Free Alternatives to Microsoft Word

WORD PROCESSING WITHOUT PAYING!

FREE ALTERNATIVES TO MICROSOFT WORD.

Almost every Windows computer today will more often than not have Microsoft Word installed as the default word processing software thanks to it’s wide format support and ease of use.

However, that amount of convenience doesn’t come for free! If you wanted to install Microsoft Word on your own computer it’d cost you, or what is you are using an Apple Mac? For those on a budget this may be unappealing, but thankfully there’s a selection of free alternatives.

These alternatives may not have the range of features or ease of use that Microsoft Word has, but you don’t have to pay to use them.

Alternative #1: Google Docs

Google to the rescue!

With a free gmail account, you’re able to access Google’s online word processing software Google Docs.

docs.google.com can be opened from your web browser and you can create, edit and even store documents using Google Drive and Google Docs.

The main advantage this has over Microsoft Word is that it’s cloud based and so you can access your documents (or even make new ones) from any computer that’s connected to the internet. All you need to do is sign in with your gmail account.

When you use Google Docs, you even have the option of downloading your document in “Microsoft Word” format – pretty handy!

Alternative #2: Microsoft Word Online

Knowing that some people won’t want to purchase a copy of Word, Microsoft allows users to use an online version for free.

All you need to do is go to https://office.live.com/start/Word.aspx and sign in with a Microsoft/Hotmail/Outlook account. If you don’t have an account, you can create a new one and start using Word online!

This online verison may not have all the features as if you had bought it but when you aren’t paying a cent, it’s a good compromise! The only problem being that you need to have a connection to the internet to use it.

Alternative #3: Apache OpenOffice

Apache OpenOffice is open source software that is continuously updated by users who want there to be a free offline alternative to Microsoft Word.

OpenOffice can be downloaded and installed for free from their website at https://www.openoffice.org/

Borrowing a look and feel similar to Microsoft Word, OpenOffice will make you feel right at home if you’re already familiar with Word. It even offers compatibility with Microsoft Word documents so there shouldn’t be an issue when opening documents from other people!

Alternative #4: Pages – Apple users

Pages is a powerful word processor that lets your create stunning documents on your Macbook, iMac, iPad or iPhone.

Most Macs will come installed with Pages, or you can look for the Pages app in the Apple App Store.

Again with Pages, you have the option to “export” the document into a Microsoft Word format to share with your fellow Windows users. Please note that if you are sending documents to a friend who has a Windows computer, they will not be able to open and read your document if you leave it in Pages format.