Whether you’re a full-time freelancer or just looking to make some extra money on the side, there are a lot of benefits to starting a small business.
But it can be tough to get started—especially if you’re trying your hand at something new. With so many apps out there, it can be hard to know which ones will help you succeed and which ones might end up being a waste of time and money.
That’s why we’ve put together this list of our favorite apps for starting up a small business:
Best Apps For Starting A Small Business
One of the most popular online topics today is business growth, simply because you can expect more money with good business growth. However, if you are just starting out or if you have a small business, how can you make it grow?
Many small business apps can help keep you organized and improve your efficiency. All of the apps mentioned below are free and great for small businesses. So, it depends on your needs and what kind of app would be best for you.
- Scanner App
Scanner App
If you are looking for a portable scanner, this might be a good choice. Scanner App is a free app created for small businesses, and it allows you to send forms and documents on the go. In addition, it can easily photograph a document and convert it into JPEG or PDF.
You can even take a couple of photos and combine them all in one document with your signature. However, Scanner App only works for iOS, so in case you are an Android fan, you could try CamScanner instead.
Download: Scanner App (free, in-app purchases available)
- Gusto
Gusto App
In case you are a small business owner with a team to run, Gusto will surely be of help. This mobile app will easily handle payroll, benefits, and taxes. This app is available in both the App Store and Google Play.
By sorting through the state, federal, and private resources, the app can help you find credits, loans, and grants for your small business. Just answer a couple of questions on their website, and you will get a link to download the Gusto app.
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Download: Gusto ($39/month +$6/month per person)
- To Do App
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Many of you might be familiar with Wunderlist, which is a cloud-based task management app. However, this app no longer exists. Therefore, if you liked Wunderlist and the options the app gave you, To Do App is the next best thing.
This app is the natural successor to the Wunderlist app. You can sync it across iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and the web. To Do App allows you to create a simple to-do list and share it with your team.
Download: To Do App (free)
- Square
This is one of the best payment apps for small businesses. Whether you own beauty salons, food trucks, or retail shops, you will be able to benefit from the Square app.
Square is a free-to-download app. It comes with a free reader that allows you to swipe credit cards. This is a small reader attached to your phone or other devices, and it allows you to easily process payments.
However, the app will deduct 2.75% from all the credit card transactions, so you will have to pay extra for a reader that accepts chip and contactless cards. Square is only available in the App Store.
Download: Square (free)
- PicMonkey
PicMonkey is a photo editing app that allows you to have a social media presence. With the app, you can easily crop photos for social media platforms, such as Instagram, or you can edit pictures to put them on your website. PicMonkey is a good app for small business marketing.
The best thing about PicMonkey is the fact that you do not need any graphic design experience to edit photos like a pro. It is a user-friendly app with great features, available in both the Google Play and App Store.
Download: PicMonkey (free trial + premium features starting at $7.99/month)
- LinkedIn
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You have probably already heard about this powerful business networking platform. But did you know that LinkedIn also has an app?
The LinkedIn app allows you to send updates on the go, recruit new hires, add new connections, follow inspirational people and companies, or just keep an eye on your competitors. It is available in both the Google Play and App Store.
Download: LinkedIn (free, in-app purchases available)
- Evernote
In case you are searching for more effective ways to take notes at meetings, plan your content, and organize your thoughts, Evernote is a great option.
This is a digital notebook that lets you organize business information, dictate blog posts, keep track of ideas, take notes about client calls, etc. Evernote is only available in the App Store, and it does not require an internet connection for you to use it.
The Evernote app comes with a business plan that allows you to collaborate with your whole team. For example, with Evernote Business, you can invite your co-workers and team members to join specific notebooks and leave their notes.
Download: Evernote (free) | Evernote Business ($12/month)
- TripIt
For small business owners who travel a lot, an app that tracks all the details of your trip and alerts you about any changes is a life-saver. TripIt is an app that can help you find the best flights and seats for your travels.
You will handle the booking, and TripIt does the rest. This app will organize your plans no matter where you choose to book.
All you have to do is forward your confirmation emails. In a couple of seconds, the app will create a master itinerary for all your trips. TripIt is available in both the Google Play and App Store.
Download: TripIt (free) | TripIt Pro ($49/year)
- Shopventory
If you have a small business with inventory, Shopventory can be a useful app. With the app, you can easily check profit markings, see sales trends, and compare locations.
The Shopventory app will help you see what is not selling well to discount it and skip a restock. It will also send you an alert if there is any suspicion of theft. The app is perfect for small business owners who want to stay up to date on their inventory.
While Shopventory does not have its own payment processing system, it works great with systems like Shopify, Square, PayPal Here, etc. You can download the app from Google Play and App Store.
best business apps 2021
obile applications are changing the face of business. They’re becoming more prevalent and more powerful, and most importantly, they can help your business run more smoothly. Want to improve daily operations? Organize your ideas? Manage travel expenses? There’s literally a small business app for that.
As a small business owner, the more you can automate tasks, stay organized, and streamline your processes, the more efficient and productive your business will become. Thankfully, there are a ton of tools on the market to help — in addition to DreamHost’s managed hosting plans, of course.
Here are the 30 best small business apps in 2021.
Cloud Computing Apps
Running a small business usually requires delegating tasks to several talented people — think designers, copywriters, project managers, your significant other. If you don’t have the right tools to keep everyone on the same page, it’s easy to miscommunicate. The following apps will help you share files, organize ideas, and stay up-to-date on your team’s to-do lists.
- Google Workspace
Google Workspace website home page.
Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) lets you port files among PCs, tablets, and smartphones. The standard package comes with 30 GB of online storage per user with options to upgrade to unlimited. And it allows you to create docs, spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, and more.
Key Features:
Offers a popular set of intelligent business apps
Stops the need to use different apps for basic business functions
Provides professional and ad-free business email experience.
Price: Plans start as low as $6 per user per month.
Related: How to Sign up for G Suite in Your DreamHost Panel
- ShipStation
Best Small Business Apps DreamHost
If you sell and ship products online, you need a time-saving e-commerce solution to streamline your shipping. Cloud-based ShipStation is simple to use and allows you to process online orders, get order alerts, print shipping labels, track shipments, and more.
Key Features:
Works with most e-commerce platforms, including WooCommerce and Shopify
Streamline the order processing system to fit your business’s needs
Create custom shipping labels that show off your brand
Price: Plans start at $9 per month
The Host with the Most
We don’t just know a lot about the best apps for small business owners. We’re also really great at helping businesses improve their bottom line.
Learn More
- SurveyMonkey
Small Business Apps DreamHost
Stop guessing what your customers want, and ask them yourself. With SurveyMonkey, you can create surveys to measure user engagement and get anonymous customer feedback on your products, pricing, website, and any unmet needs of your target market. Build simple or more complex surveys, and find tips on the SurveyMonkey website about question types and how to word them. Survey creation is collaborative, and results and reports can be viewed by different team members without sharing login information.
Key Features:
Create surveys from a template and brand with your own business colors and logos
Review survey results as they come in from any device
Send your surveys out into the world via your website, email, social media accounts, and more
Price: Freemium, with advanced packages starting at $32 per month (there are discounts for students and educators)
- FreshBooks
Best Small Business Apps DreamHost
This cloud accounting software will make your invoicing (and more!) quick and simple. With FreshBooks, you can create and personalize invoices, and set up automatic billing. You can also track business expenses — and create a minute-by-minute record of how you spend your time for a real eye-opening accounting of your productivity.
Key Features:
Accessible from any and all of your screens
Accept credit cards on your mobile device
Converts estimates into invoices
Price: $15/month for five clients; Free Invoice Template downloads
- Dropbox Business
Dropbox Business is a cloud computing app that allows you to sync files and folders across various platforms. The mobile app gives you access to all your files on the go and offers plans for really small businesses — we’re talking just three users.
Key Features:
Offers cloud storage of all important files
Prevents lost files
Provides flexible storage plans
Price: Starts at $12.50/month for 3+ users
- Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft OneDrive allows cloud storage and file sharing through synced folders. You can view and edit OneDrive files from any smartphone or tablet with the OneDrive mobile app. Though it works for both Macs and PCs, additional services like settings backup and automatic photo upload are reserved for Windows 8 and Windows Phone users.
Key Features:
Offers convenient file sharing
Stops lost folders and files
Provides easy collaboration tools
Price: Starts at $5/month per user
Related: How to Choose the Best Cloud Applications
- Unifyle
Unifyle is a cloud storage management solution that pairs with other storage services like DropBox, SugarSync, Access Box, and more. It also organizes email from different providers, allowing you to view, send, and search across accounts.
Key Features:
Pairs with top-of-the-line apps
Stops security breaches
Provides virtual file management
Price: Free
- Evernote
Evernote can help you capture and remember all the brilliant ideas you come up with while on the move. It’s available on multiple platforms and allows you to store your ideas by voice, text, or photo. You can search your notes by keywords and tags.
Key Features:
Offers quick Google sign-in
Stops you from losing your best ideas
Provides on-the-go note taking
Price: Free for basic plan; upgrade to a business account for $14.99 per user per month
- DocuSign
DocuSign allows you to easily collect signatures online or via a mobile device. This is the perfect tool for collecting necessary information from clients and remote employees.
Key Features:
Offers rapid app development
Stops inconvenience of collecting signatures in person
Provides powerful integrations with Salesforce, Google, Microsoft, and more
Price: Starts at $10/month
- Polaris Office
Polaris Office is a good mobile alternative to Apple’s iWork suite or Microsoft’s Office Suite for spreadsheets and docs. It allows you to read and edit docs via the mobile app.
Key Features:
Offers outstanding compatibility to view and edit all documents
Stops increase on costs related to purchasing an office suite
Provides mobile and desktop access
Price: Pro plans start at $5/month
- SOS Online Backup
SOS Online Backup automatically backs up your files online and provides military-grade encryption.
Key Features:
Offers secure online backup
Stops loss of files
Provides 100%privacy
Price: Starting at $4.99/month
Cloud Computing apps truly are the way of the future when it comes to making sure your team has secure access to the right information.
Related: Safeguard Your Site with 13 of the Best Security Plugins
Communication Apps
Whether you’ve got a team of part-time workers or remote freelancers, it’s vital to have a way to stay connected. Here are some of the top tools to make virtual communication easy.
- Slack
Slack is one of the most popular communication apps on the market. With Slack, you can create different communication channels, send group messages, and even break off into one-off meetings within a slack channel.
Key Features:
Offers easy communication between teams
Stops confusion among team members
Provides targeted channel communications
Price: Freemium
- Fuze
Fuze is a great communication app for times when a simple chat isn’t enough. Fuze is a video conferencing tool that works across all platforms and devices. No matter where anyone is on your team, they can hop on Fuze and make it to your meeting on time.
Key Features:
Offers user training and materials
Stops remote employees from missing meetings
Provides “go-live” transition support
Price: Varies per plan — contact Fuze for more information
- Skype
Skype group call
Skype is a trusty app for simplifying team communication. Skype allows you to chat with team members from any location. And since the app is so popular, you can rest assured that your team members and clients will know how to use it.
Key Features:
Offers trustworthy calling, chatting, and video conferencing
Stops loss of easy collaboration
Provides free calls to friends
Price: Freemium
Of course, you could just pick up the phone to sync with your team members and clients, but if you really want to stay connected, these platforms make it easy to build open communication right into your workflow.
Related: 6 Reasons Why Your Small Business Needs to Get Online
Finance Apps
As a small business, the last thing you want to do come tax time is scramble around looking for crumpled receipts. Make sure you invest in one of the following finance apps. You’ll be glad you did come April 15.
- Quickbooks
Best Small Business Apps DreamHost
Quickbooks connects to your business bank account, PayPal, and Square (plus thousands more) and uploads real-time data to help you keep tabs on your company’s financial well-being. You can even use this accounting app to track expenses and upload pictures of receipts from your phone — a definite boon when tax season rolls around.
Key Features:
View profit and loss reports
Track unpaid invoices
Pay employees
Price: Starts at $7.50/month for freelancer plan
- Expensify
There are plenty of expense trackers out there, and Expensify is one of the simplest. It keeps track of expenses and mileage via multiple platforms. Receipts can be scanned and uploaded. Expenses can be submitted to employers by a click of a button. It can also read and import expenses from a linked bank account or credit card.
Key Features:
Offers top-notch integrations
Stops confusion at tax time
Provides help with expense tracking across several industries
Price: Contact Expensify for more information
- Abukai Expenses
With Abukai Expenses, you just snap a photo of your receipts with a smartphone, and the info gets entered into the tracking app’s interface. You can also take a photo of a map or itinerary to calculate and report mileage.
Key Features:
Offers easy record-keeping of receipts
Stops messy receipt tracking
Provides multiple expense tracking at one time
Price: Freemium
- InDinero
InDinero syncs with bank accounts and credit cards to predict future cash flow based on current trends and past expenses.
Key Features:
Offers excellent bookkeeping services
Stops the need to invest big in bookkeepers
Provides tax services for small businesses
Price: Starts at $300/month
- Time Doctor
Time Doctor home page.
This time tracking app records billable hours, workers’ time on the clock and on projects. The app estimates that it can increase your workplace productivity by 22%.
Key Features:
Offers screenshot monitoring
Stops payroll confusions
Provides powerful reporting tools
Price: $10/user per month
If it’s your goal to get your finances in order before Uncle Sam comes calling next April, these apps can help.
Travel and On-the-Go Networking Apps
As a small business owner, chances are you find yourself on the road (or up in the air) more often than you imagined when you first started your business. Travel is expensive, and it can be difficult to stay on top of all the details. Unless you have the right scheduling app to help you, that is.
- TripIt
TripIt allows travelers to keep business trip arrangements, itineraries, and information together all in one location, including meeting times and flights details. It also corrals weather forecasts, maps, and directions.
Key Features:
Offers a master itinerary for every trip
Stops travel hiccups
Provides access plans from anywhere on any device
Price: Freemium
Conclusion
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