Are you looking for tools and apps that can help you get things done faster? If yes, then you’ve come to the right place.
Here we will enlist the best-handpicked tools and apps that are helpful for freelancers and working professionals.
Freelancing has become a common practice in today’s modern society. Self-employment, digital businesses, and work-from-home culture will only grow in the future as it does today.
Many people are now working from home or coffee shops, especially post-pandemic, and it has become even more prevalent.
More than their office supplies, their digital toolbox is required to fulfill their requirements to go through the day productively.
Let’s go through those handpicked tools and apps that we talked about earlier :
Trello
Trello is an app that allows its users to create boards that can hold different lists. These lists can contain tasks, documents, events, etc.
All these lists can be assigned due dates. The user can also add members to each list. It also provides a search feature as well as integration with other services such as Gmail, Google Drive, Slack, Asana, Basecamp, Wufoo, Zoho CRM, and many others.
Toggl is an online time tracker which helps you track time with a simple click, and allows you to switch easily between different projects and create reports so that your time can be turned into productive time.
It is also available as a Chrome Extension and can be easily downloaded and installed in your browser. It is available for both Android and iOS devices
Waveapps
Fully featured, free invoicing and accounting app, Wave offers a unique approach to bookkeeping.
It promises to always remain that way, with the company generating revenues from additional add-ons such as payroll and payment gateways and sponsored messages within the software itself.
You can send as many invocations as you need or keep an eye on your accounts without having to spend any money.
Skype
Skype might seem like an old news service, but it’s still one of the best — and most popular — free messaging, calling, and video conferencing services available.
You get all the basics for staying in contact with your customers and co‑workers, and there are no additional costs, even if you call conferences with many participants.
You can easily share your screen using Skype’s separate app and web version. Another benefit – you don’t have to have a Google Account to use it.
Toggl
Toggl is an online time tracker that helps you track time with a simple click, and allows you to switch easily between different projects and create reports so that they can be completed and turned into productive time.
It’s also available as a Chrome Extension and can be easily downloaded and installed in your browser once you open the web page.
Time tracking is crucial if you want to keep track of your time while working on projects.
Toggl helps freelancers do just that. You can use it to record your hours worked per week and view them in graphs.
You can also set up recurring billings so you know exactly how much money you owe at the end of every month.
You can download Toggl for free via the App Store and Play Store.
Zoho Invoice
Zoho has established itself as a major player in productivity software, with a range of tools for CRM (customer relationship management), project management, and collaborative working (collaborative real-time editing).
It’s an excellent invoicing tool that integrates seamlessly with other Zoho products, but it also works very well as its own stand-alone option.
It’s free for one user with up to five clients, but it’s best if you have a small group of regular clients. Plus, the paid-for plans aren’t too expensive for when your customer base has grown.
Cushion
Cushion is an online tool for freelancers, so you’ll expect it to cater to freelancer needs. With Trello, you’ll be able to schedule and organize your work, control your project budgets, as well as manage all of your tasks, emails, and expenses in one place.
Specifically, you can do these things
- You can plan your work in a Calendar
- view all your tasks in a Gantt chart including deadlines
- send and track invoices
- figure out the final cost for clients
- Keep track of your financial goals
- create graphs showing your client’s work, projects, and tasks
It also helps you maintain a balance between work and life. There’s a separate part where you can plan, track, and schedule your vacation days.
Evernote
Evernote is another useful app for freelancers. With Evernote, you can take notes, save articles, clip images, and more. You can even attach files to your notes.
You can sync all your notes across multiple platforms including PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android phones, and tablets.
If you’re creative and have good ideas, will you let memory keep track of them for you? The scary truth is that our brains aren’t as reliable as we’d like them to be.
But don’t worry, because, in today’s world, we’re constantly bombarded with tons of information and are always being stimulated by new information, so we need to remember everything.
Technology helps to ease its woes, but with tools like Evernote. Evernote allows users to capture any good ideas or images or audio clips from their computers or phones and then lets them sync them all so they’re ready to access whenever needed.
Don’t let a good idea slip through your fingers because you’re too busy: let Eversnote keep track of your spontaneous ideas and store them for you so you can come back to them later.
Evernote is available for both Windows and Mac computers.
Slack
Slack is a communication tool that works as a group chatroom or private message board. It supports real-time conversations and notifications.
Slack is usually regarded by most people as an app for companies, but freelancers can use it too.
If you have permanent employees or if you’re a part of a remote company, ask them to add your email address to their preferred communication channels so you can stay up to date on the internal team’s communications.
Some of Slack‘s best features include direct messaging, group chat (with the ability to create subgroups), searchable archives, desktop notification, mentioning someone by @, and chat channels specifically assigned to certain topics.
You’ll probably use multiple channels for customer communication, and maybe even less-formal channels like WhatsApp and Messenger to communicate with your closest customers.
For example, many freelancers send emails to new and infrequent customers using Gmail with a more formal communication style than they use for their regular customers. Then there are those long-time clients, who use Slack for communication.
They add them to their marketing and sale channels so freelancers can stay up to date on company news that concerns their work.
Whereas for contacting their agency or colleagues, freelancers use Skype. For contacting clients who are more familiar with them, they use Messenger.
Dropbox
Most of us freelancers have probably heard of Dropbox before, but let me tell you that the hype surrounding the product is totally accurate.
Dropbox allows you to sync all of your files across all of your devices with just a single drag-and-drop operation.
You won’t have to worry about losing access to important documents because they’re “in the cloud” and available from any device you own.
Dropbox is one of the most popular file hosting services used by freelancers. You can store any type of document, image, video, audio, and more in your account. You can also share folders with friends and colleagues.
Dropbox is available for both Windows PCs and Macs.
Gmail
Google owns Gmail, which is the largest free email service on the Internet.
And with so many extensions and flexible uses available, you can use it for everything from productivity to gaming. Reliable, fast, and easy to use online payments, and track your time.
You can also use it to track expenses, manage clients and billing, and almost anything else in between. Prices start at $1.5 per month.
Hootsuite
Hootsuite is a social media management platform. It lets you schedule posts, monitor mentions, engage followers, and reply to comments.
You can also send direct messages to clients and customers. Hootsuite is available for both desktop and mobile devices.
MindMeister
Mind mapping has been around for ages, but it is no different from using pen and paper.
You can now use MindMeister to create mind maps on your electronic devices, and they serve as much better storage as a sheet of loose-leaf.
MindMeister is one of the best mind mapping tools available, and its free plan will be enough to get started. However, if you create a lot of mind maps, the premium plans are quite reasonable.
Monday
Managers who oversee teams of freelancers can start using Monday’s freelance templates to easily get their projects off the ground.
As a freelancer, you can set up boards for yourself that only you see, and some that you can share publicly.
Monday’s progress bar lets you see where you are in terms of reaching your goals. It makes it a great solution if you’re a freelancer working on larger projects rather those who specialize in smaller, one-off jobs
Freshbooks
FreshBooks is a simple invoicing software that makes it easy for small businesses to invoice their clients. It offers templates, customizable reports, and payment reminders.
FreshBooks is available for both Windows PC and Mac.
To get started, you need to create a profile on the ProFINDER tool, which allows members to find freelance professionals.
After you complete the first 10 applications, you’ll be able to download them for free. However, if you want to continue using the app, you’ll need to subscribe to a Business Premium membership.
To join ProFINDER, go to your LinkedIn profile and click on “Business Tools” at the top of the page. Then, select “ProFinder.”
Mailchimp
Email is still one the most powerful marketing tools available today, and sending regular mail-out campaigns is a great way to promote your business, increase your brand awareness, drive traffic to your site, and ultimately, secure more sales for your company.
MailChimp is one of the best email marketing services for crafting beautiful newsletters. It also offers useful analytics.
Its Forever Free plan also means that you won’t pay until after you have more than 2K subscribers. By this time, you’ll probably be delighted to start charging for your service.
Upwork
Upwork is one the best known, and honestly best apps for entrepreneurs looking to find freelance work.
Whether you specialize in graphics design, project management, or calligraphy, you’ll find plenty of opportunities on this global platform.
It’s also flexible. You can work on it when you want and choose whether to charge per project or by the hour, and it’s easy to get started because you don’t need any special equipment.
Google Docs
Google Docs is a cloud-based word processing application. It’s great for creating text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and drawings.
Google Docs has been voted as one of the most effective text editors. You type your text into a document, save it, and then sync it across multiple devices in real-time.
Then, you share the document with your collaborators. You can save it as a.docx,.odt,.rtf,.epub,.pdf, or another popular format.
It’s designed to be unobtrusive so that you can focus on your writing without distraction. You get the basics of writing, formatting, and even adding links, images, and even tables. And, everything gets saved automatically.
One of the best features of this tool is its sharing options. Once you’re finished editing, you can share the text directly from the app.
- Share the document’s link
- send it in your email pitches
- have editors review the document themselves, or make their own changes to the document
Google Docs is available for both Windows & Mac.
Teux Deux
The Teux Deux “to-do list” app started gaining traction when it was mentioned by the likes of Seth Gordin for making daily to-dos. The premise behind Teaux Deux was to make an extremely minimalist but visually compelling (‘designy’) app that is highly useful and intuitive.
If creating and maintaining a list of tasks is a key part of organizing your business as a freelancer, then you should definitely check out the free online tool Teux Deux. It allows you to create and manage task lists from anywhere. You can also use the mobile app on your phone.
Grammarly
It is a free online grammar checker that checks your English writing for mistakes. It’s also one of the best tools to improve your writing skills and boost your confidence in your writing abilities.
You can use Grammarly on any device, including smartphones, tablets, and laptops.
This advanced tool helps you to check your writing against over 200 rules. It will highlight errors and suggest ways to improve your writing. You can also check the plagiarism of the content as well.
Grammarly is available for both Windows 10 and Mac OS X.
StreamerApp
The Streamer app is an excellent tool that allows you to easily create custom dashboards for any aspect of your business.
These include integrations for popular web analytics, customer relationship management (CRM) support, infrastructure, project management, and sales tools… all together in one place.
So far, the number of services that integrate with Stremio is impressive and continues to grow. It includes services such as Basecamp, Twitter, Gmail, Google Analytics, and others.
Skype For Business
Skype For Business is Microsoft’s unified communications solution. It integrates voice calls, instant messaging, presence information, and conferencing into one package. Skype for Business Server 2019 is the latest version of this product.
Skype for business is available for both Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android.
Focus Booster
For freelancers, time management is of utmost importance, which means they must be able to manage their own time effectively.
While the Pomodoro Technique provides great results for some people (and is easy to implement), it’s hard for most people to use it regularly without the right tools, so they don’t want to carry around a timer all day.
That’s when Focus Booster comes in, a tool designed specifically for freelancers who use the Pomodoro Technique to get things done. It’s free of cost!
If you’re not familiar with this method, it relies on having 25 minutes of work followed by five minutes of rest. It helps you break down tasks into smaller pieces so you can complete them one at a time.
RescueTime
RescueTime is designed to help people track how they spend their time and what they do during that time. It helps them get control over their lives and work better.
This app is highly recommended to anyone who wants to get a handle on where their time goes and how they could be spending it more productively.
You may be familiar with RescueTime because of its association with Matt Mullenweg of Automattic and WordPress. You might not know how useful RescueTime actually is.
It helps you keep track of how you use your computer and lets you analyze how you used it later. If you find that you’ve been spending too much time on Reddit, then you can know that it’s time to start managing your free time more wisely.
Wunderlist
Wunderlist is a task manager that allows you to create tasks, add due dates, assign subtasks, and manage priorities.
Wunderlist is a simple task manager that has a clean interface and works well across platforms.
This makes it ideal for freelancers who want to stay organized and have access to their tasks no matter where they are.
The app allows you to create lists of tasks, set due dates, assign them to other people and even attach files to your tasks. You can also share the list with others via email or by posting it on Facebook.
Wunderlist is available for both Windows / Mac / iOS / Android.
Zoho Projects
Projects is a web-based project management application that allows you to manage your projects from one place.
It has many features and tools which make it easy for the users to use. The interface of this software is very simple, so anyone can use it.
Zoho Projects is a project management tool that includes a calendar, timesheet, task list, chat room, and other tools. Zoho Projects is available for both Windows (desktop) and Mac.
Asana
Asana is a project management tool designed specifically for teams. It has many different views so you can see how projects are progressing from different angles.
Use this tool to create projects and add individual tasks. One of the best things about Asana is that it sends you an email every day with a list of all upcoming tasks.
You can work directly off that email, doing first due tasks first, so you don’t fall behind on any deadlines. Asana is available for both Windows(desktop) and Mac.
Basecamp
Basecamp is a web-based project management system that helps you plan, track, and coordinate your team’s activities.
Basecamp is available for both Windows desktops and Mac.
Teamwork
Teamwork is a project management tool made for distributed teams. It provides a central place where everyone on the team can access the same files, calendars, discussions, and tasks.
Teamwork is available for both Windows and Mac.
Box
Box is a secure online content-sharing platform. You can use it to store all of your files in one location, collaborate with colleagues across platforms and devices, and communicate securely with anyone via email.
Box is available for both Windows desktops and Mac laptops.
DeskTime
DeskTime is a powerful time tracking software that is perfect for business owners, designers, developers, and many other types of freelancers and small business owners.
It allows you to manage employees, including creating timesheets (no more Excel!), reducing your payroll processing costs, as well as seeing who is working, for what length of time, and at what hours
A must-have for both freelancers and business owners who employ others.
The Hemingway editor
The Hemingway Editor is here to help you write better, more effective sentences.
You paste your text into the editor and all problematic sections are highlighted instantly – including:
- uses of the passive voice
- phrases that have simpler alternatives
- phrases that can be replaced by shorter ones
- sentences that are too lengthy and difficult to read
Clockify
Clockify is an app that helps freelance writers manage billable time and keep track of how productive they are with writing.
You’ll get all the tools you need to streamline time use and your professional documentation like manual time entries, tracking time as you’re working on activities, adding time into a timesheet, different types of hourly rates, and much more.
You will be able to choose whether your time is billable or not, and you will receive reports that show how you’ve spent your time on a client, project, or task during a specific time period.
Apart from all that you will also get the ability to save project reports and share them with clients.
Clockify lets you automatically calculate the amount you’re due (based on your billing rate and billable time) so you can add it to your client invoices.
As an added bonus, you’ll get a productivity dashboard with detailed stats on how you’re tracking time.
You’ll be able to export stunning reports in PDF, integrate with 50+ popular apps, track your time across various devices and monitor idle time.
Besides the ability to compare billables vs non-billables, there are also other benefits to using time tracking software.
It allows you to track employee performance, including the ability to automatically generate timesheets and payroll processes.
This lowers your payroll processing costs and allows you to see who’s performing their job, for how long and when they’re working. It’s a must-have for freelancers and business owners who employ other people.
99designs
If you’re a graphic designer, 99designs is a treasure trove of opportunities.
Freelance designers usually have two options when looking for work: They can either get hired directly for design projects or they can start their own freelance business.
You can also compete in design contests, where clients present a brief, and allow budding designers to submit their designs for assessment by other creatives.
Later, you can use it to build your portfolio if you’re just starting out and want to start building your portfolio.
QuickBooks
QuickBooks is one the most popular accounting tools available. It allows business owners who use QuickBooks to keep most of their tools relating to finance, accounting, and time management in one place.
If you’ve been an entrepreneur long enough, you know that tax season is one of the best times of the year.
You’ll want to use a tool like QuickBooks to navigate and prepare for that time of the year. Pricing starts at $10/month.
Wave
With Wave, millions of people manage their personal finances. They offer an invoice management system that lets you send invoices, receive online payments, manage accounts,s and run payroll all in a single easy-to-use platform.
Wave is also known as one of the best receipt scanners and a convenient mobile app, so you can manage your financials on the go.
Bidsketch
Every freelancer needs help crafting a winning proposal. Bidsketch helps freelancers streamline their proposals to clients.
This app promises to cut down the time you spend creating and sending out proposals in half.
- Reusable content features (with the ability to insert new client information automatically).
- data showing which clients have opened your proposals and when they did so
You can also improve your proposal acceptance rate by using an electronic signature feature.
Brand24
Brand24 helps you monitor the position of your freelance business across the web. You’ll learn what others think about your brand and get prompts to respond in real-time.
You’ll be notified whenever anyone mentions your brand either positively or negatively. If you get negative mentions online, you can quickly tune in to the said discussion and turn things around.
You can analyze within this app:
- the number of times your brand is mentioned, liked, shared, and commented on by others on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis
- Your social media reach across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and various forums.
You can later generate reports using the data, export it, and create infographics from it.
You’ll be able to see which of your mentions were most popular and which authors had the biggest reach.
Mint
Mint is a free personal finance app that helps you manage your money, track your bills, and receive alerts and financial advice from your bank.
With this app, it’s easy to keep track of your finances by syncing them with your bank accounts, credit card, and PayPal account. And, you’ll also:
- be reminded when you run out of money for projects
- Get a simple system for tracking transactions.
- receive weekly summaries from your bank account
If your mobile phone gets lost, stolen, or damaged, you won’t have to worry about your financial data being compromised. You can easily log out of Mint and your phone from your Mint account at any time.
Figma
Figma is an app that makes designing software faster and easier. It was created by the same team behind Sketch.
It’s very similar to Sketch but offers more features such as vector graphics, collaboration, and exporting files. The interface is clean and intuitive.
Figma is an integrated design and prototyping tool that includes both desktop and mobile apps.
You can create and scale your designs in grids, combine and set multiple elements, as well as build frames, and interact with your prototypes in Sketch.
You’ll be able to:
- create and share reusable elements and components
- override images when you need to
- easily add and style text
- enjoy effective collaboration with the members of your team (define and use custom colors, grids, fonts, effects, etc.) for all your projects).
This tool also helps developers and designers collaborate effectively. They can both inspect, copy and export the designs created by each other as CSS code.
Buffer
Buffer is perfect if your clients need to manage their social media accounts. You’ll spend less of your time managing them, but you’re more likely to be effective.
You’ll be able to:
- schedule and automatically share content to various social media accounts, including Facebook updates, tweets, and retweets.
- Posting schedule: optimize your posting schedule.
- Analyze post engagement, as well handle any additional activity analytics
- Create your own visual content for your blog posts, or add images or videos to them.
This app’s biggest strength lies in its ability to schedule posts months in advance. You can plan content for future days, get tips on the best times to post, and enjoy custom scheduling options.
NowDoThis
If you don’t fancy using complicated project management software, then nowdothis is an ingeniously simple way of managing your to-do lists. It works just like writing down the things you need to get done on a piece of paper.
But instead of having to write them out, you simply type them in. And when you’re done, it displays each task one by one until you click ‘done’. Then, you can move to the next.
A simple to-do list without any distractions, unnecessary features, or anything else but your goals.
Helium
Helium is a simple task management system to help you clear out your inbox, assign and delegate tasks easily, and act on them to get things accomplished.
It’s easily connected to your corporate email, and Evernote account, and doesn’t require a connection to the internet to work: you can install it on your computer or Mac and it’s ready to go.
You can use Helium to set up tasks whether or not other people use Helium or not. It doesn’t depend on others to have accounts with the platform in order for it to be useful.
Finally, Helium features a simple, intuitive interface and a drag-and-drop dashboard for easy administration.
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I’m a former teacher with a background in child development and a passion for creating engaging and educational activities for children. I strongly understand child development and know how to create activities to help children learn and grow. Spare time, I enjoy spending time with my family, reading, and volunteering in my community.