We know that many of you are running your business on a tight budget. If you’re looking for free online team collaboration software, then this post is just for you. We’ve rounded up the best free online team collaboration software tools. These tools are designed to help you and your team collaborate better, no matter where you are or what device you’re using.
The best thing about all the tools listed in this post is that they are FREE. And you can evaluate each tool to determine which one will work best for your team. I’ve tried many of the software tools out there, and here are some great collaborative tools built over the years
In today’s fast-paced and chaotic world it is important to communicate and collaborate via practical tools. The amount of information that we send and receive every day may become overwhelming if not managed properly. That’s why organizations and employees decide to use collaboration tools and apps – to make work more effective.
Using software for collaboration brings only benefits. It improves the workflow, employees are able to clearly understand processes taking place in an organization, and it boosts people’s productivity. If you use the right tools, your business will be organized, and you will have unified communication and work management channels.
How to Choose Free Team Collaboration Software
Companies should choose software that meets their individual needs. Here are some criteria that you can use to identify the best service for your team:
Prefer multiple features
Some tools offer excellent service but are only focused on one aspect of team collaboration. Give some thought to how efficient this really is. Teams may end up spending time changing between complementary software. It’s better to look for a tool that’s feature-rich and allows people to use it in many different ways.
Look for ease of use
This is obviously one of the most important criteria. If a service works but takes a lot of time to get used to, it won’t help teams (especially fast-growing teams.) Request a demo and keep an eye out for an intuitive interface and simple navigation.
Pay attention to privacy options
Collaborating with teams doesn’t mean all conversations and files should be public. Sometimes, you’ll want team members to have private conversations or work on sensitive projects. Make sure you look at privacy options before you choose a service.
Opt for cloud
Cloud-based technology has many advantages. It can solve your version control headaches by allowing you to see recent edits and activities. All information is stored online so everyone can be on the same page, no matter where they are.
Ask for integrations and compatibility
Remember that it’s better to use a tool with multiple features? Well, not always. Occasionally, you discover a tool that does one thing perfectly. Integrations are key. Look for tools that seamlessly integrate with other apps or software. Compatibility is also important. For example, your tools should support all the file types your team normally uses.
Take a look at our list of the 10 best free team collaboration tools.
1. Toggl Plan
Excel is clunky, and most project planning software is too complex. You need weeks of training to get started, and keeping plans and tasks up to date is a chore. With Toggl Plan, there’s no onboarding, and keeping stuff up to date is even simpler—more time to get your work done.
Toggl Plan’s timelines give you a birds-eye-view of what everyone is working on, when things are happening, and who’s responsible for what. Know who’s busy & who has more capacity, and reduce time-consuming back-and-forth by openly sharing deadlines & progress.
A tool your team will actually enjoy using. Planning and task management should feel effortless, not inconvenient. Toggl Plan is built with simplicity in mind. If plans change, just click, drag, and drop — and keep everyone up to date in just a few clicks. Then get on with your day.
2. HeySpace
Created by the Timecamp team, HeySpace is a free task management software for everyone. It’s a combination of Slack and Trello. HeySpace has plenty of useful features that good collaboration software should have:
- Thanks to its design you can see three boards in one place – your team and spaces (different channels), chat, list of cards with tasks.
- You can easily convert part of your conversation into a task.
- The collaboration board with tasks allows you to see all projects in one place.
- Every task can be adjusted – you can set date, assign people to it, add tags, description, files, comment on it. All to keep you updated on task progress.
- You can share files.
- The feature of workspaces allows you to create many spaces, if, for example, you work for various organizations or have different clients.
- Pleasant and intuitive interface.
HeySpace gives you space to freely and smoothly collaborate with your teams and clients. No more switching between apps and tabs. You have everything in one place!
3 Filestage
Filestage is the enterprise-ready online proofing software that helps teams to get their work reviewed and approved faster. The tool enables colleagues and clients to view, comment, and annotate files in real-time to collect and discuss feedback.
Furthermore, Filestage streamlines collaborative work with customizable workflows, task automation, and in-built versioning of files. The tool also reduces stress for your colleagues or clients by providing them with a simple way to communicate and give feedback. They don’t even need to sign up. With Filestag you can manage all your review processes in one place, speed up approvals, and complete projects faster by eliminating back-and-forth email chains.
4. Kezmo
Kezmo is a collaboration software dedicated to people who would like to keep the e-mail style of correspondence and manage their tasks based on it. This tool is a great alternative for e-mail. What is more, you can be sure that your messages and data are secured.
In Kezmo you can create workspaces for different projects or clients, keep track of tasks’ deadlines, share and organize content, create polls, adjust language or declutter conversation by separating it into channels. Kezmo is an intuitive tool with plain interface.
5. Realtime Board
If you’re looking for a simple solution, Realtime Board will be your perfect match. The tool has a form of a virtual whiteboard which you can decorate with sticky notes, charts, flows, and any other form of shapes to organize ideas and manage workflow. No matter where your team is, they can all access Realtime Board and chat over the project, brainstorm, and add new ideas.
This collaboration software allows you and your team to digitize ideas, plans, and tasks with over 50 templates (Kanban, Business model, Flowchart, and many, many more).
6 Bitrix24 – an advanced collaboration tool
Collaboration involves various actions besides chat. Bitrix24 is one of the collaboration software that combines project management software. It is aimed at enhancing collaboration through proper communication of tasks. Bitrix24 has a broad list of features:
- Group chat, private chat, public chat, audio and video calls, screen sharing.
- Extranet access for clients.
- Available as a mobile version for iOS and Android.
- Time tracking, quotes and invoices, Gantt, shared calendars, task templates, checklists, dependencies, subtasks, custom fields.
- Access to workflow.
- Integrations.
It’s one of the most popular and complex collaboration tools.
7. ProofHub
ProofHub is a work management tool that offers a comprehensive suite of collaboration and project management functions. On this platform, you can organize files, plan and monitor projects and discuss with colleagues and stakeholders. ProofHub also lets you review and approve files through an online proofing tool.
8. Redbooth
Redbooth is an easy-to-use project management tool. Its platform allows users to plan and collaborate through many functions from video conferencing to creating Gantt charts.
9. Trello
Trello has an intriguing interface that resembles solitaire (you can even drag task cards across columns, just like you would playing cards). It’s easy to learn and works well for monitoring projects and assigning tasks. Trello also makes using Agile, Scrum and other project management frameworks easy.
10. Wimi
Wimi offers users their own ‘unified workspaces’ where teams can manage projects and share files and calendars. You can control access in each workspace with a rights-based system. Wimi Drive, their file syncing software, helps you make the most out of cloud technology.
11. Milanote
Milanote is one of the qualified tools that can be used for serving numerous purposes including blogging. Using this tool, you can organize creative projects and place them into excellent visual boards. It will provide you a feel like you’re working on the wall in a creative studio. Milanote would be a great fit too for designers who work remotely.
12 Glip
Certain tools are created for certain purposes. Glip was created to enhance team collaboration via a solid communication channel. It’s an easy, intuitive, and functional task management software with chat. It’s a great solution for enthusiasts of simplicity. Apart from chat with the function of screen sharing to collaborate live, Glip offers managing tasks. Tasks can be easily adjusted thanks to various options.
13 hibox
Hibox is a combination of chat, video tool, and task management software. It allows you not only to chat with your team but also to connect with them via video. Thanks to that you can talk to them from every place.
In Hibox, you can create streams for different teams, share files, and create tasks for employees who are part of the stream. You can manage conversations, files, and track tasks organized by the project while you have multiple projects running at once. Similarly to HeySpace, Hibox’s tasks can be personalized by adding files, setting deadlines, or even by using the assistance of personal AI. It’s available as a mobile app and integrates with various tools and apps.
14 Yammer
If you’re a fan of Facebook, you may like Yammer for its design – it is very similar to the famous social media platform. It’s a part of Microsoft Office 365 and if you’re using other Microsoft Office products, you may want to consider choosing this collaboration software.
Yammer helps to draw a certain scheme for a hierarchy in the organization. It connects the team with leaders and people being at the top of the organizational hierarchy ladder. That allows staying connected with every member of the company and with every project. In Yammer, you can easily join and create groups relevant to your work and interests, safely collaborate with contractors, customers, or sister companies. You can also add various files to conversations. Yammer is available as a mobile app for iOS and Android.
15 Flowlu
Flowlu is a simple collaboration tool with all the features a team needs to communicate and cooperate. It has online chat, workspaces with dedicated activity feed, reports for tasks and projects, and a section for file sharing.
In Flowlu you can easily chat with your team, manage tasks, and the workflow. You can monitor your projects on a comprehensive collaboration board. The tool is intuitive and easy-to-use.
16 Clinked
Created by Rabbitsoft, Clinked is easy-to-use, comprehensive collaboration software. The tool is available as a mobile version so you can easily access it from any place in the world. Additionally, you can work both with clients and your employees, thanks to the feature of workspaces.
Clinked works similarly to project management software and can effortlessly collaborate with other people. The software is a great solution for organizations that want to improve cooperation with clients. Thanks to Clinked, you speed up processes, don’t need to organize meetings, and smoothly transfer information and provide updates on projects. If you want to improve the business relations of your organization, Clinked is the right collaboration software.
17. Quip
Quip started off as a mobile app and released a desktop version later. Teams can import and work live on different file types. Edits are saved automatically and its chat, comment and checklist features make collaboration easy.
Conclusion
The best free team collaboration software is a common question asked by many workers who are looking for a free upgrade to their current group sharing platforms. Collaboration tools can be a big asset when it comes to working on a project with a team of people, and they can make the process easier.
Remember to choose wisely and use the tools that suit your business needs! Working together can be enjoyable, you only need to have the right collaboration tools. The best free team collaboration software is easy to use and has a lot of great features. We have been using team collaboration software and we can already see a difference in productivity.