One of the biggest complaints of most entrepreneurs and business owners is that there just aren't enough hours in the day to get everything done.
Therefore, despite our best efforts at multitasking, one of the most important things that need managing in our business lifestyles is time. Luckily, as with most things in the digital age, there are hundreds of time management apps out there to help with this.
The Best Time Management Apps
To help save you time (pun intended) we've compiled a list of the best solutions currently on the market, leaving you free to focus on doing what you do best with your organisation.
1. Focus Booster
A common trait of poor time managers is procrastination, so if you often find yourself saying that "it's fine - I'll do it tomorrow", then this could be the app for you.
Focus Booster helps users understand how they can use their time more efficiently and become more productive, with the name saying it all. The app automatically records how long it takes you to complete a particular task so that your output can be reviewed, tweaked and improved.
It feeds back all this information in a highly visual, easy-to-understand way, too, meaning that you won't be poring through reams of data trying to find potential areas for improvement. Focus Booster is available for free, with additional Individual ($2.99 per month) and Professional ($4.99 per month) plans.
2. Today Calendar
Despite only being available for Android, Today Calendar sets itself apart from other calendar apps by combining functionality with a striking, customisable visual aesthetic.
Despite being a calendar, it is highly useful for time management, as well. It enables you to add an appointment description along with the appointment's location, time and expected duration; especially convenient if you have a busy day of meetings pencilled in.
The app is currently available in the Google Play store for just under $5.
3. Toggl
If you've ever sat down at the end of the day and wondered where exactly all the time went, then Toggl could be for you. You can track what tasks you allocated your time to, along with notes, helping you to identify what you did on any particular day.
Conveniently for business owners, the app also lets you create accounts for your team members so that you can track and manage your employees' time, too. You can then use this data to create automated reports, which can, in turn, be exported into Excel, CSV or PDF format. With the help of these reports, you can see where the vast majority of your - and your team's - time is going and tweak accordingly.
Available on iOS and Android, Toggl offers a free 30-day trial, with the option to then either pay month-to-month or annually. Starter packages begin at $9 per user/per month, with the Premium package starting at $18 per user/per month; for large enterprises, custom pricing packages can be negotiated.
4. Shift
No matter what kind of business you run, it's likely that you spend a large amount of your day dealing with emails. It's also possible that you manage these emails through several different accounts, especially if you are a lone operator; this is where Shift can help.
Shift aids your time management by connecting all of your email accounts and favourite web apps into one place. Rather than switching between accounts, you can simply customise the interface to meet your own requirements, shifting seamlessly between email addresses without ever having to log in or out.
Naturally, this means less time expended looking for passwords, as well as less confusion as you struggle to remember which account you're working out of. Shift Basic is free, while the Professional version starts at $29.99 per year; the advanced option is priced at $99.99 per year and is available on Windows, Mac and Linux.
5. MyLifeOrganized
As the name suggests, MyLifeOrganized is all about, well, organising your life, which is particularly handy for entrepreneurs whose working hours can often eat into their personal time.
The app helps you to stay on top of your tasks, and therefore your time, by enabling you to create simple-to-use to-do lists. If one particular task seems like a mountain, the app lets you break it down into subtasks. It can even be configured to send you specific reminders when you reach a particular destination; when you arrive at the office, for example, the app will automatically remind you of any tasks you have set yourself to be done there.
MyLifeOrganized is available for Windows, iOS and Android, with a wide array of customisable paid versions complementing the basic free package.
6. RescueTime
If you are tired of putting in long hours, worrying about your business and even losing sleep, then RescueTime is an app worth considering.
It analyses all of your daily actions, allowing you to see where your time goes each day, and uses graphics to categorise your tasks; you can quickly see how many important tasks you have, for example, versus how many urgent ones are on your list. One of the defining features of this app, though, is that it informs you when you are spending too much time on one task, suggesting new and better ways to organise your day.
RescueTime Lite is available for free, while the Premium version starts at $6 per month (a free 14-day trial is offered). For larger organisations, pricing starts at $6 per month/per team member, with a free 30-day trial. It is compatible with Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome, as well as iOS and Android.
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Don't forget to check out our definitive list of the top apps for business owners, either!
What other time management apps would you recommend? Let us know in the comments below.