🛠️ Free Tech Tools I Use All the Time (and Actually Recommend)

Because sometimes the best things in life are free… or at least freemium.

This post isn’t about affiliate links, trending gadgets, or RGB tech that exists purely to blind you at 3AM (though sometimes I love those too). This is just a cozy little roundup of free (or freemium) tech tools I genuinely use — tools that have quietly made running a blog, channel, and life feel a little more manageable.

Sometimes the best way to keep a project alive is to share the stuff that’s been keeping you afloat.

Let’s get into it.

🗂️ Notion – The chaos wrangler of my digital life

Notion is where I keep everything: blog ideas, content calendars, grocery lists, dream tech hauls, and that one database labeled “projects I’m pretending to work on.”

• I use it to: plan blog posts, track YouTube content, manage multiple side projects, and cry in checkbox format
• 💡 Cool feature: Free templates that make you look like you have your life together even when you don’t
• 🔀 Favorite use: I once had a dashboard called “Have I Cried About This Yet?” Color-coded, obviously

🎨 Canva – My favorite overachiever

If Notion is the brain, Canva is the face. I use it for blog banners, YouTube thumbnails, mockups, and very dramatic “sorry this is late” visuals.

• I use it to: make everything look far more polished than it should
• 💡 Cool feature: Even the free version gives you templates, elements, and drag-and-drop magic
• 🖼️ Pro tip: Use their smart mockups to show off digital products like you’ve got a full design team (you don’t)

🎙️ Audacity – For when your mic sounds like it’s underwater

I don’t enjoy listening to my own voice, but when I have to record something, Audacity is my go-to fixer. It’s free, open source, and shockingly effective at making sick-day voiceovers sound semi-human.

• I use it to: clean up voice recordings and remove background noise
• 💡 Cool feature: The “Noise Reduction” tool can erase fan hum, neighbors, and mysterious dog barks from thin air

🔐 1Password – The OG password manager I still trust

Okay, so it’s not totally free (an individual membership is $2.99/month or $35.88/year) — but hear me out: I worked there for nearly 8 years, and even now, I still use it every single day. If you’ve ever tried to juggle 300 logins while your brain’s buffering, you already know how valuable this is.

• I use it to: store passwords, secure notes, software keys, two-factor codes, and passkeys across all my devices .... even my license, insurance cards/info, and pretty much anything you could image
• 💡 Cool features: 1Password’s Watchtower alerts me if a password’s been in a breach (which is... terrifyingly common), the Privacy and Fastmail integrations work seamlessly, it includes a username generator, it's zero-knowledge, and you cannot beat their release notes
• 🧠 Bonus: Honestly, I need something to remember things because my brain won’t, and I understand how they approach data privacy & security so I know my data is safe

🌐 Tailscale – A VPN, but make it ✨Raspberry Pi DIY✨

If you’ve seen my VPN setup guide, you know I’m a Tailscale fangirl. It’s a magical way to access your Raspberry Pi (or other devices) from anywhere, securely and painlessly, and even to set up a device in your "tailnet" as an exit node.

• I use it to: remote into my Raspberry Pi from anywhere, without crying over port forwarding, and protect my traffic.
• 💡 Cool features: It's mostly open source, helps you create your own private network ("tailnet") — and it just works. It also employs end-to-end encryption via WireGuard®.
• ✨ Fun fact: They featured my guide once. I still haven't recovered emotionally.

⚙️ Browser Extensions I Can’t Live Without

• uBlock Origin – Blocks ads without breaking the internet
• Dark Reader – Forces night mode even when a site rudely refuses
• Momentum – Replaces your new tab page with peaceful vibes and just enough motivation
• Mailtrack – Lets you know when your emails are read (or ignored)

🍎 Bonus: Mac Apps I Can’t Live Without

These aren’t browser extensions or cloud tools — they live on my Mac and quietly make life better every single day.

🧞‍♂️ Alfred – The command bar that’s smarter than me

Spotlight who? Alfred is the Mac productivity tool I didn’t know I needed until I couldn’t function without it. It’s like having a butler, but keyboard-driven and less judgy.

• I use it to: launch apps, search files, do calculations, and run custom workflows — all without taking my hands off the keyboard
• 💡 Cool feature: The free version is great, but the Powerpack unlocks magic (clipboard history, custom scripts, hotkeys, file navigation, and more)
• ⚡️ Fun fact: I once used Alfred to open 12 apps, run 2 scripts, and start a timer — all in under 5 seconds. Productivity theater? Maybe. Satisfying? Absolutely.

☕️ Amphetamine – Caffeine for your computer

A tiny free app that keeps your Mac awake when you need it to not nap mid-task. Perfect for long uploads, screencasts, or just rebelling against auto-sleep.

• I use it to: prevent my Mac from falling asleep during recording, uploading, or pretending I’m productive
• 💡 Cool feature: Session triggers! You can auto-activate it when certain apps are running. Love a lazy automation win.

📸 CleanShot X – The screenshot tool I wish was built-in

Not free (but worth every penny), CleanShot makes screen capture actually fun. Beautiful, clean screenshots with annotation tools, screen recording, and one-click cloud uploads.

• I use it to: take all my tutorial and product screenshots, and make ‘em look extra pro
• 💡 Cool feature: Scrolling screenshots (!!!) and built-in GIF creation. Goodbye janky Preview editing. 🙌

🚀 Rocket – Slack-style emoji everywhere

A small but mighty tool that lets you type emojis anywhere on your Mac using :emoji-name: like in Slack. Once you use it, you’ll never go back.

• I use it to: sneak emojis into blog posts, emails, code comments, and probably my grocery list
• 💡 Cool feature: Custom emoji shortcuts + zero friction. It just works, quietly and perfectly.

🧠 Why I Love Free Tools

Free tools got me through launching this blog, creating my first videos, and figuring out how to stay creatively afloat while unemployed and overwhelmed. They gave me room to try things. To fail a little. To make something anyway.

There’s no affiliate pitch at the end of this post. Just a quiet thank you to the tools that didn’t ask for much but gave me a lot.

🙋 Got any good ones I should try?

Have a weirdly specific tool you love? Something you use every day that nobody talks about? Tell me! You can message me on Twitter/X, or just whisper it into your Wi-Fi router and hope for the best.