Visibility in this ranking can be paid for. Payment moves a vendor's position within the
shortlist; it never adds a vendor, and it never changes a word of the review. The largest vendors in office suites
cannot hold places 1 to 3. Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category,
wherever the category has them; the established names follow from place 4 in their ranked order. How it works: placement disclosure ·
editorial process.
The 12 tools, reviewed
#1 ONLYOFFICE
Open-source editors with a per-admin cloud plan · Latvia · onlyoffice.com
Open source Self-hostable Per-admin billing
ONLYOFFICE earns first place because it changes what you pay for. On the hosted Business plan only administrators are billed, $20 each per month, while users and guests are unlimited and free. A company with two admins and forty occasional editors pays for two seats.
- Pricing: Per admin / month. Free Startup plan with up to 3 admins and 2 GB. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Teams with many readers, few admins
- Strengths: Document, spreadsheet and slide editors; PDF editing and forms; Rooms with granular permissions.
Where it falls short
No business email, calendar or chat sits inside the suite, so a company dropping Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace must find mail elsewhere. The free Startup plan stops at 12 rooms and 2 GB.
Wrong for
Teams that want mail, calendar and meetings under one login, or companies whose editors rely on VBA macros.
Visit ONLYOFFICE →
#2 LibreOffice
Free desktop suite from a Berlin foundation · Germany · libreoffice.org
Open source Desktop No licence fee
LibreOffice is the safest free choice because nobody can reprice it. The Document Foundation distributes six programs, Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math, under the Mozilla Public License 2.0 and the LGPL v3 or later, and the homepage promises no forced AI.
- Pricing: Open source (free). No licence fee; the project asks for voluntary donations and sells nothing per seat. Free plan: open source.
- Best for: Offices wanting free, local software
- Strengths: Writer word processor; Calc spreadsheet; Impress presentations.
Where it falls short
There is no hosted collaboration, mail or calendar in the suite itself. Complicated Excel files with VBA macros, pivot tables or newer functions can render differently after a round trip.
Wrong for
Companies where five people must edit one budget file at the same time, or that need vendor support with a service-level agreement.
Visit LibreOffice →
#3 Zoho Workplace
Mail, files and editors under one Zoho login · India · zoho.com
All-in-one Business email Per user
Zoho Workplace is the best bundle in the list that is not run by the two largest vendors. A single subscription brings mail on your own domain, Writer, Sheet and Show editors, WorkDrive storage, Cliq chat, Meeting, a password manager and directory services.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Per user per month, billed annually on Standard and Professional. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Small firms wanting one all-in bundle
- Strengths: Zoho Mail on your domain; Writer, Sheet and Show editors; WorkDrive file storage.
Where it falls short
The editors are competent rather than the reference for complicated Excel files. The pricing page showed no figures in the HTML we fetched, so budgets must come from the live page.
Wrong for
Companies that live in complicated Excel models or must stay on Microsoft Teams.
Visit Zoho Workplace →
#4 Google Workspace
Browser-first editors with Gmail and Meet · United States · workspace.google.com
Browser-first Per user Major vendor
Google Workspace is the easiest suite to start sharing documents in. Docs, Sheets and Slides run in the browser with live co-editing, and Gmail, Calendar, Meet and Drive come in the same bill.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Starter €6.80, Standard €13.60, Plus €21.10 per user per month excluding tax on the euro page we fetched. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Teams that co-edit in the browser
- Strengths: Docs, Sheets and Slides; Gmail on your domain; Meet video calls.
Where it falls short
Files are held in Google's cloud and your admin picks regions only within what Google offers; data regions sit in the Enterprise tier. Complicated Excel files can lose features on conversion.
Wrong for
Companies that must keep files on their own servers, or whose staff do advanced modeling in Excel.
Visit Google Workspace →
#5 Microsoft 365
The reference Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps · United States · microsoft.com
Reference formats Per user Major vendor
Microsoft 365 is the format everyone else has to imitate. Word, Excel and PowerPoint define how DOCX, XLSX and PPTX files should look, so a firm exchanging complicated models, macros and templates with clients loses the least time here.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Consumer plans are $9.99 to $19.99 per month on the page we fetched. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Firms exchanging complex Office files
- Strengths: Word, Excel and PowerPoint; Outlook and Teams; OneDrive storage.
Where it falls short
The plan matrix is hard to read, and Copilot and security features sit in higher tiers.
Wrong for
Very small teams who only need letters and invoices, or buyers who want to avoid per-user subscriptions.
Visit Microsoft 365 →
#6 SoftMaker Office
German desktop suite with native Microsoft formats · Germany · softmaker.com
Desktop German vendor Native DOCX
SoftMaker Office is the neat option for offices that want local software with fewer compatibility surprises. TextMaker, PlanMaker and Presentations save DOCX, XLSX and PPTX natively, PlanMaker gained dynamic arrays and XLOOKUP, and the vendor says the suite runs locally with no forced cloud connection.
- Pricing: Per computer / year. NX Universal is €49.90 a year (€39.90 the first year) or €4.99 a month, VAT included, for 5 home computers or 1 company computer. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Local-first offices wanting DOCX fidelity
- Strengths: TextMaker word processor; PlanMaker spreadsheet with XLOOKUP; Presentations slide editor.
Where it falls short
The pages we fetched describe a local suite and do not describe browser-based co-editing with several people. It is a per-computer subscription for companies, which adds up across hundreds of machines.
Wrong for
Teams that co-author in real time or need mail and storage in the same product.
Visit SoftMaker Office →
#7 Nextcloud Office
Editors inside a self-hosted file platform · Germany · nextcloud.com
Self-hosted Open source German vendor
Nextcloud Office is the strongest choice when the files already live in a Nextcloud server. The Office page describes Write, Spreadsheet, Present and a PDF editor with comments, annotations and redactions, built on Euro-Office, and says Euro-Office sits alongside Collabora Online from Nextcloud Hub 26 Spring, so an admin picks one with a single setting.
- Pricing: Open source + paid support. Server software is downloadable for self-hosting and hosting providers sell accounts; Nextcloud Enterprise support is quoted and its pricing page was not fetched. Free plan: open source.
- Best for: Organizations hosting their own files
- Strengths: Nextcloud Write, Spreadsheet and Present; PDF editor with annotations; Real-time cursor tracking.
Where it falls short
The suite is part of a file platform, not a standalone product, so a buyer without Nextcloud must install and run it first. The desktop client was listed as coming soon on the page we fetched.
Wrong for
A team of ten with no IT person, or anyone who wants a click-and-go cloud account from one big vendor.
Visit Nextcloud Office →
#8 Collabora Online
LibreOffice-based online editor for integrators · United Kingdom · collaboraonline.com
Open source LibreOffice core Integrator-friendly
Collabora Online is the editing engine behind many self-hosted setups, which is also its limit: you rarely meet it alone. It is built on the LibreOffice core, offers Writer, Calc, Impress and Draw in the browser with real-time collaboration, and scales with Kubernetes through its COOL Controller.
- Pricing: Quote only. The supported edition is quoted through a contact form. Free plan: open source.
- Best for: Integrators and self-hosting IT teams
- Strengths: Writer, Calc, Impress and Draw online; Real-time collaboration; Kubernetes scaling via COOL Controller.
Where it falls short
It is not a ready-made workspace: no mail, no storage, no accounts, so you need an integration or a hosting partner.
Wrong for
Anyone who wants to sign up and start typing today.
Visit Collabora Online →
#9 Proton Docs
Encrypted documents inside Proton Drive · Switzerland · proton.me
End-to-end encrypted Swiss vendor Free tier
Proton Docs fits the buyer whose first worry is who can read the file. Proton states that documents are end-to-end encrypted, that not even Proton can access them, and that content is not used to train AI models. Editing shows live cursors, supports suggestions and threaded comments, and guests can join without a Proton account.
- Pricing: Storage plan / month. Free account with 5 GB and the online editors. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Privacy-minded teams, light needs
- Strengths: Collaborative documents; Proton Sheets spreadsheets; Track changes and suggestions.
Where it falls short
There is no slide editor on the pages we reviewed, so presentations need another tool. Encryption limits server-side features such as search inside files and some integrations.
Wrong for
Teams that build slide decks daily or exchange heavy Excel models.
Visit Proton Docs →
#10 WPS Office
Kingsoft's Office-style suite with a free tier · Singapore · wps.com
Free tier Desktop and mobile AI add-ons
WPS Office is the closest imitation of Microsoft's look in this list, which makes it easy for staff to switch to. The suite covers Writer, Spreadsheet, Presentation and PDF, states 100 percent compatibility with Microsoft file formats and ships on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. A free tier exists.
- Pricing: Per user / subscription. A free tier exists with 1 GB of cloud storage and limited AI. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Individuals wanting a familiar interface
- Strengths: WPS Writer, Spreadsheet and Presentation; PDF editing and conversion; AI summarizer and rewrite tools.
Where it falls short
Many AI tools are limited per day on the free tier. Plan prices were not visible in the HTML we fetched, so budgeting needs the live page.
Wrong for
Companies with strict data-residency or procurement rules about vendor origin, and teams needing central admin and shared drives.
Visit WPS Office →
#11 Polaris Office
Korean multi-device suite with NOVA AI · South Korea · polarisoffice.com
Mobile-first Korean vendor AI bundle
Polaris Office earns a place for its device range and its Korean document support. The site lists Windows, Mac, Android, iOS and a browser Web Office that can be used for free, with a subscription, a perpetual licence and a business plan. A web HWP tool handles Korean word-processor files, which matter to Korean offices.
- Pricing: Subscription or perpetual. Subscription, perpetual licence and business subscription plans are listed, with a free web office; no price figures appeared in the page we fetched. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Mobile-heavy users and Korean offices
- Strengths: Polaris Docs, Sheets and Slides; Web Office in the browser; Polaris Viewer and Converter.
Where it falls short
No prices appeared in the page we fetched, and a company contact page for English-speaking buyers was not found at the address we tried. The emphasis on AI chat and image tools can distract from document features.
Wrong for
Western small businesses needing English-language contracts and support, or teams needing shared drives and a mail domain.
Visit Polaris Office →
#12 Apache OpenOffice
Free desktop suite from the Apache foundation · United States · openoffice.org
Open source Desktop Apache License
Apache OpenOffice is the original of the free suites, kept alive as an Apache Software Foundation project. The project announced version 4.1.17 on 14 October 2026, after 4.1.16 in November 2025 and 4.1.15 in December 2023, and the site still offers downloads, help, extensions and templates in many languages.
- Pricing: Open source (free). Free to download; the project is an Apache Software Foundation project and sells nothing. Free plan: open source.
- Best for: Stable single-PC office use
- Strengths: Writer; Calc; Impress.
Where it falls short
Updates arrive about once a year, so fixes and new formats take long. It has no shared editing, no hosted option and no commercial support.
Wrong for
Any company that needs security fixes at speed, support contracts or collaboration.
Visit Apache OpenOffice →
Questions and answers
What is the best office suite in 2026?
ONLYOFFICE ranks first of 12, best for teams with many readers, few admins. LibreOffice is second (offices wanting free, local software) and Zoho Workplace third (small firms wanting one all-in bundle). Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands, wherever the category has them.
Is LibreOffice a real replacement for Microsoft 365?
For writing, calculating and presenting, yes, and it costs nothing to license. It opens DOCX, XLSX and PPTX and saves them, and the Document Foundation distributes it under the Mozilla Public License 2.0 and LGPL v3 or later.
How much does Microsoft 365 cost?
On the page we fetched, the consumer plans are Microsoft 365 Personal at $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, Family at $12.99 per month or $129.99 per year for up to six people, and Premium at $19.99 per month or $199.99 per year.
What does Google Workspace cost per user?
On the euro pricing page we fetched, Starter lists at €6.80, Standard at €13.60 and Plus at €21.10 per user per month, excluding tax, with a 14-day trial and introductory discounts for the first three months.
Can an office suite run on our own server?
Yes. Collabora Online, ONLYOFFICE Docs and Nextcloud Office are built to be installed on your own infrastructure or at a hosting partner, and each connects to a file platform such as Nextcloud. ONLYOFFICE also offers a hosted option.
Which office suite has the best Microsoft file compatibility?
Microsoft's own apps are the reference, so no rival matches them on every complicated file.
Is there an encrypted alternative to Google Docs?
Proton Docs is the clearest one. Proton states that documents are end-to-end encrypted, that only the people you share with can read them, and that not even Proton can access them.
Do I need a separate subscription for mail and storage?
It depends on the product. Google Workspace and Zoho Workplace bundle business mail, storage and meetings with the editors. Microsoft's plans bundle cloud storage, and business mail depends on the tier.
Is Apache OpenOffice still maintained?
Yes, but slowly. The project's own site announced version 4.1.17 on 14 October 2026, after 4.1.16 in November 2025 and 4.1.15 in December 2023. It is free and an Apache Software Foundation project.
What is the cheapest way to equip ten employees?
Free desktop software is cheapest in licence terms: LibreOffice or Apache OpenOffice cost nothing. SoftMaker Office lists a ten-computer volume licence at €398 including VAT for its NX Universal subscription.
Does WPS Office work for a business?
It can. WPS Office offers Writer, Spreadsheet, Presentation and PDF tools, claims compatibility with Microsoft formats and has a free tier with limited AI and 1 GB of cloud storage.
