About

Hey — I’m Alex, and This Is OneLessHour

I’m a freelancer who was drowning in busywork. Emails, meeting notes, research rabbit holes, social media posts — the kind of tasks that eat your day without moving your life forward. Sound familiar?

Then I discovered AI tools. Not the hype-cycle stuff you see on Twitter. The boring, practical kind that quietly gives you hours back every week. I started experimenting, found what actually works, and built a daily system around it.

The result? I get back roughly 3 hours every single day. No exaggeration — I tracked it with Toggl for 30 days.

Why I Started OneLessHour

OneLessHour is the blog I wish existed when I started. The internet is overflowing with “10 ways AI will change the world” articles. What I couldn’t find was somebody who’d actually used these tools for a month, tracked the time savings, and told me which ones quietly stopped delivering after the honeymoon period.

So I built it. Every tool I recommend here, I’ve personally used for at least two weeks of real work. Every workflow I share, I’ve tested on my own client load, my own inbox, my own deadlines. If a tool doesn’t survive that test, it doesn’t make the site.

What I Cover

• Free AI tools that save real time (ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Otter.ai)
• Paid tools under $10/month that are actually worth the investment
• Step-by-step workflows you can set up in 15 minutes or less
• Honest reviews — including what doesn’t work and where AI falls short

How I Test

I run every tool through real work for a minimum of two weeks, track time saved with Toggl, and only recommend the ones that actually move the needle. The full process is documented on my review methodology page — including what disqualifies a tool, how I handle affiliate links, and the exact criteria behind every “Pro tip” and “Skip it if” call you’ll see in my reviews.

Get in Touch

Have a question, tool suggestion, or just want to say hi? Email me at [email protected].

My mission is simple: help busy people get one less hour of busywork every day. That’s it. That’s the whole thing.

— Alex