Are you a developer that has made the trendy shift from the office to remote work? Or are you looking to possibly work from home via a new position? Then have a look at this list of tools for remote developers that can make that transition easier while boosting your production and overall value in your field.
Before we begin, you might also want to check out our tutorial: Tips for Remote Developers that can help you handle the transition or make the most of your current work environment.
Types Of Remote Developer Tools
Before we jump into our list of specific tools for remote developers, let us take a look at some of the types of tools you may come across in your quest to stay organized and boost productivity while working from home.
At the top of our list of tools for work at home developers are project management tools that offer several features in one place. PM tools can keep you focused by not forcing you to switch between apps to complete everyday tasks. For instance, the right project management tool could have collaborative features like chat and messaging, plus task management features to ensure work gets completed. And, if you get a project management tool that is truly feature-rich, it may even have features like time tracking, invoicing, and more to keep all aspects of your development work organized.
Some tools for remote developers stress collaboration, which is essential as you lose the in-person benefits of working in an office. Whether via video conferencing or simple chat and file or code sharing, these tools can also make your life as a remote developer easier.
While we could list more types of remote developer tools, you get the picture: These tools are meant to offer capabilities that can take your productivity to the next level or at least keep you organized and in touch with others, regardless of location.
Read: Top Project Management Tools for .NET and C# Developers
Remote Programmer Tools
Many developers have made the move to remote work, either by force due to the pandemic or because they wanted to. As you work remotely, you gain several benefits, such as greater freedom with your time, more control over your schedule, and the ability to work from the comfort of your couch in your pajamas. However, you lose some benefits via a work-from-home setup, such as the ability to collaborate with your colleagues on a daily, face-to-face basis.
Use some of the programmer tools in the list below, and you can collaborate, stay on top of tasks, and ensure that your shift to remote work as a developer is a smooth and productive one.
Codeshare
As its name suggests, Codeshare is a tool for remote developers that helps you share code in real-time, and it is used by some of the biggest names in the world, such as eBay, IBM, Microsoft, and Adobe.
Programmers can open a Codeshare editor to write or copy code. Once finished, you can share it with others to code with your team and troubleshoot problems together without having to be in the same physical location.
Codeshare can also be used to interview developers from a distance. The tool lets you set coding tasks and observe real-time progress as you interview a developer remotely. This eliminates the need to write code on a whiteboard in an in-person setting, plus it lets you test the coding skills of potential team members to ensure they are up to snuff. Lastly, you can use Codeshare to teach peers how to program so their skills stay sharp.
Floobits
Floobits is an open-source tool that allows remote developers to collaborate in real-time to accomplish pair programming. Use it to share code with colleagues and work on it together via a shared workspace. Any edits made to the code will be synced automatically so everyone can stay on the same page. And to enhance coding collaboration even more, Floobits lets you share terminals with teammates, drag users to your precise cursor position for seamless edition, plus video chat to have virtual meetings no matter where you are in the world.
If you are tired of typical screen sharing and want something better suited to your work as a developer, Floobits is a remote tool worth looking into.
InVision
Giving and getting feedback is a must for developers when working on a prototype. That can be harder when everyone is working from their own home office, unless you have a remote developer tool like InVision.
With InVision, you get several features (pre-built templates, interactive widgets, reactions, etc.) that come together to give you an “all-in-one collaborative online whiteboard.” Used by such companies as American Express, IBM Capital One, and Verizon, InVision’s whiteboards give you a workspace to get work done in real-time while working remotely.
The remote developer tool is easy to use thanks to an eye-catching and user-friendly interface, and it makes it super simple to transfer ideas between design and development teams.
Best of all, InVision has several integrations with popular third-party tools that you can use to extend its functionality.
ClickUp
ClickUp is a cloud-based project management and collaboration tool that works wonders for various industries, but it can be particularly helpful if you are in software development.
If you have trouble organizing tasks and want to save time and confusion switching between apps, ClickUp can simplify your remote work life. It claims to be “One app to replace them all,” and ClickUp lives up to that title by letting you manage projects and tasks, share documents, convey new ideas via virtual whiteboards, view real-time progress via dashboards, chat with teammates, set and achieve goals, and more.
All of ClickUp’s features can help you replace several popular and potentially costly apps, such as Asana, Monday, Jira, Slack, MS Teams, Google Hangouts, Lattice, Gtmhub, and Trello.
Nuclino
Nuclino is a collaborative tool for remote developers that helps manage projects, organize knowledge, and share ideas all in one place. It eliminates productivity-killing context switching by replacing multiple collaboration tools on its own, and it boosts productivity with features like fast app performance, instant search, hotkeys, an intuitive interface, and a speedy setup.
Whether you want to manage projects and tasks, collaborate on documents in real-time, or onboard remote workers with ease, Nuclino gives you the power to do so and much more.
Instagantt
One look at its name, and you may think that Instagantt is nothing more than a Gantt chart tool to keep you organized and track progress. This tool for remote developers does much more, though, as it can help you manage projects, add and schedule tasks, tag coworkers, enjoy different views (board, Kanban, etc.), view project progress via the dashboard and detailed reports, collaborate and share, and more to optimize your workflow.
Evernote
While some may suggest that taking notes is not a huge part of a developer’s everyday life, we included Evernote on this list of remote developer tools since you may find its features useful.
Evernote takes note-taking to another level, as it lets you embed audio, video, images, and PDFs into your notes for extreme detail. You can access your notes wherever you are via Evernote’s mobile or desktop applications, and it also has a to-do list and calendar to keep you organized and ensure that no essential tasks slip through the cracks.
Task Management Tools for Programmers
Looking for more tools for remote programmers and software development teams? Check out our list of the Top Task Management Software and Tools for Developers for even more options.
