You don’t need a complete Office package, just two or three of the programs it contains. Then simply use the Office applications free of charge in the browser. And because it doesn’t always have to be Microsoft, we’re presenting a few alternatives that you can also use free of charge.
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Microsoft 365: Use programs like Word or Excel online for free
©Microsoft
Office 365 has been renamed to Microsoft 365. What remains is the option of using Word, Excel, Powerpoint and other Office applications free of charge in the browser.
You simply log in with your Microsoft account or register on this website.
After logging in, a window opens in which you will find the Office applications in the left column. Documents that you create are automatically saved on Onedrive. You can edit and print your documents or download a copy, a PDF (except for Excel) or an ODT file. You can share your documents and work on them with others at the same time.
If the free online versions aren’t enough for you, you can of course buy Microsoft 365 – but you can try it for free for 1 month beforehand.
If you decide to make a purchase, you will get Microsoft 365 Single for single users for EUR 69 per year or EUR 7 per month.
Microsoft 365 Family for up to 6 users costs 99 euros per year or 10 euros per month.
The subscriptions continue automatically unless you cancel them yourself.
You can find the pricing for the business versions of Microsoft 365 here. You can also test these versions for 1 month free of charge.
Discount for Microsoft 365 via employer:
The Microsoft Home Use Program allows you to save on Microsoft 365 when you purchase the software through your employer’s Microsoft account. To do this, enter your employer’s e-mail address on the website. If he is entitled to participate in the HUP, you will receive a verification link for authentication of the Microsoft account by e-mail. Then use your personal Microsoft account and link to get the discount.
Use Microsoft Teams for free:
If you frequently work with other people, you can sign up for Microsoft Teams for free. This also allows you to use web versions of Office applications such as Word, Excel, Powerpoint and One Note Online in a team.
Microsoft programs free for mobile devices:
Although the apps are free, they do not offer the full range of functions. Only Microsoft 365 subscribers get it.
The apps can be found using the links below.
For Android:
For iOS:
Get Office 365 education for free:
For educators and students at qualifying institutions, Microsoft offers Office 365 Education, which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, One Note, and Teams, free of charge.
All you need to use it is a valid email address from your educational institution.
Schools that want to use Office 365 Education across their school can learn more from this link.
Free Office alternatives
A recommendation is Libre Office, a full suite that is regularly updated and allows you to open and save documents in Microsoft formats. You can download LibreOffice here.
A similarly extensive office package is Open Office, which you can download here.
If you don’t like these suites, you can also find out about free alternatives such as WPS Office (multilingual), Free Office, as well as Google Docs, which is part of Google Drive.