Digital nomads are people who leverage technology to work remotely and live a location-independent lifestyle. They travel frequently, living in different cities, countries or even continents every few weeks or months. Rather than being tied to a specific city or office space, digital nomads are able to work from anywhere in the world with an internet connection. They earn an income through remote work and run their businesses or freelance jobs online. With more companies offering remote work opportunities, it has become easier for many professionals to embrace this nomadic lifestyle.
Digital nomads enjoy the freedom to travel and experience new places while continuing to earn an income and build their careers. However, they also face unique challenges compared to the typical 9-to-5 worker. Successfully working while frequently traveling requires using tools and apps that enable productivity, collaboration and communication from anywhere.
Communication Apps
Communication is essential for digital nomads to stay connected with clients, coworkers, friends, and family back home. Having reliable apps for messaging, voice and video calls is crucial when you’re working remotely. Here are some top apps digital nomads should have on their devices:
- Microsoft Teams – Microsoft Teams has been a top communication app for in-office professionals and digital nomads in recent years. It offers free voice and video calls, instant messaging, and screen sharing. There’s a desktop app & mobile app as well which is perfect for when you’re on the go.
- WhatsApp – WhatsApp is the most popular global messaging app with over 2 billion users. It offers encrypted texts, voice notes, video and voice calls for free. WhatsApp is great for staying connected with groups and contacts all over the world. The desktop version integrates nicely for seamless messaging.
- Google Hangouts – Google’s Hangouts app provides messaging, video conferencing and VOIP calling abilities. It conveniently integrates with other Google services like Drive and Calendar. Hangouts is ideal for web meetings, screen sharing and chatting with team members. The reliability of this app makes it a top choice!
Productivity Apps
Staying focused and organized is crucial when working remotely and on the go. Productivity apps help digital nomads manage tasks, projects, and workflow no matter where they are in the world.
Trello is one of the most popular project management tools for agile teams. It uses a kanban-style board to organize tasks into columns like “To Do,” “In Progress,” and “Completed.” Users can create cards for tasks, add checklists, attachments, and comments, and drag and drop the cards between columns to indicate status. Trello has great collaboration features and integrates with many other apps.
Asana is another excellent project and workflow management app. It provides a variety of project views including lists, boards, calendars, and timelines. Asana has robust features for assigning tasks, setting due dates, adding comments and attachments, and tracking progress. It also has a powerful reporting dashboard so you can see the status of all your projects at a glance.
Todoist helps digital nomads stay on top of their daily tasks and to-dos. It has an easy quick-add feature to capture tasks as you think of them. Todoist then organizes tasks by project so you can prioritize and track your progress. It also has handy integrations with calendar apps, allowing you to view due dates alongside meetings and events. The premium version offers useful features like reminders and activity analytics.
With the right productivity apps in your toolkit, you can work efficiently and stay focused no matter where in the world your laptop is set up. Trello, Asana, and Todoist are excellent choices for organizing your projects and tasks.
Document Collaboration Apps
Document collaboration apps allow digital nomads to easily work together on files and documents no matter where team members are located around the world. These apps help keep everyone on the same page by providing tools for real-time co-editing, commenting, task management, and version history.
Google Docs is one of the most popular options for real-time document collaboration. Users can create new documents, spreadsheets, slides, and more while allowing others to simultaneously view and edit the files. Google Docs makes it easy to @mention collaborators, resolves editing conflicts, and has built-in chat so you can discuss the document without switching windows.
Dropbox Paper offers collaborative document creation with Markdown support, task assignments, @mentions, and commenting. It integrates directly with your Dropbox storage allowing you to easily import files. Dropbox Paper also lets you organize your documents into workspaces for different teams and projects.
Quip combines documents, spreadsheets, checklists, and chat into one unified workspace. It’s designed for real-time coordination enabling everyone to edit documents together. Quip has useful features like live notifications when teammates are active and chatting in your document. You can also create checklists to manage tasks and assign owners.
Figma is also great because you can access it from any device with an internet connection and get designing, whether you’re on a beach or at a cozy coffee shop. Likewise, you can easily collaborate with your team no matter where they are! You can see edits happening in real-time. It’s like having your remote office right in your digital pocket!
Time Tracking Apps
As a digital nomad, it’s important to track how you spend your time working. Time tracking apps allow you to measure your productivity, identify areas for improvement, and even invoice clients accurately based on billable hours worked. Here are some of the top time tracking apps for digital nomads:
Toggl
Toggl is one of the most popular time tracking tools for remote workers and digital nomads. It has powerful reporting features that break down where you spend your time and integrates with over 100 apps. Toggl has browser extensions, mobile apps, and desktop apps so you can track time easily across devices. The free plan tracks time from one workspace.
Timely
Timely focuses on automatic time tracking using AI to detect which apps and websites you’re working in. This hands-off approach works well if you forget to start and stop timers. Timely integrates with calendar apps like Google Calendar to import appointments. The reports help you understand where your time goes and how to improve productivity.
RescueTime
RescueTime takes a more holistic approach to time tracking. It tracks your time across devices, and then provides an analysis of your daily habits and productivity. The app scores each day overall, and breaks it down by productive versus distracting time usage. This helps highlight opportunities to focus better. RescueTime’s premium plans include more robust reporting and goal setting features.
Expense Tracking Apps
Keeping track of expenses is crucial for digital nomads and remote workers. Having an automated system to track spending helps maintain budgets and prepare taxes. Here are some top expense tracking apps:
Expensify
Expensify is one of the most popular expense tracking apps. It has mobile apps that allow you to snap photos of receipts. Expensify automatically reads receipt data like merchant, date, and amount. It can also trace expenses on credit cards and import data from other apps.
Key features include:
- Scan and extract receipt data with SmartScan
- Create and share expense reports
- Integrate with accounting software
- Approve expenses
- Pay vendors and reimburse employees
Expensify makes expense tracking simple for individuals and teams.
Receipt Bank
Receipt Bank specializes in automatic data extraction from receipts. It works with imaged receipts from mobile apps and scanned receipts.
Key features:
- Extracts key receipt data
- Syncs with accounting systems
- Approve receipts
- Pay vendors
- Generates expense reports
The automated receipt processing helps minimize data entry for expense reports.
Pleo
Pleo issues prepaid cards that make spending and tracking expenses simple. It has built-in integrations with commonly used apps like Slack, QuickBooks, and Xero.
Key Pleo features:
- Prepaid cards for employees
- Snap and auto-categorize receipts
- Team budgets
- Integrations and automation
- Real-time spending overview
Pleo combines automated tracking with company card benefits optimized for remote teams. The focus on automation and integration makes Pleo easy to use.
Travel Apps
Travel apps are essential for digital nomads to navigate new places and keep their trips organized. Some of the best travel apps for digital nomads include:
- Google Maps – This navigation app allows you to download offline maps so you can find your way even without internet access. It provides accurate route planning, even in remote areas. The app can also give you recommendations for things to do in the area based on your preferences.
- XE Currency Converter – This currency converter has up-to-date exchange rates for currencies worldwide. You can calculate prices and get a sense of costs in the local currency. It works offline so you can use it anywhere without wifi. The app also tracks your spending by currency.
- The OG Planner: TripIt – TripIt helps you organize your travel plans by compiling flight, hotel, rental car, and restaurant reservations into one master itinerary. You just forward confirmation emails to TripIt and it creates an easy-to-follow schedule. The app also provides point-to-point directions, weather forecasts, and an offline seat map.
- New! Thatch– Find interactive travel guides by your fellow wanderlusters and travel gurus to get a personalized experience. Since it’s interactive and shows you travel recommendations this is a great place to start if you haven’t planned your next trip as yet, and not sure where to begin.
With these excellent travel apps, digital nomads can navigate smoothly as they hop around the globe. The apps provide connectivity, organization, and local insights no matter where your travels take you.
Language Learning Apps
When traveling the world, being able to communicate in the local language is an invaluable skill. Luckily, there are some great language learning apps tailored for digital nomads.
Duolingo is one of the most popular free language learning apps. It uses fun, game-like lessons and quizzes to help you build vocabulary and grammar skills in over 30 languages. Duolingo lets you set a daily goal for lessons, tracks your progress, and gives reminders if you miss a day. It’s easy to do a quick lesson whenever you have downtime.
Babbel takes a more traditional classroom approach with lessons focused on conversational skills. It has courses in 14 languages, each created by language learning experts. Babbel provides speech recognition technology so you can practice pronunciation and get feedback. Subscriptions start at around $7/month.
Memrise uses science-based learning techniques like flashcards, memory games, and repetition to help memorize new words efficiently. With courses in 200+ languages, you can choose to learn practical travel phrases or build more extensive vocabulary. Memrise is free for basic features, while premium plans with advanced stats/analytics start at $9/month.
With regular practice on these apps, digital nomads can pick up languages much faster than through traditional classroom learning alone. Being conversational in the local language allows for a more immersive cultural experience.
Online Teaching Apps for Digital Nomads
The growth of online education and remote work has opened up opportunities for digital nomads to teach online while traveling. Here are some of the top platforms:
Skype
Skype is one of the most widely used video chat platforms. Many online teachers use Skype for one-on-one lessons with students worldwide. Skype has screen sharing capabilities and can be used on desktop and mobile. The platform is free and easy to use.
Zoom
Zoom has gained massive popularity recently as the leading video conferencing platform. In addition to meetings, Zoom can be used to conduct online classes with multiple students. Features like breakout rooms and screen sharing make Zoom a great fit for online teaching. Zoom offers a free basic plan.
VIPKid
VIPKid is a Chinese online education company that connects English teachers with students in China. Teachers deliver 25-minute lessons to students aged 4-12 over the VIPKid platform. Lessons are structured using VIPKid’s curriculum. The service has become very popular with digital nomads as a way to earn income while traveling. There is a formal application and onboarding process to start teaching with VIPKid.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the best tools and apps for digital nomads make working and living while traveling easier and more efficient. The top recommendations covered in this article streamline communication, increase productivity, enable seamless document collaboration, track time and expenses, aid with travel logistics, facilitate language learning, and support online teaching.
Using these digital solutions provides significant benefits for digital nomads. Communication apps like Slack and Skype ensure you can stay in touch with colleagues, clients, and friends no matter where you are. Productivity apps like Trello and Asana help you manage projects and tasks efficiently. Google Drive, Dropbox, and other document collaboration tools let you access important files and seamlessly work on documents with others. Time and expense tracking apps like Toggl and Expensify give you important data and simplify accounting.
Travel apps like Google Flights, Skyscanner, and Airbnb make planning trips a breeze. Language learning apps like Duolingo and Babbel enable you to pick up new languages on the go. And tools like Zoom, Google Classroom, and Teachable empower digital nomads to teach online courses and offer virtual services globally.
With the right combination of mobile apps and web-based tools, digital nomads can focus their energy on the work and experiences they find meaningful rather than logistics. The recommendations in this article provide solutions to many of the common challenges faced by location-independent professionals and remote workers.
