Get More Done: 10 of the Best Productivity Apps

We know you’re busy. That’s why you’re here. We’ve put together a list of some of the best productivity apps to save you time. Take a look, and see how they can help you work more efficiently.

10 of the Best Productivity Apps

Below, you’ll find information on 10 of the best productivity apps. We look at Notion, Slack, Yoodli, Calendly, Grammarly, Loom, Todoist, Strava, Superhuman, and HubSpot. You’ll find information about each app and its niche. We also discuss some considerations could impact how and if you use the platform.

Notion

Here’s Notion in a nutshell:

• Notion is a connected workspace that centralizes knowledge, communication, and project management.
• It offers customizable building blocks such as boards, tables, timelines, calendars, galleries, and lists.
• Users can create their own labels, tags, owners, and more to keep everything organized.
• Notion supports multiple languages and has a vibrant global community.
• It provides endless templates for various use cases, including company wikis, product roadmaps, OKRs, meeting notes, vacation planners, editorial calendars, and habit trackers.

More About Notion

Notion is a popular freemium productivity and note-taking web application that offers a range of organizational tools, including task management, project tracking, to-do lists, bookmarking, and more.

One of the key themes underlying Notion’s success is the centralization of knowledge and communication. With its ability to create custom templates, and embed videos, users can easily organize their work in one place. Collaboration is also made easy with real-time editing features that allow multiple users to work on the same document simultaneously. Additionally, Notion has expanded into education as well as personal organization with its launch of the Notion Certified Program.

The platform was founded in 2013 in San Francisco. Since then, Notion has gained popularity as a productivity tool for individuals and teams due to its customizability and organization features.

Considerations

Remote work becomes more prevalent globally. it remains to be seen how much impact this will have on productivity software market competition between established players like Trello or Asana versus new entrants such as Monday.com or even Wikis like Confluence.

There have been critiques about Notion’s user interface and learning curve that may hinder adoption by some users. Another consideration is privacy and security concerns. As a centralized workspace, Notion stores a significant amount of sensitive information. This could potentially be compromised if proper security measures are not taken.

Slack

Here’s Slack in a nutshell:

• Slack is a communication platform for teams.
• The platform is designed to improve engagement and scale for businesses.
• Users can create workspaces and join communities.
• Slack offers desktop notifications and integrates with other tools.
• Resources include a blog, help center, and events.

More About Slack

Slack provides a communication platform for team collaboration. The rise of remote work and distributed teams has led to an increased need for communication and collaboration tools. We include Slack among the best productivity apps because it’s a popular solution for businesses looking to improve productivity and efficiency.

Founded in 2013, Slack operates offices around the world. In December 2020 Salesforce announced its acquisition of Slack Technologies.

Considerations

In March 2021, Slack experienced a global outage. It affected users’ ability to send messages and access the platform. This highlighted potential drawbacks and challenges associated with relying on communication platforms for team collaboration.

Creating workspaces and joining communities can be useful for collaboration. But, it might also lead to information overload and distractions for some users. The convenience of desktop notifications and integrations may also contribute to distractions and interruptions for users.

Yoodli

Here’s Yoodli in a nutshell:

• Yoodli offers personalized and private feedback from their AI speech coach for free.
• The app can help users improve their communication skills for various scenarios. These include job interviews, corporate presentations, and sales calls.
• Yoodli is a top-rated public speaking app and offers resources such as courses and a community.
• The app is useful for Toastmasters, coaches, product managers, and sales representatives.
• Toastmasters International has partnered with Yoodli to bring AI speech coaching to 149 countries.

More About Yoodli & Its Niche

Effective communication skills are essential in both personal and professional settings. There’s an increasing demand for effective communication skills in the modern workplace and society. So, there’s a growing need for personalized feedback and resources to support individuals in developing communication skills. This is where technology comes into play, specifically AI (Artificial Intelligence). AI can provide personalized feedback on various aspects of communication.

One example of an AI-powered public speaking app is Yoodli. Yoodli offers personalized feedback from an AI speech coach that analyzes users’ speech patterns and provides suggestions for improvement. With the shift toward remote work and virtual communication, platforms like Yoodli have become increasingly popular as people seek ways to improve their virtual communication skills.

We include Yoodli among the best productivity apps because its provides quick and helpful coaching in a world where technology plays an increasing role in personal development. The potential for further advancements in AI speech coaching technology could revolutionize how we approach improving our communication skills.

Considerations

Yoodli offers personalized and private feedback from their AI speech coach for free. But, it’s possible that the feedback might not be as accurate or comprehensive as feedback from a human coach. The app can help users improve their communication skills for various scenarios. But, it might not be able to address all aspects of communication, such as nonverbal cues or cultural differences. It’s also unclear how effective the AI speech coaching is for individuals with different learning styles or language backgrounds.

It’s important, too, not to overlook the value of community support and traditional forms of coaching. Ultimately, it’s important to find a balance between utilizing technology while recognizing its limitations.

Calendly

Here’s Calendly in a nutshell:

• Calendly is a scheduling automation platform that simplifies scheduling for over 10 million users worldwide.
• Users can share their Calendly availability with others via email, text, or website. Prospects and recruits can book high-value meetings in seconds.
• Calendly offers integrations that boost productivity and security features like centralizing billing and managing how coworkers use Calendly.
• Teams can use Calendly to conduct meetings at scale, customize reminder and follow-up workflows, and integrate with sales tools.

More About Calendly & Its Niche

Calendly provides a business communication platform for teams to schedule, prepare, and follow up on external meetings. Founded in Atlanta in 2013, Calendly has grown to become a tech unicorn.

Continued growth and expansion of scheduling automation platforms like Calendly are expected due to the ongoing shift towards remote work and virtual meetings. Potential advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) could further streamline scheduling processes by automating certain tasks. These tasks include rescheduling appointments based on availability changes or predicting optimal meeting times based on past behavior patterns.

Other scheduling and appointment booking software platforms such as Doodle, Acuity Scheduling, and OnceHub are also available. Productivity and efficiency tools for businesses such as Trello, Asana, and Slack can also be used alongside scheduling automation platforms like Calendly.

Considerations

The potential impact of scheduling automation on reducing administrative workload and improving work-life balance is significant. However, it’s important to consider the potential drawbacks of relying solely on automated systems without maintaining personal communication or flexibility in scheduling.

If coworkers are not trained on how to use Calendly effectively, it could lead to confusion or mistakes in scheduling. Additionally, Calendly allows for customization of reminder and follow-up workflows. But, it might not be able to accommodate all types of workflows or preferences. Some users may require more flexibility or customization options than Calendly can provide.

Grammarly

Here’s Grammarly in a nutshell:

• Grammarly is a free online writing assistant that uses AI to help users write bold, clear, and mistake-free content.
• It provides suggestions for grammar, spelling, style, and tone across various platforms, including desktop applications, social media, emails, and documents.
• Grammarly has been praised by users for its effectiveness.
• The company also has a blog and features such as citation generator, tone detector, and analytics.
• Grammarly offers various plans, including Premium, Business, and Education.
• The platform has a browser extension and mobile apps.

More About Grammarly & Its Niche

We include Grammarly among the best productivity apps because of the way it quickly enhances the communication process. In today’s digital age, clear and effective communication is more important than ever. Whether it’s for business, education, or social media, the ability to write well can make all the difference. This is where Grammarly comes in. It’s a cloud-based typing assistant that reviews spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery mistakes in English texts.

Grammarly offers various subscription options with features such as a browser extension optimized for Google Docs and a smartphone keyboard.

Grammarly was launched in 2009 as an educational app to help university students improve their English skills. Now, it’s used by individuals from all walks of life who want to improve their writing skills.

Considerations

The rise of remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic has made tools like Grammarly even more important than before. AI technology continues to advance rapidly across various industries including language processing. So, it’s likely that writing tools such as Grammarly will become even more sophisticated and widely used.

However, there might also be concerns about over-reliance on such tools. This could lead to negative effects on individual writing skills or limitations in detecting nuances in language and tone that require human intuition rather than machine learning algorithms. There are also potential ethical implications of relying on AI for writing assistance. This could lead some people to push back against its use.

Grammarly uses AI technology to provide suggestions for improvement. So, it’s not always accurate in detecting errors or providing appropriate suggestions. This can lead to users relying too heavily on the tool and hindering their own development of writing skills.

Furthermore, Grammarly’s effectiveness may vary depending on the user’s writing proficiency and style. The tool’s suggestions aren’t always appropriate for the context or purpose of the writing. This can lead to a loss of authenticity in the user’s voice.

Finally, Grammarly offers various plans and features that cater to different needs and preferences. But, it might not be suitable for all types of writing. For example, creative and academic writing require specific formatting and citation styles.

Loom

Here’s Loom in a nutshell:

• Loom is a video messaging tool. It allows users to record quick videos to update their team and reduce the need for meetings.
• Loom has over 14 million users across 200,000 companies.
• Users can easily record their screen and from their camera, and they can share the video with a link.
• Loom also offers interactive features such as emoji reactions and time-stamped comments to keep teams connected.
• Loom is used by various companies—including MetaLab, HubSpot, and Pearson—to improve communication and collaboration.
• Loom is available on Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android devices.

More About Loom’s Niche

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a significant shift in the way we work. Remote work and virtual communication are more prevalent than ever before. As a result, video messaging tools like Loom have become increasingly relevant and necessary for businesses and individuals alike. These tools allow users to record and share videos for communication purposes. This makes it easier to collaborate with team members who may be located in different parts of the world.

Other popular video messaging tools include Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. It’s likely that the use of video messaging tools will continue to grow as remote work becomes more common. There may also be further developments in interactive features and integration with other communication and collaboration tools.

Considerations

While video messaging tools like Loom may be useful for updating teams and reducing the need for meetings. But, they may not completely eliminate the need for real-time interaction and collaboration. Some discussions may require immediate feedback and brainstorming that cannot be achieved through video messaging alone. Therefore, it’s important to consider the specific needs of each team when deciding on communication tools.

Ultimately, it’s key to find a balance between virtual communication tools like Loom alongside face-to-face interactions.

Todoist

Here’s Todoist in a nutshell:

• Todoist is a task manager and to-do list app that helps users become more focused, organized, and calm.
• The app allows users to add tasks quickly using natural language recognition and recurring dates.
• To-do lists are automatically sorted into Today, Upcoming, and custom Filter views. This helps users focus on their most important tasks.
• Todoist offers project templates, customization options, and integrations with other tools to make task management more efficient.
• The app has been downloaded over 30 million times, with two billion tasks completed and one million Pro users.

More About Todoist’s Niche

Todoist is a popular task management app. It offers many useful features such as natural language recognition and customizable filters views. As technology continues to advance, the need for digital tools to manage tasks and increase productivity has become increasingly important.

Individuals and teams are looking for ways to stay organized and efficient. Task management and to-do list apps have become a popular solution. They allow users to create lists of tasks or projects that need to be completed. They also offer features such as recurring dates and project templates that help streamline the task management process.

Similar apps include Trello, Asana, and Microsoft To Do.

Considerations

Productivity, organization, efficiency are key themes when it comes to task management apps. Users should understand concepts such as recurring dates and project templates in order to fully utilize these tools. Additionally, it’s important for them to grasp related topics such as productivity techniques like Pomodoro Technique or Getting Things Done (GTD).

What works well for one person may not work as effectively for another. The automatic sorting of tasks into different categories might also not always accurately reflect the user’s priorities or deadline. This could lead to confusion or missed deadlines.

Project templates, customization options, and integrations with other tools can improve efficiency in some cases. But, they also might add complexity and require additional time and effort to set up and maintain. Furthermore, users might find themselves spending more time managing their tasks than actually completing them.

Strava

Here’s Strava in a nutshell:

• Strava is a platform where people can upload their exercise activities, from dog walks to Olympic marathons.
• Strava offers features such as routes and subscriptions, as well as information about upcoming marathons.

More About Strava & Its Niche

Strava is a popular social media platform that allows users to track and share their exercise activities. It’s focused primarily on cycling and running. We include Strava among the best productivity apps because exercise is a vital part of a productive person’s life.

Strava records data for a user’s activities, including route summary, elevation, speed, timing, power, and heart rate. Activities can be recorded using the mobile app or from devices manufactured by third parties such as Garmin and Wahoo.

One of the key themes of Strava is fitness tracking and community building. Users can share their activities with followers or publicly to connect with others who have similar interests in physical activity.

The platform offers a freemium model with some features available only in the paid subscription plan.

Likely, we’ll see continued growth and evolution of Strava and platforms like it as they integrate with other technologies such as wearable devices and virtual reality experiences.

Considerations

Strava might not be suitable for all kinds of physical activity. Some users may engage in activities such as weightlifting and yoga that aren’t easily tracked by GPS. Thus, they might find the platform less useful.

There may be increased regulation around data privacy and security concerns in the tech industry overall. We will continue to navigate these issues surrounding technology’s impact on our health habits and personal information sharing practices online. So, individuals should stay informed about terms of service agreements and privacy policies with these types of services.

Superhuman

Here’s Superhuman in a nutshell:

• Superhuman is an email service that claims to save teams over 10 million hours every year.
• The service is built for teams that use Gmail or Outlook.
• Features include Split Inbox to triage incoming emails, automated follow-up reminders, and Snippets to automate typing.
• Superhuman allows users to snooze emails, see when people read their emails, and share read statuses with their team.
• Scheduling events can be done right from the email interface.
• The service provides social insights from LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to help users be more effective in their communication.

More About Superhuman & Its Niche

Email is a primary mode of communication in the workplace. It’s one of those things that can either slow you down or make you more efficient. It all depends on how it’s used. We include Superhuman among the best productivity apps because it streamlines the email experience.

Customers have reported that Superhuman has helped them be more productive, make decisions faster, and focus on meaningful work. The company claims that users can save up to three hours a week by using it. Superhuman features the liberal use of keyboard shortcuts to speed up email reading and replying. Other features include Split Inbox, Snippets, and Snooze.

The platform was founded in 2014. The app costs $30 ($10 for students) per month.

Other email management tools such as Boomerang have also risen in popularity in recent years. Technology continues to shape the future of work. There’s potential for continued development and improvement of email management tools and services with integration of AI and machine learning.

Considerations

There are potential drawbacks of relying too heavily on email as a communication tool. These include the impact of email overload on mental health and well-being. There may also be a shift towards alternative modes of communication in the workplace.

Furthermore, the reliance on a third-party email service like Superhuman raises concerns about data privacy and security. As Superhuman has access to users’ email accounts and communication, there’s a risk that sensitive information could be compromised.

HubSpot

Here’s HubSpot in a nutshell:

• HubSpot is a CRM platform that connects marketing, sales, content management, and customer service.
• The platform offers various software products, including Marketing Hub, Sales Hub, Service Hub, CMS Hub, and Operations Hub.
• HubSpot’s popular features include lead generation, marketing automation, advanced CRM, meeting scheduling, customer feedback, and data sync.
• The platform provides free tools and features, as well as premium software.
• HubSpot offers free courses, certifications, and resources to help users learn and grow.
• The platform has a drag-and-drop editor, SEO recommendations, website themes, and programmable automation.
• The company has a legendary customer support team and an active user community.
• HubSpot has over 167,000 customers in more than 120 countries.

More About HubSpot & Its Niche

HubSpot is a leading American software company. It provides tools for customer relationship management, social media marketing, content management, lead generation, web analytics, search engine optimization, live chat, and customer support. HubSpot’s products and services integrate various business functions through a single platform. They also provide free resources and tools to users for learning and growth.

One of HubSpot’s key themes is its focus on customer support and community building. The company offers both free and premium software options. They provide educational resources such as blogs, webinars, courses, and certifications to help users learn about inbound marketing strategies. In addition to this, HubSpot has recently launched Operations Hub, which aims to streamline business operations by automating manual tasks.

The company was founded in 2006 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). It has since grown to become a major player in the CRM industry.

HubSpot suggests that it will continue expanding its offerings by integrating more business functions into its platform. However, it may face increased competition from other CRM platforms. These include Salesforce and Zoho along with marketing automation software providers such as Adobe Marketo Engage or Oracle Eloqua. Despite this competition, though, their focus on customer support may help them maintain their loyal user base over time.

Considerations

HubSpot offers a range of software products. But, some businesses may not need or use all of them. This could result in unnecessary costs. There are also potential drawbacks of relying on a single platform for multiple business functions.

Wrapping Up

Maybe you’re looking for ways to keep email from burying you. Or, you want to exercise consistently and wonder if there’s a good way to stay on top of it. Whatever your productivity needs, we hope you’ll find help with these platforms. Let us know in the comments what apps work for you!

Note: This post was created in partnership with artificial intelligence.