Free Small Business Software: 37 Programs For Simplifying Your Business

As a small business owner, you know how quickly costs can add up. Fortunately for you, there are a great deal of free tools out there which could enable you to keep expenses down. We asked about for people’s favorite free small business applications, and got a ton of responses. In this article, we will share with you our favorite responses from small business owners using those tools to generate their lives easier.

1. Free CRM and Project Management Software — Insightly

Gavin Graham, Fit Small Business

Although typically marketed as a CRM, Insightly offers both contact and project management. It’s an easy-to-use alternative for small companies since it can be installed in only one hour. Insightly is free for 1-2 users and costs only $29 per user then –a fantastic bargain for CRM and project management all rolled into one.

2. Free Note Taking, Organizing and Archiving App — Evernote

Dan Gudema, StartupPOP

Evernote has probably been the single most important free software I’ve used over the previous five years to help me in my small business. It lets me store text, images and video to the cloud from my smartphone, laptops and tablet computers. Since I started using Evernote, I haven’t had to grab a tacky pad and write a note down, and when my smartphone dies or my laptop expires, the information is not lost. Specifically, if it were no more accessible, not certain how I’d store a number of this information and retrieve it that I always need to access.

3. Free Accounting Software — Wave

Bonny Albo, Bonny Adventures

Wave is totally free invoicing, income and expense tracking program that you could download as an app or use on your desktop. It took me about 15 minutes to set this up so all my business accounts’ data ported over automatically to the app, so now I do not need to manually monitor any expenses, receipts, payments, and so forth. I can even invoice clients (for free, just pay Visa/MC/AMEX prices ), add images of receipts to my document from different accounts (and it is going to auto-fill much of the information for me personally ), and get weekly reports emailed to me of all changes to my own accounts. Truly brilliant. I have used it for six months and it has become indispensable for me, especially since I operate in multiple, unusual currencies frequently.

4. Free Local Business Listing Search Tool — Yext

Marc Prosser, Co-founder, Fit Small Business

In case you have a brick-and-mortar organization, you want to make certain that you’re listed in as many local directories as possible. Yext provide a free tool that scans dozens of online directories to determine whether your business is visible. Find out if your business shows up in local directory listings with this free Yext scanning tool.

5. Free Web Automation Program — Zapier

Steph Taylor, The Bloomin’ Boss, Wildbloom Creative

My favorite free software for company is Zapier. It basically automates all the menial little tasks — such as sharing articles across social platforms or upgrading your CRM. It joins a lot of different apps together to create automations — and you can create your own automations with little tech knowledge.

The constraints on the free program mean you can not connect it to their designated”premium” apps and you can just have a restricted variety of automations running. But, the free version is unquestionably a massive time-saver!

6. Free Screen Recorder Software — HYFY

Monte Eiseman, Analyst, Guild Capital

HYFY is a screen recorder that allows you record both a movie of your screen and sound of you describing what’s in the movie at the same moment. After recording it gives you a hyperlink and with integrations with Slack and Hipchat, it let’s you easily share the movie with group members (or just send it via email). It is really great for accountants, teachers, sales groups, programmers, etc..

HYFY helps cut back on the back and forth by allowing lengthy and detailed descriptions of something that has to be shared rather than screenshots and a long, complicated email.

7. Free Platform For Finding Finest Insurance For The Business — CoverWallet

Maxime Rieman, CoverWallet

CoverWallet’s platform is designed to assist small business owners understand their own risks and coverage needs; buy insurance on the web; and handle most of their coverage information and related records digitally.

CoverWallet’s management platform lets you request certificates from every party, monitor when it was received, and receive notifications if their policy doesn’t meet requirements or has to be renewed. No longer massive spreadsheets or hoping your spouse complied with what they said they would.

8. Free Email Address Finder — Hunter

Carrie Wood, Chief Marketing Officer, Leaseref.com

We utilize Hunter to find email addresses. It may be installed into a Chrome browser from the Chrome extension shop. When you’re on a website, just click the Hunter icon and it’ll search the site and social platforms and supply as many mails for that website it can find. There are 150 free hunts you get every month.

9. Free POS Software for Small Retailers — Square

Krista Fabregas, Fit Small Business

Square is our best POS applications pick for smaller retailers due to the fact that it offers many sales, inventory, and business management features for free. There are no monthly or startup fees, and payment processing charges are only 2.75%. Square POS comes with a free online shop and mobile card reader.

10. Free Customer Service Software — Helprace

Vitaliy Verbenko, Helprace

Helprace is a client support software which comprises a ticketing help desk, knowledge base and a community forum to get feedback. There is also a feedback collection widget that may be set anywhere on your webpage. The free version of the app can be used for simple email management and idea collection.

Here’s what you can do using the free version:

Ticketing (email service ) for multiple staff members
Feedback community to collect and monitor questions, ideas, problems and praise
Self-service portal such as a knowledge foundation

11. Free Survey Tool — Survey Monkey

Malisa Lieser, Malisa Lieser Planning

Survey Monkey makes it possible to build completely free surveys so you can serve your audience better. They also have complimentary templates so you can create nice looking polls to ship out to your customers. Getting feedback on your product or service is a good way to learn what you need to improve upon, and what’s presently working!

12. Free CRM — Zoho

Marc Prosser, Fit Small Business

Zoho offers free CRM for up to three workers and costs only $12 per user per month after that. That gives you a lot of the performance of packages like Salesforce at a fraction of the purchase price. Additionally, Zoho offers bookkeeping, email applications, a program builder, and much more. Click here to get started using Zoho.

13. Free Tools to Automate Website Growth — Sumo

Kristi Porter, Consultant, Signify

I’ve only been using it a couple of weeks, but I am loving Sumo! My preferred tool, and what lured me to register, was the”Chat” feature. It allows me to have social share buttons on every page, but in a habit and tasteful way. Before Sumo, I just had the ability to do this under my blog articles. I also have been playing about with”Heat Maps” to see where people are clicking on my website, which I look at to make sure those areas are easily known and optimized for visitors. In addition they have a Google Analytics integration,”Welcome Mat” for incorporating pop-ups to your website, and several other things. I am slowly working my way through the features to find out what might be ideal for my business, but it is a great resource available at no cost.

14. Free Content Management System — WordPress

Najeeullah Babar, President, Interloper, Inc..

With WordPress, you can easily setup a site, or a blog at no cost. There are hundreds and hundreds of free plugins available that enhance the functionality of their core program. Additionally if you reach a point in which you believe you want to go beyond the free functionalities, there are tons of good professional programmers available who will assist you expand on the center.

15. Free Business Email Address

Jeremy Marsan, Fit Small Business

1 way companies owners hurt themselves would be using a private email address to get their business, such as YourName@gmail.com instead of YourName@YourBusiness.com. Luckily, it’s easy to get a business email address free of charge using our recommended web hosting providers. Discover how to set up a free professional email address here.

16. Free SEO Software — SEOProfiler

Amy Kilvington, Consultant, Obviously Content

I utilize a brilliant piece of software named SEOProfiler, which provides lots of the services which paid SEO platforms offer, but without the hefty price tag! As a small business, it’s imperative that I utilize the most cost-effective solutions potential, and SeoProfiler allows me to supply my customers with information and informs the job I undertake for them, for example link building and content marketing. SeoProfiler supplies tools like link analysis, key words opportunities and positions, which is vital for somebody that works in the digital marketing industry. There is an option to upgrade to a paid version, however, you are not forced to.

17. Free Website Analytics — Google Analytics

Risa Borsykowsky, Owner, Jewish Present Place

Google Analytics gives me insight into my website’s traffic, bounce rate, landing pages, links, search queries, and a ton more info.

18. Free Online Forms — JotForm

Chad Reid, MS, Manager of Communications, JotForm

JotForm allows anyone — with or without coding knowledge — to create online forms. Perfect for registration forms, surveys, job application forms, order forms, general contact kinds, and lead production kinds. A small company can run their entire company on JotForm, and for free!

19. Free Messaging and Video Conferencing Software — Glip

Glip is a messaging and video conferencing software that permits you to use real-time chat and video to easily collaborate with your team. From any web-based device, you are able to share files and operate together on documents, create jobs onto a shared calendar and video-chat with screen share capacities. Glip also integrates directly with additional communication and file-sharing programs such as Outlook and Google Drive. Click here to get started at no cost.

20. Free Email Marketing — MailChimp

Zondra Wilson, Blu Skin Care

I frequently use MailChimp to send email blasts to customers about earnings and skin care tips. The free grade of the popular email advertising management service lets me send up to 12,000 emails per month to a list that is no bigger than 2,000 email addresses. To put it differently, I can not blast the world, however, the normal small company including Blu Skin Care can email a substantial portion of my client base. The free version of MailChimp is pretty much unrestricted. I also get access to MailChimp’s complimentary comprehensive reporting and A/B split testing.

21. Free Social Media Management — HootSuite

Aaron Hockel, Partner, AltaVista Strategic Partners

HootSuite is hands down the greatest free social networking management tool. It allows you to schedule future posts, automatically sends them out to 3 societal profiles, tracks our expansion stats, plus they provide a lot of free courses on social media. We’ve been using it for decades, at no cost, and it has greatly reduced the time burden using a social networking presence can have on a business proprietor.

22. Free Graphic Design Images — Canva

Ashley Faulkes, Creator, Mad Lemmings

Canva helps people create stunning graphics with virtually zero layout abilities. They’ve trendy templates for just about anything (from societal media to brochure and cards) and can save you both money and time by placing graphic design skills in anyone’s hands.

I use it for everything from social media and infographics to pdf creation and it has literally saved me hours and thousands of dollars!

23. Free Landing Page Builder — ONTRApages

Diana Koshedzhiyska, Marketing Automation Officer, Buzz Fixer Ltd..

ONTRApages, is one of the easiest tools to use on the market. The tool permits you to build and publish a gorgeous and open landing page in minutes and begin collecting leads. You’ll have up to 10 pages at any given moment (you can delete old ones to free up any space), also may have a max of 2500 people a month visiting your pages.

24. Free Payroll Processing — Xero

Crystalynn Shelton, Fit Small Business

If you’re looking for a reasonable accounting software in addition to citizenship, Xero is a great alternative. A normal subscription for their bookkeeping software costs just $30 a month and lets you run payroll for up to 5 workers for free (10 using a premium accounts ) with direct deposit, attendance management, and taxation payment calculations. Click here to try Xero free for 30 days.

25. Free Business Credit Report — Nav

Jeff White, Fit Small Business

Most small business owners don’t realize that their company has a credit rating just like they do. When combined, your private and business credit may influence whether you qualify for loans and leases, get favorable terms from suppliers, or win bids on government contracts. Nav offers a completely free personal and business credit check that won’t affect your credit rating.

26. Free Tool for Getting Online Reviews — Trustpilot

Leon Rbibo, President, The Pearl Source

One of my favourite free software tools is Trustpilot. With their free version, companies receive 50 invitations every month to collect comments from their customers. The solution also enables individuals reviews to be displayed on one, highly-visible, impartial profile page which ranks independently in search engines. The more testimonials you have, the higher your page will rank.

But greater than that, it’s about customer relationship management and new building. Trustpilot permits you to proactively engage with your customers, actively listen to their own opinions and help build brand reputation.

Learn more about how to get online reviews in our manual.

27. Free Image Editing — GIMP

Tim Lynch, Psychsoftpc

GIMP is an open source image editing applications that rivals Photoshop. Anything you can do in Photoshop you are able to perform in GIMP. I’ve used GIMP for photo editing, graphics design and advertisement design. You can also use Photoshop plugins with it if you go through some hoops.

28. Free Communication Software — Slack

Levi Boyd, Digital Marketing Strategist, Holiday Inn Resort Vanuatu

When it comes to free applications for small companies, among my favorites for managing my group and streamlining communication is through a program named Slack. Rather than trying to communicate through telephone calls, texting, email, and Skype, everything runs smoothly because it is integrated directly through the app. It is really cool since I will talk about different subjects in various channels so that everybody on the group can see any upgrades, pictures, files and much more. I can not tell you how many times I struggled to keep email threads that were a mile . This tool has really helped condense all that. It is quite simple to find content as well because every thing is searchable by one main search box.

29. Free Customer Live Chat Software — Freshchat

Laura Handrick, Fit Small Business

Freshchat is our live chat software select for smaller businesses. The free version of Freshchat supports up to ten users and 10,000 monthly unique visitors. Additionally, it includes great features that available in the paid version of lother live chat software, such as a mobile app, desktop computer and push notifications, and integrations with Facebook Messenger, Slack, and Freshdesk.

30. Free Search Engine Analysis — Google Trends

Al Johnson, Raven Personal Defense Systems

One of the best free tools I have found is Google Trends. You may use it to see just what phrases people are searching for at Google and examine them with different search phrases to truly hone in on your target market and what they’re searching for online. Which is enormous because the use of one key word over another can make a huge difference when making online ads or when optimizing webpages to rank higher in Google when people perform searches.

31. Totally free Conference Calls — UberConference

Chasen Nick, Marketing Director, RAMS Home Loans

My beloved free program is UberConference. I’ve tons of conference calls every day and this lets me host millions of calls. All my guests may call in or join through the platform. I can record all of the calls, and I am also able to mute certain people or send messages individually. The interface is actually intuitive and allows me to efficiently perform specific commands in the center of a telephone. Screen sharing is another added benefit that has proven incredibly useful when seeking to share visual information and other important issues with clients. The HD sound has also been fantastic. It’s free to use, and will save a whole lot of headaches when trying to arrange conference calls.

32. Free Document Management and File Storage — Google Docs

Richard Blount II, Global Director, Four Winds Agency

I would have to say Google Docs is my favorite. I really like the fact that I’ve got a word processor, spreadsheet, storage (for documents ) and more at my palms. No matter which computer I’m on (in the office, home, holiday laptop, and even my telephone ) I’ve got access to all my types, word docs, spreadsheets, PDFs whom I’ve uploaded, and all my files. The free version is limited to 15GB of storage, but that is plenty of space for me. Additionally, it makes it convenient when I wish to share documents and files. I simply catch the’shareable connection’ and send it off in an email to a client. Google Docs makes a lot of my daily business activities suitable.

33. Free Online Inventory Management — Quartzy

Joseph Thomas, Co-Founder of A Bit Above, LLC

I originally became familiar with Quartzy two years ago while working as an assistant lab manager at a university laboratory. I fell in love with all the software after it assisted me predominate in our (originally ) from control laboratory. I’ve since found Quartzy to be an invaluable resource for a computer repair company I co-founded, and I sincerely hope it could be a boon to other small business owners on the market also.

34. Free Fax — FaxZero

FaxZero allows you to send 3 free pages via fax and around 5 faxes every day. The catch is they place an ad on your own cover page. While not a great option if your company is fax-heavy, it is very helpful if you just have the occasional need for faxes–plus, it removes the need to buy a more expensive all-in-one printer. Click here to read our Faxzero Reviews article.

35. Free Online Appointment Scheduling — Appointlet

Appointlet is an app you can increase your website that enables individuals to schedule appointments with you that automatically flow through to a Google Calendar. It is free for one consumer and appointment scheduling for 1 support. Paid packages are offered for those that need extra features.

36. Totally free Business Card — Vistaprint

Vistaprint offers 250 free business cards but there’s a catch: They place their ad on the back of your card. For $10 you can get ad free cards. Click here to read our post on the remainder of their business card choices.

37. Free Business Process Management Tool — Heflo

HEFLO is a 100% cloud-based process modeling tool that allows you to create diagrams with few clicks; it’s simple to use and intuitive. In addition, you can generate a professional documentation of your processes in a free account and share it with all the people involved. HEFLO also lets you automate your processes, reducing manual work and supplying Management Dashboards, so that you are able to maximize the work in your business.

Bottom Line

We hope you liked our listing of free small business software! Have you ever used any of those tools on this listing, or was there an wonderful free tool which we missed? Speak with us in the comments below!

Next find out how to find a free business email address. Yes, you will find more free things for you to make the most of!