Time management and productivity are more important than ever in today’s world of remote work and digital distractions. With so many apps and websites competing for our attention, it can be challenging to stay focused and make the most of our time. That’s why having the right time management tools is essential.
The good news is you don’t need to spend a fortune to get organized. There are many great free time management tools available in 2024 to help you optimize your workflow.
In this post, we’ll count down the top 10 best free time management tools for 2024. Whether you want to improve your personal productivity or manage projects and teams more effectively, these apps have the features you need to take control of your time. Read on for the list!
1. Todoist
Todoist is one of the most popular free time management and productivity apps available today. It offers users a robust set of features to help track tasks, projects, and due dates across work, home, and personal contexts.
The core functionality of Todoist centers around creating tasks and organizing them into projects with due dates. You can add tasks via the mobile app, desktop app, browser extension, email, or by integrating with other popular apps like Gmail or Google Calendar. Tasks can be tagged, prioritized, commented on, and collaborated on with teammates.
Todoist has powerful filters and search functionality to quickly find tasks and projects. The app offers productivity features like reminders, notifications, templates, and recurring due dates. Todoist Premium unlocks additional features like task dependencies, reminders, productivity trends, and more advanced reporting.
One of the key strengths of Todoist is its integrations with other tools through Zapier and official add-ons. You can connect your Gmail account to automatically turn emails into tasks, sync events from Google Calendar as tasks, or receive Todoist notifications in Slack. This makes it easy to centralize your tasks across the tools you already use.
The free version of Todoist provides a capable feature set for basic tasks and project management. You get unlimited tasks and projects, basic collaboration features, apps for all platforms, and 2-way calendar integration. The free plan limits some features like reminders, comments, and file uploads. But overall it offers a solid set of core time management capabilities without paying.
2. Toggl
Toggl is one of the best free time tracking tools available today. With Toggl, you can easily track time spent on tasks and projects either through their web app, mobile app, or browser extensions.
Some key features of Toggl’s time tracking include:
Simple time entry – Just click a button to start a timer for a task. You can add notes on what you worked on.
Detailed reporting – See summaries of where your time was spent, both for yourself and your team. Filter reports by clients, projects, time period, etc.
Integrations – Toggl integrates with popular project management tools like Asana, Trello, Jira, and more. This allows you to track time directly on tasks.
Productivity tracking – Toggl gives you insights into how you spend your time and where you can improve. See which tasks take up most of your time.
Billable time – For freelancers, Toggl makes it easy to track billable client work hours with tagging and filtering options.
The free version of Toggl allows unlimited time tracking for you and up to 5 team members. You get access to basic reporting that lets you see where your time went each day or week.
Overall, Toggl is a great option if you just need a simple time-tracking tool to keep tabs on how much time you spend on tasks and projects. It integrates nicely into your workflow and gives you useful data to improve productivity.
3. Google Calendar
Google Calendar is one of the most popular calendar and scheduling apps, already used by millions worldwide. It’s free, works across devices, and seamlessly integrates with Gmail, Google Drive, and other Google apps.
While Google Calendar is great for planning your schedule and managing appointments, it also has features that can help with task and time management. You can easily add to-do tasks within Calendar events or create separate task lists. Tasks show up alongside your calendar events so you can see everything in one place.
When adding events to your calendar, you can specify the duration to block off the exact amount of time needed. Calendar then tracks how much free time remains in your day or week, helping prevent overbooking. The time insights view gives a helpful breakdown of how you spend your time and can highlight where your time goes.
Overall, Google Calendar is a versatile option for scheduling, task management and time blocking. And since it’s already used by many individuals and teams, it can help coordinate schedules and integrate time tracking across your organization. The free version provides all the core features needed for day-to-day time management.
4. Evernote
Evernote is a popular note-taking and organization app that can help with time management. It allows you to take notes, make task lists, clip web content, and upload files. Everything is synced across your devices so your notes and files are accessible anywhere.
Some key time management features of Evernote include:
Note-taking and list-making – You can quickly jot down notes, thoughts, and ideas, and make task lists. This helps capture information and tasks so you don’t forget.
Clip web content and upload files – If you come across an interesting article or want to save a file, you can clip it or upload it to Evernote for later access. This helps you collect relevant information without getting distracted or losing it.
Sync across devices – Your Evernote notebooks sync across all your devices like desktop, mobile, and tablet. This lets you access your notes anywhere and continue working on the go.
Format your writing in markdown – For longer-form writing and note-taking, Evernote supports formatting text in markdown. This allows you to organize your thoughts and make your notes more readable.
Tag notes and use quick search – Tagging notes and using Evernote’s search makes it easy to quickly find what you need. This saves you time when revisiting notes.
Set reminders on notes – You can set reminders on specific notes or tasks so you get notified to follow up or complete the item. This helps you stay on top of your to-do list.
Evernote has a free tier with basic features, but to unlock more advanced features you would need a paid plan. Overall it’s one of the best free tools for taking notes, organizing information, and having it accessible across all your devices. The ability to quickly capture thoughts and find information makes Evernote a helpful time management aid.
5. Trello
Trello is a popular project management tool that uses Kanban boards to help individuals and teams manage tasks and projects. With Trello, you can create boards, lists, and cards to organize your workflow.
One of Trello’s best features is collaboration. Multiple people can work together on the same board simultaneously. You can tag teammates on cards, assign tasks, comment on cards, and @mention someone to get their attention. This makes Trello a great option for managing team projects and workflows.
Trello boards are highly flexible and customizable. You can add due dates, attachments, checklists, labels, and more to each card. The cards can then be dragged and dropped between lists to indicate progress. This system makes it easy to visualize the status of each task or project at a glance.
For time management purposes, Trello is ideal for keeping track of everything you need to do. Break projects down into individual steps and add them as cards to your boards. Set due dates so you don’t miss deadlines. Then organize the cards into lists like To Do, Doing, and Done to see what’s been completed and what’s still pending.
With its simple drag-and-drop interface, robust features, and stellar collaboration tools, Trello is one of the top free time management tools available today. The free version supports unlimited boards, lists, cards, members, checklists, and more, making Trello an essential productivity tool for individuals and teams alike.
6. Asana
Asana is one of the most popular project management tools used by individuals and teams to collaborate on tasks and projects. It offers a robust free plan that includes many great features for basic tasks and project management.
With Asana, you can create shared task lists and projects and assign tasks to team members. This allows you to track the progress of work and ensure tasks get completed on time. Asana has customizable workflows and statuses so you can map out the steps in a project from start to finish.
One of Asana’s best features is its free plan for small teams. Many project management tools charge per user, but Asana’s free plan allows up to 15 team members. That makes it a great free option for small businesses, freelancers, clubs, volunteer groups, families, and other teams that need to collaborate.
The free plan includes features like:
- Unlimited tasks, projects, custom fields
- Basic reporting
- Calendar view
- Mobile apps
- Third-party app integrations
While Asana’s free plan is great for basic workflow management, the paid plans unlock more robust features like workload management, time tracking, and custom dashboards. But for simple shared task management, Asana’s free version is one of the top free tools available.
7. ClickUp
ClickUp is a popular free project management and collaboration tool that offers tasks, docs, spreadsheets, and chat in one platform. It’s great for both individuals and teams looking to manage their projects and workflows efficiently.
Some of ClickUp’s key features include:
Project management – ClickUp makes it easy to break down projects into lists and tasks. You can assign tasks to team members, set due dates, track time, add comments and attachments, and more. The hierarchy view allows you to see the big picture.
Productivity features – In addition to tasks, ClickUp includes docs, spreadsheets, reminders, goals, and a calendar. This means you can handle multiple aspects of a project in one place.
Team communication – The built-in chat and comment features enable seamless communication with your team. You can discuss tasks, share updates, and collaborate.
Customizable views – ClickUp offers several ways to customize project views for your needs, including table, box, timeline, calendar, and more. Filter tasks and reorder lists easily.
Integrations – Connect ClickUp to your other tools like email, Slack, GitHub, and more. Automation can also help optimize workflows.
Free forever plan – ClickUp’s free version includes unlimited members, tasks, docs, spreadsheets, reminders, goals, and more. However, storage is limited to 100MB, and features are reduced compared to paid plans. But it’s a great option for individuals and teams who want to start organizing their projects for free.
Overall, ClickUp is one of the most robust free project management platforms available today. The combination of tasks, productivity features, and team chat makes it easy to streamline work and collaborate effectively. If you’re looking for an affordable way to manage projects and tasks, ClickUp’s free plan is worth exploring.
8. FloClock
FloClock is a simple yet powerful time-tracking app that lets you easily tag time entries to projects and tasks. It has a clean and intuitive interface that makes time tracking extremely simple.
With FloClock, you can:
Start a timer to track time for a specific task or project. The app will log how much time you spend without any effort on your part.
Add tags and notes to time entries to keep track of what you were working on. You can tag entries to specific projects and tasks.
Generate reports to see where your time was spent. The app can show you weekly and monthly overviews of your time, broken down by projects and tags. This allows you to analyze your productivity and make improvements.
Export time logs as CSV files. This makes it easy to share timesheets with clients and managers.
The free version of FloClock allows unlimited time tracking and comes with all the essential features you’d expect. There are no ads or hidden fees.
FloClock is great for freelancers, consultants, agencies, and anyone who needs a simple way to track their time and generate reports. It’s easy to use and doesn’t require any complicated setup. If you’re looking for a fuss-free time-tracking app, FloClock is an excellent choice.
9. Forest – Focus App that Blocks Distractions
Forest is a unique time management app that helps you stay focused and avoid distractions by using gamification. The core premise is simple – you plant a virtual tree that grows over time. But if you leave the app to check social media or other distracting sites, the tree dies.
This creates a fun incentive to stay on task. As your tree grows, you earn coins that can be used to plant real trees around the world through Forest’s collaboration with Trees for the Future.
Forest offers browser extensions for popular browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. This allows you to block distracting sites and plant trees while working on your computer.
The mobile app works similarly – when you need to focus, you can plant a tree and keep the app open. Leaving the app will kill your tree, creating a powerful motivator to avoid picking up your phone.
Users praise Forest for its simplicity and effectiveness in improving focus. The reward system makes avoiding distractions fun rather than a chore. By partnering your progress with planting real trees, it adds meaning and purpose to the app.
If you struggle with procrastination or frequent distractions, Forest offers a refreshing approach to time management. The gamification makes it enjoyable to build your focus muscles. Tracking your progress over time provides satisfaction as you plant more and more trees.
10. Focusmate
Focusmate is a unique time management tool that provides you with a virtual accountability partner to help you stay focused and productive. The platform pairs you with another person for a 50-minute video call where you work silently on your own projects.
Having someone hold you accountable during your work session can be incredibly motivating. The peer pressure helps beat procrastination and prevents you from getting distracted by your phone or other websites when you should be working. Focusmate capitalizes on the body-doubling effect where people are more productive when another person is present.
Some of the key features of Focusmate include:
Get paired for co-working sessions: You’ll be matched with another user for a 50-minute session where you’ll work together silently over video. This virtual co-working helps provide structure to your day and accountability to stay on track.
Built-in accountability: The presence of another person you’re accountable to helps boost your productivity and focus. You’ll be less likely to slack off or get distracted when someone else is there expecting you to work.
Free and paid plans: Focusmate offers a free plan that gives you 3 sessions per week. Paid plans unlock unlimited sessions, priority matching, and the ability to schedule sessions in advance.
If you struggle with procrastination or lack of accountability when working independently, Focusmate can provide the motivation you need to hone your focus and make the best use of your time. The peer accountability during co-working sessions can help boost your daily productivity.
Wrapping It Up
In summary, when it comes to managing time effectively, having the right tools is essential. The best time management apps and software in 2024 offer a range of features to help individuals and businesses track and optimize their time. Utilizing a time-tracking app or software allows users to track their activities, allocate time to specific tasks, and easily identify areas for improvement.
To conclude, the best time management apps and software in 2024, including time tracking apps and tools, offer a range of functionalities to help users improve productivity and manage their time effectively. By using these tools, individuals and businesses can track their time, allocate it wisely, and achieve their objectives in today’s fast-paced world.
