My digital life: the best productivity apps

Streaks

Part to-do list, part habit tracker, Streaks is the ideal app for those who actually want to stick to their New Year's resolutions. The beauty of Streaks is its simplicity and the way it's designed to both form and curb certain habits. Whether it’s going to the gym three times a week, calling your mum every Sunday or even cutting down on cigarettes and alcohol. Each time you complete a task, your "streak" is extended. If you break the chain it will reset to zero. So simple and oh-so satisfying.

streaksapp.com

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IFTTT

Not the catchiest of names but IFTTT (an acronym for "If This Then That") has swiftly become a fundamental part of user's everyday lives. Free to download, IFTTT synchronises your apps and various gadgets (including Amazon Echo, Fitbit and Philips Hue) to build a better-connected and smarter lifestyle. Curated "applets" – simple programmes with one or two equally simple functions – are customised to fit into your everyday life; from having the lights in your home switch on when you walk through the door to sending a text to your significant other when you leave the office or automatically backing up tagged Facebook pics to an iOS photo album.

Free to download; ifttt.com

Shoeboxed

Expenses: a necessary yet soul-crushingly tedious part of modern life. While technology won't exactly make filling out your expenses an enjoyable experience, the Shoeboxed app can help make it a less painful one. Ingenious tricks such as being able to scan in your receipts onto an online database and using your phone’s built-in GPS system to track mileage makes keeping on top of your finances a doddle.

shoeboxed.com

Wunderlist

Simple, easy-to-use and designed to work seamlessly across multiple devices, Wunderlist is one of the highest-rated digital to-do list apps on the market. Ideal for both business and leisure, the app allows you to make lists, manage and organise folders and share with friends or colleagues, with timed reminders to help keep you on track.

wunderlist.com

24me

Most smartphones come with calendars and to-do lists to help up stay on top of life. But personal assistant app 24me goes a step further, by managing and unifying all your calendars, tasks, notes and personal accounts, to keep everything related to your schedule all under one roof. For instance, 24me will automatically create your to-do list for the following day, to help you stay ahead, and gives you traffic and weather warnings, so you know if you need to leave early, or take an umbrella.

The app can be downloaded for free at https://www.twentyfour.me.

Shoeboxed

Keeping track of expenses can be a mind-numbingly tedious task - but the Shoeboxed app makes it easy to monitor your spending. Simply scan your receipts using your smartphone camera, and the app will organise and store them online for you. You can also store information from business cards, and the app's business expense tracker can record your mileage, via an in-built GPS, when you are travelling for work. You can trial the app for free for 30 days, after which it costs from $15 (£10.50) a month.

Available to download at shoeboxed.com.