Finding the best apps for starting a small business can be tricky. That’s why we put together this handy list of awesome apps to help you get started.
This post will focus on the best free apps for small business owners and freelancers. We all love free stuff, and we’re sure you’ll agree that these apps deliver superior functionality and top-notch user experience at no cost!
Glip by RingCentral
For small businesses that need a variety of different options for communicating with teammates, prospects, clients, freelancers, and more… our recommendation is always to find versatile apps that can do multiple things well.
Why?
Because if you can streamline your tools that way, then you’d be paying for fewer tools every month (one-trick-pony types of tools can add up fast and are hard to keep track of when you have 10 or 15 subscription fees every month) and also spending less valuable time trying to manage all those tools.
That’s why Glip is our pick. It’s a desktop and mobile app that gives you both team messaging and video conferencing for free in one easy-to-use interface:
Not only does it give you a maximum of 24 hours per meeting (no 40-minute caps), it also lets you have smarter meetings by giving you the full pre-meeting, in-meeting, and post-meeting experience.
Need to prep an agenda? It integrates with Google Calendar and Outlook to automatically add your video meeting PIN and other details right into the invite. And after the meeting, it lets you create a group chat with the attendees from that meeting to stay organized and keep track of follow-ups and other tasks.
Plus, with Glip’s free plan, you can…
- Call up to 100 participants for up to 24 hours at a time.
- One-click host and join: No downloads needed. To join a meeting, just open your internet browser to enter the meeting code. (Or use the app!)
- Create and assign tasks to your team:
- Share files and create team events:
- Share your screen.
- Send in-meeting private and group chats.
- And more…
Best for accepting payments: Square
If you need an all-in-one payment system, look no further than Square. The company provides a POS system that makes it easy for small businesses to get paid. It’s a great option thanks to its affordable pricing, easy setup and free online tools.
However, Square is best for low-volume merchants that work in low-risk industries. As your business continues to grow, you may find that you need more functionality than Square offers.
Alternatives to Square: Lightspeed, Payment Depot, Shopify
Best for accounting: Quickbooks
QuickBooks is the most popular accounting software on the market, and for good reason. The company’s cloud-based software is intuitive, easy to use and offers numerous integrations.
[Read more: 10 Common QuickBooks Questions Answered]
You can send invoices, pay your employees and prepare for tax season with the company’s robust software. And the company offers a number of video tutorials to help you learn how to navigate the platform.
Alternatives to QuickBooks: FreshBooks, Wave Accounting, Sage Business Cloud Accounting
Finding the right apps to manage all of your tasks can free up time and help your business operate more efficiently.
Best for project management: Trello
Trello is a project management software that makes it easier for teams to collaborate. Within each Trello board, you can create individual cards outlining the various tasks needed to complete a project.
Within each card, you can assign due dates, tag other members, create checklists and upload documents and images. The app offers dozens of integrations, including Evernote, Slack, and Google Drive.
Alternatives to Trello: Basecamp, Asana, Airtable
Best for time tracking: Toggl
If you have remote employees, you need a streamlined way for them to track their hours. Toggl is a great choice because it provides flexible, cloud-based time tracking software for individuals and businesses.
At the end of the month, you can export your time logs to a spreadsheet. These reports will give you additional insights into how much time your employees are spending on a given task. It may also help you determine what projects are the most profitable for your business.
Alternatives to Toggl: Hubstaff, RescueTime, DeskTime
Best for creating and sharing to-do lists: Wunderlist
Sometimes, a good to-do list is all you really need. In that case, Wunderlist is one of the best options available. The app lets you create multiple to-do lists, and you can assign tasks to other people on your team. This makes it easier to collaborate remotely with your employees and ensure the work is getting done.
In 2015, Wunderlist was acquired by Microsoft, and the company has said it plans to shut the app down eventually. Four years later, Wunderlist is still going strong, although Microsoft isn’t updating the app. If you’re concerned about this, you can check out one of the Wunderlist alternatives.
Alternatives to Wunderlist: OmniFocus, Evernote, nTask
Best for managing expense reports: Expensify
One of the most tedious aspects of being a small business owner is tracking your receipts and your expenses. Instead of stuffing an old shoebox full of receipts, why not track them with Expensify?
With Expensify, you can take a photo of a receipt, and the software will automatically transcribe the details for you. Expensify will also categorize each receipt, saving you a lot of time in the process.
The platform will allow your employees to submit business receipts for reimbursement, and it also directly syncs with most major accounting software.
Alternatives to Expensify: Zoho Books, QuickBooks Enterprise, Xero
MUST HAVE APPS
Evernote: “Remember Everything.” Sounds like a small business owner’s fantasy, right? Well pinch yourself, because it’s real. Evernote allows users to store, organize and share anything from text to voice notes in order to keep track of the brilliant ideas you have. Forbes reported that the app has generated $166 million in funding to continue its growth and helpful features.
Bump: A revolutionary business networking app that makes business cards look like they are from the Stone Age. Bump allows users to share files, photos, and contact information by simply “bumping” two smartphones together. With 27 million downloads and counting, don’t miss out on a chance to change the way you network forever.
Tripit: The chaos of travel is inescapable. You’ve got to stay on top of your email, your phone calls and texts, and keep an eye on your finances; how in the world are you supposed to remember when your connecting flight leaves? Tripit allows you to keep track of all of your travel arrangements in one place, not to mention the weather updates, interactive maps, and directions that the app also features.
LocalVox: If your business is having trouble with the management of online marketing, LocalVox is the solution you’ve been waiting for. This app uses social media, local directories, and email newsletters to enable its users to post news on their events and deals in the upcoming months. Your company’s increased presence on multiple online channels will also come with a boost in organic searches and listings.*
Expensify: The tall task that every small business owner is faced with is managing their expenses and using them as well as they can. This can become an even more difficult task when you are expected to do this while on the road. Expensify allows its users to keep track of their mileage and expenses by enabling them to upload receipts and submit expense reports from any location.
InDinero: Don’t have the time or money to talk with a financial advisor? Don’t worry, InDinero makes keeping up with daily finances easy. Synced with your bank accounts, the app predicts future cash flow according to past trends in order to help you manage the money you have accordingly.*
Square: Have you ever found a potential customer outside of the office, but didn’t have any way to accept payment? Square won’t let that happen again as the app allows smartphones and tablets to easily accept credit card payments. Sign up is free and there are no monthly payment, they simply take 2.75% of every transaction.
Smartr: As a business owner, you have tons of contacts. From personal to professional relationships and even social media followers, keeping track of all of the people in your life can be a nightmare. Smartr connects your address book, Gmail messaging and social media accounts to put all of your contacts into one place. Next time you are looking for someone’s contact information, it will be at your fingertips in a matter of seconds.
1Password: Small business owners have many different accounts for many different purposes, and keeping track of the various passwords that correspond to each account is much easier said than done. 1Password ensures the safety and organization of your many passwords. By entering a master password, it syncs with iCloud or Dropbox to show all of the entries you have, including those from a random password generator. The user simply selects their password and copies it to wherever they need it, a simple solution to a nerve-racking dilemma.*
Hipchat: One of the most important aspects of managing a small business is making sure that everyone is on the same page. Having a virtual chatroom for your business can be vital to the relationship you have with your customers. Hipchat allows the free flow of these quick notes to one another, in or out of the office to ensure your company is a well-oiled machine.
Conclusion
There’s no denying that in the modern world, there are many ways to start a business. You can even do it without leaving the comfort of your home.