10 free portable apps you should always keep ready in your USB drive

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Having a set of essential and reliable portable apps ready on your USB drive can come in handy in many situations. Whether you are fixing problems on your friend's computer, working across multiple systems, or just want to carry your favorite apps with you in case an occasion arises, portable apps can be very convenient. These are lightweight, require no installation on the host device, and can be launched directly from the USB drive.

There are many portable apps available to download, and you can get any combination of them per your preferences, but the following are the ten essential free portable apps that you should probably always carry with you.

Although all the apps listed below are portable, you first need to install them once on the USB drive where you want to keep them of course. Then, you can use them on any Windows PC without installation.

Whether you're an avid gamer or a productivity-oriented user, there's something here for everyone

If your secondary Windows device or your friend's device is infected with malware, and it has become challenging to install a traditional antivirus program, ClamWin Portable Antivirus will help you. It's a free security solution designed to scan and remove malicious programs and files from your system. It can scan your system directly from the USB device, making it incredibly convenient to get rid of malware on the go.

It can scan your whole system or a particular folder or file, as you prefer. While it doesn't offer real-time protection and is not as robust as a few installable antivirus programs, it's handy enough to detect viruses, worms, and even Trojans. Before performing the scan, it always asks to update the antivirus definition database so you won't have to worry about it not detecting the latest malware.

If you suspect the presence of sophisticated malware, such as a rootkit or bootkit, on your system, the portable version of Sophos Scan and Clean can perform advanced scanning to detect it. A rootkit is dangerous malware that hides itself deep in the system to avoid detection from regular anti-malware scans. Sophos works at a low level where rootkits reside to uncover them. You don't have to worry about updating the app, as it automatically updates with every scan you perform.

The only problem I found with Sophos is that, unlike other anti-malware scanners, it doesn't provide a way to scan selected folders or files and always performs a full system scan (so it will take a while). This is because of the application's nature. After the scan, it always creates a system restore point before making any changes, like quarantining or removing suspicious files or apps.

If you are a Windows user, you might face various technical issues, perhaps such as File Explorer not working or problems with the internet connection. These minor issues can be frustrating, especially if you aren't always savvy enough to diagnose and fix them manually. That's where FixWin 11 comes in handy to support the troubleshooting process.

The first time I came across it was when my Windows 10 system's Start menu broke. I was really impressed by the program's ability to solve the issue with just a single click. It has a straightforward interface where you'll find one-click solutions to common Windows issues, all predefined. Apart from clicking, you don't have to perform any other manual action.

The app's welcome screen provides basic system information and several common fixes, such as System File Checker, Re-register Store Apps, Create Restore Point, and more. You can switch to one of the six troubleshooting categories according to the problem you are facing from the left side of the welcome screen. For more details on each category and fixes, you can refer to the creator's (TheWindowsClub) page.

If you notice your system has been lagging and slowing down, it might be caused by unnecessary load due to an accumulation of junk files. In such cases, you can utilize the ccPortable app to restore your PC's normal functioning.

ccPortable is the portable version of the popular cleaner app CCleaner. It scans and cleans junk files from your system to optimize its performance. It comes with numerous system maintenance tools, such as Health Check, Custom Clean, Browser Cleaner, Registry Cleaner, Startup Optimizer, and many more. There is also a driver and software updater, but those are paid features.

I particularly liked the Custom Clean section, which allowed me to delete data on specific applications. Overall, it's an excellent tool to speed up and optimize an unresponsive computer quickly within a few steps, without leaving any footprints behind.

Everything is a freeware Windows local search tool known for its advanced search. When launched, it indexes all the files and folders of your PC within seconds, and then you can search for anything you want on your system. The portable version does the exact same thing without getting installed.

With Everything, I could even find the hidden and deeply rooted files of the OS. If you have to deal with a PC that has a large number of directories, Everything will be your go-to tool.

GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) is a powerful photo editing software that comes with features like photo retouching, image composition, creation, and more. It's an open-source and non-commercially free-to-use program, often used by creators as a free alternative to Photoshop. The portable version is as robust as the standard one.

I particularly liked the customization it provides through plugins and scripts. It also supports a wide range of popular and not-so-popular image formats like JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, and more. With the portable version, I noticed less impact on my system compared to the standard version. If you are a photographer, designer, or someone who needs to perform graphical edits on the go, GIMP Portable will be a valuable addition to your kit.

If you are a fan of the Firefox browser, you can carry its portable version on your USB and use it on any system you wish. The portable version has all the features that the standard Firefox is famous for, like privacy features, fast browsing speeds, support for numerous extensions, and more.

The best part is that it stores browser data in a folder on the USB itself. So, I could carry the bookmarks, browsing history, extensions, and other browsing data with me and utilize them with any computer on which I use the portable browser.

Firefox is free to download and use.

Notepad++ is a popular code editor used by coders and developers worldwide. The portable version of the app is quite robust and comes with features like syntax highlighting, code folding, and macro recording. I also like the customization it provides. If you write or edit code on multiple systems, using Notepad ++ Portable will provide you with the consistency and efficiency you require and personalization on every system you work on.

If you prefer a lightweight, free-to-use, and open-source program to access PDF files on the go, Foxit PDF Reader is your answer. It lets you quickly open, view, annotate, and fill out PDF forms. I particularly like that you can highlight, sign, and add notes to PDFs, which makes it more than just a PDF reader. It is a helpful tool for professionals at any level. The only annoying thing about it is that it comes with advertisements on its homepage asking users to try Foxit's other applications.

Free Download Manager (FDM) is an excellent portable download manager for Windows PCs. If you regularly work on large files and need to download them quickly on any computer, FDM makes your work super quick and efficient with its advanced downloading mechanism. It also allowed me to resume broken downloads, ensuring I didn't lose the download progress due to a network interruption.

Furthermore, in addition to regular downloads, FDM is also compatible with torrent downloads, which makes it an all-around download manager that you definitely want to have in your portable apps kit.

There you have it—some of the best free portable apps for Windows OS you should always have with you. They can help you conduct system maintenance, ensure device security, enhance productivity on the go, and do many more tasks. If not all of these are up your alley, hopefully the list provides some inspiration to create your own custom USB. Whether you are a power user or a regular user, having useful apps along with you will keep you one step ahead and more efficient in any potential tech emergency.

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