16 Best Tools to Help You Work Remotely
With a remote work lifestyle, you no longer have to choose between your career and travel. Now you can do both simultaneously and live your best life from wherever, whenever. To make your transition to remote work as seamless as possible, we’ve compiled a list of the best tools recommended by digital nomads to help you work remotely.
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16 best remote work tools in 2024
1. Best tool for securing your activity online: ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is the world’s leading VPN for digital nomads and remote workers. With over 3,000 fast, secure and reliable servers in 160 locations and 94 countries, you can virtually live in any country or continent. You can also protect your online privacy by encrypting your internet traffic with bank-grade security and protecting your IP address from hackers. ExpressVPN will help you access the content you love, anywhere in the world – whether that be Netflix US or BBC iPlayer UK – without having to worry about pesky geo-restrictions.
Pricing: Express VPN starts at $12.95/month, but if you buy an annual plan it’ll only cost you around $8.32/month. And don’t worry, there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee if you don’t end up liking it.
2. Best AI content writing tool for remote workers: Copy.ai
No matter what type of remote work you do, writing and creating content is always part of it. Whether it’s writing a proposal, putting together an email campaign, or producing an article - Copy.ai should be your go-to solution. The AI content generator gives you multiple options for each campaign that you’re working on. And with over dozens of writing tools, you can use Copy.ai to help you create content for just about everything in a matter of seconds.
3. Best tool for managing freelance contracts & invoices: Honeybook
Honeybook is a web-based project management tool that helps freelancers organize their invoices and contracts. It's a great choice for managing all kinds of projects: software development, marketing campaigns, engineering tasks—you name it! The main features are customizable proposals and contracts, scheduled invoices, online payments, client scheduling, and of course, automation to help your business scale.
Pricing: Honeybook’s pricing starts at $39/month. Use the link below to get 50% off!
4. Best mobile hotspot device: Karma
Karma is a USB-C device that allows you to connect up to four devices and share your internet connection with all of them. It has the same bandwidth as one wired Ethernet port, so you can use it on your laptop, tablet, and phone at the same time. Karma Go is the mobile version of this product which only works with iPhones and iPads.
Pricing: You can buy Karma for $99 for the first year, then $99 annually after that or pay $199 upfront for five years of service from Karma Go.
5. Best tool for managing virtual events & webinars: Livestorm
Livestorm’s technology makes it easy to communicate across different time zones while you’re living and working remotely. Unlike most other video conferencing platforms, Livestorm provides distributed teams with integrated tools to manage their virtual communication from end to end. That is to say, this software offers customizable registration pages, email delivery tracking, website widgets, built-in social sharing, and a whole lot more.
Pricing: Livestorm has a free plan to discover the platform, then starts at $99/month for the premium experience with removed limitations.
6. Best Tool for Creating & Managing Online Courses: Thinkific
Thinkific is a learning management system used by individuals and companies to help them create and sell online courses. Thinkific is a good fit for people who want to create courses and sell them online. There are a variety of different features that allow you to create the perfect course. These features include live lessons, randomized quizzes, course templates, coupons, certificates, and more.
Pricing: Thinkific has a free plan, but for serious course-creators, their $49/month start plan ($39/month when paid yearly) will most likely pay itself back quickly.
7. Best tool for collecting & organizing files: Coda
Coda is a new type of document that blends the flexibility of documents, the power of spreadsheets, and the utility of apps into a single new canvas. Coda is a document that is a spreadsheet, a wiki, an app, a presentation, and a task manager all in one. It allows you to bring all your data to one place and connect all your documents. This connectivity allows for more cohesion between your groups and minimizes the confusion that comes with several different people on a team working on several different documents.
Pricing: You can use Coda for free, but if you’re looking to scale with your team, their $30/month “Team” plan may be the best option.
8. Best tool for designing social media content, presentations, and more: Canva
Canva is a graphic design tool that makes it easy to create beautiful designs for your blog, social media posts, presentations, or infographics. You can even use it to update and optimize landing pages on your website. It’s much easier to use than Photoshop and has existing templates, allowing you to create a design in minutes.
Pricing: You can do a LOT with the free version of Canva, but if you’re set on making some serious marketing material, their $14.99/month plan is an absolute steal.
9. Best place for remote work accommodations: Anyplace
Anyplace is an online platform that helps you find and book remote work-friendly places to live. Their platform gives remote workers the ability to jet-set without having to worry about whether or not their stay will have fast wifi, a work-friendly desk, or any other amenities while working remotely. The site has thousands of locations around the world, allowing you to choose from cities across North America, Europe, and Asia; whether it's San Francisco or Sydney; Tokyo or London; Barcelona or Berlin—there's most likely an Anyplace accommodation that will suit you.
Pricing: Accommodation pricing varies depending on the location, but the Anyplace platform is free to use and there are no hidden fees.
10. Best video editing software: FlexClip
FlexClip is an excellent choice for those who need to edit videos while on the move. It is easy to use and offers a range of useful features, including the ability to trim, split, and merge clips, as well as create a custom soundtrack. Additionally, FlexClip makes it simple to add titles and transitions to your video, and it offers a variety of built-in effects and graphics to enhance the visual appeal of your finished product."
Pricing: freemium option, and for added features, it starts at $5.99 per month
11. Best password manager: LastPass
A password manager is a program that helps you manage all your passwords, eliminating the need to remember them all. This can be helpful if you work from home or remotely because you won't need to worry about having access to work resources on any device. LastPass has been a popular choice because it's easy to use and has many features that make it worthwhile even if you don't have a lot of time or technical expertise. It also makes it easier for people who aren't as tech-savvy—letting people share passwords with others (if they need access), which makes things simpler and safer overall.
Pricing: LastPass is free to use, but you can scale as your team grows for only $4/month
12. Best project management tool: Trello
Trello is project management software that enables teams to prioritize, track and manage work. It's perfect for remote workers who need to collaborate with others on shared projects. Trello's boards, lists, and cards allow users to organize and prioritize projects in a fun and flexible way.
Pricing: Trello is free, but for additional features, you can pay $9 per month for integrations with third-party apps (such as Google Drive), unlimited storage space, priority support, and more.
13. Best tool for eliminating background noise on video calls: Krisp.ai
Krisp.ai is a noise-canceling tool that helps you work remotely. It works with any app and any device, on Windows and macOS, and makes sure your workflow has zero interruptions. Krisp.ai uses adaptive machine learning to dynamically filter out background noise from your surroundings so you can focus on what matters most: delivering high-quality audio content for your audience.
Pricing: Krisp has a free option for limited background noise, but for unlimited, pricing starts at $5/month
14. Best video conferencing app: Zoom
Zoom is a video conferencing tool that allows you to record sessions and video chat with other users. It’s a secure platform and allows you to share your screen with others, take notes during meetings, and record audio or video calls. Zoom also has features for screen sharing, file sharing, whiteboard collaboration, chat rooms (for breakouts), HD quality voice calls (up to forty participants), etc.
Pricing: Zoom is free for up to fifteen participants per meeting. For $15/month(or $149/year) per seat, you can upgrade to include more than 15 participants.
15. Best team chat app: Slack
Slack is a great tool for remote teams because it creates a virtual office environment that is easy to use. Slack allows you to create channels for different projects and teams, with the ability to @ everyone involved. This means you can chat with your team and see what everyone else is working on at any given time.
Pricing: While Slack does have a free version, its inexpensive pricing makes it a no-brainer for small teams (starting at just $8/user per month!)
16. Best tool for time tracking: Timely
Timely is a time tracking app that makes it easy to keep track of billable hours, project budgets, and team productivity. The app allows you to set up projects and tasks to be worked on in order to help make better business decisions. You can easily see where your time is spent, helping you make more efficient use of it. Timely also has a great feature called "Activity Feed" which allows you to see all activities related to the task or project that you are working on in one place so that nothing gets missed.
Pricing: Start time tracking for as little as $10/month or go for the annual plan starting at just $8/month.
Remote Work Tool Common FAQs
While all these tools make remote work easier, you might still have questions. We've answered three of the most asked remote work queries so you can feel confident globe-trotting and getting work done.
Which tools are most useful to remote employees and coworkers?
While all the tools listed above are useful, there are some you can’t go without. Remote work requires a way to meet virtually, manage your projects, communicate throughout your organization, and track time. To do this, you’ll need software like Zoom, Trello, Slack, and Timely.
How do you manage someone remotely?
Managing someone remotely can be an adjustment, but just like anything, it gets easier the more you do it. You need to set clear expectations, communicate often, provide the right tools, have virtual meetings, maintain office culture virtually, and understand that it’s an adjustment for everyone.
How do employers track work from home?
Employers mainly track working from home in two ways. If you work from a company-provided device, employers can track all activity on the device, including uploads, downloads, emails, messages, etc. If you work from your own device, there’s different software that can be downloaded, like Timely, that tracks your work.