Although two economists at the University of Chicago recently estimated that 37% of jobs in the United States could be completed "entirely at home," only a fraction of Americans have had that opportunity in recent years. According to the 2019 National Compensation Survey, just 7% of workers in the private sector and 4% in state and local government received work-from-home opportunities.
However, working from home has recently been on the rise as employers work to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. The convergence of advancing technology and urgent public health concerns leads many to think the U.S. may be heading toward a widespread workplace revolution, seeing more people working from home than ever before. Several major companies, including Twitter and Facebook, have already announced permanent work-from-home opportunities for their employees.
Remote jobs offer several benefits for workers, but they also present challenges. For many, working from home is an unusual experience that requires a significant adjustment period. It can be an especially difficult transition for employees who frequently work in teams, and for extroverts who rely on a busy office environment to maintain their optimum energy levels.
Whether you're a seasoned work-from-home veteran or a remote work newbie, productivity apps can make a positive difference in your 9-to-5 routine. We compiled a list of 15 of the best productivity apps available on the market, designed to help you meet several of the most pervasive challenges faced by work-from-home employees.
Challenges of Working From Home
Work-from-home employees commonly face challenges when it comes to productivity. Even at the office, few people are immune to distraction or wandering thoughts. These issues are often exacerbated when trying to complete work tasks from the comfort of our own homes.
Our brains are hardwired to think of home as a place to relax, unwind, and focus on personal responsibilities. When that living space is turned into a workplace, especially in a sudden or unpredictable way, several challenges may arise:
Workspace Setup One of the first productivity challenges faced by many work-from-home employees is simply finding a suitable location to get work done. Some are lucky enough to have a dedicated home office. Others need to make do with non-ideal spaces, such as a kitchen, dining, or living area.
Compartmentalization Focusing on work-related tasks at home requires careful separation of personal and professional to-do lists. Some individuals struggle with an overwhelming need to do the laundry, tidy up, or run errands during work hours.
Little to No Oversight Aside from emails, phone calls, and video conferences, working from home generally means working without supervisors or coworkers nearby. Employees become the primary person holding themselves accountable for completing tasks, which can be challenging.
Distractions Work-from-home employees often need to navigate around the schedules and habits of other occupants. Setting boundaries for roommates, spouses, children, and pets is vital for preserving concentration during work hours. Other distractions abound in the form of television, mobile games, and social media websites.
Fortunately, there are plenty of work productivity apps designed to address these challenges.
Types of Work Productivity Apps
There are countless methods, techniques, and theories designed to help workers improve productivity. For some people, it's as easy as clicking "download."
Productivity apps can be broken down into six basic categories: time management, planning and organization, distraction minimization, habit forming, collaboration, and smart technology integration. If you're struggling with a work-from-home lifestyle, try identifying your biggest challenge and pairing it with an app that tackles the problem head on.
Time management apps turn old-fashioned timers and calendars into interactive, streamlined experiences designed to track a user's time and promote efficiency in completing tasks. Procrastinators and multitaskers may benefit the most from these apps, but nearly everyone can increase their productivity with a bit of time management guidance.
Planning and organizing apps can help with everything from breaking down daily tasks into an achievable list to the heavy lifting required to keep a major project organized. Many applications offer popular features like file storage and syncing, automated reminders, and customizable calendars.
Most people have a few websites and mobile games they visit "just a few times" a day. Those visits can add up to hours of lost productivity over the course of a week. If you struggle with staying focused, distraction-minimizing software can help by blacklisting sites and blocking access to certain mobile apps while you work.
According to a 2009 study, it takes an average of 66 days for a new behavior to become habitual. Habit-forming apps help users start and maintain positive behaviors by providing automatic reminders, time tracking, and rewards. Habit-forming apps can help track work, fitness, and personal lifestyle goals.
Working with others can be difficult at a distance, but these apps make it easier to stay in contact and complete workplace goals. Collaboration apps include video conferencing, file sharing, and project organization software. These apps can be especially beneficial for professionals working on team-based projects with many moving parts.
Many people own one or more smart devices, such as phones, personal assistants, thermostats, and home appliances. By creating connections and employing a customizable system of triggers and outcomes, integration apps allow users to automate tasks and work more efficiently with a variety of smart technologies.
Top Online Programs
Explore programs of your interests with the high-quality standards and flexibility you need to take your career to the next level.
The 15 Best Productivity Apps
A search for "productivity" on the App Store or Google Play brings up hundreds upon hundreds of results. To help you sift through the competition, we ranked 15 of the best productivity apps based on the following criteria:
Features What the app offers users — especially what makes it unique — and whether features are easy to customize for different needs
Reputation The app's customer ratings, number of users, and popularity with major enterprises and reputable organizations
Low Cost/Free Options We prioritize budget-minded options like free trials, free plans, and low-cost subscriptions
Usability The app's availability on a variety of devices and platforms
For the purposes of this ranking, we define "app" as any piece of software that requires users to download and/or sign up. Apps may include desktop apps, mobile apps, and browser extensions/add-ons. Some apps featured below technically fit in multiple categories, but we aimed to rank them according to primary benefits.
Apps for Time Management
Apps for Planning and Organizing
Apps for Minimizing Distractions
Apps for Forming Habits
Apps for Collaboration
Apps to Integrate Smart Devices
The Future of Working From Home
For many individuals, small businesses, and large enterprises, the future looks murky in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as Facebook and Twitter announce long-term commitments to the work-from-home lifestyle, other executives view the remote landscape as detrimental to project completion, employee training, and hiring.
Not all companies and careers lend themselves to remote work, but some sectors of the American workplace may be on the verge of major, permanent change. As we all consider and contribute to important conversations surrounding public health, it's safe to assume that some companies will continue offering hybrid or remote work benefits to their employees even after COVID-19 eases.
Traditionally, writing, design, and sales have been the most popular work-from-home industries, but many computer science careers also function well in remote environments, particularly in web development, UX design, and software engineering.
If working from home isn't appealing enough on its own, consider other doors that might open for those with a strong background in computer science. With the right knowledge, you could build the next popular work productivity app or get in on the ground floor of an entrepreneur's new remote startup.
Whatever the working world looks like in the years to come, you can expect plenty of opportunities with a computer science education.
