Is LibreOffice worth considering as an alternative to Microsoft Office?

[Beebo Brink]

A few months ago, I very reluctantly renewed my annual subscription to Microsoft 365, mostly because I didn't have the mental energy to deal with "new stuff" of any kind. I'm feeling a bit stronger now, so I've been looking at alternatives to Microsoft software. I'd like to get those apps in place well ahead of my next renewal date, so I'm not tempted to backslide due to inertia.

So far, LibreOffice is looking like the best candidate for replacing Excel and Word. I checked and it appears that this software will integrate with Windows 11. Are there any gotchas or issues that I'm overlooking? Any tips?

 

[Kalel]

libre office is the number 1 alternative... it saves in ODF by default. most programs can open it but i've had data loss and unreadable files when changing between programs and computers... and some Macros i use gave me trouble when bouncing between work and home due to how much i used it. it got annoying after a while.

i got a tip back in in 2022, i got an older 1 time keep forever perpetual license of Microsoft office 2021(before they went all in on 365) attached to my account. still works on windows 10 and 11. i don't get new features (and have to re-login every now and then) but it works on my laptop and home computer and still getting security updates.... how long they will let us keep doing this is another thing..(.Edit: seems extended support will end this year in October 2026)

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

If you are just the average John Doe using basic word processing and spread sheet functions then LibreOffice will do its job nicely for you. Fortunate for people who do hate the ribbon interface LibreOffice still has old styled menus, but you can also enable ribbons if you want to instead.

If working together with others using M$ Office and always 100% compatibility (not always given when using advanced formatting/formulas) to them is a must then it is not for you.

If you are living in your spreadsheet and an Excel poweruser then it is not for you.

LibreOffice has less collaboration features, so no online together editing stuff, no AI stuff, no OneDrive integration and so on. Ah and no Outlook equivalent as well, just use Thunderbird.

For most people LibreOffice is probably more than enough. It's also quite capable on its own, having tons of features.

Here's also the experience of somebody who replaced MS Office with Libreoffice in November 2025: I replaced my entire Microsoft Office subscription with free open-source apps

 

[Beebo Brink]

LibreOffice has less collaboration features, so no online together editing stuff, no AI stuff, no OneDrive integration and so on.

All of those non-features are a plus for me. I have no need of online sharing/editing or AI, and I loathe OneDrive and have disabled it. All I need is a spreadsheet that will do simple calculations (mostly sum of rows or columns) for my budget tracking. I also use the ledger format for various Sims 4 planning projects, with no math involved.

Ah and no Outlook equivalent as well, just use Thunderbird.

I have no plans to drop my Microsoft Outlook email, just Microsoft 365 sub, so I'm good on that front, too.

So far, sounds like it's worth going ahead to download the program and start using it.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

You should be doing fine with that.

 

[Soen Eber]

I've used it a year - no problems whatsoever.

 

[CronoCloud Creeggan]

So far, LibreOffice is looking like the best candidate for replacing Excel and Word. I checked and it appears that this software will integrate with Windows 11. Are there any gotchas or issues that I'm overlooking? Any tips?

I've been using Open/LibreOffice since 2010 on Linux. LibreOffice Writer can easily replace Word. LibreOffice Calc can replace Excel for most users but has had problems with handling some advanced Excel features like pivot tables and some scripts in the past. If you don't need super-advanced features, it will be fine.
Draw (vector graphics), Base (database) and Impress (essentially Powerpoint) are also available.

 

[Beebo Brink]

LibreOffice Calc can replace Excel for most users but has had problems with handling some advanced Excel features like pivot tables and some scripts in the past. If you don't need super-advanced features, it will be fine.

The most advanced formula I use is adding up the numbers in either a column or a row.

 

[Free]

If it's a big issue to have file compatibility with MS Office, I've heard Free Office is a pretty good alternative to look at. Though keep in mind they're a closed source option, and may be focused on upselling you to their non-free alternative (SoftMaker Office).

As for LibreOffice, to improve compatibility with MS Office (UI and file formats):

 

[Cat Fratica]

Don't be put off by the different 'Save' formats (ODF, etc.) - a couple of clicks in preferences will set the save default to 'doc' and 'xls'.

I don't/won't use 365 but instead buy a 'stand-alone' copy of Office instead... It's completely legal; they send you the product key by post and a download link. One-time purchase - no subs!

Example eBay link (UK site): eBay MS Office

Okay - it's a grey area. Large companies or schools buy "Volume Licenses" for thousands of employees. A seller might acquire one of these keys and sell individual "seats" to hundreds of people on eBay. Microsoft’s contract forbids this, but the key works. In the European Union: Thanks to the "Principle of Exhaustion" (upheld by the European Court of Justice), it is generally legal to resell "used" software licenses. EU law prevents software companies from stopping the resale of a licence once it has been sold for the first time. In the United States, the legal position is less clear. Microsoft argues that you are "licensing" the software, not "owning" it, which would mean you don't have the right to resell it under the "First Sale Doctrine." However, US courts don't go after individual consumers for buying these keys. But there's always a first so... judgement call

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

FCKGW-RHQQ2-YXRKT-8TG6W-2B7Q8

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

FuCK Gates' Windows... I like that!

 

[Beebo Brink]

If it's a big issue to have file compatibility with MS Office...

Not being able to open files would be a dealbreaker, but from what I've read so far, opening Excel and Word files should not be an issue with LibreOffice. Was I mistaken in that understanding?

 

[Kalel]

Not being able to open files would be a dealbreaker, but from what I've read so far, opening Excel and Word files should not be an issue with LibreOffice. Was I mistaken in that understanding?

it should open just fine..

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Not being able to open files would be a dealbreaker, but from what I've read so far, opening Excel and Word files should not be an issue with LibreOffice. Was I mistaken in that understanding?

That's working. What sometimes is an issue if you are using very complicated formattings in Word or complex formulas/macros in Excel, that this might not work correct in M$ Office then.

 

[Beebo Brink]

I don't/won't use 365 but instead buy a 'stand-alone' copy of Office instead...

That was my original intention. I was going to try 365 for a year and if the feature/benefits weren't all that useful, then I was planning to buy a stand-alone copy of Office. I found 365 to be a disappointment, but I renewed due to sheer apathy and inertia. (Medical issues left me feeling exhausted and I didn't have any mental energy left to spare on making changes of any kind.)

Recently, I briefly mulled over the temptation to just toss over MS entirely in favor of Linux. I've decided against that, but I'm taking other baby steps to get away from other Microsoft products. LibreOffice seems a good offramp from Microsoft Office.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Linux is actually on the rise, mostly gamers are switching now who are annoyed by Windows 11. Thanks to Valve and SteamOS with connected projects most Windows games run now on Linux, and even with more FPS often than under Windows.

You could give it a go with a dual boot setup or live installation via USB key first. Market share is now at about 5% in America (June 2025), but the progress was exponential through the last few years.

 

[Beebo Brink]

Linux is actually on the rise, mostly gamers are switching now who are annoyed by Windows 11...You could give it a go with a dual boot setup or live installation via USB key first.

Sadly, the minor performance gains from a switch to Linux simply aren't worth the effort it would take to make it all work. A couple of years ago I would have relished the challenge just for its own sake, but these days I'm just not up to it. I need my mental and physical energy for other concerns, and there's not much of it to go around.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Sure thing.

 

[Katheryne Helendale]

Not being able to open files would be a dealbreaker, but from what I've read so far, opening Excel and Word files should not be an issue with LibreOffice. Was I mistaken in that understanding?

Libre Office reads and writes.docx and .xlsx (Office 2007 format) files just fine.