Best Tools for Creators (2024): Creator Tools Awards by Contra

June 10, 2024

In today's blog post, we delve into the much-anticipated results of the Creator Tools Awards hosted by Contra.

For those who may not know, Contra is a commission-free freelance platform, making it an optimal starting point for freelancers or individuals looking to earn money online without high commission rates.

Run by an impressive team, Contra is a platform worth checking out.

Recently, Contra orchestrated the Creator Tools Awards, allowing creators like us to vote for our favourite tools.

These tools are integral to our daily productivity, enabling us to create exceptional content.

Let's explore the top tools in various categories and see which ones are currently leading the market.

Results: The Creator Tools Awards 2024

Design

Fan Favourite: Figma

Figma is a beloved tool among designers, renowned for its collaboration capabilities and a vast community of templates and plugins.

It's perfect for working with developers and team members.

Top Tool: Adobe Creative Cloud

Adobe Creative Cloud continues to be a market leader, offering an extensive suite of tools from Photoshop and Illustrator to 3D and video editing software.

Despite its higher cost and steeper learning curve, its versatility and power are unrivalled.

Up and Coming: Canva

Canva simplifies the design process, especially for non-designers.

With its template-based approach, Canva makes it easy to produce attractive content quickly, perfect for business owners needing control over their social media posts and newsletters.

Engineering

Fan Favourite: Next.js

Developers admire Next.js for its flexibility and performance, making it the go-to framework for web applications.

Top Tool: Tailwind CSS

Tailwind simplifies styling in web development by keeping everything within your HTML documents.

It offers a lightweight alternative to bootstrap, making it easier to build stylish and fast web applications.

Up and Coming: Remix

Although lesser-known, Remix is gaining traction for its modern approach to web development and seamless developer experience.

Community Management

Fan Favourite: Luma

Luma excels in creating and managing virtual events, connecting communities globally.

Top Tool: Circle

Circle provides an excellent platform for setting up online communities, with a user-friendly interface that feels familiar to social media users.

Up and Coming: Threddo

Threddo is making waves for fostering meaningful interactions within communities through its powerful engagement platform.

No Code

Fan Favourite: Framer

Framer empowers users to build responsive, interactive websites without coding.

Its top-tier SEO performance straight out of the box is a significant advantage.

Top Tool: Webflow

Webflow stands out with its extensive features, including audiences, authentication, and logic for API calls.

It merges visual coding with no-code functionalities, making it suitable for both novice and experienced coders.

Up and Coming: Flutter Flow

Flutter Flow enables the creation of mobile and web applications without code, publishable directly to app stores or online subdomains.

Marketing and CRM

Fan Favourite: Flowdesk

Flowdesk simplifies email marketing with its beautiful templates and user-friendly interface.

Top Tool: HubSpot

HubSpot is a robust CRM tool, offering everything from email marketing to SEO tools, making it invaluable for growing an online brand.

Up and Coming: ConvertKit

ConvertKit is exceptional for managing signup forms, automations, and personalised email marketing, making it a favourite for many creators.

Writing

Fan Favourite: Copy.ai

Copy.ai leverages AI to generate high-quality copy instantly.

It's a fantastic starting point for creating content, which can then be personalised and refined.

Top Tool: Grammarly

Grammarly is the ultimate tool for enhancing your writing, checking grammar, spelling, and readability, ensuring your content is polished and professional.

Up and Coming: Content Harmony

Content Harmony aids in crafting SEO-friendly content, balancing strategic SEO with creative writing.

Social Media

Fan Favourite: Canva

Canva continues to be a fantastic tool for creating animated or static social media content quickly and attractively.

Top Tool: CapCut

CapCut is a highly rated free video editing tool, ideal for creating engaging social media content.

Up and Coming: Adobe Express

Adobe Express offers the convenience of creating professional-looking content on the go, perfect for busy creators needing to produce work without access to their primary tools.

Video Recording and Podcasting

Fan Favourite: Pika

Pika simplifies video content creation using AI to transform text-based prompts into images or videos.

Top Tool: Descript

Descript revolutionises video and podcast editing by treating your project like a text document.

With AI tools to assist in editing, it’s perfect for creating professional-quality content.

Up and Coming: Butter

Butter is an all-in-one video editor aimed at modern brands, simplifying the process of creating high-quality videos efficiently.

Blockchain and Web3

Fan Favourite: Filecoin

Filecoin is celebrated for its decentralised storage network, enhancing secure and efficient data storage.

Top Tool: ChainGPT

ChainGPT uses AI to offer actionable insights and solutions in the blockchain domain.

Up and Coming: HardHat

HardHat is gaining popularity for developing Ethereum-based applications in a flexible environment.

Animation

Fan Favourite: Spline

Spline democratizes 3D animation, running in browsers and making complex design processes accessible to everyone with no cost.

Top Tool: Jitter

Jitter allows designers to animate Figma projects seamlessly, making it a powerful tool for creating dynamic static and animated content.

Up and Coming: Rive

Rive is becoming a favourite for real-time interactive animations which are crucial for engaging content on websites.

Wrapping Up the Contra Creator Tools Awards

In summary, the Creator Tools Awards have showcased a plethora of excellent tools across various categories.

Whether you are a seasoned designer, developer, or just starting, these tools can enhance your workflow and productivity.