LibreOffice vs ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors
Both are free office & productivity tools. Here is how they actually differ.
LibreOffice and ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors at a glance
LibreOffice
ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors
| Feature | LibreOffice | ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | The Document Foundation | Ascensio System SIA |
| Licence | Open Source | Open Source |
| Cost | Free | Free |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile | No | No |
| Source code | Public | Public |
LibreOffice: what it's good at
LibreOffice is a complete office suite with a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation tool, database and drawing application. It reads and writes Microsoft Office formats, and for the majority of everyday documents it is a straight replacement at zero cost.
- Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math
- Reads and writes .docx, .xlsx and .pptx
- No subscription, no account, no ads
- Actively developed by a non-profit foundation
ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors: what it's good at
ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors are built around the Office Open XML formats natively, which typically gives the most faithful rendering of complex .docx and .xlsx files of any free suite. The interface is also the closest to modern Microsoft Office.
- Native .docx, .xlsx and .pptx handling
- Ribbon interface familiar to Office users
- Works offline; optional cloud collaboration
- Open source
Which should you choose?
Both are free, so the honest answer is that you can install either and decide for yourself — that is the advantage of free software over a paid trial.
Both run on Windows, macOS, Linux. Both are open source, so neither locks you in.
We deliberately do not publish a star rating for either. We have no way to verify a rating that would be honest at scale, and an invented one would be worse than none — so we give you the facts and let you decide.
Frequently asked questions
Is LibreOffice better than ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors?
Neither is universally better. LibreOffice the leading free office suite — a genuine Microsoft Office alternative, while ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors the office suite with the closest Microsoft Office compatibility. The right pick depends on your platform and workflow.
Are both really free?
LibreOffice is open source and ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors is open source. Both can be downloaded without paying.
Can I install both?
Yes. Since neither costs anything, installing both and comparing them on your own files is usually the fastest way to decide.