How productive are you at work? With so many distractions all around, you’re probably lured away from your workload all day long.
There is a vast treasure trove of productivity apps to help you get your work done, stay focused on your tasks and stay organized throughout your busy week. From effectively communicating with your colleagues to ensuring you’re getting what needs to be done on a Friday afternoon, there are plenty of tools that can complement your routine.
Put simply: there’s an app for that!
Because there are hundreds of apps around, it can be a daunting crusade trying to find the best one. We have compiled a list of the best productivity apps to help you work efficiently and to the best of your abilities.
At a glance
|
|
BEST FOR |
PRICING |
RATING |
|
Todoist |
Task management |
Free and paid plans available, starting from $4/month |
4.6 |
|
Wrike |
Features and integrations |
Free and paid plans available, starting from $9.80/month |
4.8 |
|
Habitica |
Gamification |
Free and paid plans available, starting from $4.99/month |
4.3 |
|
Evernote |
Getting organized |
Free and paid plans available, starting from $14.99/month |
4.2 |
|
Forest |
Giving back |
$3.99/month |
4.7 |
The best productivity apps
Productivity apps come in many shapes and forms. Below, we’ve listed 20 of the best productivity apps on the internet to help you pick the one that best suits your needs.
1. Todoist
Rating: 4.6 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
The to-do list is the most basic thing you can do at work, but it’s also the most powerful tool at your disposal. A piece of paper with a list of tasks you need to complete. That is all, and now, it’s gone mobile.
Todoist works across multiple devices on a free version. It helps declutter both your personal and professional life by keeping track of duties, tasks, objectives, meetings, dates, and anything else critical for your job. While it’s free to use, there is also a premium version that consists of reminders, templates and automatic backups.
2. AppBlock
Rating: 4.3 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
The average person spends 90% of their mobile time in apps on their phone. Eventually, these apps become too much of a distraction, as your attention and productivity deflates.
AppBlock is a helpful application because it temporarily blocks these apps on your device so you can focus on your work or school without any temptations.
According to a questionnaire by AppBlock, the app’s “Strict Mode” (which keeps certain apps strictly off limits) helps users reduce their screentime by up to 63% within the first month alone. For many, that can translate into hours saved each day!
3. RescueTime
Rating: 3.6 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Since its creation nearly 20 years ago, RescueTime has been used by more than 2.5 million people (with procrastinating tendencies) around the globe.
In a nutshell, RescueTime highlights how and when you’re spending your finite time on your smartphone, websites and apps. Rather than wag its finger at your procrastination, though, RescueTime establishes long-term goals for you and also tracks your progress.
Many users say that it automatically enhances your productivity because you know just how much time you’re spending on Instagram.
4. Trello
Rating: 4 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Indeed, project management systems are all the rage in today’s workplace, whether you’re employed at an office or you work from home.
Trello is considered one of the best platforms for collaborating with your teammates or sharing pertinent information with your clients to ensure you can get all your tasks completed without having to deviate to other platforms. Whatever the case, its card system is easy to use, so it helps elevate your productive capacity.
With over 200 integrations, a user-friendly interface, and email notifications, Trello helps you get organized and keep track of your to-dos.
5. Priorities
Rating: 3.8 / 5
Available on iOS ($4.99)
Do you ever have tasks within tasks to get done? While your work can seem like a scene out of Inception, it doesn’t need to be as complicated.
Priorities is a to-do list app that not only adds tasks and lists but allows you to turn one task into a layered project or a secondary task. Ultimately, Priorities establishes a tiered system of tasks to ensure you can complete every step of a project.
Besides multi-tiered task management, the app has other handy features like calendar integration, reminders, and page sharing. The latter can be used to share a to-do list with a colleague, for example.
6. Forest
Rating: 4.7 / 5
Available on Android (free) and iOS ($3.99)
Everyone takes a sneak peek at their smartphone while working. Unfortunately, these multiple glances end up accumulating and eventually eat up your day.
Forest is an app that cuts your phone dependency by incentivizing you to concentrate on being productive during your designated time. How? By giving you credits to plant real trees around the world. Yes, that’s right — for your hard work, you’re rewarded with helping the planet!
So far, thanks to its users, Forest has planted more than 1.7 million trees through its partnership with the Trees for the Future organization.
7. Freedom
Rating: 4 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Don’t you wish you could unplug, even for just a few minutes, while you get something done? Well, now you can block out the beeps and buzzes with Freedom.
The app shuts down other apps and websites but will whitelist certain texts and calls so important messages can still get through to you.
If you upgrade to Premium (which costs around $40 a year), you can simultaneously block distractions across all your devices: Freedom works with Android, iOS, Mac and Windows!
8. FocusList
Rating: 3.6 / 5
Available on iOS ($4.99)
FocusList is a hybrid of a to-do list and a time tracker, but it will help you evolve into a time management extraordinaire by planning all your tasks for the upcoming day and then allotting time to each one. Typically, FocusList utilizes the Pomodoro Technique: 25 minutes to complete a task and then a 5-minute break for every 30-minute block.
It presents you with a progress report at the end of the day to determine how accurate you were with your projections and completions, and allows you to tailor the times to your needs so that you can institute a whole host of timers to your workday.
9. Google Calendar
Rating: 4.6 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
In today’s hectic times, it can be easy to miss a deadline or forget about doing an assignment. Google Calendar is the digital version of a daily planner, giving you the power to keep better track of what needs to be done every day.
In the end, if you forget about something (like sending over an invoice or getting in touch with a client), that’s okay — because you’ll be provided with reminders. The best way to be productive is to be aware of your time.
Being a Google product, it seamlessly integrates with other platforms like Google Meet, so you’re always in the loop about what’s coming up next on your schedule.
10. Things 3
Rating: 4 / 5
Available on iOS ($9.99)
Yep, another to-do list app. This time, Things 3 builds on the tools established by its competitors. For example, its “Upcoming View” feature is an infinite search into the future instead of just the next seven days.
Another key feature is its project completion circles that act as progress trackers for the tasks that need to get done. It also offers the ability to set tasks to “Evening” so you know what needs to be done after work.
And, thanks to its simple, no-frills design, you don’t run the risk of having the app become a means of procrastination for you.
11. Hours Time Tracking
Rating: 4 / 5
Available on iOS (free)
Hours Time Tracking is the latest mobile time-tracking app to monitor how well you’re using one of the finite resources in the world: your time. This app sets reminders, institutes timers and adjusts the time based on your calendar.
Also, to ensure you’re productive with your time, it creates a visual representation of how you spent your minutes and hours throughout the day, which is critical in adjusting how you use your available moments.
There are three versions available (Personal, Professional, and Team), each offering a different selection of features so you can pick based on your needs.
12. OmniFocus
Rating: 3.8 / 5
Available on iOS (free)
OmniFocus is marketed as giving your brain a huge upgrade because you can now manage your thoughts, ideas and tasks into a single ecosystem.
What makes OmniFocus an attractive option for busy professionals is that you can capture all of your tasks from anywhere and integrate them into a giant workflow, making your productive capacity that much easier to navigate.
Some notable features that were added recently include the ability to tag your tasks (marking them for different priority levels, for example) and batch-editing for making changes to multiple tasks at once.
13. Nirvana
Rating: 4.2 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Nirvana is a cloud-based task manager app that helps you get through the day while still paying attention to the next one. The app helps you create and navigate your content by turning your input into actionable insights, from filters and tags to recurring to-dos and cross-platform engagement.
The app has a free version that allows unlimited to-dos and easy data export. Meanwhile, the Pro version offers extra features like unlimited projects and reference lists, at $4.99 a month.
14. Be Focused Pro
Rating: 3.8 / 5
Available on iOS ($9.99)
Be Focused Pro combines time tracking and distraction blocking by implementing certain tasks you want to get done, establishing a timer for each item and scheduling coffee breaks for you. You can customize it, too, so you can modify your intermissions, sprints and length of every task.
Using tags and due dates, you can easily filter through your to-do list, focusing only on what matters every time. You can also generate reports to see where you’re staying on track and which tasks end up taking longer than you anticipated.
15. Wrike
Rating: 4.8 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Whether you’re looking to increase efficiency between you and other colleagues or you’re just looking for a project or task management tool for yourself, Wrike has got the answer.
With Android and iOS apps, as well as desktop versions for Windows and Mac, Wrike makes staying on top of your schedule a piece of cake, no matter what device you’re accessing your account from.
Notably, Wrike offers countless features and integrations, including time tracking, report generation, and connectivity with Google Workspace apps. Speaking of connectivity, Wrike actually supports more than 400 integrations!
16. Productive
Rating: 4.3 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
We’re breaking the rules just a bit by adding Productive to the list. But hear us out! This app is a great way to advance your career by improving your productivity and minimizing your procrastination. After all, habits and productivity really go hand in hand!
The app lists habits that you want or desire to accomplish each day, from the mundane to the intricate. Also, when you complete each habit on your to-do list, you’re rewarded for boosting your motivation. In other words, you’re incentivized to be productive!
Plus, the design of the interface simply pulls you in, making the app a delight to use.
17. Session
Rating: 4.2 / 5
Available on iOS (free)
Session combines the Pomodoro method with app and website blocking, ensuring that, during those 25-minute sessions, you really are able to work uninterrupted. If you need to block out more time, you can choose 45-minute focus sessions as well.
When you start your session, your iPhone or iPad automatically enters “Do not disturb” mode. When the timer is up, this mode is also disabled on its own, so you don’t have to worry about forgetting it and potentially missing important notifications.
18. Habitica
Rating: 4.3 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Working on forming better habits and crushing your goals is great. But you know what’s even more amazing? Making a game out of it!
Gamification can help our minds view mundane to-dos as fun little challenges. That’s the principle that Habitica was built on. All you have to do to get started is create a character and join the 4 million other Habiticans who set, track and complete goals through this entertaining app.
Every time you meet your targets you earn rewards, which your avatar can then use to buy items like armor and unlock magic skills.
19. Google Tasks
Rating: 4.6 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
Simple, easy to use and practical; that’s what describes Google Tasks.
Being another creation of Google’s, this app integrates with both your Gmail and Google Calendar, allowing you to coordinate and organize your to-dos with greater convenience.
Plus, you enjoy Google’s signature user-friendliness and intuitive interfaces: drag and drop your tasks to reprioritize them, divide your tasks into subtasks, create tasks directly from emails and more handy functionalities that save you time.
20. Evernote
Rating: 4.2 / 5
Available on Android and iOS (free)
This app combines smart note taking with effective task management, which makes it ideal for students and working professionals alike. What’s also great about it is that it’s available on Windows, Mac, Android and iOS, meaning you can access your to-dos and manage your schedule on any device.
Evernote has a customizable dashboard that lets you view the information that’s most relevant to you. That’s very convenient, given the breadth of the materials you can collect on the app: from documents and PDFs to web clippings and even sketches. That’s right — and thanks to its powerful search, you can locate text in your handwritten notes.
Watch all the best productivity apps in a short video:
Final thoughts
If you find yourself slacking off at work, then familiarize yourself with these useful applications and give your productivity levels a boost! Regardless if you work independently or as part of a team, in your home or at an office, you’ll find that these apps can enhance your productivity and will help you get more things done.
Can you suggest any other productivity apps that fellow readers should try? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
Methodology
To come up with overall ratings for the productivity apps, we gave them individual scores (out of 5) for the following five factors and then averaged them: number of features, price range, interface design, user friendliness, and number of integrations.
This article is a partial update of an earlier version originally published in 2020 and contains contributions by Electra Michaelidou.