Microsoft Office is the most popular productivity suite that is used in most offices. Microsoft Office apps including Word, Powerpoint, Excel, etc. are very useful for office work. This is the reason, the company calls it an office suite. A few years back, it was the only choice of people but it is not the same now. Now we have several other tools similar to Microsoft Office and few of those are even free. These alternatives to Microsoft Office also come with their own unique features. For using Microsoft office, we need to purchase a license from Microsoft. If you do not want to pay, you can use some other tools that are alternatives to Microsoft Office.
Best Free Microsoft Office Alternatives
In this post, I am listing the 5 best Microsoft Office Alternative tools. You can use these tools for office documents, presentations, and spreadsheets.
1. Google Drive
Google Drive (formerly Google G Suite) is a popular alternative to Microsoft office. Google Drive is the cloud storage service but is deeply integrated with Google Docs, Google Slide, and Google Sheets. Google Docs is an online tool where users can create, edit and share documents for free. We can use Google Docs for documents, Google Slides for presentations, and Google Sheets for spreadsheets. These are online tools, so you will not get all the features available in Microsoft office, but it has most of the frequently used features. Google also keeps on adding more features and allows developers to build apps for these tools. So, your experience will be even better than you get from a Microsoft office suite. The most notable feature of this tool is that you can share documents with your friends and work together in real time.
Google Drive’s office tools are free and you do not need to install anything on your system. These tools are integrated with Google Drive where you can store all your documents.
If you are a commercial user and want an improved experience, you can try Google Workspace. It brings several Google software including Gmail, Calendar, Google+, Hangouts, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, and Sites at one place to help you manage your business in a better way.
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, and other operating systems via a web browser. Android and iOS.
2. FreeOffice
FreeOffice is also a nice tool that you may prefer. The latest version of the Free Office was released back in 2016 and it comes with full support for DOC, DOX, XLS, XLSX, and PPT file formats. You can also export documents to PDF or ePub e-Book formats. It comes with three stand-alone programs for documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. It is a free tool but you need to apply for the product key.
The free office is easy to use and Microsoft Office users still find it similar. It has toolbars and document-creation options similar to what you see in Microsoft Office Suite. You also feature spellcheck and smart typing to ensure you are not missing anything. It also provides compatibility with password-protected files.
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS
3. LibreOffice
LibreOffice is a free productivity suite that is similar to Microsoft Office or Apache Open Office. It is a set of word processing tools that allow users to create documents, spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, and database applications. The work experience of this tool is almost similar to Apache Open Office.
It has features for both basic and advanced users. The interesting thing about this tool is that the development of this open-source tool began back in 1985. It makes it older than Microsoft office. The open-source community behind LibreOffice is active and they keep on publishing new extensions to add new features and give you a fresh experience. If you want a highly customizable alternative to Microsoft suit, you should consider LibreOffice.
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android
4. Apache Open Office
Apache Open Office is a nice Free and Open Productivity Suite. It is one of the popular office suites and comes with nice features. You can use this app for creating text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, and formulas. You can also edit files created in the Microsoft office suite. The most notable feature of Apache Open Office is its customizable nature. It is available in 40+ languages and offers a neat UI. So, it is easy to understand. Just like in Microsoft office, Open Office also provides several templates. You can also extend the features by adding various extensions from the dedicated extensions store.
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux
5. WPS OFFICE
WPS OFFICE is also a good alternative that comes with Writer, Presentation, and Spreadsheet apps. All these apps support Microsoft file formats. The company tried to replicate the same kind of experience by copying the interface and option. So, you don’t need to spend time learning the tool. It also comes with several other new features that are not in the Microsoft suite.
The good thing is that the WPS suite is also available for macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS devices.
Platforms: Windows, Linux, Android, and iOS
Final Words
WPS Office is also worth trying Microsoft Office alternate. Now you know a few good alternatives to Microsoft office. If you do not want to purchase the license for the Office suite, you can try these office alternates. I personally prefer Google Docs. What tools do you prefer? Let us know in the comments below. If you know of any other tool that should be on the list, share it with us via comments.
