- 1. What Is Collaborative Work?
- 2. What Is an Enterprise Collaboration System?
- 3. Introduction to Collaborative Teamwork
- 4. Collaborative Work Skills
- 5. Best Work Collaboration Tools & Software
- 6. Benefits of Collaboration in the Workplace
- 7. Challenges of Collaborative Working
- 8. Tips for Successful Collaboration in the Workplace
- 9. Effective Collaboration Strategies
- 10. What Is Cross-Functional Team Collaboration?
- 11. FAQ
- 12. Glossary
- 1. What Is Collaborative Work?
- 2. What Is an Enterprise Collaboration System?
- 3. Introduction to Collaborative Teamwork
- 4. Collaborative Work Skills
- 5. Best Work Collaboration Tools & Software
- 6. Benefits of Collaboration in the Workplace
- 7. Challenges of Collaborative Working
- 8. Tips for Successful Collaboration in the Workplace
- 9. Effective Collaboration Strategies
- 10. What Is Cross-Functional Team Collaboration?
- 11. FAQ
- 12. Glossary
Best Work Collaboration Tools & Software for 2023
To thrive in the current climate, you need to adapt to new ways of working. The most significant change in the past few years has been the partial or complete transition for many companies to a remote work environment. What’s more, many companies are beginning to challenge the traditional five-day week and other facets of the conventional 9-5 work model.
In the first quarter of 2022, industry titans Google and Bolt decided to try new work models on a trial basis. Google’s proposed hybrid work model will have workers come in at least three days a week, with the remaining time spent working from home. Bolt is switching to a four-day workweek in a move that could see other companies follow suit. What does this mean for the future of work?
Big change is afoot, which means you must equip your company with the right collaboration tools to adapt without disrupting productivity levels. 97% of employees would recommend remote work to others, so it’s safe to assume that the future is digital. Even students can get in on the digital revolution, making the most of tailor-made online collaboration tools to streamline study sessions.
One of the best ways to centralize operations and maintain productivity regardless of distance is to invest in collaboration software that can help you create an effective work collaboration platform.
What are collaboration tools?
Team collaboration tools are software solutions that can help you foster productive collaboration in the workplace. These collaboration tools can aid teamwork in various ways, including the following:
- Speeding up communication between team members
- Facilitating project management through visual boards and to-do lists
- Allowing for the sharing and editing of online files and documents
- Automating workflows to accelerate project progress
With the right tools for work collaboration, you can overhaul your operations and streamline your efforts. It’s essential for any team — large or small — and any department needing to coordinate projects and tasks.
Important features of team collaboration software
Clear and quick communication can set the tone for collaborative work, so it’s important to get it right.
Using company-wide online collaboration tools can allow team members to stay in touch through meetings, receive instructions via video conference, and go back and forth with colleagues on a shared project.
Both synchronous and asynchronous communication methods have their place in the modern company. The former can help you get up to speed on important details quickly or brief your team, while the latter gives you the means to communicate even when your team members are offline or live in another time zone.
To find the right collaboration software for your workplace, consider the following factors:
- Bottlenecks
- Budgetary constraints
- Current workflows
With these factors in mind, there are various collaboration features you can look to for solutions. These include the following:
- Means of communication: With direct messages, live chat, or video call functionality, you can stay in touch with your team regarding project-specific details.
- File sharing: Sharing files can be the key to successful collaboration, especially if you can co-author documents in real time.
- Time tracking: Track the time your team members spend on various tasks to accurately calculate payroll and keep your finger on the pulse of progress and performance.
- Task management: Use task management to manage the day-to-day activities of your team and communicate through tags and mentions.
- Data visualization: Visualize your project data using Gantt charts and other tools for a complete overview of how everything is going.
With that in mind, let’s look at some of the best online collaboration tools to assess which meet the above criteria to benefit your team.
1. Wrike
Wrike is a team collaboration software solution that brings everything you need for effective teamwork together in one centralized hub. The software allows you to schedule upcoming projects, visualize progress with Gantt charts, and keep in touch with your team members every step of the way.
Wrike collaboration software features
Interactive Gantt charts
For any team to enjoy shared success, there needs to be a degree of transparency so that everyone is in the loop at all times. With interactive Gantt charts, team leaders can effectively communicate and share progress with team members and stakeholders without uttering a word.
You can use the Gantt charts to map out the direction of a project with simple drag-and-drop functionality. With the timelines you create, you can share key milestones, meetings, and other important events with your whole team.
Since the charts are dynamic, whenever a change is made, they’ll update automatically to reflect the new information. The risk for miscommunication — even with regular changes in scope or goals — is minimal.
Proofing and approval tool
For asset creation, you need a seamless way of sharing real-time feedback and approving changes. Wrike’s proofing and approval tool ticks both boxes, allowing you to share in-context feedback that asset creators can address immediately.
By centralizing feedback, you aren’t forced to rely on lengthy email threads or lose track of your back-and-forth messages in a third-party app. Team members can automate the approval process, so as soon as something is ready for you to see, you’ll receive a notification.
Wrike’s digital proofing tools also help you pinpoint the exact areas that require action, reducing any time spent trying to find what exactly your team member’s comment refers to.
Custom workflows
The most significant time sinks in any team are trivial administrative tasks. While they may be straightforward to complete, each one can require several minutes and takes your attention away from the more cognitively-demanding tasks that actually move the needle.
With Wrike’s custom workflows, you can identify these simple tasks and automate them. When you set these workflows up in the software, you can save countless hours and reserve brainpower for the more challenging tasks. Simply set up a trigger for a particular task, and the process will begin — even if it’s recurring.
Task assignment and tagging
Wrike offers a digital hub for streamlined task management, so you can assign activities to one or more team members and follow the progress of each from your dashboard.
Once tasks are underway, team members can quickly communicate with others by tagging coworkers directly in the task. This context-specific communication makes it easy to amend issues with tasks quickly, reducing the risk of bottlenecks slowing down progress.
Proritized to-do lists
Everyone loves a to-do list for tackling a mountain of tasks, but it doesn’t only work in a personal context. With Wrike’s prioritized to-do lists, you can assign tasks and drag them into position according to priority so that everyone is clear on what they need to tackle first.
By communicating urgency, you can help your team focus their energy on the activities that will have the greatest impact.
Priorities can shift, though, which is why you can make real-time changes to your task lists. Your team will be automatically notified of these changes, helping ensure they’re always working on the most pressing tasks.
Highlights of Wrike collaboration software
- With 360-degree visibility, you can collaborate effectively with stakeholders
- Track KPIs and other important metrics with real-time analytics
- Visualize your shared progress with interactive Gantt charts
- Assign prioritized lists of tasks to team members
- Use custom workflows to create time-saving shortcuts on common processes
- Share real-time feedback on assets with the proofing and approval tool
Other features and considerations
Sometimes, as team leader, you have to delegate a task that, with the right system in place, could be repeated to your standards regardless of who’s in charge of its completion.
That’s where Wrike’s task-specific templates come in. Whether you’re experiencing employee turnover and don’t have the time to go over a familiar process again and again, or you want your team members to follow a specific structure, these templates can help lighten your load.
Whether it’s providing a new hire with an efficient way of taking actionable meeting notes or providing the marketing team with a proven way of conducting a competitor analysis, Wrike templates can help.
Wrike also offers Kanban boards, which are widely considered the gold standard of streamlined task management. Kanban boards are easy to use and let you set up individual lists for marking the various stages a project must pass through.
Boards, combined with shared team calendars, make it easy to plan for the future and put your mind at rest in the present.
Pricing plans
- Free - $0
- Team - $10 per user/month
- Business - $24.80 per user/month
- Enterprise - Custom pricing for large teams
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.3/5 (1805 customers)
Customers highlight the task management and internal collaboration tools of Wrike as standout features of the software. Try Wrike today with a two-week free trial.
2. Slack
Slack is a digital HQ that offers channel-centred communication for staying in touch with various teams and departments.
By centralizing all work-related conversations, you’ll never miss another important message and won’t waste time combing through email threads or various chat apps. However, the abundance of chat channels can sometimes be both a blessing and a curse, as notifications pour in from many directions. Great news — you can connect Wrike to Slack to keep all your communications organized.
Slack collaboration software features
Task management: Slack is primarily a communication tool, but it integrates with popular task management solutions such as Wrike so you can manage to-do lists and more.
Channel-based communication: Slack makes it easy to stay in touch with everyone from stakeholders and superiors to team members and customers. With separate channels stored in a single place, you can quickly navigate between your most important work conversations.
Highlights of Slack collaboration software
- Use different channels to manage all your work conversations from a centralized hub
- Integrate with third-party work management tools for easy project management
- Automate routine actions with custom workflows
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Pro - $7.25/month
- Business+ - $12.50/month
- Enterprise Grid - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.7/5 (21,999 customers)
Customers praise the simplicity of Slack and how easy it is to use as part of a team. For some users, it can feel like there are too many conversations to stay on top of, and wading through notifications can be time-consuming.
3. Zoom
Zoom was a lifesaver for many businesses during the first year of COVID-19, so much so that the brand name became part of the common vernacular. These days, it isn’t uncommon to ‘Zoom’ a coworker or group, which speaks volumes about the tool’s ability to connect teams.
While the audio and video quality are industry-leading, users can sometimes enter meetings without audio or experience technical difficulties that interrupt workflow. Get even more out of your Zoom experience by integrating Wrike with Zoom.
Zoom collaboration software features
Video webinars: In addition to live video chat, you can also hold high-quality webinars through Zoom to instruct and educate your team, department, or company. You can host more than 50,000 attendees, measure engagement from the call, and promote interactivity through chat and emoji reactions.
Group chat: Use secure Team Chat in Zoom to instantly communicate with team members. You can schedule future meetings to discuss project progress, check in on coworkers, and set up one-on-one performance appraisals.
Highlights of Zoom collaboration software
- Communicate within your team through live video calls or instructional webinars
- Use Team Chat to stay in touch
- Set up virtual events to celebrate progress, break the ice, or introduce stakeholders
Pricing plans
- Basic - $0 (up to 10 attendees)
- Pro - $139 per user/year (up to 100 attendees)
- Business - $189.90 per user/year (up to 300 attendees)
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.6/5 (12,400 customers)
Customers highlight the appointment-setting and video call functionality of Zoom as standout features. Some users claim that audio muting and video blocking can cause confusion at times during calls.
4. Trello
Trello is a Kanban board-based collaboration tool for quick and easy team task management. Access to various boards can help you stay on top of multiple projects, yet you can miss out on some information without a centralized dashboard.
Trello collaboration software features
Kanban boards: Trello’s Kanban boards make it easy to manage a project from start to finish as part of a team.
Custom cards: Add due dates and comments, and assign custom cards to team members.
Highlights of Trello collaboration software
- Assign custom cards and track their progress
- Use Kanban boards to map out projects
- Tag team members to keep everyone updated
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Standard - $5 per user/month
- Premium - $10 per user/month
- Enterprise - $17.50 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (21,514 customers)
Customers appreciate how easy it is to get set up with Trello as a team. Some users claim that Trello is best-suited to small teams and doesn’t work as well for large groups.
5. Podio
Podio offers low-code solutions for custom team communication. The software can help you stay abreast of your team and other departments’ activities, but the initial setup process can be complicated.
Podio collaboration software features
Workspaces: Workspaces are centralized hubs for managing every aspect of inter-team communication.
File sharing: Whatever you’re working on, you can share files quickly with your coworkers.
Highlights of Podio collaboration software
- Centralize communication with custom Workspaces
- Share files quickly to keep everyone informed
- Use custom workflows to create team harmony
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Basic - $7.20/month
- Plus - $11.20/month
- Premium - $19.20/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.3/5 (295 customers)
Customers praise the option to consolidate all communication from emails to task-specific comments in one place. Some users say that getting set up with the software can take a long time.
6. Flowdock
Flowdock combines team communication features so you can stay in touch through a centralized dashboard. Threading some conversations and separating others by context helps streamline internal communication, though notifications can flood your inbox.
Flowdock collaboration software features
Threaded chat: With threaded chat, you can store, archive, and receive notifications for all your messages.
Requests: Pull requests allow you to stay on top of your team’s requirements at all times.
Highlights of Flowdock collaboration software
- Streamline communication with a personalized dashboard
- Thread chat and receive notifications for incoming messages
- Store requests to systematize your workflow
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Premium - $3 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 3.9/5 (21 customers)
Customers appreciate the streamlined communication and threaded conversations, which help team members stay on the same page. Several users claim that the notification options are limited, leading to a cluttered inbox.
7. Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams lets you connect with your team using both synchronous and asynchronous communication methods. You can also record and share video tutorials with your team. However, getting to grips with all the features of Teams can take a while. If you already have Teams or plan to use it in your organization, improve your productivity with the Wrike and Microsoft Teams integration.
Microsoft Teams collaboration software features
Chat channels: Keep tabs on various projects and team members’ progress through context-specific chat channels.
Team management: Exchange documents and files, share videos, and manage your team with Teams meetings.
Highlights of Microsoft Teams collaboration software
- Use both recorded and live video to instruct and educate your team
- Stay in touch with context-specific chat channels
- Share files and documents in one place
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Essentials - $4 per user/month
- Business Basic - $6 per user/month
- Business Standard - $12.50 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.4/5 (8121 customers)
Customers enjoy working from the same document, as it facilitates convenient collaboration. With a steep learning curve, some users claim it takes a while to get used to the software.
8. Evernote Business
Evernote Business helps you consolidate all your notes and tasks in one place for simple team management. The software makes it easy to collect all relevant project notes and files, yet integration with other apps is limited.
Evernote Business collaboration software features
Spaces: Use centralized Spaces to keep information continuity when working on new and ongoing projects with your team.
Shared Wiki: Create shareable Wikis that contain all relevant company or project information, simplifying onboarding and complex project management.
Highlights of Evernote Business collaboration software
- Create custom Spaces for different teams and projects
- Use Wikis as reference points for all relevant information
- Collect, store, and share notes as a team
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Personal - $7.99/month
- Professional - $10.99/month
- Teams - $14.99/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.4/5 (7608 customers)
Customers appreciate the all-in-one organization features of Evernote Business, which allows them to centralize information for the team. Some say that the lack of compatibility with other apps can limit the software’s functionality.
9. Teamwork
Teamwork provides portfolio, resource, and project management features for teams to collaborate on projects and stay within their means. With Teamwork, you can track all details — big and small — related to various projects, though the lack of live chat options can make it difficult to stay in constant communication.
Teamwork collaboration software features
Portfolio management: View all of your projects and portfolio assets in one place to identify and navigate potential bottlenecks and issues ahead of time.
Project planning: Organize your projects and assign tasks to teams and sub-teams while you oversee progress as an admin.
Highlights of Teamwork collaboration software
- Take control of your portfolio and resources to visualize upcoming projects
- Hand responsibilities out to teams and sub-teams with project planning tools
- Use messaging and file-sharing to keep in touch with team members
Pricing plans
- Free Forever - $0/month
- Deliver - $12.50 per user/month
- Grow - $22.50 per user/month
- Scale - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (728 customers)
Customers appreciate the level of detail with which they can schedule projects and organize relevant information. Some say that Teamwork lacks live chat functionality, which can hinder effective collaboration.
10. Ryver
Ryver is a work collaboration tool that combines apps and email to help improve team-based communication. With Ryver, you can organize tasks and create groups to drive collective progress, though there can be some confusion over which participants are speaking in large group chats.
Ryver collaboration software features
Discussion forums: Use forums to open up discussions on big-picture topics and invite feedback from large groups.
Private team chats: Initiate private team chats to keep track of progress according to departments and project teams.
Highlights of Ryver collaboration software
- Maintain awareness of big-picture goals with open forum discussions
- Keep in touch with various teams using private chats
- Create topics to focus conversations around different tasks
Pricing plans
- Medium Pack - $4.67 per user/month
- Starter - $69 per user/month (up to 12 users)
- Standard - $129 per user/month (up to 30 users)
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.4/5 (41 customers)
Customers praise the software for its topics and tasks, which help keep project-related information separate and contextualized. Some customers suggest that in large group conversations, it can be challenging to recognize which user is talking.
11. Flock
Flock is a team-driven communication platform that can help you drive productivity and engage team members with discussions and task assignments. The tool works well for small and large teams alike, though individual files can be hard to track down at times.
Flock collaboration software features
Channel chat: Create public or private channels to set up conversations on project-specific topics or host overall direction and scope discussions.
Shared to-do lists: With Flock, you can convert discussions into tasks and break tasks down into to-do lists.
Highlights of Flock collaboration software
- Use a combination of private and public chat channels to discuss projects
- Turn discussions into tasks and to-do lists for ready-made action plans
- Host video conference calls to check in with your team
Pricing plans
- Starter - $0/month (up to 20 members)
- Pro - $4.50 per user/month (20-100 members)
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (301 customers)
Customers praise Flock for the tool’s ease of use and straightforward communication with team members. Some users claim Flock isn’t an ideal fit for enterprise-level use compared to the competition.
12. GoToMeeting
GoToMeeting offers business messaging, private meeting rooms, and interactive collaboration features for teams of all sizes. The ability to hold video meetings and host groups helps you touch base with your teams, though some users can encounter compatibility issues.
GoToMeeting collaboration software features
Business messaging: Keep in touch with your team within the app using integrated chat.
Personal meeting rooms: Set up meeting rooms where you can share your screen, draw to illustrate topics and brainstorm, and delegate presenter control for guest speakers.
Highlights of GoToMeeting collaboration software
- Use integrated chat to keep up with the latest updates
- Set up meeting rooms to explain topics or brainstorm with visuals
- Draw from meeting transcripts and cloud recordings to create actionable meeting notes
Pricing plans
- Professional - $14 per user/month (up to 150 participants)
- Business - $19 per user/month (up to 250 participants)
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (9874 customers)
Customers rate the large group hosting feature highly, as well as the option to record meetings for future reference. Some users say that there can be frequent connection failures and compatibility issues.
13. Office 365
Microsoft Office 365 is a suite of tools for effective work and client collaboration. The software solution makes it easy to access all your files and communicate as a team, though some of Microsoft’s tools work best when paired with others, increasing the subscription cost. Did we mention Wrike integrates with Office 365?
Office 365 collaboration software features
File sharing: Co-author and edit files in real time, then share them with your coworkers to speed up the collaboration process.
Microsoft products: With an Office 365 subscription, you can access Microsoft’s extensive ecosystem. This can bring everything you need for effective organizational collaboration into one place.
Highlights of Office 365 collaboration software
- Tap into the Microsoft ecosystem to overhaul your existing collaboration processes
- Edit and co-author files in real time
- Set up one-on-one and group conversations and pin important chats for easy access
Pricing plans
- Personal - $6.99 per user/month
- Family - $9.99 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.6/5 (12,536 customers)
Customers praise Office 365 for its secure file storage and sharing features. Some users dislike how the best way to make the most out of the software is to buy into the Microsoft ecosystem at greater expense.
14. Asana
Asana is an Agile work collaboration tool that helps you schedule, strategize, and execute complicated projects. With Asana, you can create multiple projects and track their progress, as team members assume responsibility for different aspects. Sometimes, team member roles can get lost, as it isn’t easy to see what others are aware of in the software.
Asana collaboration software features
Kanban project management: Move projects through your pipeline with individual task assignment and team-based communication.
Gantt timelines: Use the Gantt-style timeline to visualize progress and provide transparency to the whole team.
Highlights of Asana collaboration software
- Set up custom projects and tag team members for streamlined workflows
- Use timelines to map out projects and visualize progress
- Add custom fields for real-time updates
Pricing plans
- Basic - $0
- Premium - $10.99 per user/month
- Business - $24.99 per user/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (11,403 customers)
Many customers find it easy to set up and collaborate on tasks with Asana. Some users claim that basic projects can become complicated with the advanced features and multiple notifications from the software.
15. Dropbox Business
Dropbox Business offers flexible file storage and sharing solutions to help teams keep important project documents together. With Dropbox, you can check in on files with real-time updates from team members, though without metadata searching, it can take time to sift through files.
Dropbox Business collaboration software features
Team folders: Use team folders to store information that pertains to different groups, so working on various projects is straightforward.
Insights dashboard: The dashboard lets you keep tabs on team member activity and other information, so you can stay abreast of developing projects and changes to files.
Highlights of Dropbox Business collaboration software
- Keep all your project-related files in one place
- View real-time updates with the insights dashboard
- Manage permissions to control access to sensitive files
Pricing plans
- Standard - $15 per user/month
- Standard + DocSend - $50 per user/month
- Advanced - $24 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (19,844 customers)
Customers praise Dropbox Business for how easy it makes collecting all types of files in one storage solution. Some customers experience issues with file syncing that can inhibit real-time updates.
16. Monday.com
Monday.com combines custom dashboards, task-specific templates, and Kanban project management to help teams make and measure progress. The software offers workflow automations and notifies team members accordingly, though it’s less straightforward to use than other options.
Monday.com collaboration software features
Custom templates: Use tailor-made templates for different use cases so your team can systematize various processes and work together from a single source.
Centralized team data: Use timelines and centralized team data to make decisions that drive progress and address bottlenecks.
Highlights of Monday.com collaboration software
- Use Kanban task management to maintain transparency in your team
- Choose custom templates to streamline processes
- Access centralized team data to inform future decisions
Pricing plans
- Individual - $0
- Basic - $8 per seat/month
- Standard - $10 per seat/month
- Pro - $16 per seat/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.6/5 (2756 customers)
Customers appreciate the organization features of Monday.com, as they allow for simple scheduling and help boost team-based productivity. Several users suggest that Monday.com is more complicated than other work collaboration tools.
17. WebEx
WebEx offers various team communication features, from live calls and meetings to messaging and event planning. The software lets you call meetings quickly with invitations and collaborate on documents, though event set-up can be time-consuming.
WebEx collaboration software features
Cloud calling: Use any device to cloud call your coworkers and stay in touch even when you’re away from your desktop.
Instant messaging: Share files and message team members in real time to stay on top of developing projects.
Highlights of WebEx collaboration software
- Host meetings and set up future events with invitations
- Use cloud-based calling to keep in touch with any device
- Instantly message or share files with your whole team
Pricing plans
- Basic - $0 per user/month
- Business - $22.50 per user/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.4/5 (6504 customers)
Customers praise the streaming quality of WebEx’s cloud calling and meetings. Some users note that messages can get buried due to the various ways of communicating through the platform.
18. Basecamp
Basecamp takes various project management features and consolidates them into one digital hub for teams. With Basecamp, you can organize projects for different teams, though individual task tracking is limited.
Basecamp collaboration software features
To-do lists: You can manage milestones and deadlines in Basecamp while also ticking items off your team’s to-do list.
Message boards: Remove the need for lengthy email threads with custom message boards where you can communicate with your team in real time.
Highlights of Basecamp collaboration software
- Gather all project information for various teams in one place
- Use message boards for efficient real-time communication
- To-do lists help you execute action plans as a team
Pricing plans
- Basecamp Business - $99/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.3/5 (13,674 customers)
Customers praise Basecamp’s ease of use and how straightforward it is to organize projects among different teams. Some users suggest there should be more options to overlap projects and sync up project management.
19. Wimi
Wimi allows you to set up various workspaces and track tasks and projects across a range of metrics. You can share documents and set up team meetings through Wimi, but scheduling can lack transparency.
Wimi collaboration software features
Shared workspaces: Centralized workspaces give you a big-picture overview of everything going on in your teams.
Communities: Communities allow you to stay in touch with team members using various methods of communication.
Highlights of Wimi collaboration software
- Combine project management features in customizable workspaces
- Use communities to keep up to date with your team
- Communicate through context-specific channels
Pricing plans
- Standard - $4.20/month
- Pro - $10.30/month
- Business - $18.10/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.7/5 (114 customers)
Customers highlight the document-sharing and community communication features of Wimi. Some users claim that Wimi has a learning curve for making the most of it.
20. Redbooth
Redbooth offers dashboards and task transparency for collaborating on projects in a team. The software provides comprehensive data and project tracking, even if the platform offers a more minimalist proposition than other tools.
Redbooth collaboration software features
Task transparency: View the status of various tasks with a single dashboard overview.
Project timelines: Visualize progress using Gantt chart timelines.
Highlights of Redbooth collaboration software
- Replace in-person meetings with Zoom video call integration
- Use task transparency to stay up to date
- Map out projects using Gantt chart timelines
Pricing plans
- Pro - $9 per user/month
- Business - $15 per user/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.4/5 (89 customers)
Customers rate Redbooth for its task transparency and tracking. Some users suggest the software is bare-bones compared to other work collaboration tools.
21. Freshdesk
Freshdesk is a customer service platform that can help you manage incoming tickets and respond quickly to queries. The platform allows teams to respond to emails and tickets effectively, yet if there are many tickets, they can be hard to follow.
Freshdesk collaboration software
Team inbox: Use a shared inbox to work in sync as a team and stay on top of pressing customer queries.
Canned responses: With canned responses, you can automate the resolution of various common issues.
Highlights of Freshdesk collaboration software
- Collect tickets in one place for quick resolution
- Use the team inbox to work together effectively
- Draw up canned responses to save time
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month (up to one agent)
- Paid - $15/month (unlimited agents)
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (2532 customers)
Customers praise the platform for how easy it makes collaborating on customer ticket responses. Some users suggest it can be difficult to follow individual tickets.
22. Troopmessenger
Troopmessenger is a group messaging platform for consolidating team communications in one place. It’s an excellent solution for small and medium-sized businesses, though Troopmessenger doesn’t have as many integrations as similar apps.
Troopmessenger collaboration software features
Audio messaging: Audio messaging lets you chat one-on-one with your team members, even when they don’t share your office hours.
Forkout: Send messages in bulk to communicate with your entire team in one go.
Highlights of Troopmessenger collaboration software
- Send audio messages to relay information asynchronously
- Send messages in bulk when you need the whole team to know important details
- Use burnout chat for confidential conversations
Pricing plans
- Premium - $25 per user/month
- Enterprise - $5 per user/month
- Superior - $9 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.8/5 (15 customers)
Customers enjoy the instant and asynchronous chat features of Troopmessenger. Some customers believe there aren’t enough third-party integrations compared to other apps.
23. Nextiva
Nextiva combines internal chat functionality with a comprehensive CRM solution for managing customers. The platform can save you money on phone bills and give you more insights into your calls, though the service has a steep pricing plan for small businesses.
Nextiva collaboration software features
Internal chat: Communicate with your team using SMS, email, video, and more.
Chat-to-case conversion: Convert chats into cases to keep track of customer issues.
Highlights of Nextiva collaboration software
- Chat internally through various methods
- Convert your chats to cases for easy customer issue tracking
- Access business analytics to inform future decisions
Pricing plans
- Essential - $25.95 per user/month
- Professional - $30.95 per user/month
- Enterprise - $40.95 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.1/5 (199 customers)
Customers praise the call quality and service of the platform. For small business owners, the price plans can be expensive.
24. Fleep
Fleep is a work collaboration platform that lets you make plans and execute them as a team. You can manage all your communication in one place with Fleep, yet conversations can become lengthy and hard to digest.
Fleep collaboration software features
Task assignment: Use Fleep as a task management platform to assign and track down team members’ tasks.
Team presence: Check in on your team members with a cursory glance using the presence indicator, which lets you know when they were last active.
Highlights of Fleep collaboration software
- Manage tasks and communicate internally with one solution
- Use the presence indicator to quickly identify who’s around
- Make video calls or share your screen to keep everyone up to date
Pricing plans
- Basic - $0/month
- Business - $5/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.7/5 (33 customers)
Customers praise Fleep for the chat managing features, which can replace mail and other forms of communication. Some users suggest that conversation chains can become hard to follow after a while.
25. Bit.ai
Bit.ai is an interactive knowledge base platform that allows you to co-author documents and create wikis. You can easily share what you’re working on with Bit.ai, even if you may not be able to alter the formatting to match your branding.
Bit.ai collaboration software features
Multiple workspaces: Use workspaces to create project-independent areas to drop key files and information.
Smart editor: With the smart editor, anyone on the team can drop in and make changes on documents, such as adding visual web links or embedding social media posts.
Highlights of Bit.ai collaboration software
- Keep your work transparent and accessible to the whole team
- Use the smart editor to make live changes to documents
- Communicate using notes or multimedia messaging
Pricing plans
- Free Plan - $0 per user/month
- Pro Plan - $8 per user/month
- Business Plan - $15 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 5/5 (8 customers)
Customers appreciate the software’s document-sharing and collaboration features, which make it easy to work on projects as a team. Some users claim that formatting options are limited.
26. Internxt
Internxt provides a solution for secure cloud storage so that you can keep team-specific information together. You can personalize folders to suit your team’s needs and keep individual project details separate, though download times can be lengthy.
Internxt collaboration software features
Secure file storage: Store the files for your team’s projects securely with encryption.
Multi-device access: Access files wherever you are from your mobile device or desktop.
Highlights of Internxt collaboration software
- Robust security measures ensure your confidential files are safe
- Access documents and photos from any device
- Sync across devices as often as you need to
Pricing plans
- 10GB - $0/month
- 20GB - $1.15/month
- 200GB - $5.20/month
- 2TB - $11.56/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.4/5 (15 customers)
Customers claim that Internxt is an affordable solution for cloud storage. Some users suggest upload and download times can be long.
27. Chanty
Chanty is a work collaboration tool that provides secure multimedia messaging and task management. It’s an affordable alternative to some of the most popular messaging platforms such as Slack, yet lacks extensive integrations.
Chanty collaboration software features
Teambook organization: Use the centralized hub to manage tasks, pin messages, and share the latest content with your team.
Mentions and pings: Mention team members and send pings to keep everyone informed of recent changes.
Highlights of Chanty collaboration software
- Consolidate and share project-specific information with teambooks
- Keep team members in the loop with mentions and pings
- Optimize workflows with Scrum boards
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Business - $3 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.8/5 (32 customers)
Customers praise the affordability and simplicity of the Chanty platform. With a lack of integrations, some users compare it negatively with the likes of Slack.
28. Mockplus
Mockplus is a collaborative product design platform for bringing ideas to life. You can use the platform for working on UI/UX design, though you can’t simultaneously work on a project as a team.
Mockplus collaboration software features
Interactive prototyping: You can use Mockplus to speed up the validation and design process without coding.
Unified workflow: Work in unison with different departments to finalize every aspect of your designs.
Highlights of Mockplus collaboration software
- Bounce ideas off your peers and members of different departments
- Use interactive prototyping to visualize and critique your ideas
- Create iterative processes to use in future
Pricing plans
- Basic - $0/month
- Pro - $4.95 per user/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.3/5 (6 customers)
Customers rate the software for simple design work and praise the vast components library for quickly putting design ideas together. Some users suggest that creating complicated designs is challenging with the software.
29. Harvest
Harvest is a time-tracking tool that lets you keep your finger on the pulse of team and individual progress by measuring the important metric of time. Billable hours help you create accurate payroll accounts, though getting a summary of time spent as a user can be difficult.
Harvest collaboration software
Team time tracking: Track team member time on mobile devices, browsers, and desktops for a complete overview of project progress.
Detailed reporting: Visualize time as a KPI with reports according to budget, total hours spent, and other factors.
Highlights of Harvest collaboration software
- Find out where your team’s time is going at a glance
- Use reporting features to measure performance
- Create custom reminders to help your team keep up with time tracking
Pricing plans
- Free - $0/month
- Pro - $12 per user/month
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.6/5 (504 customers)
Customers praise Harvest for fast invoicing with the billable hours and in-depth reports. Several users suggest that manual time tracking can be awkward to use.
30. Smartsheet
Smartsheet is a modern work management platform for automating processes and portfolio tracking. You can set up communication plans that cater to your team’s needs, though the initial learning curve can be steep.
Smartsheet collaboration software
Content collaboration: Plan out upcoming content and projects using sheets.
Custom forms: Create custom forms from stakeholder input.
Highlights of Smartsheet collaboration software
- Plan and track projects with sheets
- Visualize data with Gantt charts, grids, and calendar views
- Use custom forms to make stakeholders’ input visible
Pricing plans
- Pro - $6 per user/month
- Business - $22 per user/month
- Enterprise - Custom
Customer ratings and reviews
Capterra rating: 4.5/5 (2433 customers)
Customers of Smartsheet praise the visibility the platform promotes, which helps inform resource allocation. Some users suggest that pages can take a while to load when you have a lot of data.
The future of collaboration
The future of collaboration is bright but fragmented, given the proliferation of collaboration software solutions on the market. To stay one step ahead of the competition, you must invest in collaborative tools that drive productivity.
Assess where the bottlenecks are in your company’s collaborative workflows, as this will allow you to identify the right software solution. Be sure to keep your employees in the loop and ask for feedback on which tools they prefer working with.
Wrike offers a best-in-class work collaboration solution, and you can see why millions choose Wrike with a free trial today! Download your free two-week trial to get hands-on with the future of collaboration.
Rachael Kealy
Rachael is a Content Marketing Manager at Wrike. She has more than a decade of experience writing about every industry, from energy to entrepreneurship. She spent many years as a food writer and still loves nothing more than exploring new culinary experiences. Her passions are wide-ranging, including the themes of collaborative working, artificial intelligence, and the future of work.