Text editors have always been one of the most commonly used, essential tools since personal computers were invented. It was many years ago now that Word, and the other tools in the Microsoft Office package, rose above the competition. However, there are many alternatives that are more than decent and, in the opinion of some, even better.

Today, we recommend some of the best office automation packages that you can use as an alternative to Microsoft Office. And they are also completely free.

Google Docs

This is perhaps the most well-known of all the options. Google Docs is an excellent alternative for editing text, presentations and spreadsheets. It is integrated with the Google Drive storage service and works online, although it has an offline editing mode for when you are not connected.

Although its compatibility with MS Office documents is not perfect, it is a free, easy-to-use solution and has all the advantages of the cloud.

Kingsoft Office

WPS or Kingsoft Office is a free, Chinese office automation suite that works with Windows, Android, Linux and iOS. It holds true to the cliché of Chinese copies that are almost indistinguishable from the original, since WPS is almost identical to Microsoft Office, and has almost all its features.

It is an excellent choice if you are looking for the best compatibility with documents created using Microsoft software.

OpenOffice

OpenOffice is one of the oldest and best known free office automation packages. For many years it was the default choice for nearly all the Linux distros, and now you can download it free of charge for Windows, Linux and Mac OS.

LibreOffice

LibreOffice is an open source project that derived from OpenOffice. It is the software of choice for all Linux distribution packages that use open source software among their default applications, but you can also use it with Windows and Mac OS.

Microsoft Office Online

Although this article is about alternatives to the Microsoft suite, we cannot fail to mention Microsoft Office Online, the free, online version of all the Microsoft Office tools, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote.

All are integrated with OneDrive, the cloud-based storage service produced by the Redmond company. In order to use it, all you have to do is access the site using a Microsoft account.