In researching the best free apps for the Mac, I started by using Apple's category list. This makes it easier to cover the wide variety of content available. If an app is on the Mac App Store, it is in one of the 21 categories that Apple has listed. The best productivity app for academics who: want to discover where their time really goes. (If you want to combine RescueTime’s stats with self-reporting, try Hours.) 8. Self-control app: freedom. Freedom is a handy app that will block the internet, social media and apps to give you space to focus. In this article, we’ll cover 32 of the best productivity apps you should get your hands on in 2021. For each app, we will cover things like. Key Features and how they save you time; Pricing; Platforms (Android iOS or Windows) Download links; Here are the Best Productivity Apps We’ll Cover. Click on the links below to jump to a specific app.
- Free Productivity Apps
- Best Free Productivity Apps For Mac Computer
- Best Free Productivity Apps For Mac
- Mac File Organizer
Mar 25, 2020 With these Mac apps for focus, you should be able to concentrate more on your work and less on your distractions. And if you’re looking for a simple work timer instead, check out our list of the best focus timers for Mac. Do you use one of the great apps already or is there a different free, focus app for Mac you’d like to recommend? These apps can help with your routine tasks such as file management, making lists and note taking, and password management, so that you spend less time in these tasks and have more time for important work. Best Mac Productivity Apps. Below are our picks for the must-have productivity apps for Mac. How many of these do you use in day-to-day.
Whether you’re a professional or not, time is everything. It’s great that we now have timer apps that easily manage time. Recently, we had covered the best Apple Watch Timer Apps. Most of those apps offered a built-in tool for the timer. This time, however, we are focusing on timer apps for Mac in general. You will find options from categories like Task timer apps, Pomodoro Timer apps, Countdown timer apps, etc. We have also included Reminder timers and some time-tracker timers for freelancers.
Read: Top 10 Free macOS Apps to Boost Your Productivity
Best Timer Apps for Mac
1. Focus Booster
Category: Pomodoro Timer
focus booster is an incredibly simpler Pomodoro timer app for Mac. However, despite the simple interface, Focus Booster lets you customize things like the length of the session, break duration, etc. You can also sign in to an account and sync time-tracking data between your macOS, iPhone, and Android.
Nevertheless, we wished there was a menu-bar icon for the app. You will have to open the app to know how much time you have left. Also, Focus Booster does not let you add multiple tasks at once. On the bright side, you can have the better workflow, thanks to multi-platform apps.
The app is free, but it does come with some limitation, for instance, advanced analytics are web-only, and the limited number of sessions (20) in the free version
Overall, Focus Booster is the best choice if you need a simple Pomodoro timer with analytics. It’s useful when you have multiple clients and want to track time.
Check Out focus booster (Freemium, $2.99/month)
2. Pomotodo
Free Productivity Apps
Category: Pomodoro Timer
Pomotodo, as the name suggests, combines an excellent Pomodoro timer and a task-management list. You can add tasks to the simple interface and also start the Pomodoro timer. However, both these things aren’t integrated i.e. you cannot run the timer for a specific task.
However, when the timer is running, you can mark the tasks complete. Pomotodo has options like Analytics, Stats, Goals, and History. You can go to Preferences and customize the way this timer app works. In addition, Pomotodo also brings multi-device sync and a fully-fledged time management system.
Pomotodo is more than a simple Mac timer app. It offers ample options for time management as well as Pomodoro technique use.
Color picker for mac os. Check Out Pomotodo (Free, Pro starts at $2.9/month)
3. WaitingList
Category: Countdown Timer
WaitingList does exactly what its name says. It lets you create amazing countdown timers that you can find in the menu bar. Just click on the WaitingList icon and there will be a list of things that you’re waiting for. As opposed to other apps, WaitingList prioritizes visual appeal over anything.
The point is that you can create eye-pleasing countdowns easily. WaitingList lets you choose the style as well as the background. You can also get reminders about an approaching event. Last but not the least, the app offers iCloud Sync feature as well.
WaitingList is an awesome choice when you need interactive timers and reminders. It’s a count-down app that makes your events look more exciting.
Best Work Apps For Mac Desktop
Check Out WaitingList ($4.99)
4. Timer for Mac
Category: Countdown Timer
Timer for Mac is a general timer app but works awesome for almost all needs. You can use this app to set a stopwatch timer, normal timer or alarms. It also offers a section named Clock, where you can see the current time.
In the free version, you can set reminders along with actions. It focuses on accuracy and ease of use, but an awesome set of features are also there. Going Pro, Timer for Mac can bring you full-screen mode, a better set of programmed actions, etc.
Timer for Mac does many jobs beautifully when you need to set a timer. That having said, you’d need the Pro version if you need some awesome features listed above.
Check Out Timer for Mac (Free, Pro at $29.95)
5. Time Out
Category: Reminder Timer
It’s very important to take frequent breaks — for your health and productivity. Time Out for Mac allows you to run a timer to remind you. When it’s time for the break, Time Out will show you a full-screen message on the Mac screen.
While setting up Time Out, you can decide the desired amount of breaks. You also get features like Micro Breaks and advanced scheduling. Customization is the key of this timer app. From the time to how take-a-break messages are shown, everything can be changed.
Overall, Time Out is the best companion for those who spend hours in front of the PC. It lets you take a break without compromising productivity. Don’t forget to come back on time, though.
Check Out Time Out (Free)
6. Stand for Mac
Category: Reminder Timer
Stand for Mac is a wonderful Mac timer app for all users. It reminds you to stand up once in a while. The app does not come with any bells or whistles. Instead, you can decide how often you want to be notified about standing up.
Best Free Productivity Apps For Mac Computer
The idea of Stand for Mac is amazing indeed. The app does not have a fully-fledged window but Preferences are available from the icon menu. Stand for Mac also plays a sound when it’s time to stand up, but further customization isn’t available.
Pros: Extremely simple and straightforward, no complex set-ups
Cons: None
The Verdict: If you think you have an unhealthy lifestyle of sitting all the time, use Stand for Mac. It comes at no cost, which is great.
Check Out Stand for Mac (Free)
7. Cooking Timer
Category: Kitchen Timer
Cooking Timer is an awesome Mac timer app for chefs out there. It’s pretty simple to use if you’re into some BBQ events or some other cooking. Cooking Timer lets you run three timers at the same time. You can make use of them for different needs.
Coming to the timers, you can use them as Stopwatches or timers itself. In the latter case, choose the desired length from the menu. The single-tap technique makes it easy to manage the timers so that you can focus on what’s being prepared.
Best Work Apps For Macbook
Cooking Timer is the simplest solution out there, for all the good reasons. You can use this timer without concerns when you want to focus on the cooking process.
Check Out Cooking Timer (Free)
8. Timing
Best Free Productivity Apps For Mac
Category: Time Tracker for Freelancers
Timing is a wonderful time-tracking app for Mac. Compared to the competitors, Timing is automated when it comes to actions. You don’t have to press the Start or Stop buttons. Instead, Timing app will observe and analyze where you are spending most of your time.
At the end of the day, Timing provides a proper report of time consumption. If you are a professional, you can use this data to create invoices and reports. The best part is that you can automate this process too. It’s going to let you set up some rules for report generation.
Timing for Mac is perhaps the best time-tracker for almost every freelancer. You cannot use the app for normal countdown or anything, but the time-tracking part is excellent.
Check Out Timing ($29 for Productivity, $49 for Professional and $79 for Expert)
9. Horo
Category: Time Tracker for Freelancers
Yet another extremely minimal timer app that won’t even make you feel its presence. No extra features than the exact job it needs to execute. The app is available on the macOS App Store and takes a few seconds to get installed. The app is so light on the system that even summoning Siri to know weather updates might take more space on the RAM.
Once installed, you’ll see the ‘hourglass’ shaped app icon on the menu bar. Click on the icon to reveal the tiny app interface wherein you just insert the time and press the play button. That’s it, the timer will start on the count-down display is visible on the menu bar.
The good part about the app is that you can continue with other tasks while the timer would still be visible on the menu bar. And even if you work in full screen it had you covered. It plays a tone upon finishing. You can even change the tone and set a timer creation shortcut in a premium version which doesn’t cost as much.
Best Mac Os Apps
Mac File Organizer
Download Horo (Free, $2 for full version)
Timer Apps for Mac
Best Work Apps For Mac Os
The 10 Mac timer apps we have covered are made for unique needs. As it happens, you cannot fulfill all your needs with a single app. For instance, hr, our pick for task management, would be less useful if you need to get reminders on time. In that case, you should go for something like Time Out. By the way, do let us know which tool do you use for timers and time-tracking.
Related: Quickest Ways to Set a Timer on your iPhone?