OnlyOffice
Office suite for documents, spreadsheets and presentations, with desktop and online editors.
Liked as a lighter, nicer-to-use alternative to LibreOffice123 and as a free, open-source stand-in for Microsoft Office when office needs are light.45678 The most common complaint is doubt about how open it really is91011, with others noting PowerPoint compatibility problems and very few settings.1213
Why people recommend it
Office alternative · 3
Recommended as a direct replacement for Microsoft Office or Google Docs.
“OnlyOffice is better than LibreOffice for people who want a more direct alternative to Microsoft Office”
“Switched to the free OnlyOffice a year ago and never looked back”
Show 1 more
“There is also OnlyOffice as an alternative to Google Docs.”
Lighter than LibreOffice · 3
Users who left LibreOffice find it lighter, faster and nicer to use.
“I switched to OnlyOffice a year ago and other than its almost complete lack of settings it's been so much nicer to use.”
“I like OnlyOffice. Their desktop apps are much lighter and better looking.”
Show 1 more
“I have super light office requirements these days and those are satisfied with OnlyOffice”
Fits light needs · 3
Handles occasional documents and spreadsheets well enough for light users.
“I like OnlyOffice. Their desktop apps are much lighter and better looking.”
“I have super light office requirements these days and those are satisfied with OnlyOffice”
Show 1 more
“I use OnlyOffice to handle documents and spreadsheets when I need to”
Free and open source · 3
Commenters value that it is free and open source.
“Switched to the free OnlyOffice a year ago and never looked back”
“I have super light office requirements these days and those are satisfied with OnlyOffice”
Show 1 more
“I like OnlyOffice. Their desktop apps are much lighter and better looking.”
Caveats and dissent
Openness disputes · 3
Commenters say a desktop component is proprietary and AGPL rights are not respected.
“OnlyOffice desktop application is proprietary”
“the rights that community is supposed to get under the AGPL v3.0 license? Those rights are ignored”
Show 1 more
“OnlyOffice is better than LibreOffice for people who want a more direct alternative to Microsoft Office”
PowerPoint compatibility · 1
Decks can look different or get corrupted when moved between office suites.
“PowerPoint decks that look different or get corrupted when used across different Office suites, including ones that are focused on Microsoft compatibility like OnlyOffice.”
Few settings · 1
The app has almost no configuration options.
“I switched to OnlyOffice a year ago and other than its almost complete lack of settings it's been so much nicer to use.”
Heavy daily use · 1
One user would pay for Microsoft Office if working with documents daily.
“I use OnlyOffice to handle documents and spreadsheets when I need to”
AI features · 1
A prominent new AI feature was unwelcome to one user.
“I have super light office requirements these days and those are satisfied with OnlyOffice”
Often compared with
Who recommends it in their own words
Threads where it came up
- Ask HN: How would you set up a child’s first Linux computer? 2 mentions
- Danish Government silently drops plan to dump MS Office 1 mention
- How proprietary formats have become Microsoft’s main tool for lock-in 1 mention
- Euro-Office: First version of the open-source web office is here 1 mention
- Microsoft degrades functionality of perpetually-licensed offline products 1 mention
- AGPLv3§74 Empowers Users to Thwart Badgeware Like OnlyOffice 1 mention
Also written as ONLYOFFICE. Data: onlyoffice.json. Quotes are verbatim; the verdict and theme labels are written by a model from these comments, and every clause links to its sources.
All comments 12
“I use OnlyOffice to handle documents and spreadsheets when I need to”
“PowerPoint decks that look different or get corrupted when used across different Office suites, including ones that are focused on Microsoft compatibility like OnlyOffice.”
“OnlyOffice desktop application is proprietary”
“OnlyOffice is better than LibreOffice for people who want a more direct alternative to Microsoft Office”
“the rights that community is supposed to get under the AGPL v3.0 license? Those rights are ignored”
“I switched to OnlyOffice a year ago and other than its almost complete lack of settings it's been so much nicer to use.”
“I like OnlyOffice. Their desktop apps are much lighter and better looking.”
“I have super light office requirements these days and those are satisfied with OnlyOffice”
“use something like OnlyOffice or paid someone that provides managed Nextcloud hosting”
“Switched to the free OnlyOffice a year ago and never looked back”
“There is also OnlyOffice as an alternative to Google Docs.”
“with music, kiwix, music-experimantation stuff, programming things, and onlyoffice”