People like working with people, and doing so remotely can create some unique challenges: fewer spontaneous conversations, harder-to-read body language, and a greater chance that someone's great idea—or disengagement—goes unnoticed until it's too late.
The good news: remote and hybrid work keep proving their value. Almost six in 10 companies now have at least one remote worker, and fully remote SMBs report being better at finding talent, building culture, and retaining employees than fully in-person companies. To create that same cohesive feeling on your own team, you need remote work tools that help people communicate and collaborate well, whether you have a virtual team of five or 500.
There's a vast array of apps and software out there, so we've collected some of our favorites to help you make sense of it all.
Remote work tools for...
Building culture and raising a (virtual) glass
Even if your team can't quite dole out high fives, there are still ways to recognize accomplishments. And remote teams might even be better at it. In Gusto's own survey of nearly 1,000 small businesses, 40% of fully remote companies said they were "far above average" at building personal connections among workers, compared to just 33% of in-office teams and 24% of hybrid ones.
Bonusly lets coworkers send each other points for specific wins, which they can redeem for rewards or donate to charity.
Assembly brings recognition right into Slack or Microsoft Teams, so shout-outs happen where the team already talks.
A Slack channel solely dedicated to recognizing achievements also works, and encourages people to post the wins they see from teammates, big or small.
Expressing yourself (without the inbox overload)
Instant messaging keeps distributed teams talking throughout the day without the lag of email. But before leaning too hard on real-time chat, don’t forget to consider how it shapes your culture. An always-on expectation can burn people out pretty quickly. Three-quarters of both remote and hybrid companies rely on regular check-ins over constant availability to stay productive. If they can do it, so can you.
Slack and Microsoft Teams remain the two important ways distributed teams chat day to day, with channels for team-wide updates and direct messages for one-on-one conversations that don't need a whole group's attention.
For updates that don't need a live back-and-forth, a recorded Loom message can say in two minutes what would otherwise turn into an endless thread.
Seeing people face-to-face
Seeing people's faces during the day still matters, especially when asynchronous communication dominates most day-to-day updates. And since actually meeting up in person is unlikely, video conferencing tools are still the best way to run virtual meetings.
Zoom remains the default for most teams, especially for online meetings that include people outside your own company. Anyone can join a call from a link with no account or app install required. This matters a lot for sales calls, interviews, and client meetings where you can't control what software the other person has.
Google Meet is the easy choice if you're already on Google Workspace. Meetings are embedded right in the calendar invite, and automatically get added to Google Calendar for participants who accept the invite.
Microsoft Teams is a strong option if your company runs on Microsoft 365, with built-in transcription and AI-generated meeting notes so no one has to take notes by hand.
Writing, commenting, and chatting in the same document
File-sharing and collaboration tools make it easy for multiple people to work in the same document in real time.
Google Workspace (Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides) is the standard for most teams, since everything is natively connected. Having Gmail, Google Drive, Calendar, and Meet all pull from the same context means there's no exporting or re-uploading between apps. Real-time co-editing with full version history has been core to Google's products from the start, and it's still the feature reviewers cite most: no version-conflict chaos from five people emailing each other "FINAL_v3" copies of a file.
Dropbox works well for remote teams that need to move large files reliably without worrying about version conflicts. Files sync automatically in the background, so everyone's working from the latest copy. Password-protected links, expiration dates, and activity tracking also make it a solid choice when you're sharing files with people outside the company, and it integrates natively with Slack, Microsoft 365, and Adobe Creative Cloud.
Notion has become a popular all-in-one option for docs, wikis, and lightweight project tracking, with comments and AI assistance built in.
Confluence is a great option for teams that rely heavily on structured knowledge bases. Teams get a large library of templates (meeting notes, decision logs, onboarding checklists, retrospectives) so documentation follows a consistent structure instead of every team inventing its own format.
SharePoint is the natural fit if your team already lives in Microsoft 365. It's the document library sitting behind every Microsoft Teams channel, so files shared in a Teams chat are really being stored and version-controlled in SharePoint underneath. It handles co-authoring, version history, and granular permissions.
Keeping project details in one place
Project management tools keep remote teams on the same page about timelines and status. Not every business has the same task management needs, and thankfully, there’s a tool for every level of project management need.
Asana and Trello are great for teams that want something visual and easy to onboard new hires into—users can link files, assign deadlines, and tag people without much training.
For teams that want one tool to replace several, ClickUp or Monday.com bundle project tracking, docs, and workflow automation in one place. Both let you switch between Gantt charts for timeline-and-dependency planning and Kanban boards for a simpler drag-and-drop view of status. This is handy for a distributed team where some people think in deadlines and others think in columns. ClickUp includes both views on its free plan, while Monday.com reserves the Gantt/timeline view for its paid Standard tier and up.
Basecamp bundles message boards for async discussion, to-do lists, a shared schedule, file storage, and group chat into one hub, plus automatic daily check-in questions that replace a live standup meeting. It’s a nice fit for teams spread across time zones who can't all show up at 9 a.m. It's also intentionally simple—teams that want detailed reporting or heavy customization tend to outgrow it.
Engineering teams often prefer Jira for sprint planning and tracking work tied directly to code. It's built around the backlog: teams estimate stories, track velocity with burndown charts, and adjust sprint scope in real time, with roadmaps that map dependencies across multiple teams for larger engineering orgs.
Working remotely doesn't have to feel like a compromise. By using remote work software that reinforces your company's values, you'll help your team connect over the things that make your company special.
Get the tools right, and a truly unified team will emerge, no matter how far apart everyone is sitting.
FAQs
What is the best communication tool for remote teams?
There's no single best tool that suits all remote teams. Most remote teams combine instant messaging apps like Slack or Microsoft Teams for quick back-and-forth with video conferencing tools like Zoom or Google Meet for face-to-face conversations. Async tools like Loom fill the gap for updates that don't need a live meeting or an always-on chat window.
Which video conferencing tool is best—Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams?
Zoom is the most common default because anyone can join a call from a link with no account needed, which is useful for meetings with people outside your company. Google Meet suits teams already on Google Workspace since it's built into calendar invites, while Microsoft Teams fits companies on Microsoft 365, with built-in transcription and AI meeting notes.
What's the best project management tool for a remote or distributed team?
The best project management tool depends on team size: Asana and Trello are easiest to onboard new hires into, ClickUp and Monday.com bundle tracking, docs, and automation for teams that want one tool to do it all, Basecamp's flat monthly pricing suits larger teams, and Jira is built for engineering teams running sprints.
How can small businesses recognize remote employees for good work?
Small businesses can recognize remote employees with tools like Bonusly, which lets coworkers send points for specific wins redeemable for rewards, or Assembly, which brings shout-outs directly into Slack or Microsoft Teams. A dedicated recognition channel works too, if you encourage people to post teammates' wins as they happen.
Do remote employees stay at their jobs longer than in-office employees?
Yes, Gusto data suggests fully remote employees are about 13% less likely to quit within their first three months on the job compared to in-office hires. That lower early turnover adds up to real savings for small businesses in replacement and lost-productivity costs, which is one reason more companies are embracing remote and hybrid setups.
Quick note: This is not to be taken as tax, legal, benefits, financial, or HR advice. Since rules and regulations change over time and can vary by location, consult a lawyer or HR expert for specific guidance.
