Leveraging technology to enhance your productivity isn’t a trend — it’s a necessity.
Between online workspaces, team messenger apps, and task management platforms, your performance depends on your ability to use work productivity tools effectively.
But with so many options, the challenge isn’t finding a tool — it’s deciding which tool aligns with your individual and workplace needs. Each has unique strengths suited for various tasks and professions.
If you aren’t sure which is right for you, consider the unique value the following productivity tools provide to find the right fit.
10 of the best productivity tools to enhance your workflow
The options for digital productivity tools are virtually limitless. Start by brainstorming any tools and technology shortfalls your team is experiencing to determine where to focus your search.
To help you narrow down your choices or assist this brainstorming session, here are 10 of the best productivity tools out there.
1. Trello
Founded in 2011, Trello quickly stood out for its strong visual project management system, using a card-and-board interface called the Kanban method. By its 10th anniversary, the platform had over 50 million registered users.
Trello is an attractive productivity tool that keeps visual learners engaged, organizing projects into boards, checklists, and cards. And it’s great for teams, since you can add due dates and timelines and assign owners to cards and lists.
Whether you’re a team or individual, straightforward “to-do,” “doing,” and “done” boards help you quickly understand task progress. You can also integrate it with other workplace platforms like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Slack. Plus, there’s a free version.
One shortfall is that Trello’s simple interface is better suited for simple projects. Agile teams or software developers working on complex projects that require road maps or revision features to align teams efficiently may need a more comprehensive tool.
2. Slack
Slack is a team productivity tool that empowers better coworker communication. The app seeks to break the limitations of email, where messages accumulate and become lost, resulting in delayed collaboration and information silos. This team communication platform lets you message in real-time, archive, and search communications, making it a valuable tool for remote work.
And it’s a powerful business productivity tool, since it comes with Google Drive, Zoom, and Monday.com integrations, among others.
Worth noting is that while Slack offers robust collaboration tools, constant messages and notifications may pressure you to be constantly available, which interrupts focus and compromises your workflow. Consider programming daily focus times and limiting push notifications to establish expectations for team members and protect your flow state.
3. Evernote
While your cell phone’s notes app is a useful space to jot down ideas, Evernote is a more dynamic platform that allows you to clip web pages, build to-do lists, and scan handwritten notes.
Evernote has an extensive library of notebooks and tags, enabling you to categorize your ideas efficiently. And you can also sync it to team member notebooks and other productivity tools like Google Drive and Microsoft Outlook.
In addition to taking notes, you can save receipts, boarding passes, and other communications you need to keep handy. And Evernote takes note-taking to the next level with several multimedia functions, including saving and sharing images, web clips, and voice memos. It also has advanced search functions, even recognizing text in your saved images.
This tool is ideal for students, researchers, journalists or writers, and creative workers who frequently brainstorm or journal to capture their thoughts.
One downfall is that the free plan has limited functionality, like offline access and storage. And it’s best suited for teams who actively depend on notes, research, and brainstorming in their day-to-day workflow. For simple note-taking, the platform may be unnecessarily over-complicated.
4. Asana
In Sanskrit, "asana" refers to the place and pose in which a yogi sits, which requires a mix of form and flow to stay centered despite distractions. Using this as their inspiration, the founders of Asana have built the world’s #1 product and project management software.
Asana helps you structure several projects, tasks, and subtasks for detailed planning and time tracking. The platform is ideal for visual learners, with a visually intuitive interface that breaks down projects into several formats, like lists, boards, and timelines. And Asana also offers different project and time management templates built for specific job roles, like sales teams, administrative workers, and information technologists, to name a few.
Their flexible and feature-filled platform is ideal for big teams that work on complex projects, like marketing professionals, software developers, and sales teams. Small teams or individual users might find the complex project management features overwhelming or excessive, opting for a simpler tool.
5. ClickUp
ClickUp officially launched out of its beta version in 2019, making it relatively new compared to the other platforms on this list. But what it lacks in seniority, it makes up for in a long list of features. ClickUp is a one-stop project management platform that allows you to combine tasks, documents, and chat within a single dashboard. This comprehensiveness makes it an excellent tool for promoting strong team collaboration.
This is also an excellent developer productivity tool, offering customized views for complex projects and easy document sharing between team members. Depending on your team's needs and preferences, you can break projects into lists, boards, or Gantt charts, which provides flexibility for different teams within the same organization.
ClickUp is highly customizable, but one of its biggest benefits is the ability to categorize a project's status. For example, a content marketing team can break up an assignment into several stages (from “assigned” to “queued for publishing”), which allows you to understand a task's lifecycle quickly. And built-in time trackers help you better understand how long each task phase takes to complete, helping you plan and prioritize projects more efficiently.
That said, ClickUp’s endless customizations might be too good to be true, as it can present a steep learning curve for some users. Without proper onboarding, you may lose track of assignments or miss deadlines.
6. WebWork
Developing better time management habits is never a bad idea, as it improves productivity in every area of your life. WebWork is a straightforward time-tracking software for projects and individual tasks. Meticulously tracking hours helps you develop insights to save time, build a better work-life balance, and improve efficiency, whether via analyzing repetitive tasks or pinpointing times you’re more productive.
If you’re an entrepreneur or independent contractor who works hourly, you can generate reports to simplify invoicing. Plus, the free plan allows unlimited tracking and users, and reporting features provide insights into time distribution, helping you budget your time more realistically. But just note: signing up for a paid membership is necessary to access more advanced features like invoicing.
7. Google Drive
You’re automatically signed up for Google Drive and its cloud-based storage productivity tools if you have a Gmail account. More than simply a space to save your documents, Google Drive is a powerful office productivity software that integrates with all Google apps, like Docs, Sheets, and Slides.
All Google users receive 15 gigabytes of free storage across Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos, making it a valuable office productivity tool. And this tool is available across Windows, macOS, iOS, Chrome OS, and Android.
If you require more than 15 gigabytes (like many photographers, graphic designers, and other creatives with large storage needs), you must purchase a subscription. And permissions and sharing settings can create confusions that lead to inadvertently sharing information.
8. LastPass
You’ve probably lamented over having too many passwords at least once in your career. And you’re not alone — 39% of American workers report feeling password fatigue. Resetting passwords or struggling to remember several across different platforms can waste time and sour your productivity. Using the same password for everything may be an easy solution, but it puts your sensitive information at risk of security breaches.
LastPass securely stores encrypted passwords, allowing you to access all of them with a master password. Less time spent scratching your head trying to remember means more time focusing on your work. And extra features like monitoring your accounts’ digital health allow you to proactively protect important data like company credit cards.
One shortfall is that organizing all your passwords into folders and categories may not be intuitive. And having all your passwords in one place is a double-edged sword. Possible vulnerabilities in the platform can create serious security problems for you or your business.
9. Pomofocus
The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method that uses a timer to break down tasks into 25-minute focused blocks followed by a short break. This method leverages your natural attention span, helping you to take breaks that improve your focus and save you from burning out.
While you can use a timer on your mobile device, Pomofocus tracks tasks using the Pomodoro Technique for you and offers visual reports you can review to understand when you’re most productive. Plus, as it tracks, it provides estimated finish times on repetitive tasks so you can prioritize your time more effectively.
The Pomodoro Technique may not apply to all situations, like when working on projects that require extended concentration or in work environments with frequent interruptions.
10. Zapier
Zapier is an automation tool that connects all your productivity apps. Imagine you need to schedule a video call. Rather than writing an email in Gmail, creating an event on your calendar, scheduling the video conference in Zoom, and adding a reminder to your notes app, you can create a “zap” that does this all automatically.
This tool is excellent for busy professionals, small business owners, independent contractors, and anyone looking to save time on repetitive online administrative tasks.
Worth noting is that basic technical know-how is necessary to get the most out of the platform, meaning the learning curve may be daunting for some users. And the tool doesn’t integrate with many common productivity apps, making checking for compatibility before committing to the tool important.
Elevate your efficiency
Choosing the right work productivity tools doesn’t just streamline your tasks. It helps you continue to develop valuable soft skills like time management, collaboration, and flexibility. With the right blend of technology, you’ll be well-equipped to excel during even the most demanding workday.
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