the numbers should agree. The check here is loose: it compares the numbers, and you judge whether the parts really cover the scope.
Deliverables, not departments or phases
The handbook warns against elements named after functions, organisations, skills or time frames — its examples are Design, Engineering, Manufacturing and Phase A. Name each element after what it produces instead (the drawings, the payment screen, the building permit), so the structure says what will exist when the work is done and each element can be checked as finished. The templates here follow that advice, with project management as an element of its own.
Codes, levels and the checks
An element’s code is its place in the outline: the project is 1, its parts 1.1, 1.2 and so on, and their parts 1.1.1, 1.1.2. When the outline has several top lines they are numbered 1, 2, 3 under the project name, shown as 0. The checks flag:
- parts whose estimates add up to more or less than their parent’s own estimate, and parents where only some parts have estimates;
- branches with a single part: a part that is the whole of its parent adds a level without dividing the work, so merge the two or add the missing parts;
- elements deeper than the level you allow (the handbook notes that NASA’s financial system captures costs to seven levels);
- two parts with the same name under one parent.
The WBS dictionary
The dictionary describes each element, so everyone knows what is in each piece and when it is done: the handbook asks for completion criteria that make each element measurable and verifiable. Here each element has an estimate, an owner, its deliverable and its acceptance criteria. What you type in the dictionary is written onto the element’s line of the outline after a “|”, so the outline holds everything and copying it copies the dictionary too.
Files and the hand-over
- PDF: the chart on a page of its own size, then the dictionary as a table and the checks.
- PNG and SVG: the chart as a picture; the SVG stays sharp at any size and opens in drawing programs.
- CSV: every element with its code, level, parent, estimates and dictionary fields.
- Task list (CSV): one row per work package with its code, name, estimate, owner and place in the WBS, for a Gantt chart or a schedule.
- PERT calculator: the work packages go to the PERT calculator with their estimate as the most likely value; add the optimistic and pessimistic values and the dependencies there.
Limitations
- A loose 100% rule: it compares numbers. Whether the parts really cover all of the work, and nothing more, is for you to judge.
- Each element has one parent: work shared between branches has to be split or placed under one of them.
- Up to 1,500 elements and 12 levels; the dictionary on screen lists the first 500 elements (the files have them all).
- The outline is kept in this browser on this device: no sharing or live collaboration. Copy the outline to keep it elsewhere.
Privacy
Everything happens in your browser. The outline, its estimates and the dictionary are kept in this browser’s storage on this device and are never uploaded; imported files are read on your device.
Frequently asked questions
What do I get without a pass?
Without a pass, Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) Maker shows the numbered structure, its checks and the dictionary on screen, and the chart with a watermark. Until you unlock it, the result can’t be downloaded, copied or opened in another app. A Pro, Premium or Ultimate pass, a one-time payment that never renews, unlocks the full result. The pricing page lists the passes and their prices.
What is a work package?
An element at the bottom of a branch, with no parts of its own: the level at which work is estimated, scheduled and given to someone. The task list and the hand-over to the PERT calculator hold the work packages.
How deep should a WBS go?
Only as deep as you need to estimate and manage the work. NASA’s handbook notes that the top-level elements need not all be broken down to the same level of detail, and that each branch needs dividing only as far as adequate management, insight and control require. Set the deepest level you allow and the checks flag anything deeper.
Can I paste a WBS from Word or Excel?
Yes. A numbered list (1, 1.1, 1.1.1) pasted from a document is read by its numbers. From a spreadsheet, import the file: the columns WBS code (or Level, or Parent), Name, Estimate, Owner, Deliverable and Acceptance criteria are recognised, with the usual other names. Download the spreadsheet template to see them.
Why does the chart look small?
With Zoom on Automatic, a wide WBS is drawn small enough to fit the page, down to 70 % (then the chart scrolls sideways). Choose 100% and scroll, use the chart shape (branches listed under each part, which stays narrow), or download the PDF or SVG to zoom freely.
Is my outline private?
Yes. It is kept only in this browser on this device and never sent to MySmartCoPilot or anyone else. Anyone who uses this browser profile can open it, so use your own profile on a shared computer.