G Suite vs Office 365- What’s the Best for Your Business Needs
The choice of choosing an impeccable productive suite for an organization is an acute decision that an IT Manager or a CIO has to make. When it comes to the selection of a cloud-based efficiency suite then, the selection is more difficult. This is due to the selection of the most amongst the two gigantic technologies competing for your industry – G Suite & Office 365. This blog will help you decide the winner of the battle of Google Apps vs Office 365.
What are Google Workspace and Office 365?
Google Workspace [formerly known as G Suite] was initially introduced as Google Apps in 2006. When it was introduced, cloud-based services were not so extended and were in their basic stage.
Initially, G Suite was launched in 2006 as Google Apps for Your Domain which offers some paid services aimed at businesses, G Suite for Education, and other organizations. Later in May 2022 G Suite legacy free edition was discontinued for its new users.
Despite the low popularity of cloud services, G Suite pressed on and converted into the technology that we all know today. G Suite comes up with various applications in its toolbox, which is used today. At the top, it is Gmail followed by Google Calendar, Hangouts, Slides, Docs, Google Drive, and much more.
In contrary to Google G Suite, exists Microsoft Office 365. Although most of the companies were deploying cloud services to improve their business, MS still doubted the cloud services.
However, after the introduction of cloud services from other brands, Microsoft finally entered into action with its cloud service – Office 365 in 2011. It provides various traditional applications of desktop-based such as MS Excel, MS Word, Outlook, Exchange Online, and many more. Additionally, it also offers certain backup plans like Microsoft Office 365 Backup and Recovery Policy for backup practices of Office 365.
Both suites heavily rely on these suites for everyday tasks to accomplish critical business processes. Each suite includes applications for presentations, emailing, instant messaging, video conferencing, web-hosting, note-making, calculations, etc.
Now after having a bit idea about these platforms let us discuss are possible reasons why you are here.
Why Do You Need Google Workspace or Office 365?
Today in the fast-paced digital landscape of technology, organizations usually rely on integrated software solutions to enhance their productivity, collaboration, and efficiency.
Google Workspace and Microsoft Office 365 stand out as the most popular and comprehensive suites available. These are the only complete suite that offers a wide range of tools and services that are designed to meet the diverse needs of modern businesses.
By deployment of Office 365 and Google Workspace (G Suite) platforms organizations smoothly manage their daily operations to improve communication and ensure strong security. These practices will maintain the flexibility to scale and adapt to the changing demands.
Side-by-Side Showdown: Google Workspace vs. Office 365 Comparison Chart
Let us differentiate as well as compare Office 365 Plans and features with GoogleWorkspace (G Suite). Both tech giants on different criteria to allow our readers to get a balanced review of both applications.
| Features | Microsoft Office 365 | Google Apps/G Suite |
|---|---|---|
| Productivity Tools | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Teams, Outlook, Exchange, SharePoint | Docs, Sheets, Slides, Keep, Sites, Google Drive, Calendar, Meet, Gmail, Chat |
| Pricing | Starter – $6 / user/month Standard – $12 / user/month Plus – $18 / user/month |
Microsoft 365 Business Basic – $6 / user/month Microsoft 365 Business Standard – $12.50 / user/month Office 365 Business Premium – $22 / user/month Microsoft 365 Apps for Business – $8.25 / user/month |
| Collaboration | Live multi-user editing Hangouts for video conferencing Google Voice for phone calls and SMS |
Live multi-user editing Skype for Business (available only with Business Premium or Enterprise plans) |
| Support | 24/7 support of enterprise admin | 24/7 support via phone and email to solve the problem. |
| Email Services | Provides MS Outlook 365/OWA for email | Offers Google Gmail for emailing |
| Cloud Storage | Business Starter – 30GB per user Business Standard – 2TB per user Business Plus – 5TB per user |
1 TB for all plans 50 GB email storage |
| Calendar | Offers Outlook calendar | Provides Google Calendar |
| Storage | 50 GB for email and storage of files is 1 TB & Onedrive Migration Limits for Free Account | At entry level 30 GB, with a premium plan on Drive 1 TB |
| Site Creation | SharePoint Online | Google Sites |
| Notes Making | OneNote | Keep |
| Content Creation & Management | Word Excel PowerPoint |
Docs Sheets Slides |
| Security and Support | Data encryption Data loss prevention Google Cloud security protection Two-step verification Built-in spam, phishing, and unusual activity detection 99.9% application availability guarantee |
Data encryption Data loss prevention Microsoft cloud security technology Multi-factor authentication Office 365 Message Tracking Built-in spam, malware, and unusual activity detection 99.9% financially backed uptime guarantee |
Many users have asked why Office 365 is better than Google Workspace? So here is a summarised table to make your vision clear. Both platforms have a unique feature.
The Ultimate Verdict: Google Workspace vs. Office 365 – Which is Best For Your Business?
Office 365 and Google Workspace both have a list of multiple features that help users in their small as well as large businesses. When there is a stage where you need to choose between Office 365 and Google Workspace then consider your needs carefully.
Google Workspace shines with its user-friendly design and smooth teamwork features that are perfect for new ventures and small companies looking for fast installation and straightforward operation.
Conversely, Microsoft 365 provides powerful options designed for bigger companies needing sophisticated productivity solutions and extensive integration features.
Both similar yet two different cloud-based services – Google Workspace and Microsoft Office 365 come up with free trials. Therefore, organizations can try the cloud-based application accordingly. Office 365 has two versions for a demo for full-featured cloud email as well as collaboration services. On the other hand, G Suite offers only one single demo, which gives free as well as complete service for ten users maximum.
This is quite difficult to state which platform is best for users as both have different functionalities and advantages for users depending on their organizational structure. This comparison is something similar to Apple vs Android. In short, Office 365 provides better functionalities in many cases but for users, it’s a bit harder to use and learn. As far as G Suite is concerned, this is easier to understand and faster to serve.
Hence, evaluate what’s important for your business—simplicity, flexibility, or detailed features—to select the best option for enhancing your operations and reaching your business objectives.
Conclusion
Google Workspace (formerly known as G Suite) and MS Office 365 offer plenty of features that may be different or similar to each other. Both of their features keep on changing from time to time, as per gradations made by its vendors to increase their services.
Therefore, it is not reasonable to recommend one collaboration suite over another based on some of its features. One-size-fits-all does not put on to both these applications.
Meanwhile, either Google Workspace (G Suite) or Office 365 can satisfy the different business requirements of every organization. This blog post aims to help you decide the best in the battle of Google Work Space (G Suite) vs. Office 365.