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Cloud-based productivity: Google vs Microsoft

Written By Jewel Sta Ana
Published • August 2nd, 2020
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When it comes to cloud-based tools for productivity, Google and Microsoft are the names that consumers remember. These two companies have been changing the way people work and study, and with the help of cloud computing, users can accomplish their daily tasks remotely as long as they have a stable internet connection. To help you determine which subscription plan is the most bang for the buck, we compared the cloud-based productivity offerings from Microsoft and Google for personal use. Here’s what we discovered.

Author’s note: The data below are limited to Microsoft and Google’s free and personal paid subscription services for productivity. We gathered the information on their official website.

Microsoft	Google
Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Access (PC), Publisher (PC)	Google Docs (Docs, Sheet, Slide, Forms)
Personal (PHP 3,499/year, PHP 349/month) Family (PHP 4,699/year, PHP 469/month)	Free (via Gmail), GSuite Personal (USD 4.20/month)
Installation of Microsoft Office on PCs	--
AI-powered creative tools (Designer, Ideas, and the new Microsoft Editor)	--
OneDrive	Google Drive
5GB (free), 100GB, (PHP 99/month, OneDrive only), 1TB (PHP 349/month, PHP 3,499/year under Microsoft 365 Personal), 6TB (PHP 469/month, PHP 4,699/year under Microsoft 365 Family)	15GB (free), 100GB (PHP 89/month, PHP 889/year), 1TB (PHP 479/month, PHP 4,799/year), 2TB (PHP 959/month), 10TB (PHP 4,799/month), 20TB (PHP 9,599/month), 30TB (PHP 14,399/month)
Expandable storage up to 2TB (for Microsoft 365 Personal and Family, with monthly fee)	--
Backup and Syncing of files	Backup and Syncing of files
Offline viewing and editing of files	Offline viewing and editing of files
Personal Vault (unlimited for Microsoft 365 Personal and Family, up to 3 files for paid OneDrive and free subscriptions)	SSL encryption
Built-in ransomware detection and recovery (within the last 30 days, for Microsoft 365 Personal and Family)	File recovery (via Trash)
Multi-page scan	Mobile scan
Skype	Google Meet, Google Chat
Outlook	Google Calendar
Cross-platform	Cross-platform
Technical Support	Technical Support

Table of Contents

Productivity tools

At first glance, Microsoft offers a plethora of productivity tools with Microsoft 365. It provides premium access to Office apps, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook, with Access and Publisher reachable. It is also bundled with cloud storage, advanced security features across all devices, and other services such as OneDrive and Skype for file hosting and communication. Microsoft 365 offers two types of paid personal plans: Personal and Family. As the name suggests, the Microsoft 365 Personal only allows one person to enjoy all of its features while the Family version grants up to 6 people. Both plans have creative tools such as Designer, Ideas, and Microsoft Editor for checking spellings and grammar, and royalty-free templates, including stock photos, icons, and fonts. Users may also enjoy Office apps online across iOS and Android devices, install the said apps on Windows and Mac desktops, offline editing and file sharing, communicate with people through Skype, and employ Outlook for managing emails and schedules for the day.

Meanwhile, Google Docs is a free feature for Gmail users and GSuite subscribers. The web-based software office suite from Google allows users to create, edit, and collaborate Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel Sheets, and Forms in real-time. Although the free and paid subscriptions have a fair share of features, the latter provides exclusive creative content, more business-centric features, and larger cloud storage. Both have Google Chat and Meet for messaging, video, and voice conferences, Google Keep for sharing notes, Google Calendar for time-management, offline editing, and file sharing.

File Storage

In terms of cloud storage, Microsoft has OneDrive, which offers monthly or yearly plans. Consumers may get a free 5GB of storage. But for those who want more, they may choose to pay monthly or yearly. The minimum storage for the OneDrive-only subscription plan is 100GB. On the other hand, the Microsoft 365 Personal and Family plans get 1 TB and 6TB of storage. Do note that the latter allocates 1TB of OneDrive storage to each user and maxing out access to 6 individuals. Both Microsoft 365 Personal and Family plans come with expandable storage up to 2TB, which can be paid monthly on top of the subscription plan’s total amount.

For Google, it gives a larger 15GB of Drive storage for free. It also offers plans with 100GB, 1TB, 2TB, 10TB, 20TB, and 30TB of file storage. Just like its competitor, its paid subscriptions for cloud storage could be paid either monthly (up to 30TB) or annually (from 100GB to 1TB). On the other hand, the G Suite Personal comes with a free 30GB of Drive storage.

Special Features

Microsoft users may enjoy more security features with the integration of Personal Vault, OneDrive’s special feature for protecting specific files with two-step verification. Its free subscription and OneDrive-only plan add another layer of security for a maximum of three files. However, the feature is unlimited for Microsoft 365 personal plans. Other exclusive features for the Microsoft 365 personal plans are the built-in ransomware detection and file recovery within 30 days.

Google, on the other hand, offers SSL encryption across all platforms for file security. It is the same security protocol used on Gmail and other Google services. Unlike OneDrive that can retrieve all lost files from a malicious attack, Drive could only recover files placed on a temporary bin of a person’s cloud storage called Trash.

Both offer technical support for its cloud-based services, scanning of documents through smartphones, backup and syncing of files, and access to its cloud storage and productivity tools across mobile and desktop devices.

Price

Customers may opt to pay annually and monthly for their subscriptions.

Prices are as follows:

Microsoft
• Microsoft 365 Personal- PHP 3,499USD 60INR 5,055EUR 57CNY 434/year, PHP 349USD 6INR 504EUR 6CNY 43/month
• Microsoft 365 Family – PHP 4,699USD 80INR 6,788EUR 76CNY 583/year, PHP 469USD 8INR 678EUR 8CNY 58/month
• OneDrive 100 GB – PHP 99USD 2INR 143EUR 2CNY 12/month
• OneDrive 5GB – Free

Google
• GSuite Personal – USD 4.20PHP 246INR 356EUR 4CNY 31/month
• Google Drive 15GB – Free
• Google Drive 100GB – PHP 89USD 2INR 129EUR 1CNY 11/month, PHP 889USD 15INR 1,284EUR 14CNY 110/year
• Google Drive 1TB – PHP 479USD 8INR 692EUR 8CNY 59/month, PHP 4,799USD 82INR 6,933EUR 78CNY 596/year
• Google Drive 2TB – PHP 959USD 16INR 1,385EUR 16CNY 119/month
• Google Drive 10TB – PHP 4,799USD 82INR 6,933EUR 78CNY 596/month
• Google Drive 20TB – PHP 9,599USD 164INR 13,867EUR 156CNY 1,191/month
• Google Drive 30TB – PHP 14,399USD 245INR 20,801EUR 234CNY 1,787/month

Which one is for you?

If you’re on a budget that needs more cloud storage, then Google is for you. It offers free 15GB of Drive storage compared to Microsoft’s 5GB via OneDrive. But if you need 100GB of cloud storage, it is more practical to choose Google since it is PHP 120USD 2INR 173EUR 2CNY 15 cheaper than Microsoft. Google also offers a wide variety of options for storage from 100GB to 30TB.

If you want to install Office tools on your desktop including PC-only apps like Publisher and Access, add another layer of security on your files, ransomware detection, and file recovery from malware attacks, then spending PHP 1,025USD 17INR 1,481EUR 17CNY 127 more for a yearly subscription of Microsoft 365 Personal is the ideal thing to do. Paying it monthly will add PHP 689USD 12INR 995EUR 11CNY 86 more from its original price.

For best value, we recommend getting the Microsoft 365 Family yearly plan since it gives all the features from the Microsoft 365 Personal plan while splitting the subscription fee among the other 5 individuals. Your PHP 783.20USD 13INR 1,131EUR 13CNY 97 can go a long way, providing 6 people yearly access to Office app, 1TB of storage each, and other privacy and security features.

However, if you want to create various documents and online surveys on the fly, access communication tools, and get 30GB of storage for a more affordable price, then Google is for you. The GSuite Personal is priced at USD 4.20PHP 246INR 356EUR 4CNY 31 a month or approximately PHP 2,474USD 42INR 3,574EUR 40CNY 307 a year.