The "Can't Miss" Productivity Apps of 2021

Ramp up your efficiency and save a lot of time

Working efficiently doesn’t mean working longer hours.There is a wealth of productivity tools out there to help you make the most of your time and reach your daily goals, pain free. Read on for a list of productivity apps that are user-friendly, very affordable (or free), and personal favorites of the Gated team.

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We spend a lot of time researching online. In 2019, almost 30% of global web traffic was generated via online search usage (source: Google). If you're like us, you're probably tired of scanning and saving content, and then wasting time trying to find it later in your browser.

Pocket allows you to store everything and anything you find in a central place for later viewing. You can create a free account and start your own little online library. It saves articles, URLs, and videos just by right-clicking on them or through an extension in your browser. It also downloads content for off-line viewing, and you can share any content directly with friends or through social media.

Do you spend too much time jumping from one platform to another, without getting much done? With Toggl you can track how much time you spend on different online tasks and activities.

You get a weekly report to help you make informed decisions about where you spend your time and where you are actually wasting it. This insightful tool can also help you manage a team and assign tasks, so you can all work smarter.

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Managing passwords has become a task of its own these days and let’s admit it: it is tedious. 1Password is our pick for password manager. It can quickly generate strong and safe passwords, and saves them in an encrypted vault.

1Password retrieves your password automatically and logs you into whatever account you need in seconds. You can also store any kind of sensitive information (like payment or shipping details) in 1Password.

The amount of apps we use on a daily basis is overwhelming. Even more so, most of them work independently from each other, which sometimes makes it hard to manage. But what if they could all work together, helping you get a faster grip on things?  

IFTTT stands for “If This, Then That.”  It connects all of your different apps, services, and devices to work together and do things they otherwise would not do. For example, IFTTT can connect Alexa to Gmail so you can send important messages without lifting a finger. Or, you can send Evernotes directly to Slack, so you can share your notes with others. IFTTT also includes automated social media posting.

IFTTT can connect more than 600 brands and services with a free account, so the sky's the limit!

This one has been around for a while, but it's loved by anyone (and the Gated team!) who's a fan of checklists and notes.

Google Keep lets you create notes and lists, and store them in the cloud. It syncs with all your devices, so you can access them wherever you are.

You can access your notes and or checklists while you're reading your email, or working on a doc, so you can set priorities and reach your goals faster. It also lets you tag your notes to stay organized, set reminders, and record audio notes and attach images.

In short, Google Keep wins as an extremely simple, functional way to help you focus with minimal effort on what you should be doing next.

According to Freedom, we are actually 40% less productive when multitasking. So if your productivity suffers because of too many distractions, this tool can seriously help.

It blocks apps and websites you don’t need while you work to help you stay focused (kind of like how Gated blocks emails you don't want and need). You can also choose to block complete access to the internet, set up how long you want to be away in advance, or schedule blocked sessions to start automatically. It’s widely used by over a million users worldwide on Mac, Windows, Android, iOS, and Chrome.

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Give these apps a try!

Improving your productivity often starts with finding the right tool.s We hope one of these six might be just the thing for you. Each of these tools, like Gated, is designed in a user-first way and gives you more control over your own time and ability to focus.

Try them out and share your thoughts with us on LinkedIn. We’d love to hear about any other productivity apps that you enjoy as well.

And add Gated to your inbox to block unwanted emails and have unknown senders donate to your favorite charity.

Sources:

https://www.statista.com/topics/1710/search-engine-usage/

Editor's Note: We swapped LastPass with 1Password as our recommended password manager in the wake of LastPass's 12/22/22 breach.

Originally published: May 20, 2021