Top five Linux office suites ranked by expert tester
A ZDNET reviewer has tested and selected the top five office suites for Linux users, highlighting options that are mostly free and compatible with Microsoft Office formats. These suites cater to productivity needs like document creation, spreadsheets, and collaboration. The list includes both open-source and proprietary software, emphasizing flexibility and ease of use on Linux distributions.
Linux users seeking robust office productivity tools have several strong options, according to a ZDNET article where the author, experienced with Linux for writing over 70 novels using open-source tools, shares insights from personal testing. The reviewer recalls early suites like StarOffice and WordPerfect but notes modern advancements that rival Microsoft Office.
The top pick is LibreOffice, the most widely used open-source suite preinstalled on many Linux distributions. It includes tools for documents, spreadsheets, presentations, databases, drawings, and formulas, with high compatibility for MS Office formats. "LibreOffice is highly compatible with MS Office and can even export to the MS Office formats (as well as many other formats)," the article states. Its flexible user interface options, such as traditional menus or ribbon-style, along with customizations, extensions, and password protection, make it versatile. It's free to install and supported by a large community.
Second is WPS Office from Kingsoft Office Corporation, praised for MS Office compatibility and a familiar interface for documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Though proprietary and free to install via package managers or Flatpak, it has minor issues like font rendering on some desktop environments (e.g., pixelated on Pop!_OS with COSMIC) and occasional Chinese text in windows.
ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors ranks third, a proprietary suite the author favors for its local and remote work capabilities, including simultaneous use. It handles documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and PDFs, with added AI writing assistance. "One of the best features this office suite has going for it is the ability to use it both locally and remotely (even simultaneously)," the reviewer notes. It's free and integrates with cloud or local servers.
Softmaker Office, fourth, resembles the MS Office ribbon UI but requires a $37 yearly subscription for full features like collaboration and track changes. The free trial includes documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and a mailings database, with touch mode for larger icons.
Finally, Calligra Suite, tailored for KDE Plasma, offers documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and vector graphics. It's free from standard repositories, supports MS Office and open formats, but adds dependencies on non-KDE desktops and has a less modern UI. The author views it as the weakest but suitable for KDE users.