12 Best Software to Work Remotely

The best software to work remotely does more than recreate an office online. It gives distributed teams a clear place to run recurring work, communicate, make decisions, share knowledge, deliver projects, protect access, and help people when a device or application fails.

A useful remote-work stack is deliberately small. Every tool should own a distinct job, and every important decision should land in a durable system of record. When chat, documents, tasks, and meetings all compete to hold the same information, the team spends more time reconstructing context than completing work.

This list ranks Process Street first because remote work depends on reliable execution, not only communication. The remaining tools cover the communication, collaboration, project, security, and access layers that support that operating system. Choose by the job you need to improve, not by the length of a feature list.

• What software do remote teams actually need?
• How do the leading remote-work tools compare?
• Which software is best to work remotely?
• How should you choose remote-work software?
• How can you make a remote software stack work?
• Software to work remotely FAQs

What software do remote teams actually need?

Remote teams need coverage across six operating layers. The execution layer turns policies and recurring procedures into assigned work. The communication layer handles quick conversation and live meetings. The knowledge layer holds documents and decisions. The delivery layer organizes projects and deadlines. The security layer controls credentials and access. The support layer lets IT reach devices when distance would otherwise stop the work.

The execution layer matters most when work crosses roles or carries risk. A workflow management system can define owners, required information, approval points, deadlines, exceptions, and evidence. That structure keeps a customer onboarding, vendor review, policy acknowledgment, finance close, or quality check from dissolving into chat messages and private reminders.

The other layers should support that flow. Chat is for fast coordination, not permanent process ownership. Meetings are for discussion, not the only record of a decision. Documents explain the work, while project tools coordinate finite initiatives. Security tools should make the approved path easier than insecure workarounds. Remote access belongs with controlled IT support, not informal credential sharing.

How do the leading remote-work tools compare?

Use the table as a stack-design guide. Most teams need Process Street plus one primary communication and meeting environment, not every product in those overlapping categories. Add specialist tools only when the job is real and the owner is clear.

Rank	Tool	Best fit	Distinct role in a remote stack
1	Process Street	Recurring workflow execution	Runs assigned procedures with approvals, automation, and execution history
2	Slack	Channel-based team communication	Organizes fast conversation and lightweight collaboration by team or project
3	Zoom	Video meetings	Supports live discussion, screen sharing, meeting continuity, and recordings
4	Microsoft Teams	Microsoft-centered collaboration	Combines chat, channels, meetings, calling, and Microsoft work surfaces
5	Loom	Asynchronous video	Turns walkthroughs, updates, and feedback into shareable recordings
6	Google Workspace	Collaborative documents	Gives teams shared documents, comments, files, and real-time editing
7	Notion	Team knowledge	Creates a flexible wiki for policies, plans, context, and reference material
8	Asana	Cross-functional project delivery	Tracks project tasks, owners, dates, dependencies, and status
9	FigJam	Visual collaboration	Provides a shared whiteboard for workshops, mapping, planning, and critique
10	Dropbox	External file collaboration	Shares files and folders with configurable access and link controls
11	1Password	Credential access	Stores and shares approved credentials through managed vaults and permissions
12	TeamViewer Remote	Remote device access and support	Lets authorized teams reach and support distributed devices

Which software is best to work remotely?

The ranking below starts with the system that runs the work, then moves through communication, knowledge, delivery, security, and technical support. Each product has a clear role. Overlap is a signal to choose, not an invitation to buy both.

1. Process Street: Best for Remote Workflow Execution

Process Street is an agentic process automation platform for recurring work that must be assigned, followed, approved, automated, and proved. A workflow can collect structured input, route work by conditions, assign owners, hold an approval, trigger connected actions, and retain the operating record in one run.

That structure solves a central remote-work problem: nobody can rely on overhearing what happens next. Employee onboarding, customer implementation, purchase requests, vendor reviews, recurring finance procedures, audits, and quality checks need explicit paths. Process Street makes the procedure executable, so instructions, work, decisions, and evidence stay connected.

Choose Process Street when the team needs consistent execution across locations and time zones. It is especially valuable when missed steps, unclear ownership, or scattered proof create operational or compliance risk. Project software can show that work exists. Process Street is designed to make sure the required process actually runs.

2. Slack: Best for Channel-Based Communication

Slack organizes collaboration around channels for teams, projects, and topics. Messaging handles quick coordination, while huddles support informal live discussion and clips give people an asynchronous way to share audio, video, or screen context.

Slack works best when the team treats channels as a communication layer rather than a universal database. Use public channels for shared context, threads for focused replies, and deliberate notification norms so global teammates are not expected to remain continuously online. Move decisions, tasks, and procedures into the systems that own them.

Choose Slack when fast cross-functional conversation and a broad app ecosystem matter. It is a poor substitute for governed workflows or durable documentation, but it is excellent connective tissue when alerts and requests point people back to the source system.

3. Zoom: Best for Video Meetings

Zoom is built around video meetings with audio controls, screen sharing, collaborative assets, captions, recordings, and chat continuity around the meeting. It is useful for conversations that benefit from rapid clarification, customer presence, sensitive context, or a shared visual walkthrough.

Remote teams get the most value when they design meetings as an exception to asynchronous work. Send a purpose and any pre-read first. Use the live session for debate or decision. Then record the outcome, owner, and deadline in the workflow or project system so people who were absent do not have to watch an entire recording to understand what changed.

Choose Zoom when reliable video is the primary need or when customers and partners already expect it. If the company already standardizes on Microsoft Teams or Google Meet, the operational gain from another meeting platform may not justify the extra calendar, recording, and administration surface.

4. Microsoft Teams: Best for Microsoft-Centered Collaboration

Microsoft Teams combines chat and channels with meetings, events, calling, and room experiences. Its strongest fit is an organization already centered on Microsoft identity, calendars, files, and productivity tools, because people can collaborate without leaving that administrative environment.

Teams can reduce tool switching, but consolidation does not automatically create clarity. Define when a conversation belongs in a channel, when a document belongs in SharePoint or OneDrive, where tasks are tracked, and which decisions must enter a workflow. Without those rules, a suite can hide fragmentation behind one navigation bar.

Choose Teams when Microsoft ecosystem alignment, centralized administration, and integrated communication are more important than best-of-breed selection. Compare it directly with Slack and Zoom for the jobs that overlap, then standardize so employees do not have to monitor several live communication systems.

5. Loom: Best for Asynchronous Video

Loom records a screen, camera, or both, then makes the video easy to edit and share through a link. Comments, reactions, captions, and drawing tools help viewers respond with context without scheduling a live walkthrough.

It is especially useful for product demonstrations, design feedback, process explanations, handoffs, bug reports, and status updates where showing is faster than writing. A concise video can preserve tone and visual detail across time zones, while the viewer controls when and how quickly to watch.

Choose Loom when the team has too many explanation meetings. Keep recordings short, state the requested action at the beginning, and link the video to a durable task or document. A video is helpful context, but it should not become the only place where a decision or procedure exists.

6. Google Workspace: Best for Collaborative Documents

Google Workspace gives distributed teams shared documents and cloud files that can be edited, commented on, and reviewed together. Docs is a strong surface for proposals, plans, meeting notes, and working memos, while Drive provides the shared storage and access layer around those files.

The collaboration model is simple enough for internal and external participants, which makes it useful for remote work that crosses company boundaries. Comments and suggestions keep discussion near the relevant text, and version history helps teams understand how a document evolved without emailing copies back and forth.

Choose Google Workspace when document collaboration is central and the organization is comfortable with its identity and administration model. Establish naming, folder ownership, sharing rules, and archival practices early. Flexible file creation becomes clutter if nobody owns the information architecture.

7. Notion: Best for Team Knowledge

Notion can organize a team wiki as a central repository for policies, benefits, team context, guides, research, and other shared knowledge. Pages and subpages create a flexible hierarchy, while links, embeds, callouts, and tables of contents let teams shape the workspace around their information.

It works well for remote organizations that need a readable home for context people would otherwise learn by proximity. A useful wiki answers basic operating questions without requiring a meeting: who owns this area, what is the current policy, where is the decision, and which source should be trusted?

Choose Notion when flexibility and writing experience matter. Assign owners and review cycles to important pages, and avoid turning the wiki into a shadow workflow system. Knowledge should explain how work operates, while the execution platform assigns and records the work itself.

8. Asana: Best for Cross-Functional Project Delivery

Asana organizes finite project work through projects, tasks, owners, dates, custom fields, status updates, and several views, including list, calendar, timeline, Gantt, and Kanban. It gives distributed teams a shared picture of what is planned, who owns it, and where delivery is blocked.

That makes it a strong fit for launches, campaigns, product programs, and cross-functional initiatives with a defined outcome. Comments and attachments keep coordination close to the task, while portfolio and reporting surfaces help leaders see progress across related projects.

Choose Asana when project delivery is the center of gravity. For recurring procedures with strict steps, branching, approvals, and execution evidence, pair project visibility with a dedicated workflow layer rather than rebuilding every run as another project template.

9. FigJam: Best for Visual Collaboration

FigJam is an online whiteboard for brainstorming, diagrams, decision trees, research synthesis, meetings, and feedback. Sticky notes, shapes, connectors, templates, timers, voting, and widgets give remote groups a shared visual surface for both live and asynchronous work.

The product is valuable when a text document would hide relationships or make participation too sequential. Teams can map a customer journey, sketch a process, cluster research, run a retrospective, or critique a design while everyone works on the same canvas.

Choose FigJam when visual thinking and broad participation matter, especially for teams already using Figma. Finish every workshop by moving decisions and assigned actions into the appropriate workflow, project, or knowledge system. The board captures thinking, but it should not become an unowned archive.

10. Dropbox: Best for External File Collaboration

Dropbox focuses on cloud file sharing and synchronization. Teams can share files or folders, choose viewer or editor access, and use link controls for outside collaborators. Changes to shared files stay synchronized, which helps file-heavy work move without emailing attachments.

It is particularly useful when agencies, clients, vendors, or field teams exchange large files across organizational boundaries. A clear folder can become the handoff surface for creative assets, media, source files, contracts, or deliverables that do not fit naturally inside a document editor.

Choose Dropbox when controlled external file exchange is a distinct need. Set folder ownership, access rules, link-expiration practices, and retention expectations. If the team already uses a well-governed Microsoft or Google storage environment, confirm that another file system solves a real gap before adding it.

11. 1Password: Best for Credential Access

1Password lets organizations store credentials and sensitive items in managed vaults, then grant access to people or groups. Business controls include granular permissions, policies, reports, account administration, and audit history, while apps and browser extensions make approved credentials available where work happens.

That combination matters for remote teams because informal password sharing scales badly. A managed vault gives employees access to the accounts they need without putting credentials into chat, spreadsheets, or personal notes. When roles change, administrators can adjust or revoke access centrally.

Choose 1Password when shared access to business systems needs an explicit owner and a clean onboarding and offboarding path. A password manager is not the whole identity strategy, but it closes a common gap between approved accounts, day-to-day sign-in, and distributed administration.

12. TeamViewer Remote: Best for Remote Device Access

TeamViewer Remote supports remote access and IT support across distributed devices. Authorized teams can connect to attended or unattended systems, troubleshoot issues, and manage access through centralized permissions and policies.

This solves a narrower but critical remote-work job. When an employee cannot reach a workplace application, a field device needs attention, or IT must maintain a system without someone present, remote connectivity can restore work without shipping hardware or relying on an improvised screen-sharing session.

Choose TeamViewer Remote when device access or support is an operational requirement, not as a general collaboration tool. Define who may connect, how access is authenticated, which devices allow unattended sessions, and how support activity is reviewed. Remote control should follow the same access discipline as any other privileged system.

How should you choose remote-work software?

Start with a broken operating behavior, not a product category. Name the work that fails, the people involved, the information they need, and the outcome that proves improvement. Then decide which layer should own the fix. A missed approval belongs in a workflow. A delayed discussion may belong in chat. A lost decision may belong in the knowledge system.

• Choose a system of record: decide where procedures, tasks, decisions, documents, files, credentials, and support records officially live.
• Prefer fewer overlapping tools: standardize on one main chat environment, one meeting environment, and one project system unless a team has a documented exception.
• Test asynchronous work: make sure a teammate can understand the status, context, requested action, and deadline without attending a meeting.
• Evaluate administration: inspect permissions, onboarding, offboarding, guest access, audit history, retention, exports, and ownership transfer.
• Run a real pilot: use an actual remote workflow with exceptions and external participants, not a polished sample project.
• Measure behavior: track waiting time, meeting load, missed steps, duplicate entry, search time, access incidents, and completion quality.
• Remove what the new tool replaces: migration is incomplete if the old channel, spreadsheet, folder, or tracker remains an equally valid path.

For recurring operational work, begin with the process map. Identify the trigger, owner, required evidence, decision points, service level, escalation path, and completion condition. That map reveals whether the real need is better communication or a workflow that enforces the work.

How can you make a remote software stack work?

Tools only help when the operating rules are visible. Publish a short collaboration agreement that says which channel to use, expected response windows, how urgency is signaled, where decisions are recorded, when a meeting is justified, and which system owns each type of work. Managers should model those rules instead of rewarding constant availability.

Turn important remote practices into workflows. An employee onboarding workflow can provision access, assign training, collect acknowledgments, schedule role-specific introductions, and preserve completion evidence. The same pattern applies to client onboarding, access reviews, incident response, procurement, and recurring team rituals.

Review the stack as an operating system, not a collection of subscriptions. Look for duplicate capabilities, inactive owners, public links, lingering accounts, orphaned automations, and important knowledge that lives only in recordings or private messages. Simplification is often the highest-value remote-work improvement.

If recurring work is still coordinated through memory and follow-up messages, see how Process Street runs remote workflows with assignments, approvals, automation, and an execution record in one place.

Software to work remotely FAQs