The 19 Best Android Productivity Apps of 2023 (Ranked & Reviewed)
There’s no way around it – in today’s digital world, we are constantly bombarded with distractions. From notifications to news alerts, it’s difficult to stay focused on what’s important. And with so many projects on the go, it’s increasingly difficult to keep yourself and your team on the right track without the use of technology.
On the flip side, there are so many powerful apps that you can utilize to work smarter instead of harder and keep you focused, away from all of those distractions. Maybe you’re a blogger like me, and you’re looking for a more efficient way to write using an AI writing assistant. Or, you might be looking to create your own personal productivity system. That’s why I’ve compiled a list of the best android productivity apps to help you take back control of your time.
Let’s dive in!
What is a productivity app?
A productivity app is something that simply makes your life easier. Whether you’re looking to increase your efficiency, improve your organization, or up your productivity game there’s an app for it!
In this blog post, we’ll rank and review the 19 best Android productivity apps of 2022. We’ll discuss the pros, cons, features, use cases, and pricing of each tool. So if you’re looking for a new task manager, note-taking app, or something else entirely, keep reading!
What Are The Best Android Productivity Apps?
Here are my top picks for the best performing android productivity apps:
Note Taking Apps
Task/To-Do List Apps
Password Management Apps
Automation Apps
Focusing Apps
File Storage Apps
All-In-One Apps
Time Tracking Apps
Texting Apps
Note Taking Apps
1. Evernote.
Evernote is a cross-platform app that helps you take notes and keep them organized. It offers an intuitive interface and powerful features such as search, tagging, and sharing. You can also sync your notes across all of your devices.
Key Features
- Take notes and organize them with ease
- Intuitive interface
- Powerful search and sharing features
- Sync across devices
- Shortcuts
- Tasks
What I Like/Dislike About Evernote
Likes:
- Evernote’s Notebook feature is a unique and intuitive way to organize your various notes. It’s very similar to Windows Explorer or an actual analog manual filing system.
- I love the ability to integrate your Google Calendar and create a new note directly from the calendar event.
- Evernote’s Web Clipper Feature allows you to save pages for later reading at the click of a button.
- The Evernote team is constantly adding new features and improving the usability of the app, adding more value to your subscription on a weekly basis.
Dislikes:
- Can begin to load slowly after years of use and thousands of notes
- Can be hard for new users to find how to use small but important features
Pricing
Evernote has free, personal & professional tiers. The personal version costs $69.99 per year and offers more features such as increased storage (10GB), offline notebooks, and password-protected notes. The professional version costs $99.99 per year, offering multiple calendar integrations and 20GB of storage.
2. Notion.
Notion is an all-in-one note-taking tool that can be used for everything from task management to project management to note-taking. It has a clean, simple interface that makes it easy to use and its features are robust enough to meet the needs of large teams. Notion is free to use, but its premium features are worth the price if you need them.
Key Features
- All-in-one note-taking tool
- Clean, simple interface
- Task/project management
- Note-taking
- Project management interface
- Knowledge management interface
What I Like/Dislike About Notion
Likes:
- Not just a note-taking app; it’s a project management tool as well
- The code blocks feature allows users to demonstrate programming concepts to share with other developers
- You can form your own “ecosystem” of projects and notes that are interconnected
Dislikes:
- Peculiarly, there is no ability to create charts
- Writing can be clunky as paragraphs are lumped into “objects”
Notion Pricing
Notion has a generous free plan that allows for the unlimited creation of pages and blocks, and free syncing across all devices.
Notion’s personal plans start at $4 per user per month, with team plans starting at 8$ per user per month. Paid versions come with extra features such as file storage & collaborative workspaces.
Task/To-Do List Apps
3. ToDoIst.
ToDoIst is a simple yet effective task management app that has been around since 2007. It’s available on nearly every platform, including Android, and it offers a variety of features to help you get your work done.
ToDoIst lets you create to-do lists and tasks, set due dates and reminders, add subtasks, and more. You can also collaborate with others on projects, and there’s a handy calendar view to help you stay on top of your schedule.
Key Features
- Simple and effective task management creation
- Available on nearly every platform, including Android
- Filters & Labels to organize your tasks
- Keyboard shortcuts to quickly enter tasks
What I Like/Dislike About ToDoIst
Likes:
- The speed and ease of use on Android in creating tasks is a step above other task management apps
- Seamlessly syncs across all devices
- Integrates with Google Calendar to create tasks from calendar events and vice-versa
- Boards feature offers a unique approach to task management
Dislikes:
- Distinct lack of development of new features compared to other task management apps
- Karma Goals are simplistic and could be fleshed out more
ToDoIst Pricing
ToDoist offers a free plan that allows users to create up to 5 projects. Their Pro plan begins at 4$ per user per month and allows for up to 300 projects and different themes. ToDoIst Business plans start at $6 per user per month.
4. TickTick.
TickTick is a productivity app that helps you keep track of your tasks and to-do lists. It is available for free on the Google Play Store. TickTick has a basic, user-friendly interface. You can create to-do lists and tasks, set reminders, and add notes to each of your tasks.
Key Features
- To-do lists and tasks
- Set reminders
- Add notes to each task
- Smart date parsing and location reminders
- Pomodoro timer
- Syncs across 10+ platforms
What I Like/Dislike About TickTick
Likes:
- The workflow of adding tasks is extremely quick.
- I love that TickTick offers a Pomodoro timer – I haven’t seen that in a task management app before
- The achievement scores are based on you completing your tasks on time, which encourages you to get things done on time.
Dislikes:
- Basic interface compared to other task management apps
- TickTick offers no functionality for teams or collaboration
TickTick Pricing
TickTick has a free plan and a paid plan. The paid plan starts at $2.79 per month or $27.99 per year.
5. Trello.
Trello is a visual task management tool built primarily for teams. It’s board-centered interface means that it’s great for small businesses or individual users who want to collaborate with others. The best part about Trello is that it’s free to use (with some features locked behind a paywall) making it one of the best task management options for teams.
Key Features
- Drag and drop interface that makes it easy to organize tasks into boards and lists
- Assign tasks to team members, set deadlines, and add comments
- Integrates with a variety of other productivity tools, including Google Docs, Slack, and Evernote
- Templates feature gives teams a blueprint for success
- Trello offers a suite of plug-ins called “Power-Ups” that integrate with other popular productivity tools to provide a quick and fun user experience
What I Like/Dislike About Trello
Likes:
- Many task managements try to execute the board-centered approach, but Trello does it best.
- Trello’s Power-Ups are addicting and allow endless possibilities for productivity enhancement.
- Trello’s Views feature is both accessible and gorgeous.
Dislikes:
- While individuals can use the app, the workflow & the paid features are best designed for teams.
- Users who do not like a board-centered task management app should look elsewhere.
Trello Pricing
Trello offers a free version with unlimited cards and up to 10 boards per workspace. Their Standard paid plan begins at $5 per user per month and allows for unlimited board and storage. Their Premium paid plan begins at $10 per user per month and unlocks access to their beautiful and accessible “Views” feature.
Password Management Apps
6. 1Password.
1Password is a great password management tool for those who are looking for a simple and straightforward way of managing randomized, military-grade passwords. It’s a great choice for users who want to keep their passwords organized across different platforms.
Key Features
- Simple and straightforward interface
- Password Health Scores – give users a breakdown of which passwords are weak
- Allows users to keep their passwords organized across different websites
- Military-grade security
- Random generation of passwords with numbers and symbols that can be auto-filled for different sites with a simple click
- Store credit card information and personal identification
What I Like/Dislike About 1Password
Likes:
- I like that the simple & straightforward user interface.
- The autofill detection of 1Password seems superior to other password managers I’ve used.
- The ability to generate new, randomized passwords quickly.
- 1Password’s Chrome Extension allows you to quickly enter your passwords for different sites without opening the Desktop app
Dislikes:
- They seem to redesign their UI every couple of years which confuses their user base.
- The dark theme’s color contrasts could be better designed
1Password Pricing
1Password offers two paid versions – 1Password for $3 per month, and 1Password Families for $5 per month. 1Password Families includes all of the basic features of 1Password, as well as the ability to share with up to 5 family members, and manage what other family members can see and do.
7. Dashlane.
If you’re looking for a comprehensive and secure password manager, look no further than Dashlane. With this app, you can easily generate and store strong passwords, and autofill them when logging into apps and websites. Dashlane also comes with a digital wallet feature, so you can store your credit card information and other sensitive data in one place. Dashlane is designed primarily with businesses in mind and is less geared towards the consumer.
Key Features
- Password generator
- Secure storage
- Autofill passwords
- Digital wallet
- Password sharing across teams
What I Like/Dislike About Dashlane
Likes:
- Dashlane’s secure sharing feature is ideal for small or large teams looking to share passwords across different apps
- The company security score gives IT administrators a quick, high-level look at the strength of their employee’s passwords
- Business focused password manager is ideal for IT administrators looking for a password manager implementation for their whole team
Dislikes:
- The user interface is not as intuitive as other password managers
- Dashlane’s personal password manager is lacking compared to other consumer password managers on the market.
Dashlane Pricing
Dashlane offers a free consumer version that allows for password management on only one device. Its premium consumer version starts at $4 per month, with a family consumer plan priced at $6 per month.
Dashlane has two B2B plans: Team, and Business. The Team version is priced at $5 per user per month and the Business version is priced at $8 per user per month, both billed annually.
Automation Apps
8. IFTTT (If This Then That).
IFTTT is a free app that lets you automate tasks on your phone. With IFTTT, you can create “recipes” that trigger certain actions when certain conditions are met. For example, you could create a recipe that automatically texts you when your commute to work is delayed by traffic.
IFTTT has a wide range of potential uses for productivity. For example, you can use IFTTT to automatically save new contacts to your CRM, track your work hours in a spreadsheet, or get an email when someone mentions you on social media. It’s extremely powerful because of the endless integration possibilities.
Key Features
- Automate tasks on your phone
- Create “recipes” with triggers and actions
- Use “recipes” to bridge automation between apps
What I Like/Dislike about IFTTT
Likes:
- Intuitive “recipe” creation process
- Endless integration possibilities
- Can pull from a vast database of recipes that IFTTT users have already created
- Positive & enthusiastic userbase and community
Dislikes:
- Can be easy to get sucked into too many different recipes
- Large focus on using community recipes instead of creating your own
IFTTT Pricing
IFTTT offers a free version that allows for the use of 5 applets. It’s first paid tier, IFTTT Pro offers up to 20 Applets as well as customer support and is priced at $2.40 per month. IFTTT Pro+ offers unlimited applets and everything included in the pro plan for $5 per month.
Focusing Apps
9. Freedom.
Freedom is an app that helps you focus by blocking distractions on your phone, tablet, and computer. With Freedom, you can block websites, apps, and even the entire internet if you need to get something done.
Key Features
- Block websites, apps, and the internet
- Schedule focus sessions in advance
- Block distractions for a set amount of time
- Syncing and blocking across all your devices
- Pause feature – pause momentarily before visiting a distracting website
- Limit feature – limit your time spent on distracting websites
- Insight feature – shows where you’re spending most of your time online.
What I Like/Dislike about Freedom
Likes:
- Very effective at blocking distractions. When you turn it on in Locked Mode, you cannot access your blocked websites or apps!
- The ability to schedule focus sessions in advance allows for the ability to hold yourself accountable to focus sessions.
- The ability to block across all devices is awesome.
Dislikes:
- The app can be a little glitchy and slow at times
- The interface is not the prettiest, and enabling/disabling certain features can be unintuitive for the average user.
Freedom Pricing
Freedom has one paid tier, split into three different price options: $9 per month, $40 per year, or $160 for lifetime access.
10. Forest.
Forest is a unique Pomodoro app that helps you focus by planting trees. When you want to focus, you set a timer in the app and start working. For every 15 minutes that you stay focused, a tree is planted. If you leave the app before your timer is up, your tree dies.
The idea behind Forest is that as you stay focused and earn more trees, you create a virtual forest that is filled with your own personal trees. The app also includes a leaderboard to compete against friends and family, as well as unlocking different tree species as you continue to use the app.
Key Features
- Plants trees when you stay focused for a specified amount of time
- Leaderboard to compete with friends and family
- Personality Test to find your “Focus Type” and “Study Buddy Tree”
- Virtual Forest so you can visually see and track how long you have stayed focused
- You can convert your time focused to donating to tree planting in real life via an organization called Trees for the Future.
- Chrome Extension allows you the ability to plant trees across different devices.
What I Like/Dislike About Forest
Likes:
- The Pomodoro Technique is an effective way to focus, and Forest takes it a step further by planting trees. It’s a beautifully designed and artistic app.
- The app is very well designed and has a great user interface.
- It’s fun to use and competitive with the leaderboard feature.
- I like that there is a virtual forest that you can fill up with trees.
- The ability to exchange your focus time for planting real-life trees is an excellent motivator to stay focused.
Dislikes:
- The “Focus Type” and “Study Buddy Tree” features seem like they would be more effective if they were integrated into the app in a more meaningful way.
- I wish there were more tree options and more events to unlock unique, collectible trees.
Forest Pricing
Forest can be purchased for a one-time fee of $1.99 on the Google Play Store.
11. FocusList.
FocusList is a Pomodoro timer app that helps you boost productivity by breaking down your tasks into 25-minute intervals, followed by a five-minute break.
The app also includes features such as goal setting, task tracking, and progress reports so you can see how well you’ve been doing. You can also set up daily, weekly, and monthly goals to keep yourself on track.
FocusList also has a “Do Not Disturb” feature that silences all incoming notifications so you can stay focused on your task at hand.
Key Features
- Pomodoro timer with 25-minute intervals and five-minute breaks
- Goal setting
- Day Planning
- Time Tracking
What I Like/Dislike About FocusList
Likes:
- I love FocusList’s minimalist design.
- It has its own unique take on a Pomodoro system.
- The “Do Not Disturb” feature is a great way to stay focused on your task.
Dislikes:
- I wish the app had more customization options for the Pomodoro timer.
- I would also like to see more features such as task tracking and progress reports.
FocusList Pricing
FocusList is a free app with in-app purchases available for premium features such as goal setting and day planning.
File Storage Apps
12. Google Drive.
Google Drive is a file storage and synchronization service developed by Google. It allows users to store files in the cloud, sync files across devices, and share files with others. It also includes features such as real-time collaboration, version history, and commenting.
Key Features
- Store files in the cloud – no need for a physical drive
- Sync files across Android and desktop devices
- Share files with others
- Real-time collaboration
- Version History
- Commenting
What I Like/Dislike About Google Drive
Likes:
- I love that Google Drive is integrated with so many other Google products.
- It’s a very user-friendly and intuitive app.
- The real-time collaboration feature is excellent for team projects.
- Accessing files across multiple devices is super easy and intuitive.
Dislikes:
- I would like to see an improved search function.
- The interface could be more streamlined and organized.
- The app can be slow to load once you’ve uploaded multiple Gigabytes to the Google cloud.
Google Drive Pricing
Google Drive offers different pricing plans based on the amount of storage you want or need. 100GB of cloud storage costs $20 per year, all the way up to 30TB of cloud storage costing $300 per month.
13. Dropbox.
Dropbox is a file storage and synchronization service. It allows users to store files in the cloud, sync files across devices, and share files with others. It also includes features such as real-time collaboration, version history, and commenting.
Key Features
- Cloud Storage
- Sync files across Android and desktop devices
- Share files with others
- Real-time collaboration
- Version History
- Commenting
- Document signing feature on Professional Plan
What I Like/Dislike About Dropbox
Likes:
- The interface is very user-friendly and I love that it automatically syncs my files across devices.
- It’s great for collaboration because multiple people can work on a file at the same time and see each other’s changes in real time.
- I also like that it keeps track of all previous versions of a file in case I need to go back to an older version.
Dislikes:
- I’m not a fan of Dropbox’s subscription options. I feel like there are other storage services out there that offer more flexible pricing options and allow you to better customize the amount of storage that fits your specific needs.
Dropbox Pricing
Dropbox offers 3 different plans. Dropbox Plus starts at $9.99 per month for 2TB of storage, Dropbox Family charges $16.99 per month and ups the user count to 6, and Dropbox Professional + eSign costs $24.99 per month for 3TB of storage and E-signature capabilities for any documents within Dropbox.