~/tools/office

Office Suites

last updated 2026-08-02 · 5 recommendations · what changed

Google Docs and Microsoft 365 mean every document you write is readable by the platform and synced to their cloud by default. The alternatives below keep documents local-first or end-to-end encrypted: your drafts stay yours, whether that's a file on disk or ciphertext on someone else's server.

what actually matters

recommendations

OnlyOffice

the default pick

partially open sourceself-hostabledesktop appfree tier

OnlyOffice has the strongest Microsoft format fidelity of any non-Microsoft suite: documents round-trip through .docx, .xlsx, and .pptx with fewer surprises than the alternatives. It's open source at the core, works as a standalone desktop app with no account at all, and can be self-hosted if you want real-time collaboration on infrastructure you control. It's the default starting point for most people leaving Microsoft or Google.

good

• Best-in-class compatibility with Office file formats
• Desktop app needs no account and no internet connection
• Self-hostable for E2EE-adjacent collaboration on your own server
• Open source core with an active project behind it

mind the

• The hosted/cloud version is a separate commercial product; read which one you're using
• Self-hosting real-time collaboration takes real setup effort
• Some enterprise-grade format edge cases still slip in complex files

desktop free · self-hosted free, cloud plans extra onlyoffice.com →

LibreOffice

the classic pick

open sourcelocal-firstno accountfree

LibreOffice is the free, open-source desktop suite that's been the default Microsoft Office alternative for over a decade. It's fully offline, no account, no cloud: write, save, done. Format support across .docx, .xlsx, and .pptx is excellent and improves every release, with a large, active open-source community behind it.

good

• Completely free, open source, no account required at any point
• Works fully offline by design; there's no cloud mode to opt out of
• Mature, actively developed, huge install base means bugs get found fast

mind the

• No built-in real-time multi-user collaboration
• Complex Office macros and embedded objects can still misbehave on open
• UI feels dated next to Google Docs or Microsoft 365

free, open source libreoffice.org →

OpenOffice

the legacy pick

open sourcelocal-firstfree

OpenOffice is the project LibreOffice forked from in 2010. LibreOffice is the actively maintained continuation: it inherited the codebase and kept moving, while OpenOffice's development has slowed considerably under the Apache Software Foundation. It still works, and some people stick with it out of familiarity, but there's no compelling reason to start here today.

good

• Free, open source, no account: same baseline as LibreOffice
• Familiar interface for anyone who used it pre-fork

mind the

• Development has slowed considerably since the LibreOffice fork
• Fewer format-compatibility and security fixes land here, and slower
• For most people, LibreOffice is simply the better version of this

free, open source openoffice.org →

CryptPad

the encrypted-collab pick

e2eezero-knowledgereal-time collaborationopen sourcefree tier

CryptPad gives you real-time collaborative documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and more in the browser, like Google Docs, except the server can't read any of it. It's end-to-end encrypted and zero-knowledge by design, and open source. It's the pick when live multi-person editing matters and encryption isn't optional.

good

• Genuine real-time collaboration, fully end-to-end encrypted
• Zero-knowledge server: operators can't read your documents
• Open source, self-hostable if you want full control

mind the

• Office format import/export is functional but not as faithful as OnlyOffice/LibreOffice
• Free tier has storage and feature limits
• Browser-based: no offline-first desktop app

free tier · paid plans for more storage cryptpad.org →

Fileverse

the one to watch

decentralizede2eefree

Fileverse is a newer, decentralized, web3-adjacent take on collaborative documents, built around user-owned data and end-to-end encryption instead of a company holding the master copy. The ideas are right, but it's meaningfully less established than everything else on this page: smaller team, shorter track record, less battle-testing. It's worth watching, but not yet a default recommendation for documents that matter.

good

• End-to-end encrypted with a genuine user-ownership model
• Decentralized architecture avoids a single corporate custodian
• Free to use, actively iterating
• Shipped a second product (dSheets) alongside dDocs, expanding beyond a single tool

mind the

• Early-stage project: far less track record than CryptPad or the desktop suites
• Format compatibility and feature depth are still catching up
• Web3/decentralized tooling adds unfamiliar failure modes for non-technical users

free fileverse.io →

at a glance

"format compatibility" refers to round-tripping .docx/.xlsx/.pptx without losing formatting.

worth knowing