In the world of software development, your tools are just as important as your skills. A good tool can save you hours of debugging, automate tedious tasks, and make your code cleaner.
I've bookmarked hundreds of sites over the years, but these are the 10 I keep coming back to. Whether you're a frontend wizard or a backend architect, these tools deserve a spot in your browser bar.
#1. Carbon (carbon.now.sh)
Ever wonder how developers on Twitter create those beautiful, colorful screenshots of their code? They use Carbon.
- What it does: Turns your code snippets into stunning, shareable images.
- Why use it: Perfect for tutorials, presentations, or social media. It signals quality before anyone even reads the code.
#2. Excalidraw
Sometimes you just need to sketch out an idea. Excalidraw is a virtual whiteboard that feels like drawing on paper.
- What it does: Hand-drawn style diagrams for system architecture, flows, and mockups.
- Why use it: It's simple, collaborative, and the "messy" style lowers the pressure to be perfect during brainstorming.
#3. Postman
If you work with APIs, Postman is non-negotiable.
- What it does: Allows you to send HTTP requests to test, document, and monitor APIs.
- Why use it: It saves you from writing throwaway scripts just to test if an endpoint works.
#4. RegExr
Regular Expressions (Regex) are powerful but notoriously difficult to read. RegExr makes them manageable.
- What it does: A playground to write, test, and debug Regex patterns with real-time explanations.
- Why use it: It explains exactly why your pattern is matching (or not matching) specific text.
#5. Bundlephobia
In modern web dev, bundle size matters. Period.
- What it does: Tells you exactly how "heavy" an npm package is before you install it.
- Why use it: Avoid bloating your app. Check the cost of that "simple" library before adding it to your
package.json.
#6. Squoosh (squoosh.app)
Images are usually the heaviest part of a website. Squoosh is Google's answer to image optimization.
- What it does: Compresses images directly in your browser with advanced codecs (WebP, AVIF).
- Why use it: You get instant visual feedback on quality loss versus file size savings.
#7. JSON Crack (jsoncrack.com)
Huge JSON files are a headache to read. JSON Crack turns them into graphs.
- What it does: Visualizes JSON data as interactive diagrams.
- Why use it: Great for understanding the structure of complex API responses without scrolling through thousands of lines.
#8. DevDocs.io
Tired of having 50 tabs open for different documentation sites?
- What it does: Combines documentation for almost every language and framework (React, Python, MDN, Docker) into a single, offline-enabled interface.
- Why use it: Speed. Search everything in one place.
#9. Color Hunt
Design isn't everyone's strong suit. Color Hunt provides hand-picked color palettes.
- What it does: A curated collection of beautiful color schemes.
- Why use it: Stop guessing which colors look good together. Just pick a palette and start coding.
#10. Toolghar (Yes, this site!)
I built Toolghar because I needed a fast, reliable place for everyday tasks.
- What it does: Image conversion, PDF merging, text manipulation, and more — 250+ tools in one place.
- Why use it: It's free, privacy-focused, and built by a developer for developers.
#Final Thoughts
The best developer isn't the one who memorizes every syntax rule — it's the one who knows how to find solutions efficiently. These tools are shortcuts to that efficiency.
Did I miss your favorite? Let me know!