Building Your Remote Work Stack
Remote work is now a permanent reality for millions of people. Without the structure of a physical office, staying productive requires deliberate systems — and the right apps to support them. The tools below cover the core areas every remote worker needs to address: communication, task management, focus, file organisation, and time tracking.
Communication & Collaboration
Slack
Slack remains the dominant team communication platform for remote teams. Organised channels, direct messages, file sharing, and integrations with hundreds of other tools make it a central hub for async and real-time communication. The free tier is functional for small teams; paid plans unlock message history and more integrations.
Loom
Loom lets you record quick screen-share videos with narration — perfect for avoiding lengthy meetings or explaining complex ideas asynchronously. A short Loom video often communicates more clearly than a wall of text in a message thread.
Task & Project Management
Todoist
Todoist is one of the most polished personal task managers available. Natural language input ("Meet client every Tuesday at 10am") makes adding tasks fast. It works across all platforms and has a clean, distraction-free interface. The free plan covers individual use well.
Linear
For software and product teams, Linear has become a favourite alternative to Jira. It's fast, keyboard-driven, and designed for modern remote development workflows. Less suited for non-technical teams, but exceptional for those building products.
Focus & Deep Work
Freedom
Freedom blocks distracting websites and apps across all your devices simultaneously. Schedule "focus sessions" in advance so that distractions are removed before you even feel the urge to check them. There's a free tier, with more advanced scheduling on paid plans.
Forest
Forest uses a gentle gamification approach to focus: plant a virtual tree when starting a work session, and it grows as long as you don't leave the app. If you pick up your phone to scroll social media, the tree dies. Simple, effective, and oddly motivating.
File Management & Cloud Storage
Notion / Obsidian
Both covered elsewhere on DeLapp, these tools double as knowledge management systems for remote workers who need to document processes, store research, and keep everything findable.
Google Drive
Still one of the best free cloud storage and document collaboration solutions. Fifteen gigabytes of free storage, real-time co-editing in Docs, Sheets, and Slides, and accessible from any device.
Time Tracking
Toggl Track
Toggl Track is a simple, clean time-tracking app available on web, desktop, and mobile. Start a timer, assign it to a project, and generate reports. Invaluable for freelancers billing by the hour, or anyone wanting to understand where their work time actually goes. The free plan covers most individual needs.
Choosing the Right Combination
The risk with productivity apps is over-tooling — spending more time managing tools than doing real work. A simple, effective remote stack might look like this:
- Communication: Slack or email
- Tasks: Todoist or a simple to-do list
- Notes/Docs: Notion or Google Docs
- Focus: Freedom or Forest
- Time tracking: Toggl (if needed)
Start with one tool per category, use it consistently for at least a month, and only add more if you identify a genuine gap. Less is usually more when it comes to productivity software.