CRM Software
Tools that keep your contacts, deals, and follow-ups in one place, from open source CRMs you host yourself to genuinely free hosted plans from the big names.
Our pick: Twenty
Free alternatives to: HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive
8 tools
Software Categories
Every category is a ranked, hand-reviewed shortlist of the best free tools for the job. Pick a category to see our picks, or go straight to the tool you want to replace.
Design & Whiteboarding
Tools for UI design, vector graphics, and visual collaboration. This category covers open source design apps, free whiteboards, and browser-based editors that stand in for Figma, Miro, Canva Pro, and Adobe Illustrator.
Our pick: Penpot
Free alternatives to: Figma, Miro, Canva
11 tools
Email Marketing
Tools for building a mailing list and sending newsletters, campaigns, and automated sequences. Free plans here are capped two ways, by how many contacts you store and by how many emails you send each month, so both numbers matter.
Our pick: Brevo
Free alternatives to: Mailchimp, Klaviyo, Kit
10 tools
Form Builders
Software for creating surveys, quizzes, registrations, and data-collection forms, from simple free tools to enterprise workflow platforms.
Our pick: forms.app
Free alternatives to: Typeform, Jotform, SurveyMonkey
17 tools
Note-Taking & Docs
Apps for capturing notes, building a personal knowledge base, and writing team documentation, from local Markdown editors to self-hostable Notion-style workspaces.
Our pick: Obsidian
Free alternatives to: Notion, Evernote, Confluence
11 tools
Project Management
Software for planning work and tracking who does what by when, from simple kanban boards to full agile suites. The good ones stay out of the way; the expensive ones charge per seat for the privilege.
Our pick: ClickUp
Free alternatives to: Notion, Asana, Jira
13 tools
Scheduling & Booking
Tools that turn your calendar into a booking link, from free one-person schedulers to open source appointment systems you run yourself.
Our pick: Cal.com
Free alternatives to: Calendly, Acuity Scheduling
8 tools
Video Editing
Software for cutting, grading and finishing video, from free open source timelines to the subscription suites they replace.
Our pick: DaVinci Resolve
Free alternatives to: Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro
13 tools
Video Recording & Screen Capture
Tools for recording your screen and camera and getting the result to someone else, from one-click share links to full broadcasting suites.
Our pick: Cap
Free alternatives to: Loom, Camtasia, ScreenFlow
10 tools
Web & Product Analytics
Tools that tell you who visits your site, what they do there, and whether they finish what they came to do. The good ones answer that without a consent banner or a data warehouse project.
Our pick: Umami
Free alternatives to: Google Analytics (GA4), Hotjar, Mixpanel
11 tools
Workflow Automation
Tools that connect your apps and move data between them automatically, from fair-code and open source engines you self-host for free to hosted platforms with a real free tier.
Our pick: n8n
Free alternatives to: Zapier, Make
7 tools
