Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) and Office 365(Microsoft 365) go head to head; customers continually compare G Suite vs Office 365. Users have a lot of confusion and questions before making a choice. This write-up will touch on all dimensions and have a fair comparison b/w Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365.
What are G Suite and Microsoft 365?
G Suite and Microsoft 365 are the talks of the town; businesses, techies, and personal users are divided by both. Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365 comparison is taking a long debate. Firstly, let’s have an intro to them:
Google Workspace (G Suite):
Google Workspace (G Suite) is a collaborative cloud platform having multiple user-oriented applications developed by Google. It was initially launched in February 2006 with the name “Gmail for Your Domain,” later popularized as G Suite and rebranded as Google Workspace. Products like Gmail, Calendar, Sheets, Docs, Hangouts, and Keep are some of the gems of Google Workspace.
- Google Workspace offers various subscription-based plans for users. Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, and Enterprise are four different plans.
- Google Workspace comes with Two-step verification, Group based policy control, and other security/ management steps.
- Forms is also a part of Google Workspace. Google Forms helps organizations take feedback from users or clients. It facilitates surveying, gathering data, and analyzing.
Also Read: Google Workspace (Gmail for Business) Pricing & Plans for Business and Individuals
Microsoft 365 (Office 365):
Office 365, now known as Microsoft 365, is a cloud-based software as a service with numerous products and services. It encompasses Outlook, Teams, Word, PowerPoint, OneNote, Sway and OneDrive, etc. Office 365 was initially released in 2010; later, in April 2020, it was branded as Microsoft 365.
- Microsoft 365 comes with Home and Business plans. In-Home, it offers Microsoft 365 Family and Microsoft 365 Personal. For, Businesses, it offers Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Apps for business, Microsoft 365 Business Standard, and Microsoft 365 Business Premium.
- Being a cloud-based service, Office 365 offers all-time accessibility and effortless working. Therefore, users can continue works like Word documentation, PowerPoint, and other tasks from any system by login into Office 365.
- Office Home and Student 2021 (one-time purchase) are also available to target a particular user group.
Also Read: Comparing Microsoft Office 365 Plans, Pricing & Features
Google Workspace [G Suite] vs Microsoft Office 365: A fair comparison
| Criteria | Google Workspace | Microsoft 365 | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emailing | Gmail | Outlook | Gmail and Outlook have their own advantages: Gmail has a better user interface, while Outlook is technically enriched. In the end, it varies from user to user. |
| Cloud Storage | Google Drive | OneDrive | Compared to the starting subscription plans, Microsoft provides 1 TB space, while Google offers 30 GB space. For the above plans, Google offers a better cloud space. |
| Text Editor | Google Docs | Microsoft Word | Microsoft offers Word with multiple user-oriented handy features, while Google Docs is still working hard to replace it. While for editing 1 doc by multiple users, Google Docs is preferred. |
| Sheet | Google Sheets | Microsoft Excel | Excel is handier for users. Google Sheets is only for the web hence editing by multiple users in one sheet is feasible. |
| Presentation Tool | Google Slides | Microsoft PowerPoint | Like sheets, Microsoft PowerPoint is handy to users, but for collaborative tasks, Google Slides is better. |
| Form | Google Forms | Microsoft Forms | Microsoft Forms allows the generation of a QR code, offers more themes, and can export output to Excel. In Contrast, Google Forms allows keeping more choices for the questions. |
| Security | Multi-factor Authentication | Multi-factor Authentication | Both brands keep security as priority. |
| Pricing | Business Starter:$6 Business Standard: $12 Business Premium: $18 Enterprise: $25 | Microsoft 365 for small business (Business Basis ($5), Business Standard ($12.50), Business Premium ($20). Office 365 E1 ($8), Office 365 E3 ($20), Office 365 E5 ($35), Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise (12). Microsoft 365 Enterprise: Microsoft 365 E3 ($32), Microsoft 365 E5( $57), Microsoft 365 F3($8) | For entry-level plans, Microsoft offers better storage. In contrast, Google’s offerings for the above plans are better. Google comes with straight 4 types of plans while Microsoft offers at least 11 types of plans. |
Conclusion:
G Suite vs Office 365 comparison is not something unexpected; competition leads to the comparison. Both have strong user bases and advanced features trying to attract the market. Users usually get confused b/w them and browse for a satisfactory answer; however, the answer changes from user to user.
Every user has their own choice, requirements, and expectation, and the same applies when comparing Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365. I have explained and compared Google Workspace and Office 365 in various categories in this write-up. Check your requirements and select the best product that suits your requirements.
