LibreOffice 25.8: New features
By LibreOffice - The Document Foundation ·
Playing loads YouTube. YouTube will receive your IP address and device information.
Best Free Office Suites 2026: 7 Options Compared
Best free Office Suites compared: LibreOffice, ONLYOFFICE, SoftMaker FreeOffice, WPS Office and 3 more, with free-plan limits, platforms and prices from official pages checked October 23, 2026.
•3 min read•Office, Docs & Presentations
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LibreOffice | Free (download and use at no cost per its site) | Windows, macOS, Linux | The full free desktop suite | Docs only |
| ONLYOFFICE | Free (Startup cloud plan with up to 3 admins, unlimited users and guests, 12 rooms and 2 GB of storage); paid from $20 per admin/month (Business cloud plan; only admins are paid) | Web, Self-hosted, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Collaborating on Word files | Docs only |
| SoftMaker FreeOffice | Free (Free for personal and business use) | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Familiar Office-style interface | Docs only |
| WPS Office | Free (Free WPS Standard: 1 user, 1 GB cloud storage, limited AI tools) | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web browser | A light Office look-alike | Docs only |
| Apache OpenOffice | Free (Free; developed by volunteers, donations accepted) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Older systems and simple needs | Docs only |
| Google Docs | Free (Free for anyone with a Google Account; storage comes from the Google account quota) | Web, iOS, Android | Collaborative writing in the browser | Docs only |
| Microsoft Office | Free (Free web versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint with a Microsoft account (third-party reports)) | Windows, macOS, Web, iOS, Android | Best Microsoft file fidelity | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
See the tools in action
Images from the linked documentation. Versions and features may differ from current plans.
LibreOffice Writer — official interface example
The Document Foundation · Source · CC BY-SA 3.0
Good fit if
- You want a full desktop suite that costs nothing (LibreOffice is the pick)
- You exchange Word files with clients (ONLYOFFICE is the pick)
- You want a familiar Office interface offline (SoftMaker FreeOffice is the pick)
- You write with others in real time (Google Docs is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You need paid-tier features, uptime guarantees or support that these free plans leave out
A free office suite means either free desktop software or a free web account, and they solve different problems. LibreOffice is the full-featured open-source answer with Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math, and it has no built-in cloud storage. Apache OpenOffice is the older volunteer suite, still released, with version 4.1.17 announced in October 2026. SoftMaker FreeOffice is free for personal and business use with a layout very close to Microsoft Office, and WPS Office offers a free tier with 1 GB cloud storage and limited AI tools. ONLYOFFICE has the best compatibility with Word formats among the open-source options and a free cloud Startup plan of 2 GB. Google Docs and Zoho Writer run in the browser at no cost, and Microsoft's own Word, Excel and PowerPoint have free web versions with a Microsoft account. The trade-off is formatting fidelity against price. Complex Word files with tracked changes and custom fonts look best in Microsoft's apps and ONLYOFFICE, while LibreOffice sometimes shifts layout. If you collaborate with clients, test their real documents before you switch. For a school or home setup with plain documents, any of these works, and the choice comes down to whether you prefer desktop files or a browser.
LibreOffice
MPL-2.0 desktop suite for Windows, macOS and Linux with Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math. No built-in cloud storage.
Price: Free (download and use at no cost per its site) (LibreOffice pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. MPL-2.0 (open source).
Best for: The full free desktop suite.
Worth knowing: Desktop suite of Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math; it has no built-in cloud storage or email.
ONLYOFFICE
AGPL-3.0 Docs server, desktop apps and a free Startup cloud plan with 12 rooms and 2 GB. Strong Microsoft format compatibility.
Price: Free (Startup cloud plan with up to 3 admins, unlimited users and guests, 12 rooms and 2 GB of storage); paid from $20 per admin/month (Business cloud plan; only admins are paid) (ONLYOFFICE pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android. AGPL-3.0 (Docs server) (open source).
Project activity: 7.1k GitHub stars · latest release v10.0.0 (Oct 12, 2026) · last commit Oct 26, 2026
Best for: Collaborating on Word files.
SoftMaker FreeOffice
Free for personal and business use, with TextMaker, PlanMaker and Presentations on Windows, macOS, Linux and mobile. Closed source.
Price: Free (Free for personal and business use) (SoftMaker FreeOffice pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Familiar Office-style interface.
Worth knowing: Word processor (TextMaker), spreadsheet (PlanMaker) and Presentations; compatible with Microsoft Office formats.
WPS Office
Free WPS Standard: 1 user, 1 GB cloud storage and limited AI tools, across desktop, mobile and web. Paid prices were not shown.
Price: Free (Free WPS Standard: 1 user, 1 GB cloud storage, limited AI tools) (WPS Office pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web browser. Proprietary.
Best for: A light Office look-alike.
Apache OpenOffice
Apache-2.0 volunteer-built suite that calls itself free and open, latest version 4.1.17. Development is slower than LibreOffice.
Price: Free (Free; developed by volunteers, donations accepted) (Apache OpenOffice pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. Apache License 2.0 (open source).
Best for: Older systems and simple needs.
Google Docs
Free with a Google Account in the browser and mobile, using your Google storage. Some features need Google Workspace.
Price: Free (Free for anyone with a Google Account; storage comes from the Google account quota) (Google Docs pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Web, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Collaborative writing in the browser.
Compare: Google Docs alternatives
Microsoft Office
Free web versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint with a Microsoft account per third-party reports; desktop apps need Microsoft 365.
Price: Free (Free web versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint with a Microsoft account (third-party reports)) (Microsoft Office pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Web, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Best Microsoft file fidelity.
Compare: Microsoft Office alternatives
Which one to pick
- You want a full desktop suite that costs nothing: LibreOffice
- You exchange Word files with clients: ONLYOFFICE
- You want a familiar Office interface offline: SoftMaker FreeOffice
- You write with others in real time: Google Docs
Limits of this review
Docs-only for LibreOffice, ONLYOFFICE, SoftMaker FreeOffice, WPS Office, Apache OpenOffice, Google Docs, Microsoft Office: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you commit.
Related guides
More in Office, Docs & Presentations
- Microsoft Office alternatives
- Microsoft Word alternatives
- Microsoft Excel alternatives
- Google Docs alternatives
Sources
- LibreOffice pricing
- LibreOffice (more detail)
- ONLYOFFICE pricing
- ONLYOFFICE license
- SoftMaker FreeOffice pricing
- WPS Office pricing
- Apache OpenOffice pricing
- Apache OpenOffice license
- Google Docs pricing
- Google Docs (more detail)
- Google Docs (more detail)
- Google Docs (more detail)
- Microsoft Office pricing
- Microsoft Office (more detail)
Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing, license and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-23: LibreOffice, ONLYOFFICE, SoftMaker FreeOffice, WPS Office, Apache OpenOffice, Google Docs, Microsoft Office. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.