10 of the Best Research Tools To Boost Your Productivity

Procrastination is the devil. And yet we often find ourselves ticking off minor tasks — or scrolling through endless dream holiday destinations — instead of tackling the big stuff. Throw in tight deadlines, tough-to-access info and uncooperative participants and research projects can feel impossible to crack. 

If you're stuck in a productivity rut, it's time for some powerful tips, tricks and tech to get you back on track, sharpen your focus and silence those distractions for good. So if you're spending more time on Twitter than on market research, this article is for you. Here's our comprehensive list of research tools for boosting your productivity. With these on your side, your research project will fall into place in no time.

Asana

Keeping track of who's doing what and when will help keep you accountable for your part in the research project. That's where Asana, the project management software and workflow tool, comes in. In Asana, members of your research team can be assigned to subtasks within tasks, ticking off 'small wins' as you go. This will help tasks seem much more manageable, while helping you stay on top of what's expected of you and when.

What's more, using the power of AI, Asana can help you automate tasks like project updates, summaries and more. Spend less time on admin and more time on your research with Asana AI.

Pricing: A basic free plan is available. Prices start at $10.99 per user per month for larger plans.

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Trint

Boosting productivity isn't all about avoiding distraction. It's about making smart choices to streamline the time you spend on daily tasks. Manually transcribing interviews and other research materials is time-consuming and draining, so let automation and artificial intelligence take the reins. 

Trint can transcribe audio, speech and video and create a transcript for you to search and analyze in no time at all. Trint is a productivity tool that will take your qualitative interviews to a new level of efficiency. Use the search function for thematic analysis to quickly scan qualitative data and uncover patterns and insights quickly.

Pricing: Our pricing includes starter, advanced and enterprise plans that can be scaled up as your team grows. You can also choose to be billed monthly, quarterly or annually. Trint comes with a 7-day free trial, too, with full access to an Advanced Plan and no credit card details required. 

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Trello

Key for those visual thinkers, Trello is the digital organization tool that helps you plan out and conquer your research. It's hard to ignore your workload when it's laid out and labeled for you, so keeping Trello running when you're working will keep you on track. You can set due dates, add notes and organize each task into itemized columns, so you'll know the status of everything on sight.

Once you experience the satisfaction of seeing your completed tasks pile up you'll never look back. Trello even has its own automation feature, called Butler, that can tackle mundane admin tasks for you.

Pricing: A free plan is available for up to 10 users. After that, prices start at $5 per user per month.

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Mendeley

Often cited as the holy grail of data analysis and research tools, Mendeley helps ease the pain of many researchers' Achilles' heel: referencing. This handy software helps you cite and store your references, building a library of work as you go. Many researchers spend a lot of time reading — Mendeley helps you keep the important parts together and well organized.

Pricing: Free to sign up with the option to pay for a premium plan for more storage.

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750 Words

Writer's block can send you running for your procrastination go-to sites quicker than you can say 'qualitative research.' 750words aims to keep you on track by encouraging writers to pen at least three pages per day, which should be manageable. Writing part of your research paper may seem like it's too big to tackle, but taking things a day — and 750 words — at a time makes things so much easier. Small, daily victories are very productive in the long run. 

Looking for more tools to help you craft killer stories in no time? Take a look at our roundup of five of the best writing tools for journalists.

Pricing: Membership costs $5 per month after a 30-day free trial.

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StayFocused

If you really don't trust yourself not to get distracted by time-wasting sites, then StayFocusd may be just what you're looking for. This Google Chrome extension allows you to limit your time on certain sites, and once you've used up your allowance it won't let you visit that site again that day, pushing you back towards that to-do list and that transcript of last week's research interview.

Pricing: Free

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Tableau

Tableau is a powerhouse data visualization tool that turns raw data into dynamic, interactive dashboards and charts. With its intuitive drag-and-drop interface and smooth integration with tools like Excel, SQL and cloud services, Tableau makes uncovering insights a breeze. From spotting trends to making data-driven decisions in real-time, it’s a game-changing research tool that can help you turn data into action.

Pricing: Plans start at $15 per user per month. Larger plans and enterprise packages are available for larger teams. Premium Tableau+ packages give access to AI features.

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Jenni

Jenni AI is an advanced writing assistant and research tool designed to streamline content creation. Powered by AI, it helps writers craft articles, essays and creative pieces more efficiently by offering suggestions, generating summaries, creating outlines and managing references. Users can set specific tones, styles or formats to align with their needs, making it particularly useful for students, professionals and marketers. 

Pricing: Starter plans are free and allow up to 100 AI words per day. For unlimited words, plans are $30 per month when billed monthly or $12 per month when billed annually. 

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Consensus

Described as an AI search engine, Consensus AI is an innovative research tool designed to simplify the process of finding evidence-based answers. This smart tool analyzes academic research papers and authoritative sources to deliver concise, fact-based summaries on complex topics. Its standout feature is the ability to generate consensus statements from scientific literature, making it invaluable for researchers, students and professionals seeking credible insights. 

With its user-friendly interface, Consensus AI helps cut through information overload, ensuring quick access to trustworthy and relevant data.

Pricing: A free starter plan is available. After that, pricing starts at $8.99 per month when billed annually. 

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Elicit

Elicit is a powerful AI research tool designed to supercharge your research process. It helps you quickly identify, analyze and extract insights from academic papers, making it easier to answer specific questions or build a foundation for your projects. From generating literature reviews to summarizing key findings and managing references, Elicit streamlines the traditionally time-consuming aspects of research. It's like having a research assistant on demand.  

Pricing: A basic free plan is available. Paid-for plans start at $10 per month when billed annually. 

When your to-do list is piling up, the right research tools can help you get through it. AI-driven platforms like Trint, Mendeley, Tableau and Consensus AI are revolutionizing workflows by making tasks like transcription, reference management and data visualization faster and more efficient. 

Whether you're using Trint in education, law firms or newsrooms, you can transcribe interviews, lectures or focus group recordings effortlessly. Turn audio into editable, shareable text in minutes. Ready to upgrade your research game? Check out our pricing plans and start your 7-day free trial today.

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