Unlock More Hours in Your Day with These 14 Time Management Tools
Do you have solid systems in place to help you manage your daily time?
(*Pause for several deep breaths to acknowledge the chaotic reality*)
Fortunately, the secret to systems …. is really no secret at all. Alongside developing effective time management skills, working with the right time management tools will establish the framework you need to stay focused on whatever you do.
Why?
Without time management tools, even the most skillful and disciplined among us will struggle to maintain the overview required to evaluate if the time we’re spending is returning the desired outcomes.
Whether your goal is to smooth the path for a life transition, enhance productivity at work or pursue a more harmonious work-life balance, time management tools will help you to track, analyze and manage your time more effectively - freeing you to focus on your purpose.
Fortunately, a growing number of apps, extensions and miscellaneous techy-time management tools are developed every day precisely for this purpose. With the right time management tools at your fingertips, achieving your goals has never been easier - or more satisfying. Here are our favorite tools to accompany the Simplish app:
The Best Time Management Tools & Apps for Your Total Overview (Finally)
Type of Tool: Mobile app+ Desktop+Web app
Pricing: Free for up to five users / month
Expertise: Intermediate
Toggl is a well-known and well-loved time management tool that can help you manage your schedule, hassle-free. When you download Toggl, you'll have efficient time-tracking software that is integrated with many project management systems. Plus you can add an unlimited number of projects and sub-projects so you can track your time more accurately. Working on a team project? This app will help everyone stay on track thanks to its accurate time-tracking reports where you can follow your team's progress every step of the way. Toggl also comes with an online and offline time-tracking function, so you can always stay focused on your goal!
2. Timecamp
Type of Tool: Mobile+ Desktop App
Pricing: Robust free starter plan for time tracking only
Expertise: Intermediate
Timecamp is yet another popular time management app that has gained its fame for truly good reasons. This app’s time-tracking tool features a popular client-billing trackers to help independent workers convert time spent into cash seamlessly. Timecamp also helps you to calculate your monthly and yearly income project-based billings, giving freelancers essential oversight for their bottom line.
3. Scoro
Type of Tool: Mobile App
Pricing: From Starting at $28 user/month (minimum 5 users)
Expertise: Intermediate
High-powered teams of 5 and up will love Scoro. You need a minimum of five team members to get started with this cloud-based app that smartly combines CRM, time tracking, and project management, allowing you to easily manage your projects and business in one space. When you download Scoro, you get an amazing time management tool that equips you with both actual and billable time and allows you to easily transfer your working hours to an invoice. With Scoro, you can always keep track of your time spent on tasks, allowing you to avoid wasting precious time and focus on your most important to-dos.
4. ProofHub
Type of Tool: Mobile App
Pricing: $50 / month for unlimited users and up to 40 projects
Expertise: Beginner
ProofHub is another cloud-based app that makes time management completely user-friendly. On ProofHub, you can estimate the time you'll be spending on your important tasks and track your progress with easy-to-digest time reports. On top of that, you have the option to decide to track time automatically or manually through useful timesheets or simply with a timer. And if it wasn't enough, you can also export your time sheets for client invoicing.
5. Evernote
Type of Tool: Web Add-on + Mobile App
Pricing: Free starter for up to 2 devices
Expertise: Beginner
Unless you live on another planet, you’ve probably heard of Evernote. But what makes this app so popular? Evernote is incredibly easy to use, so even if you have no experience with such apps, you will be able to use it effortlessly. As the name suggests, this app focuses on streamlining errant notes, thoughts and ideas that slow down workflow and leave you searching for notes that would otherwise be lost in your hybrid workspace. Evernote enables you to take and organize notes in many different ways; whether you prefer to write them down, save voice memos, or collect images, and even scan written texts in photos stored in your phone. Evernote also allows you to store images or written content found on websites. Forget piling your photo gallery with screenshots that you’ll never find again - Evernote allows you to have them handy all in one organized digital space.
6. Google Calendar
Type of Tool: Desktop+ Mobile App
Pricing: Base: Free with a Google account
Expertise: Beginner-Advanced
Go back to basics with Google Calendar. Effective time management always, always starts with proper planning. And Calendar is hands-down the best tool for this purpose. Why? First of all, it’s completely straightforward. Even if you're not an expert when it comes to time management software, you will find it completely intuitive to use. If you want to go a step further with Calendar planning, this app offers TONS of additional features that can unlock your wildest scheduling dreams. In fact, many users overlook Calendar’s sophisticated time-usage analytics. These analytics are only helpful if you actually do what you put in your calendar, so it’s a good idea to take a time audit before diving deeper into the many cool Calendar features. Recent additions to Calendar allow you to send smart scheduling links to other people, inviting them to schedule time with you during your free time.
7. Zapier
Type of Tool: Web App
Pricing: Free starter plan for individuals with single-step automations
Expertise: intermediate - advanced
When you want to get more things done and take your task management to the next level, Zapier is a great option. Zapier is known for its automations and integrations, which allow you to streamline repetitive tasks across multiple platforms through sophisticated APIs. You can also connect Zapier to your favorite time management apps to create custom workflows. There is a steep learning curve with Zapier, but its powerful software has infinitely useful applications for every type of user willing to learn.
8. Planview
Type of Tool: Software
Pricing: Starting at $29 per user per month
Expertise: intermediate
If you’re a business owner (or aspiring to be one), then look no further than Planview Adaptive Work, formerly known as Clarizen, for your project and team management needs. This cloud-based project management software aims to help your business grow and thrive thanks to its suite of features. From customizable workflows to budget tracking and expense management, Planview offers everything you need in just one software for your complete overview. This software includes a professional messaging platform, which allows you to easily connect with your team members to enhance your team performance and cooperation!
8. Harvest
Type of Tool: Mobile+Desktop App
Pricing: Free for 1 seat and up to 2 projects
Expertise: Beginner
Harvest doesn't do much, but what it does - it does well. This tool is great for total time-management newbies and freelancers looking for a simple, intuitive interface that you can use from any browser of choice and any device. Harvest allows you to track the hours you work and efficiently estimate invoices based on those hours - clearly, and simply.
10. Momentum Dash
Type of Tool: Browser Add-on
Pricing: Free
Expertise: Beginner
Are you a bit more of a minimalist, Zen-type of person? Or maybe you just need a clear and easy time management system in your life without all of the bells and whistles? In either case, Momentum dash is for you. When you use this add-on, you can easily organize your tasks in a neat and clear to-do list, allowing you to stay focused as you browse the web. The Momentum dash interface features quotes for daily inspiration, mantras, and beautiful imagery whenever you it, keeping you motivated and inspired.
11. Replicon
Type of Tool: Software Application suite
Pricing: Starting at $6/month for the Time and Attendance Product Suite ( additional cost for Project Time Tracking Suite and Professional Services Automation Suite)
Expertise: intermediate - advanced
This app suite caters to large organizations and business owners by helping them track time effortlessly at scale. It combines project management and tracking tools with resource management to keep large teams on budget and on-point with deliverables.
12. RescueTime
Type of Tool: Desktop + mobile app
Pricing: Starting at $6.5o / month
Expertise: intermediate
The first step towards being more in control of your time is understanding how you actually spend your time. And that's exactly what this award-winning software does! RescueTime is a great time-tracking and distraction-blocking tool that helps you stay focused, prioritize your tasks, and work towards your long-term goals, distraction-free.
Like any ordinary time-tracking app, RescueTime automatically tracks the actual time you spend on specific websites and apps - but goes one step further by allowing you to set daily use limits. If spending time on social media is on your not-to-do-list, but you find yourself doom-scrolling through feeds anyway, this app gives you full control to set your own limits. But what makes RescueTime really special is that it also allows you to track time spent in calls and meetings with manual tracking, even when you're offline.
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13. TrackingTime
Type of Tool: Web + Mobile App
Pricing: Free for up to 3 users
Expertise: intermediate
TrackingTime combines task management with time tracking for teams. This app features a visual and intuitive interface that shows your time in blocks or windows that can be completely customized to your own taste and needs. From the home screen, the app displays your tasks like events on your calendar and easily switches between daily, weekly, or monthly task views. TimeTracking encourages you to plan your day and tasks before actually starting work on them, and integrates seamlessly with a wide range of apps like Outlook, Slack, and Zapier.
14. Time Doctor
Type of Tool: Mobile App + Desktop App
Pricing: starting at $7 / user a month
Expertise: intermediate
Time Doctor is perhaps one of the most popular time-tracking system available on the market. It's a smart cloud-based time tracking and management solution designed for big or small businesses to help them monitor workforce productivity. But it's more than a simple time-tracking tool; it also allows you to monitor time spent on websites in addition to an integrated payment gateway budgeting that automatically bills clients based on working hours.