My Toolbox and Work Setup
Explore my toolbox, where I share my go-to tools, hardware, and software, along with the WordPress plugins that fuel my content creation, web development, and online marketing.
Disclaimer: In full transparency, I am an affiliate for one or more of the products listed on this page. If you click a link and complete a purchase, I might make a commission at no extra cost to you. Please see the full disclaimer and FTC disclosure here.
Tools I Use Daily
Battle-tested tools that power my websites, content, and business operations.
Zipchat
Zipchat is an AI-powered sales chat app. Chat with your customers, answer their questions, and make shopping a breeze. Supporting…
xCloud
xCloud is a managed server and WordPress hosting platform that deploys sites on your own cloud infrastructure from providers like…
WPX
WPX Hosting was my hosting provider for three years, and I know the service intimately. Built specifically for WordPress, WPX…
WP Rocket
WP Rocket is the most popular premium WordPress caching plugin, and for good reason. It's the easiest to set up…
WP Grid Builder
WP Grid Builder creates filterable, animated grid layouts for WordPress posts, custom post types, and WooCommerce products. Its faceted search…
WordPress.com
WordPress.com is the hosted version of WordPress, offering an all-in-one platform for building websites without managing your own hosting infrastructure.…
Todoist
Todoist is one of the most popular task management apps available, used by millions for personal and professional productivity. Its…
SureCart
SureCart is a modern ecommerce plugin for WordPress that simplifies selling digital and physical products. It offers a cleaner, faster…
Shopify
Shopify is the leading ecommerce platform for businesses of every size, from solo creators selling handmade goods to enterprise brands…
SendFox
SendFox is a budget-friendly email marketing tool created by the AppSumo team, designed specifically for content creators. It offers email…
SEMrush
SEMrush is the all-in-one SEO and digital marketing toolkit I recommend most. After using it daily for years across dozens…
ScalaHosting
ScalaHosting offers managed VPS hosting with their proprietary SPanel control panel as an alternative to cPanel. It's built for users…
Sapling
Sapling is an AI writing assistant that focuses on speed and accuracy for business communication. It integrates with email, CRM…
Rank Math
Rank Math is the WordPress SEO plugin I use and recommend most. It offers more features in its free version…
Perfmatters
Perfmatters is a lightweight WordPress performance plugin that focuses on doing fewer things exceptionally well. It disables unnecessary scripts, manages…
PDF Expert
PDF Expert is a PDF editing app for Mac and iOS that handles reading, annotation, editing, and form filling with…
Novashare
Novashare is a lightweight WordPress social sharing plugin built for performance. Unlike bloated alternatives that load multiple scripts, Novashare adds…
Notion
Notion is an all-in-one workspace that combines notes, databases, project management, and wikis in a single platform. It's become the…
Nexter Blocks
Nexter Blocks is a WordPress Gutenberg blocks plugin that adds design-focused blocks to the block editor. From advanced sliders and…
Marketers Delight
Marketers Delight is the WordPress theme that powers gauravtiwari.org and dozens of my client sites. Built specifically for content marketers…
MailerLite
MailerLite is an email marketing platform that offers exceptional value for small businesses and creators. With a generous free plan,…
Kadence Blocks
Kadence Blocks adds powerful custom blocks to the WordPress Gutenberg editor with advanced design controls and responsive options. From row…
Internxt
Internxt is a privacy-focused cloud storage provider that encrypts your files client-side before they ever leave your device. Unlike mainstream…
InstaWP
InstaWP lets you spin up disposable WordPress sites in seconds for testing, development, and client demos. No server setup required.…
Independent Analytics
Independent Analytics is a privacy-focused WordPress analytics plugin that tracks visitor data without external services like Google Analytics. All data…
Hostinger
Hostinger offers some of the most affordable web hosting available, with shared hosting plans that include a free domain and…
GenerateBlocks
GenerateBlocks is a lightweight WordPress plugin that adds four essential blocks to the Gutenberg editor: Container, Grid, Headline, and Buttons.…
FlyingPress
FlyingPress is a lightweight WordPress performance plugin that I switched to after using WP Rocket for ten years. It handles…
Fluent Forms
Fluent Forms is a lightweight, fast WordPress form builder that handles everything from simple contact forms to complex multi-step workflows.…
Enpass
Enpass is an offline-first password manager that stores your encrypted vault locally rather than on company servers. This approach gives…
Code Snippets
Code Snippets is a WordPress plugin that lets you add custom PHP, CSS, JavaScript, and HTML snippets to your site…
Bunny CDN
Bunny CDN is a content delivery network known for its competitive pricing, global coverage, and easy integration. It speeds up…
Bricks Builder
Bricks Builder is a visual site builder for WordPress that gives developers and designers complete control over their website design.…
Blocksy
Blocksy is a free WordPress theme that punches well above its weight class. With deep block editor integration, WooCommerce support,…
AppSumo
AppSumo is a digital marketplace that offers lifetime deals on software, tools, and services for entrepreneurs and small businesses. Instead…
AAWP
AAWP (Amazon Affiliate WordPress Plugin) is the most powerful tool for Amazon affiliates running WordPress sites. It creates beautiful product…
Design & Development
- Pixelmator and Affinity for designing graphics
- Sublime Text 3 & Antigravity for Development and Writing Hacks.
- Claude Code for planning, coding, and everything else.
- GitHub for everything dev.
- SnippetsLab for Mac — for organizing my code snippets and other key data.
- Clop Pro for Image Optimization.
- CleanShot X to capture and annotate screenshots.
- Dropover for drag-and-drop file management.
- Versioning:
- Local WordPress® Development:
- Local by Flywheel/WP Engine
- Studio by WordPress.com
- xCloud also offers staging sites
- Optimized and self-hosted KaTeX for math-rendering.
- Programming Languages: PHP, Javascript (& jQuery), and Python. Learning Rust now.
- Markup Languages: Markdown, HTML5, CSS3, LaTeX, and MathML
SEO, Content & Marketing
- SEMrush – for Backlink Audit and Keyword Research.
- Google Docs and Chat – to handle documents created by my team.
- Craft & Obsidian for writing and planning content.
Hardware
- All Apple:
- Mac Mini M4
- M5 Pro MacBook Pro
- Macbook Air
- iPhone 16 Plus
- iPad Air
- Apple Magic Keyboard
- Apple Pencil
- AirPods Pro 3rd Generation
- PlayStation 5, Mi Notebook, Xbox Series S, LG 27″-4K Monitor (27UP850N-W).
Productivity Tools
- Craft — for notes, collaboration and media kits
- iA Writer + Typora for markdown writing and editing.
- Things 3 for tasks.
- Raycast for almost everything else. Currently on the Premium plan.
- Claude Max 5X ($100/month) & ChatGPT ($20/month)
WordPress Plugins
- Dynamic Month & Year into Posts to show auto-updating month, year and dates in content and meta.
- Perfmatters and FlyingPress for amazing performance.
- FluentCart for the shop
- Rank Math SEO Pro for SEO. Better than Yoast. Better than anything else.
- Core Forms for the Forms and Polls.
- GenerateBlocks Premium for literally everything that is not normal content.
- Advanced Custom Fields – a total lifesaver.
Hosting
- Using Hostinger VPS (KVM 4) Server on xCloud
- For staging needs, I use RackNerd on xCloud.