10 Essential Brainstorming Apps for Remote Workers

by Kelsey Arrington on May 09, 2022

Are you looking for online brainstorming tools for your remote organization? Do you need to know the best software to organize ideas and create mind maps? If so, you’re in the right place. In this post, we’ll share 10 awesome brainstorming apps for remote workers!

In this post:

1. What is brainstorming?
2. 5 Brainstorming Apps for Remote Teams
3. 5 Brainstorming Apps for Individuals 

What is brainstorming? Why is it important?

Brainstorming is a creative thinking technique that is employed to solve problems or generate new ideas. Brainstorming sessions can be conducted in groups or individually using a variety of tools. Everyone’s brainstorming process is different. Some use sticky notes to organize ideas and others use mind maps with overlapping thoughts and multiple starting points.

No matter how it’s done, hosting brainstorming sessions has proven to be an effective method to bring team members together and facilitate a culture of collaboration – which is very important for teams that work remotely. After all, remote teams that brainstorm together, come up with innovative ideas together!

5 Brainstorming Tools for Remote Teams

When it comes to remote teams that meet in a virtual office, finding the best way to brainstorm can be rather difficult. Luckily, there are a plethora of brainstorming tools on the market. The tools listed below help you share files, list ideas on virtual whiteboards, and stay connected to your team no matter where they reside. 

1. Miro
2. Coggle
3. Mural.Co
4. Mindmeister
5. Collaboard 

Miro

price: FREE plan available (premium options available for an additional cost)

If you need to centralize ideas and communication across your remote team, Miro might just be for you. What is Miro, you ask? 

Miro is an online visual collaboration tool that was created for multi-user brainstorming. Designed by Andrey Khusid in 2011, Miro has become a go-to virtual whiteboard for many in the design, development, and creative industries. 

Coggle

price: FREE version available (premium options available for an additional cost)

Looking for a creative way to share ideas with your remote team, client or classmate? Give Coggle a try. 

Coggle is a collaborative web-based brainstorming tool that empowers teams to seamlessly conduct virtual file sharing, create multiple mind maps, and track ideas with a built-in chat feature! When it comes to project management and having a digital workspace for team collaboration, Coggle can offer a low-cost solution to remote organizations. 

Mural.Co

price: FREE plan available (premium options available for an additional cost)

If your co-located team needs an easy-to-use digital canvas to facilitate visual brainstorming and strategic planning sessions, Mural might work for you! 

Built with the creative professional in mind, Mural aggregates key features needed for virtual brainstorming into a user-friendly and intuitive interface. Integrated with Slack and other remote work tools, Mural empowers remote teams to effectively collaborate. Colleagues can gather ideas using unlimited mind maps on which the entire team can add images, notes, and diagrams – which is great for capturing ideas and relaying information to visual learners! 

Mindmeister

price: FREE plan available (premium options available for an additional cost)

If you’re looking for a minimalist mind mapping tool with stunningly sleek themes, MindMeister is a mind map editor worth checking out. 

Perfect for creative teams to collaborate or remote workers to brainstorm ideas separately, Mindmeister allows users to attach documents, add images, concept maps, notes, and more – all in an effort to collect ideas and effectively brainstorm! 

Collaboard

price: FREE plan available (premium options available for an additional cost)

Brainstorming software is meant to make collaboration easier for remote teams and client-facing freelancers – and that’s exactly what Collaboard does! 

Collaboard is an online brainstorming tool that prides itself on offering its users premium mind mapping features and top-notch data security that is 100% compliant with the European General Data Protection Regulation. Created to connect users who can’t be in the same room, Collaboard encourages design thinking and helps team members get on the same page in real-time. 

5 Brainstorming Tools for Individuals

If you’ve been searching for intuitive mind mapping tools, you’re in luck. When it comes to free brainstorming apps, there are plenty to go around! Below, you’ll find a shortlist of the top brainstorming tools for individuals to capture ideas, create multiple mind maps, design unlimited private diagrams, and more! 

1. Bubbl.us
2. Popplet
3. Microsoft Visio
4. TheBrain
5. Google Docs 

Bubbl.us

price: FREE plan available (advanced features available for an additional cost)

If capturing ideas quickly is your goal, Bubble.us might be the mind mapping tool for you. 

Built for individuals who want to organize their ideas and create presentations to share, Bubble.us is browser-based and works seamlessly on mobile and desktop. Want to know what’s even better? Bubbl.us’ interface is designed to be distraction-free and flexible – it even allows users to easily export mind maps as JPG, PNG, or text files! 

Popplet

price: FREE plan available (advanced features available for an additional cost)

Searching for a simple way to visualize ideas? Popplet is a virtual brainstorming tool built for ideation across classmates and colleagues. 

An iPad app built for one or multiple users, Popplet is highly accessible as it has translated content in over 100 languages and a highly-visual interface with an accompanying toolset. The app’s website proudly states that is “simple enough for a kindergartner…but robust enough for a high-schooler” – making it an interesting tool to use in school or office settings alike. 

Microsoft Visio

price: FREE trial (subscription plans starting at $5/user/month)

Looking for virtual brainstorming tools that allow you to transform your ideas into graphic diagrams to share with your team? Microsoft Visio may be the solution for you – that is if you are a Microsoft user. 

Microsoft Visio has hundred of templates for users to customize – including robust tools to create well-designed flowcharts, floor plans, and timelines! Integrated with other Microsoft tools, such as Excess or Sharepoint, Microsoft Visio may just be the best brainstorming tool for users who rely on Microsoft products for most of their tasks. 

TheBrain

price: FREE trial for 30 days (premium features available for an additional annual cost)

Need unlimited concept maps? TheBrain is a digital solution for organizing information, generating ideas, and creating links between thoughts, lists, and notes across mobile devices. 

Created for those who thrive off of non-linear ideation, such as creative professionals, TheBrain offers a solution for intelligent note-taking. Link ideas in just a few clicks and dump all the good ideas you have! TheBrain is built to be your backup memory. 

Google Docs

price: FREE

Looking for a simple way to keep track of your ideas? Want free tools to share with your classmate, or colleague or to keep brainstorming all by yourself? Google Docs is one option.

Traditionally used to write essays and the like, Google Docs is an often-overlooked brainstorming tool. After all, good ideas just need a canvas to be written on and Google Docs provides just that! So, open up a new document and let your thoughts flow freely.