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According to Gartner, the use of collaboration tools increased from 50% in 2019 to 80% in 2021.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic was the main cause of it, its aftermath has left us with remote work and hybrid working models in almost every company. Therefore, we continue to rely on remote collaboration tools as we look for ways to improve productivity in geographically scattered teams.

The tools on this list provide you with different options for you and your team to communicate, share ideas, and interact with project stakeholders.

How I Picked The Best Collaboration Tools

I evaluated and compared the most popular team collaboration software on the market, both for its reviews and user interface. Then I weighed factors that make collaboration tools a good option for project management, such as the ones that follow.

  1. User Interface – Project collaboration tools should be clean and intuitive to navigate. They should have easy access to different communication channels, search functions, private notes, private messaging, and history logs.
  2. Usability – Everyone on your team needs to be on board or else collaboration tools will always fail. Therefore, I look for something that is easy to learn, with plenty of training resources and robust customer support.
  3. Integration – Collaboration in today’s work environment requires communication and sharing across multiple platforms. Your integration needs are specific, but a good collaboration tool should include a few basic integrations with other team software: resource scheduling apps, documentation apps from Google and Microsoft, time-tracking tools, and any project management or task management tools you’re using.
  4. Price – Pricing will be the first yay or nay criteria for your adoption of a new tool. Keep in mind that the average price for collaboration tools hovers around $8/user/month.

Overviews Of The Best Collaboration Tools

Here’s a list of project collaboration tools to get you started. We cover key differential of the software, followed by a look at its features and functions, and finally its integrations and pricing.

Best for connecting goals and projects

  • 14-day free trial + free plan available
  • From $8/user/month (billed annually)
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Rating: 4.6/5

monday.com is a collaboration and task management software that's well-known for its simplistic design and user-friendly features.

Why I picked monday.com: I love how many collaboration tools this platform offers to help you work on your projects and tasks as a team. But the main reason it made my list is because of its goal-setting capabilities. You can develop your strategic goals, and then connect them to projects and tasks. This helps keep everyone aligned and on track in their work, and contributes to better teamwork.

As for project management, the platform is highly customizable, which is always a top priority for me when I look at project management tools. You can select from an array of views to keep track of progress. Shared documents allow users to co-create meeting minutes, brainstorm, and engage with others in the team. Everything related to your project can live in one place.

monday.com Standout Features & Integrations

Features include monday.com's Teamwork Hub, which is a dedicated space where team members can track dependencies, share updates, and resolve blockers in real time. Additionally, the platform supports guest access, which enables external collaborators like clients or contractors to work alongside your team while maintaining control over shared information.

Integrations include Slack, Google Drive, Gmail, Google Calendar, Jira, GitHub, Trello, Dropbox, Zoom, and Typeform. Many more are accessible via a paid Zapier account.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Free-forever plan available
  • User-friendly and intuitive interface
  • Complete work management platform

Cons:

  • Limited reporting in basic and free plans
  • Limited storage in basic and free plans

Best for automated collaborative flows

  • 7-day free trial
  • Pricing upon request
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Rating: 4.6/5

Screendragon is a work management platform designed for marketing, agency, and professional services teams. It combines project management, workflow automation, resource management, and budget management into one solution.

Why I picked Screendragon: Screendragon's smart briefs feature enhances the intake of work by using smart logic and automation to guide users on what information to provide and when. This ensures that your team starts projects with clear and comprehensive briefs, reducing misunderstandings and setting a strong foundation for successful collaboration.

You can also create custom proofing, review, and revision workflows that simplify feedback cycles and manage version control in one place. Instead of chasing scattered emails, all feedback is consolidated within the platform, ensuring decisions are tracked through automated audit trails. 

Screendragon Standout Features & Integrations

Features include advanced task management capabilities offering Gantt charts and Kanban boards to create task lists, assign tasks, and adjust timelines. Screendragon also has integrated resource management tools providing a comprehensive view of your team's capacity, allowing you to identify bottlenecks and manage workloads.

Integrations include MS Power BI, Slack, MS Teams, Zapier, Google Drive, Trello, Microsoft 365, Box, Jira, Microsoft OneDrive, and PeopleSoft.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Can tailor the platform to your specific needs
  • Good resource planning features
  • Integrates various tools like project management and budget tracking

Cons:

  • Time-consuming setup
  • The platform's depth can lead to complexity

Best for instant answers within workflows

  • 30-day free trial
  • From $18/user/month
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Rating: 4.6/5

Guru is an AI-powered enterprise search, intranet, and wiki tool that provides a comprehensive solution for businesses. It features AI-driven company knowledge search, a customizable employee engagement hub, and an automated centralized knowledge base, along with integrations with existing workflows and tools. 

Why I picked Guru: I selected Guru for this list because it aids team collaboration by centralizing and organizing company knowledge, making it easily accessible to employees. The platform aims to increase productivity and drive businesses forward by unblocking knowledge and eliminating time-wasting silos.

Guru's features include AI-driven knowledge search, customizable employee engagement hubs, and automated knowledge bases, which help reduce time spent searching for information. The platform also integrates with existing workflows and tools, allowing users to search for information without leaving their current workspace. Guru additionally supports various industries and teams, offering resources like field guides and templates to enhance knowledge sharing and management. 

Guru Standout Features & Integrations

Standout features include real-time knowledge sharing, which allows team members to update and share knowledge cards instantly across the organization. Its contextual knowledge delivery also ensures that employees receive relevant information exactly when they need it.

Integrations include Google Chrome, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Adobe Workfront, Airtable, BambooHR, GitHub, Intercom, Jira, Monday.com, and Trello.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Includes secure data encryption
  • Customizable knowledge boards
  • Offers automated content verification
  • Includes secure data encryption
  • Customizable knowledge boards
  • Offers automated content verification

Cons:

  • Requires regular maintenance for updates
  • Initial setup can be time-consuming
  • Requires regular maintenance for updates
  • Initial setup can be time-consuming

Best for application development

  • 30-day free trial + free demo available
  • From $35/user/month (billed annually, min 20 users)
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Rating: 4.4/5

QuickBase is a platform that enables the development of custom applications without requiring deep coding skills. It stands out for its no-code approach, allowing users to build industry-specific solutions with features like integrations, automations, and mobile capabilities.

Why I picked QuickBase: I selected QuickBase as a collaboration tool after judging its capabilities to enable teams to create and customize applications without the need for extensive coding skills. What differentiates QuickBase is its user-friendly interface and the empowerment it offers to citizen developers, allowing them to automate workflows and connect data effortlessly. I believe QuickBase is best for no-code app development because of its flexibility and the comprehensive solutions it provides, which cater to a wide range of business needs without requiring deep technical expertise.

QuickBase stands out as an excellent tool for collaboration due to its user-friendly interface and customizable features that cater to a wide range of business needs. It enables teams to create and share interactive, data-driven applications without requiring extensive technical knowledge. This flexibility allows for seamless integration of data from various sources, fostering efficient teamwork and decision-making.

QuickBase Standout Features & Integrations

Features include a no-code platform that enables users to build custom applications tailored to their business needs. Moreover, QuickBase’s built-in audit logs provide a collaborative safety net by tracking changes and updates, allowing teams to review and revert actions when necessary.

Integrations include Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, Google Calendar, Tableau, QuickBase Pipelines, Slack and Zapier.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Robust notifications and reminders
  • Workflows are easy to set up and customize
  • Simple no-code platform is easy for non-tech people to learn

Cons:

  • May be cost prohibitive for small businesses
  • Team plan requires a minimum of 20 users

Best for flexible, customizable workflows

  • Free trial + free plan available
  • From $5/user/month (billed annually)
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Rating: 4.1/5

Confluence is a remote-friendly online workspace for team project collaboration, project management, and knowledge management. It allows for efficient access and flow of project-related information, giving remote teams the ability to collaborate, store and organize documents, and maintain project updates using a single unified platform.

Why I picked Confluence: It enables users to share relevant knowledge while managing communications for the entire organization by configuring various role-based permissions for user feedback and collaborator/contributor content.

Confluence is built on a simple structure of spaces and pages. Its pages are dynamic documents that enable users to create, edit, and discuss work-related knowledge and processes. The software also provides a workspace; i.e., a flexible area that features different pages for projects, teams, and departments. Its Macro feature is designed to enable users to incorporate interactivity into the pages for added functionality.

To deliver efficient and useful online collaboration tools for teams, Confluence enables real-time editing and co-authoring. It comes with a built-in page versioning feature that allows users to track the history of changes made to every page. This allows them to view changes and compare multiple versions or revert the changes. The software enables users to post in-line and page comments.

Confluence Standout Features & Integrations

Features include a “Team Playbook” feature, which provides pre-built guides and exercises to enhance team alignment and problem-solving. Its robust meeting notes templates allow teams to document agendas, decisions, and action items in real-time, ensuring clear follow-ups and accountability. Finally, its advanced linking feature allows users to link related pages and documents directly.

Integrations include other Atlassian products, including Jira Software, and Jira Service Management. It also connects with third-party tools like Jira, Slack, Trello, Google Drive, Zoom, and Microsoft Office. Additionally, Confluence has a marketplace where you can find other plugins and add-ons to extend its functionality.

Best for knowledge management

  • 14-day free trial
  • From $10/user/month
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Rating: 4.2/5

Axero is a knowledge sharing platform that can be used to build out content hubs for internal and external collaboration. It's a flexible solution that's adaptable to the needs of various types and sizes of businesses.

Why I picked Axero: I decided to give this platform a spot on my list for its capacity to build a knowledge base for either internal or external collaborators (or both). It's flexible enough to suit various contexts, yet provides the necessary structure to keep information organized, accessible, and accounted for.

You can create both public and private spaces in your company wiki, and build out content in various formats. Blog posts, forums, surveys, and broadcasts are among the supported content types. Meanwhile, commenting and like buttons allow for engagement and interaction, and live chat lets you keep all communications centralized in one space.

Axero Standout Features and Integrations

Features include a collaborative document editing feature that enables multiple team members to work on shared content in real time. Moreover, Axero’s activity feed aggregates updates from across the platform, ensuring that team members can stay informed about new content, comments, and project developments without switching between tools.

Integrations include Outlook 365, Sharepoint, OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace, Slack, Zoom, Dropbox, Box, Unsplash, and Twilio, among others.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Suitable to the needs of larger organizations
  • Can be used for internal and external knowledge sharing
  • Highly flexible and customizable to various contexts

Cons:

  • Takes time to get familiar with all features
  • Integrations not included in starter plan

Best for simple, clean user interface

  • 14-day free trial + free plan available
  • From $8/user/month (billed annually)

Notion is an all-in-one workspace designed to help teams and individuals manage projects, organize tasks, and store knowledge in one place. It offers a flexible platform for creating and managing content, whether it’s for personal use, team collaboration, or company-wide documentation.

Why I picked Notion: I chose Notion because of its clean and minimalistic interface that makes organizing information intuitive and distraction-free. Your team can easily create custom databases, pages, and templates tailored to your workflows. Notion’s drag-and-drop functionality simplifies reorganizing content, while its ability to embed third-party media enhances the user experience. The platform also supports inline comments, making it easy for your team to collaborate directly on tasks and documents.

Standout features & integrations:

Features include custom databases to manage workflows, a web clipper to save content for later, and version history that lets you track changes over time. Your team can also use Notion to create linked databases, allowing information from multiple sources to stay connected and up to date. Its unique toggle lists help you condense and expand information to reduce visual clutter.

Integrations include Slack, Google Drive, GitHub, Figma, Loom, Typeform, Zapier, Integromat, and Trello.

Best for online whiteboarding

  • Free plan available
  • From $8/user/month
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Rating: 4.8/5

Miro is a collaborative online whiteboard built to facilitate brainstorming, ideation, team meetings, project planning, and other team activities.

Why I picked Miro: I decided to include this platform because of how versatile and flexible it is. Your team can start with a blank canvas or choose from the 1,000+ pre-built templates included. Miro supports a diverse expression of ideas, including numerical data and brand elements, alongside traditional visuals like sticky notes and videos.

Unique features such as Stickies Capture and TalkTrack can also help users convert physical notes to digital and recording explanatory videos for asynchronous collaboration, respectively. With integrations like Jira and Asana, plus Confluence and Notion, Miro bridges idea generation with project execution, facilitating a cohesive team collaboration environment.

Miro Standout Features & Integrations

Features include real-time voting and timer features that allow teams to prioritize ideas and stay on track during brainstorming sessions. Its 'Digital Sticky Notes' tool supports infinite flexibility for organizing thoughts, while the 'Mind Mapping' function encourages free-form ideation with structured visuals.

Integrations include Zoom, Figma, Asana, Microsoft Teams, Jira, Slack, Google Drive, monday.com, Confluence Box, Airtable, Notion, Azure, and Webex. Some integrations are limited to paid plans only.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Highly versatile and flexible solution
  • Thousands of customizable templates
  • Intuitive and easy setup

Cons:

  • Zooming can be jumpy on larger projects
  • No high-quality PDF export with free plan

Best for design collaboration

  • Free plan available
  • From $15/seat/month (billed annually)
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Rating: 4.7/5

FigJam is an online whiteboard that supports team collaboration, and connects easily with Figma's design platform. Its functionalities cater to various group activities, like stand-up meetings and brainstorming sessions.

Why I chose FigJam by Figma: This platform is highly flexible and well-suited to the needs of various types of teams. But I chose it because its integration with Figma's design platform makes it a good choice for teams looking for a collaboration tool that complements their existing design processes. In a world where disjointed tech stacks continually make teamwork more challenging, I love that FigJam allows design teams to work together within the same environment they use to do their work.

The whiteboard tool is highly flexible and can be used for all kinds of purposes. You can use its stickers, comments, shapes, lines, arrows, images, and more to map out concepts, ideas, and plans. There are also tons of pre-built templates to help you get started, from brainstorming outlines to retrospective structures to project management and roadmapping tools.

FigJam by Figma Standout Features & Integrations

Features include asset sharing between FigJam and Figma, which can help turn your rough concepts into more structured prototypes. FigJam also offers various automations, such as auto-sorting your sticky notes or consolidating notes into clear action items.

Integrations include Figma, Microsoft Teams, Asana, Jira, Mixpanel, and Github.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Freemium plan for up to 3 files
  • User-friendly and intuitive
  • Super helpful integration with Figma

Cons:

  • Non-Figma users may not get all the benefits
  • Onboarding and account support locked to enterprise plan

Best for team collaboration

  • 14-day free trial
  • From $5/user/month (billed annually) + free plan available
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Rating: 4.7/5

Nifty is a collaboration hub that unites goals, actions, and communications across your projects.

Why I picked Nifty: I selected Nifty for this list for its ability to integrate collaboration tools with individual projects. With this tool, every project comes with its own discussion board and a Zoom integration that you can use to call your team any time. Further, you can collaborate on documents from the documents tab. I also like how this lightweight document solution integrates with Google Docs so that you can work on documents in real-time without leaving Nifty.

The tool also includes direct messaging, which I think is great for facilitating team-wide communication from planning to delivery. Its ability to automatically update project milestones as tasks are completed also stood out to me.

Nifty Standout Features & Integrations

Features include project-specific collaborative workflows that allow team members to share files, assign tasks, and provide updates in a single cohesive view. Its dynamic workspace also includes a team calendar that consolidates project timelines, personal task deadlines, and meetings for enhanced visibility and synchronization. 

Integrations. Nifty allows you to import data from Asana, Basecamp, ClickUp, and Trello so you can quickly establish your workflow. Nifty has built-in native integrations such as Slack, Zoom, GitHub, Dropbox, Google Drive, GSuite, and Google Calendar, as well as over 1000 additional integrations through Zapier.

Best for secure messaging

  • 7-day free trial
  • From $2.50/user/month
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Rating: 4.8/5

Troop Messenger is a team communication platform that helps remote and hybrid teams keep in touch and stay aligned on their work.

Why I picked Troop Messenger: This platform's major features caught my attention, include instant messaging, voice and video calling, video conferencing, file sharing, and screen sharing and remote screen control. The main reason Troop Messenger made it onto my list, however, is because of its extensive capabilities for connecting team members working together but apart. It keeps all of your communications in a single platform, making it easier to find information and keep conversations centralized. I also want to note that, although it’s a SaaS tool, self-hosting, API, and custom application options are available, too.

Troop Messenger Standout Features & Integrations

Features include a 'respond later' option and a 'burnout' option that lets you set a message to send at a later time. The self-messaging feature is also unique—a simple but useful feature that lets you send reminders and notes to yourself. Finally, the 'forkout' feature lets you send bulk text messages and files to multiple users at once.

Integrations include Google Drive, Dropbox, and LDAP. You can also connect it to a paid Zapier account for additional integrations. The app is available across Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, and iOS.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • High level of security (end-to-end encryption, MFA)
  • Extensive filters for search function
  • Ability to invite guest collaborators

Cons:

  • Group calling not included in basic plan
  • No free-forever plan available

Best for visual project boards

  • Free trial available
  • From $8.25/user/month (billed annually) + free plan available
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Rating: 4.6/5

MeisterTask is an online task management tool with intuitive dashboards and individual agendas for each team member.

Why I picked MeisterTask: This software made it onto my list because of its task-specific communication tools. I was particularly impressed by its Kanban-style project boards, which you can customize to fit your team's workflow and track the progress of tasks. Within each task card, you can also store relevant files and links, and carry out discussions, which I think is a fantastic way to keep everyone on the same page.

MeisterTask Standout Features & Integrations

Standout features include the software's individual agendas, which allow each team member to set up and customize their own personal board view, showing the tasks they need to accomplish across multiple projects. Additionally, MeisterTask's focus timer feature helps team members manage their productivity by tracking focused work sessions directly within the platform.

Integrations include Google Workspace, Slack, and GitHub. You can also set up more integrations with a paid Zapier account.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Easy to create and assign tasks
  • User-friendly and easy to navigate
  • Free plan for up to 3 projects

Cons:

  • Personal agendas not included in free plan
  • Roles and permissions not included in lower-tier plans

Best for dedicated workspace threads

  • 30-day free trial
  • From $24/user/month
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Rating: 4.6/5

Kintone is a customizable collaboration tool used by teams at Volvo Trucks North America, Japan Airlines, Shiseido, and over 23,000 organizations worldwide.

Why I picked Kintone: Their unique platform allows you to build a wide variety of customizable no-code “apps” either from scratch, using templates or from your existing spreadsheets, for data management, business processes, and workflows. Kintone apps are not only customizable but they allow you to communicate where the data lives so your team is always on the same page.

Kintone Team Space feature lets you start conversations with your team. You can create different spaces for different projects or teams, which keeps your conversations relevant. Pretty much like conversations within tasks, every project data record within Kintone has its comment section where you can mention team members which helps add context to your conversations.

Kintone Standout Features & Integrations

Features include granular permission settings that allow teams to manage access at the app, record, or field level, ensuring the right people are involved in the right conversations. Additionally, Kintone’s built-in database supports collaborative data editing, where multiple users can update records simultaneously.

Integrations include tools like Slack, Gmail, Google Calendar, Outlook, Tableau, Dropbox, Salesforce, HubSpot, Eventbrite, WordPress, QuickBooks, MailChimp, and many more through a paid plan with Zapier or via API integrations.

Best for creative review

  • 14-day free trial
  • From $35/5 users/month
Visit Website
Rating: 4.9/5

Approval Studio is a design approval software that allows for design feedback and annotation throughout the creation process.

Why I picked Approval Studio: This software made it onto my list because of how useful it is for creative teams, especially creative agencies. You can manage your creative projects and set up approval flows to ensure feedback and proofing rounds are done in an efficient and consistent way. I am especially impressed by the level of detailed feedback that the platform encourages people to provide. For example, there are 4 different annotation types, which allows for more granular version control and supports collaborative iteration on creative assets. You can also have real-time review sessions using the software's live updates.

Approval Studio Standout Featuress & Integrations

Standout features include side-by-side version comparison that allows team members to view multiple iterations of a design simultaneously and provide feedback on changes. The platform also offers customizable project permissions, ensuring that only the right stakeholders can access specific files or make approvals.

Integrations include Shopify and Slack. You can also set up tons of other integrations with a paid Zapier account.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Unlimited projects and external reviews with all plans
  • Custom branding options with all plans
  • Supports over 20 different file types

Cons:

  • No free plan available
  • Several feature restrictions with the Lite plan

Collaboration Tools Summary Chart

Other Online Collaboration Tools

Although we haven’t included these in the review, there are some other collaboration tools that we haven’t had the chance to dive into fully yet. Below is a list of a few additional collaboration tool options for your agency or studio:

  1. Filestage

    For feedback management

  2. Backlog

    For development teams

  3. Samepage

    Collaboration mobile app

  4. Ziflow

    For creative asset collaboration

  5. Teamwork.com

    For company-wide chats

  6. Redbooth

    For creating team dashboards

  7. Gmelius

    Collaboration tool for Gmail

  8. ProjectManager

    With built-in employee onboarding

  9. GatherContent

    For collaborative content management

  10. Hibox

    For meeting management

  11. Podio

    For low-code automated workflows

  12. Ideagen Huddle

    Document collaboration tool

  13. Nutcache

    For schedule collaboration

  14. Next Matter

    For complex workflows

  15. Workmates

    For employee communications and intranet

  16. Punchlist

    For feedback and approvals

  17. OppolisCloud

    For collaboration on-the-go

  18. Swit

    For building a custom solution

  19. Favro

    For agile teams

  20. Height

    For cross-functional collaboration

Online Collaboration Tools FAQs

Find answers to common questions about this topic.

Online Collaboration Tools Buyer's Guide

How to pick the best collaboration tool for your team.

What's Next?

Now that you know more about tools, I suggest you learn a tactic on 3 collaboration roles that you can use to make your meetings more effective.

Other related reads:

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