Being a year-old startup, we understand the struggle of juggling between am eager ambition to quickly expand your business and a constant battle with financial constraints. So, we have put together a list of the top free tools for startups that can accelerate the growth of your startup without breaking your bank. Have a look!
Slack
Primarily an instant messaging platform, Slack serves as a collaboration hub for teams to stay connected and share their work. The platform offers multiple tools, mainly: Channels – to categorize teams and provide a streamlined space for focused discussions; and Direct Messages – allowing confidential exchange of information between two individuals. Files and documents can be shared in every medium on Slack: written, audio, video. The app is available for both phones and computers, alongside the web version of the platform.
The free plan includes:
- 1 workspace
- Data encryption and two-factor authentication under security
- access to the audio and video clips feature
- one-on-one audio and video calls
- 90-day access to message and file history
- 10 integrations with other apps
The free version of the app would suffice for a budding startup but the paid plans are definitely worth upgrading to for all the extra features they have to offer.
Trello
Trello is a project management platform, allowing teams and individuals to assign tasks to relevant members build checklists to tracks the progress of a task, set and follow realistic and flexible deadlines, add important attachments under projects. The platform helps to not only differentiate between projects, but also keep each project highly organized by ensuring accountability and a smooth workflow, making it a lot easier to keep tabs on each task.
The free plan includes:
- Unlimited cards
- Up to 10 boards per Workspace
- Unlimited Power-Ups per board
- Unlimited storage (10MB/file)
- 250 Workspace command runs per month
- Custom backgrounds & stickers
- Unlimited activity log
- Assignee and due dates
- iOS and Android mobile apps
- 2-factor authentication
The free plan is ideal for individuals and teams looking to organize any project. However, the paid plans are also very reasonably priced for medium to large teams, with the enterprise plan available for entire organizations.
Zoom
Zoom is an online meeting platform, offering features like high quality video and audio collaboration, chat spaces, rooms & workspaces, video webinars, virtual events – to equip individuals and organizations with advanced digital tools that ensure frictionless communication.It is a great platform to keep teams connected across different cities, or working even working in different time zones.
The free plan includes:
- Meetings hosting up to 100 attendees, with a 40-minute limit
- Team Chat with the option of file sharing
The free plan is good enough for regular, light usage. Value saving packages are also available in the form of paid plans billed on a yearly basis, that are affordable for bigger organizations looking for more efficient features and greater flexibility.
Canva
An online design platform, Canva empowers individuals and organizations with creative and simple tools like ready-to-use templates, customization options, in-built animations, graphics, and pictures. The platform can be utilized by startups to create brand kits and corporate communication material to kickstart their marketing activities.
The free plan includes:
- Drag-and-drop editor for easy customizations
- 250,000+ free templates
- 100+ design types (social media posts, presentations, letters, and more)
- 1+ million free photos and graphics
- Collaborative work
- 5GB of cloud storage
The free plan offers enough features for a rising startup, while bigger organizations can look into the paid plans offering more features and flexibility in design.
