Working as a freelancer can be invigorating: You don’t have to report to a boss or have coworkers. You can work from home and skip the commute, or create your own office space. You can even take a day off whenever you want!
But when you’re freelancing, it’s crucial that you keep on top of your work and stay organized. If you don’t, it could hurt your reputation and your bottom line. Luckily, there are plenty of apps out there that can help freelancers stay organized and on top of their work—and they’re all free! Here are our favorite apps for freelancers.
Table of Contents
Best Apps For Freelancers
Upwork
Upwork is one of the best-known marketplaces for freelance talent.
Upwork is one of the best-known marketplaces for freelance talent.
Upwork is one of the best-known, and frankly best apps for entrepreneurs who want to find freelance work. Whether you specialize in graphic design, project management, calligraphy, or anything else, you’ll be sure to find a gig on this global platform. Plus, it has great flexibility: You can work on your own time and choose to charge by project or by the hour. There’s even a Skillshare class all about how to start your business on Upwork!
- 99designs
99designs is a wealth of opportunity for freelance graphic designers.
99designs is a wealth of opportunity for freelance graphic designers.
If you’re a graphic designer, 99designs is a treasure trove of opportunities. Freelance designers have two ways to find work: There’s the more traditional path of getting hired directly for design projects. Or, you can compete in Design Contests, wherein clients present a brief, then allow budding designers to submit work to be assessed among other creations. The latter can be a great way to get started if you’re just starting out and looking for opportunities to build your portfolio.
Best Freelance Apps: Accounting
Unless you love math (and even if you do), you’re probably dreading the financial management side of your small business. There’s no need to worry though—these tools are some of the best apps for small businesses, as they make expense tracking a breeze.
- Wave
Wave helps millions of small business owners manage their finances.
Wave helps millions of small business owners manage their finances.
Wave helps millions of people manage their business finances. Their platform allows you to send invoices, collect online payments, manage accounting, and run payroll all in one easy to use platform. Wave is also known for having the best receipt scanner and a convenient mobile app so you can manage your finances on the run. Pricing starts at $0/month. - QuickBooks
QuickBooks, one of the best apps for small business owners, can prepare you for tax season.
QuickBooks, one of the best apps for small business owners, can prepare you for tax season.
QuickBooks is one of the most popular accounting tools out there, and for good reason. It allows business owners to keep most of the tools they need relating to financing, accounting, and time tracking all in one place. If you’re like most entrepreneurs, you’ll be doing everything yourself, so you’ll need a tool like QuickBooks that can help you navigate and prepare for that wonderful time of the year—tax season. Pricing starts at $10/month. - FreshBooks
The FreshBooks dashboard gives a snapshot of your business finances.
The FreshBooks dashboard gives a snapshot of your business finances.
If you’re looking for an all encompassing payment app for small businesses, this is it. With FreshBooks, you can send quotes and invoices, accept online payments, track your time, scan receipts, track expenses, manage clients, and almost everything in between in one easy-to-use online and mobile app. Prices start at $15/month.
Best Freelance Apps: Project Management
One of the most important aspects of being an entrepreneur is learning how to properly manage time. A big part of that? Efficient project management. One of the most common questions entrepreneurs have, especially those with clients or teams, is “what are the best apps for small business owners?” Project management apps take the cake for saving you time and keeping you organized.
Best apps for freelancers 2021
TeuxDeux – Getting Things Done app
teux-deux-min
TeuxDeux is a to-do app for people working remotely – there’s a browser version for when you’re working from home, and an iPhone app for when you’re on-the-go.
This app offers a Getting Things Done approach to freelancers, so you can:
add tasks
set your schedule for today in a simple manner
mark tasks as done as you complete them
have all the work you haven’t finished today automatically transferred to tomorrow
You can also set recurring to-dos, drag & drop them across days, and even form a bucket list of tasks you want to tackle sometime in the future.
To Do – to-do app and task manager
ToDo_screenshot-min
If you liked using Wunderlist before it was discontinued, you’ll like the To Do app too. It’s another Getting Things Done app, but this one will help you balance out work and life – when you work freelance, lines can get a little blurred.
As a Wunderlist’s natural successor, To Do has a lot of features Wunderlist had. It lets you:
make to-do lists and share them with your family, friends, and coworkers
assign tasks to collaborators
add attachments to tasks
prioritize tasks
add notes if you want to include extra information
You can also add tags to your tasks to keep them organized, for example, #work or #personal. It facilitates finding tasks in each category, all you need to do is click on the hashtag or type it in the search bar.
Cushion – planning app
cushion app
Cushion is a planning app built by freelancers, so you can expect it caters to freelancing needs. You’ll be able to schedule and plan your work, control your budget, as well as manage your projects, emails, and expenses, all in one place.
Specifically, you can:
plan your work in a Calendar
view all your tasks (deadlines included) in a Gantt-like chart
send and track invoices
estimate the final price for clients
keep an eye on your financial goals
generate graphs showing your client work, projects, and lists
This app also helps you maintain a work-life balance – there’s a separate section where you can plan, keep track of, and schedule vacations.
Bidsketch – proposal app
bidsketch
Every freelancer needs to know how to craft a winning proposal – and Bidsketch helps you streamline your pitches to clients.
This app promises to cut the time you need to create and send out proposals in half, with:
reusable content features (with the option to have new client information inserted automatically)
data showing whether clients have opened your proposals, when, and for how long they viewed
You can also increase your proposal approval rate – the electronic signature feature may prompt potential clients to accept your pitches easier and faster.
Brand24 – brand monitoring tool
brand24
Brand24 helps you track the position of your freelance brand across the web – you’ll learn what people think about your brand and be prompted to react in real-time.
Specifically, you’ll be notified each time someone mentions your brand (either in a positive or negative way). And, if you get negative mentions on the web, you can immediately tune in into the said discussion and turn matters around.
Within this app, you can analyze:
the number of mentions, likes, shares, and comments your brand is getting on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis
your Social reach across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and various forums
Later on, you can generate reports based on these results, export data, and create infographics.
You’ll even get a list highlighting your most popular mentions and most popular authors, complete with the extent of their online reach and influencer status.
Mint – budget planner
Mint_screenshot-min
Mint is a free planner and budget tracker that helps you manage your finances – you can track your bills and financial goals, manage your budget, as well as receive alerts and financial advice.
With this app, you can sync your bank accounts, credit cards, and your PayPal account. And, you’ll also:
be reminded when you go over budget on projects
get a straightforward system to track transactions
receive weekly summaries of your financial state
In case your mobile phone gets lost or stolen, you won’t have to worry about your confidential financial data being compromised. Instead, you can easily disconnect your Mint account and your phone from your browser account at any time.
Postbox – email manager
PostBox screenshot-min
Emailing is a huge part of every freelancer’s life, and Postbox is designed to help you manage your inbox workload. You’ll have a place to store, organize, and group all your email accounts in one view.
Among other features, you’ll get:
a simple search engine to quickly find what you’re looking for (across accounts)
a “focus pane” that helps highlight only important emails
numerous shortcuts to help you navigate through your correspondences
Conclusion
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