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Agile and Waterfall are two well-known project management methodologies. Both of them are popular in software development but each is best suited for different types of projects. The main difference is that Waterfall is a linear system of working that requires the team to complete each project phase before moving on to the next one while Agile encourages the team to work simultaneously on different phases of the project.
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Agile vs. Waterfall: At a Glance
Agile Methodology
- Approach: Frequent stakeholder interaction
- Flexibility: High
- Requires: Team initiative and short-term deadlines
Agile methodology was developed as a response to Waterfall’s more rigid structure. As a result, it’s a much more fluid form of project management. A software development project can take years to complete, and technology can change significantly during that time. Agile was developed as a flexible method that welcomes incorporating changes of direction even late in the process, as well as accounting for stakeholders’ feedback throughout the process.
In Agile, the team will work on phases of the project concurrently, often with short-term deadlines. Additionally, the team, rather than a project manager, drives the project’s direction. This can empower the team to be motivated and more productive, but also requires a more self-directed team.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Short-term deadlines encourage productivity and efficiency | Because team members are working on multiple phases at a time, there is potential for overlap or unnecessary effort spent on later stages if an early phase needs to be modified |
| There is a lot of flexibility to change project direction and experiment with new directions | Deliverables are not a requirement to progress to the following phase. It can be harder to ensure the entire team is on the same page—especially if it’s a large team with different departments. It also means that work can get lost or miscommunicated between team members, especially when people leave and join the team in the middle of the projects. |
| The methodology is client-facing, which means that the team shares progress and incorporates feedback into the process | The project timeline is more difficult to determine from the start, and it is also more susceptible to change |
Waterfall Methodology
- Approach: Hands-off; goals and outcome established from the beginning
- Flexibility: Low
- Requires: Completing deliverables to progress to the next phase
Waterfall methodology is a linear form of project management ideal for projects where the end result is clearly established from the beginning of the project. The expectations for the project and the deliverables of each stage are clear and are required in order to progress to the next phase.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Provides a concrete plan of the project from start to finish | Because each project phase needs to be completed before progressing to the next stage, the process can take longer |
| The team establishes project requirements early on, which can save time | You might not realize an issue with a phase until you have already progressed to the next one. This would mean going back through each phase and checking where the mistake or error occurred, which can be a timely process. |
| Each phase of the project requires a deliverable to progress to the next phase, making the workflow more structured | The Waterfall methodology requires that you outline the project from start to finish before you begin. This doesn't allow for a lot of flexibility or change. Additionally, it can become problematic if the stakeholders disagree on the project’s vision and don’t find out until it is executed or in a later phase. |
Agile and Waterfall Comparison Chart
| Waterfall | Agile | |
|---|---|---|
| Timeline | Waterfall has a fixed timeline. The idea is that the start and finish of the project are already mapped out from the beginning. | Agile is a lot more flexible and accounts for experimenting with different directions. Rather than a fixed timeline, the schedule adapts as the project progresses. The Agile Manifesto, an online document released in 2001 by a group of software developers, says team members are expected to, “Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter timescale.” |
| Client Involvement | Once the end goal is established, Waterfall does not involve the client or project owner during the process, apart from specific check-ins or for deliverables. The course of the project is outlined from the start, so incorporating client feedback is not an ongoing part of the process. | A fundamental part of Agile is including clients in the project development at every step. The Agile Manifesto states, “Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software.” Therefore, business owners are expected to be involved and give feedback to the software development team as they progress through the different phases of the project. |
| Flexibility | Waterfall is not as flexible as Agile because each phase needs to be fully completed before moving on to the next phase. The project is also planned out ahead of time, making this management system ideal for teams with a clear vision of where they are headed from start to finish. | Flexibility is built into the Agile method. Agile values short bursts of work, which are called sprints. The method welcomes adapting to different directions, incorporating new information even at a later stage of the project. |
| Budget | Fixed. The budget for projects using the Waterfall methodology is generally fixed. Because the project is determined from start to finish, there is less room to change the budget mid-project. | Flexible. Agile is open to adaptation, encourages experimentation and welcomes changes of direction, even in later phases of the project. Because of this, the budget tends to be more flexible. |
Waterfall is a linear project progression, so it’s best suited for projects with a defined end goal. If a project owner has a clear and specific vision of an app, for example, and is confident it will not change throughout the project development, Waterfall methodologies could be a good system to follow.
Meanwhile, Agile leaves a lot of room to adapt and change course as the project develops. It’s better suited for projects where the outcome may be dependent on more research or testing.
The budget for projects using Waterfall methodologies tends to be less flexible because the project is mapped out from the beginning. With Agile, there is more room to change direction as the project develops, so the budget is also subject to change. Similarly, the timeline with Waterfall is set from the start, while it’s more flexible with Agile and dependent on how the project develops.
Waterfall vs. Agile: How To Choose the Right Methodology for Your Project
There are several factors to consider when you are choosing between Waterfall and Agile. Here are a few questions to consider:
Does your project require strict regulations or requirements? Waterfall is better suited for projects with regulations or requirements because each phase’s deliverables and strict procedures ensure that they are met. For instance, the Department of Defense and the aerospace industry are a couple of industries that would more likely use Waterfall over Agile, since the requirements are a safety factor. Dr. Chris Mattmann, Chief Technology and Innovation Officer (CTIO) at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told Forbes Advisor that “agile methodology is used more for IT companies, [companies] that fail fast and move fast, types of places where you can proceed in parallel in different phases.”
When choosing between Agile and Waterfall, consider how involved the project owners or stakeholders will be in the project. Agile is better suited for projects where stakeholders are closely involved every step of the way. Waterfall is a more structured project management method and does not lend itself to the same type of flexibility.
Bottom Line
To summarize, Agile and Waterfall are two different management methodologies best suited for different types of projects. If you clearly understand the project outcomes from the beginning, Waterfall may be the best fit. Waterfall is a better method when a project must meet strict regulations as it requires deliverables for each phase before proceeding to the next one.
Alternatively, Agile is better suited for teams that plan on moving fast, experimenting with direction and don’t know how the final project will look before they start. Agile is flexible and requires a collaborative and self-motivated team, plus frequent check-ins with business owners and stakeholders about the progress.
FAQs
Which methodology is better Agile or Waterfall? ›
Waterfall is a better method when a project must meet strict regulations as it requires deliverables for each phase before proceeding to the next one. Alternatively, Agile is better suited for teams that plan on moving fast, experimenting with direction and don't know how the final project will look before they start.
Why is Agile better than Waterfall project management? ›More flexible
Once a step has been completed in Waterfall, it's difficult to go back and make changes. In contrast, Agile builds a working version of the whole project (an MVP) so the customer can shape how it's built.
Agile methods can help teams manage work more efficiently and do the work more effectively while delivering the highest quality product within the constraints of the budget.
Why is Waterfall methodology the best? ›The advantages of the waterfall methodology are that: Requirements are completed early in the project, enabling the team to define the entire project scope, create a complete schedule, and design the overall application.
What is the success of Agile vs Waterfall? ›Their study found that just 8% of Agile projects were deemed to have failed compared to 21% of Waterfall projects, and that the failure rate was higher for larger projects. Breaking these down into smaller projects increased their likelihood of success and reduced the risk of failure.
What are the pros and cons of Agile methodology? ›...
What Is Agile?
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| More flexible | Hard to predict |
| Product get to market faster | Final product is not released first |
| Better communication | Documentation gets left behind |
The latest report from the Standish Group Chaos Study presents interesting findings: Projects based on agile principles have significantly higher success rates than traditional projects based on the waterfall methodology.
What are three 3 advantages of agile method? ›Advantages of Agile Methodology
A face-to-face conversation is the best form of communication. It continuously gave attention to technical excellence and good design. Daily and close cooperation between business people and developers. Regular adaptation to changing circumstances.
Agile works really well when the product vision or features are not well defined. Agile allows product owners to adjust requirements and priorities along the way to take advantage of opportunities and ultimately deliver a better product to all of the project stakeholders.
Is Agile always the best approach? ›This is the best methodology to follow in case of complex projects. A complex project may have various interconnected phases and each stage may be dependent on many others rather than a single one as in simple projects. So, Agile methods are preferred for large and complex projects.
What are 3 benefits to using the waterfall model? ›
Advantages of waterfall model
This model is simple and easy to understand and use. It is easy to manage due to the rigidity of the model – each phase has specific deliverables and a review process. In this model phases are processed and completed one at a time. Phases do not overlap.
So, Agile is not suitable for use on projects that will drag out over a long period. Teams that are not organized should not be using the Agile approach. The purpose of the Agile training course is to train members of the project team on how to organize projects.
Why do companies still use waterfall model? ›Senior management in many companies prefer waterfall-style project management because it's structured and predictable. It's easy to understand when and how a project will move to the next phase. Managers like this, because it makes the project's state easy to communicate.
Why is Agile less risky than waterfall? ›It is in the frequency of the risk process as well as the management layer where we see the key differences. In waterfall, we do more up front planning, including risks, whereas in Agile (being inherently iterative), risk management goes through a more cyclical and repeated risk planning exercise.
What are the benefits of Agile Scrum over waterfall? ›The advantage of Scrum over waterfall is that this agile structure provides some “wiggle room,” so changes can be made to features, functionality or even scope throughout the course of the project.
What are 3 main differences between Agile and waterfall methodologies? ›| Agile | Waterfall |
|---|---|
| This method is flexible and allows changes for the progress of the project soon after the first stage of designing gets completed. | Once the project development begins, there is no way to change the specifications if any are required. |
Increased flexibility
In other project management methodologies, changes usually are time-consuming and costly. However, Agile divides the project in short sprints that are both manageable and flexible enough to allow the team to implement changes on short notice.
Massive enterprise software development teams fall apart using Agile because of the lack of human coordination and cooperation. They've relied too much on cold, unfeeling frameworks, tools and processes. Implementing changes quickly and flexibly requires collaborative understanding and team harmony.
What should you avoid in Agile methodology? ›- Trying to boil the ocean. “It's a mistake to try to turn everything into an agile sprint or micromanage every sprint. ...
- Resistance to culture change. “The greatest challenge or roadblock for the data team is culture. ...
- Not enough team planning. ...
- Too little flexibility.
Benefits of Agile project management
Agile follows an iterative process where projects are divided into sprints of a shorter span. Unlike the traditional approach, less time is spent on upfront planning and prioritization as agile is more flexible in changes and specifications developments.
Where does Agile work best for a project? ›
So, agile is most appropriate on any urgent project with significant complexity and novelty--and that includes software development and weddings.
Why is Agile better for large projects? ›Agile methodology results in productivity gains by better communication and being responsive to customers' demands and adapting continuously through the project. Many companies have registered an increase of team productivity by 16% or even more.
What are the 3 C's in Agile? ›In this talk we'll introduce DevOps and discuss the three C's of DevOps: Character, Collaboration, and Community.
What are the three C's in Agile? ›The three Cs stand for Card, Conversation and Confirmation and in this article, I'm going to discuss each of the elements, explaining why, and how to ensure you're doing it right. I'll also scatter in a few tips from my experiences with agile teams.
What are the three C's of Agile practice? ›Three 'c's of agile practice: collaboration, coordination and communication.
What is the golden rule in Agile? ›The Prime Directive is like the Golden Rule for agile retrospectives. The Golden Rule poses a guideline for impeccable behavior: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This simple statement leads to a safe and harmonious life in a community, assuming everyone follows this rule and is of sound character.
What is the #1 rule of Agile? ›Agile Principle 1
The best ways to ensure you make customers happy while continuously delivering valuable software are to ship early, iterate frequently, and listen to your market continually.
This approach is bound to fail for two reasons: first, there are a number of agile working techniques and tools, each geared to solving a different set of problems; and second, expecting the entire company to become “all agile” does not work for everyone.
What is replacing Agile? ›While Agile was a natural replacement for the Waterfall model and other Scrum practices, DevOps is not a replacement. But, it is a direct successor to Agile. Similar to how time, practices get better; over time, Agile has also grown its challenges, and DevOps has turned out to be the more optimized practice.
Is Agile good for all projects? ›Not every organization is well-suited to working and succeeding in Agile. The ones that are often have a flat structure and use flexible management methods. The benefits of the Agile mindset can be best seen in websites and mobile apps - or other type of IT project that put a strong emphasis on delivering a great UX.
When should you use a waterfall model rather than Agile? ›
Agile and Waterfall are two popular methods for organizing projects. Waterfall is a more traditional approach to project management, involving a linear flow. Agile, on the other hand, embraces an iterative process. Waterfall is best for projects with concrete timelines and well-defined deliverables.
What is a real life example of a waterfall model? ›Now that you've grasped the several sectors in which the waterfall model used to be and is still deployed, here is a real-life example of the waterfall model at work. Here, the waterfall model is used to manufacture a tractor, with each of its phases outlining the work that needs to be done.
Who should use Agile? ›Any of these project teams can benefit from using Agile: Teams handling fast-changing deliverables, such as technology products. Teams working on projects that evolve or do not have clear scope and requirements at the beginning. Teams working closely with customers and other external parties throughout a project.
Should I use Agile or Scrum? ›If an Agile approach is right for your project, you will then need to determine whether or not Scrum is the best Agile methodology for your specific needs and goals. Scrum is typically best suited to projects which do not have clear requirements, are likely to experience change, and/or require frequent testing.
Does Agile lead to burnout? ›Agile teams may feel more susceptible to burnout because they have to produce high-quality deliverables on a consistent basis rather than work towards one final result.
What is the biggest problem with waterfall model? ›Waterfall Model - Disadvantages
The disadvantage of waterfall development is that it does not allow much reflection or revision. Once an application is in the testing stage, it is very difficult to go back and change something that was not well-documented or thought upon in the concept stage.
Though many developers are moving to new and emerging approaches, Waterfall is still widely used in traditional organizational environments and processes.
Why waterfall is not suitable for large projects? ›Disadvantages of Waterfall Model
The fixed requirements provide less room for creativity. The cost, risk, and uncertainty are high. Misinterpreted requirements, and miscommunication between product owners and developers might cause a project failure. It is not suitable for large projects with complex requirements.
Waterfall works best for projects completed in a linear fashion and does not allow going back to a prior phase. Agile focuses on adaptive, simultaneous workflows. Agile methods break projects into smaller, iterative periods. Kanban is primarily concerned with process improvements.
What are 3 main differences between Agile and Waterfall methodologies? ›| Agile | Waterfall |
|---|---|
| This method is flexible and allows changes for the progress of the project soon after the first stage of designing gets completed. | Once the project development begins, there is no way to change the specifications if any are required. |
Is Waterfall better than Scrum? ›
Waterfall: A Side by Side Comparison. If we must pinpoint the main difference between Scrum and Waterfall as methodologies for software development, it would be that Scrum is value-based with shorter iterations and Waterfall is schedule-based with clearly estimated costs and plan.
Why is Agile less risky than Waterfall? ›It is in the frequency of the risk process as well as the management layer where we see the key differences. In waterfall, we do more up front planning, including risks, whereas in Agile (being inherently iterative), risk management goes through a more cyclical and repeated risk planning exercise.
Which methodology is the best? ›- Waterfall Methodology. ...
- Agile Methodology. ...
- Scrum Methodology. ...
- Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) ...
- Critical Path Method (CPM) ...
- Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) ...
- Kanban Methodology. ...
- Extreme Programming (XP)
Research by CA Technologies across 160,000 projects and 50,000 agile teams found when team members were 95% dedicated to an agile team, their productivity doubled, compared to teams in which members were only 50% dedicated.
Is agile always the best approach? ›This is the best methodology to follow in case of complex projects. A complex project may have various interconnected phases and each stage may be dependent on many others rather than a single one as in simple projects. So, Agile methods are preferred for large and complex projects.
What in your opinion is the biggest similarity between Agile and Waterfall? ›Both methodologies require BA work: Both agile and waterfall models require BA work to be performed. Many people consider that agile methodology does not need a BA. However, the basic concepts of planning, estimation, definition of done work, requirement elicitation and documentation, communication, etc.
When to use Agile? ›The Agile methodology was created for projects where the significant constraints are not well understood. If your project involves developing a new product, the scope and timeline may be difficult to determine in advance.
Why choose Scrum over waterfall? ›The advantage of Scrum over waterfall is that this agile structure provides some “wiggle room,” so changes can be made to features, functionality or even scope throughout the course of the project.
Why use waterfall over Scrum? ›The waterfall model works well with smaller projects. It has no defined stages. The waterfall model has clear and defined stages to work on the project. Scrum welcomes changes at an early and late-stage during development.
Does Google use waterfall or Agile? ›Google adopted a combination of Agile Scrum and Waterfall methodologies, because it let them use procedures they were comfortable with, and switch between methods based on the needs of each project.
Why do most Agile projects fail? ›
A lack of management support is a primary reason why agile transformations fail. One part of the success involves finding the right collaboration partner to take care of the agile transformation process.
Why Agile is not good for small projects? ›The fact that Agile requires minimal planning at the beginning makes it easy to get sidetracked delivering new, unexpected functionality. Additionally, it means that projects have no finite end, as there is never a clear vision of what the “final product” looks like.