What Is Another Way to Say “Not Useful”?

Looking for synonyms for not useful? We’ve got you covered!

Here’s a list of other ways to say not useful.

  • Useless
  • Ineffective
  • Pointless
  • Unproductive
  • Futile
  • Worthless
  • Inefficient
  • Nonfunctional
  • Impractical
  • Unhelpful
  • Inadequate
  • Redundant
  • Superfluous
  • Irrelevant
  • Meaningless
  • Inapplicable
  • Unavailing
  • Inconsequential
  • Nonessential
  • Insignificant

Want to learn how to say not useful professionally? Keep reading for examples and use cases.

1. Useless

Appropriate Use: For something that serves no purpose or is not effective in any situation.
Example: “The outdated software became useless after the system upgrade.”

2. Ineffective

Appropriate Use: When an action or method does not produce the desired result.
Example: “The marketing campaign was ineffective in reaching the target audience.”

3. Pointless

Appropriate Use: For activities or efforts that have no useful purpose or result.
Example: “Continuing the research on that topic seemed pointless after the new findings emerged.”

4. Unproductive

Appropriate Use: When work or efforts do not produce a significant or desired outcome.
Example: “The team meetings were unproductive, often deviating from the main agenda.”

5. Futile

Appropriate Use: For efforts that are incapable of producing any useful result; fruitless.
Example: “Attempting to manually process the data was futile given its volume.”

6. Worthless

Appropriate Use: When something has no monetary, practical, or intrinsic value.
Example: “The report was filled with worthless information, contributing nothing to the analysis.”

7. Inefficient

Appropriate Use: For processes or methods that do not maximize productivity or use resources effectively.
Example: “The current filing system is inefficient and needs to be modernized.”

8. Nonfunctional

Appropriate Use: When something does not operate or function as intended.
Example: “The prototype they developed was nonfunctional and couldn’t be tested.”

9. Impractical

Appropriate Use: For ideas or methods that are not feasible or realistic in practice.
Example: “The proposed solution was impractical due to the excessive costs involved.”

10. Unhelpful

Appropriate Use: When assistance or information does not provide any useful help or clarification.
Example: “The guidelines provided were unhelpful and did not address the main issues.”

11. Inadequate

Appropriate Use: For something that is insufficient or not good enough for its intended purpose.
Example: “The safety measures in place were inadequate to protect the workers.”

12. Redundant

Appropriate Use: When something is no longer needed due to being duplicated or superfluous.
Example: “With the new automated system, several manual processes have become redundant.”

13. Superfluous

Appropriate Use: For something extra or unnecessary that is more than what is required.
Example: “The report contained superfluous details that were irrelevant to the project’s outcome.”

14. Irrelevant

Appropriate Use: When information or actions have no bearing on or connection to the current matter.
Example: “The data collected was interesting but irrelevant to the research question.”

15. Meaningless

Appropriate Use: For statements, data, or actions that lack significance or purpose.
Example: “The feedback was vague and meaningless, providing no direction for improvement.”

16. Inapplicable

Appropriate Use: When something cannot be applied to a particular situation or context.
Example: “The regulations from the other industry are inapplicable to our business model.”

17. Unavailing

Appropriate Use: For efforts or attempts that fail to produce a desired effect.
Example: “All attempts to negotiate a better deal were unavailing.”

18. Inconsequential

Appropriate Use: When the outcome or effect of something is so small that it becomes insignificant.
Example: “The changes made to the process were inconsequential, having no real impact on efficiency.”

19. Nonessential

Appropriate Use: For items or tasks that are not absolutely necessary.
Example: “During budget cuts, the company focused on eliminating nonessential expenses.”

20. Insignificant

Appropriate Use: When something is too small or unimportant to be worth consideration.
Example: “The variance in the data was deemed insignificant and did not affect the overall results.”

Linda Brown