7 Best Google Workspace Alternatives & Competitors in 2023
Running an online store or business requires a great team and better project management efforts. For this, you need a software or app to collaborate with your team members efficiently.
When it comes to collaborating on projects, nothing beats the power of Google’s Workspace. It’s a comprehensive tool with many features and options you can use for individual or group projects.
In this article, we take a look at 7 of the best Google Workspace alternatives and why they’re worth considering.
Contents
What is Google Workspace?
Google’s Workspace is a comprehensive online tool that lets you collaborate on projects with other people. You can create individual or team workspaces, each with their own set of tools and options.
The great thing about google workspace is its flexibility – you can use it for all sorts of projects, from simple to-do lists to more complex collaborative projects.
Features of Google Workspace
Google’s workspace is a standalone google app so it has its own set of features. You can access google workspace directly from your desktop or mobile browser, or you can download the app to use with one device.
Some of Google Workspaces most useful features include:
- Team management
- Decision-making tools
- File sharing
- Shared document editing
- Collaborative task lists
- One place to manage all google apps (Docs, Sheets, Slides etc.).
Google’s workspace is an excellent collaboration tool. It has the power to handle large-scale projects with several people working on different aspects of the same project. It’s also great for creating individual to-do lists and managing all your Google apps in one place.
However, google’s workspace isn’t the only tool out there that can do these things. There are some excellent google workspace alternatives that might be a better fit for your needs.
Best Google Workspace Alternatives
There are a range of google workspace alternatives to choose from. Some are well known google apps that have been around for years, others have recently come on the scene and offer some unique features.
In this article we take a look at seven google workspace alternatives worth considering, each with their own pros and cons.
Whether you’re looking for an google workspace alternative to process large projects, manage google apps or simply create a collaborative to-do list, one of these options might be just what you need.
1. Trello
Trello is a popular project management app that lets you organize your work into boards and lists. If you’re already using google apps then chances are you’ll be familiar with google drive spreadsheets. Trello works in similar way – projects are organized into boards (spreadsheets) and lists (rows of information).
Trello is best suited to projects with many moving parts that you need to keep track of. It’s particularly useful for collaborative projects where several people are working together on different elements of a project.
Key features:
- Boards and lists
- Drag and drop attachments
- Commenting on cards
- Voting on cards
- Customizable templates
Trello is a great Google Workspace alternative for collaborative projects. It’s easy to use and lets you keep track of all the moving parts in a project. The downside is that it can be a little overwhelming for smaller projects.
Pricing:
Trello comes with a free plan that provides Unlimited cards and Up to 10 boards per Workspace. The other paid plans are as follows:
- Standard – $5 Per user per month billed annually ($6 billed monthly)
- Premium – $10 = Per user per month billed annually ($12.50 billed monthly)
- Enterprise – $17.5 = Per user per month billed annually
Pros of Trello:
- Drag and drop interface
- Flexible organization options
- Team collaboration feature allows you to assign tasks to members of your team.
Cons of Trello:
- Not great for projects with a single definite outcome, it’s better suited to ongoing processes where many changes are being made to different parts of the project.
2. Slack
Slack is a messaging app that’s been designed for team collaboration. It lets you create channels (groups) for different projects and topics, then share files and messages with other members of the channel.
One of the great things about slack is its search feature. You can search through all your messages and files to find what you need, even if the project is several weeks old.
Slack also works well as a Google Workspace alternative for ongoing projects because it lets you carry on conversations about ongoing projects – no need to create multiple Google Docs or Google spreadsheets.
Key features:
- Channels and direct messaging
- Integrates with Google apps for Google Docs/sheets/slides etc
- Search feature that makes it easy to find old messages and files even if they’re weeks or months old.
Slack is a great Google Workspace alternatives because it works well as a collaboration tool for ongoing projects where lots of communication is involved.
Pricing:
Slack also offers a free plan that comes with access to 10,000 of your team’s most recent messages and 10 integrations with other apps like Google Drive, Office 365 and many more. The other paid plans are as follows:
- Pro – $6.67 = Per user per month billed annually ($8 billed monthly)
- Business+ – $12.50 = Per user per month billed annually ($15 billed monthly)
- Enterprise Grid – Enterprise plan for big business, Contact Sales for pricing.
Pros of Slack:
- Great search feature
- Keeps all your team’s messages in one place
- Easy to use and learn
- Integrates with Google apps
Cons of Slack:
- Not suitable for one-off projects
- Can be a little overwhelming with many channels and messages flying around.
3. Asana
Asana is a project management tool that lets you track your team’s progress on different tasks. You can create projects, then add tasks to those projects. Asana lets you assign tasks to different team members, set deadlines and track progress.
Asana is great for managing ongoing projects with many tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule. It’s also good for tracking the progress of a project as it unfolds.
Key features:
- Projects and tasks
- Assign tasks to team members
- Set deadlines and add notes to tasks
- Track progress for each task
Asana is a good Google Workspace alternative that works well for ongoing projects with many working parts, particularly if your team needs to track their progress on different tasks.
Pricing:
Asana also offers a free plan that comes with access to unlimited tasks, unlimited projects and unlimited messages. The other paid plans are as follows:
- Premium – $10.99 – Per user, per month billed annually ($13.49 billed monthly)
- Business – $24.99 – Per user, per month billed annually ($30.49 billed monthly)
Pros of Asana:
- Clear task list that lets you see all your team’s tasks in one place
- Easily track progress of different tasks over time
- Provides reports on your team’s productivity.
Cons of Asana:
- Not suitable for one off projects without defined end dates, as it gives you no way to keep track of your project once the tasks are complete.
4. Basecamp
Basecamp is another tool for managing collaborative projects. It has a number of features that make it great google workspace alternative, including to-do lists, time tracking and file sharing.
With Basecamp, you can create different projects with their own individual basecamps (web pages) then create separate to-do lists (checklists) within the project. You can also add comments and files to the to-do list. This makes it easy for team members to keep track of what they need to do and when they need to do it.
Basecamp is best suited for ongoing projects with lots of tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule.
Key features:
- Projects and individual Basecamp
- To-do lists with comments and files
- Time tracking
- File sharing
Basecamp is a great Google Workspace alternative for ongoing projects with many tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule.
Pricing:
Basecamp offers two plans – Basecamp Personal: Free, which offers 3 projects, 20 users and 1 GB storage space and Basecamp Business: $99 / month, which offers every feature with unlimited projects and unlimited user.
Pros of Basecamp:
- Clear to-do lists that make it easy for team members to see everything they need to complete
- Easy to track progress of different tasks over time
- Provides reports on team productivity
- Great for managing collaborative projects where multiple people are involved
- Easy to add to-do lists, comments and files from different team members.
Cons of Basecamp:
- Not suitable for one off projects without a fixed end date – because it gives you no way to keep track of your project once the tasks are complete.
5. Podio
Podio is a tool for managing your work life. It lets you create different “spaces” for different projects, then add tasks, comments and files to those spaces. You can also invite other team members to join the space and collaborate on the project.
One of the great things about podio is its options for customizing your workspace. You can choose which features you want to enable, such as file sharing and comments, and which ones you need less frequently, such as tasks and projects. This makes it great google workspace alternative if one person on the team needs more features than another.
Like Asana, Podio works well for ongoing collaborative projects with lots of tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule.
Pricing:
Podio offers a free plan that comes free for five employees. The other paid plans are as follows:
- Basic – $7.20 – Per user, per month billed annually ($9 billed monthly)
- Plus – $11.2 – Per user, per month billed annually ($14 billed monthly)
- Premium -$19.20 – Per user, per month billed annually ($24 billed monthly)
Key features:
- Projects and spaces
- Tasks, comments, files and polls
- Team management (add or remove users from a space via email)
- Customizable features.
Podio is a good Google Workspace alternative for ongoing projects with many tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule.
Pros of Podio:
- Lots of customization options, so you can tailor it to your needs
- Good for ongoing collaborative projects with many tasks
- Lets you add team members easily and track their progress.
- Choice of free or paid plan
- Great if one team member needs more features than another.
Cons of Podio:
- Not suitable for ongoing projects with no fixed end date as there’s no way to keep track of your project once its complete.
6. Jira
Jira is a project management tool that lets you track the progress of your team’s different tasks. You can create projects, then add tasks to those projects. Jira lets you assign tasks to different team members, set deadlines and track progress.
Jira is great for managing ongoing projects with lots of tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule. It’s also good for tracking the progress of a project as it unfolds.
Key features:
- Projects and tasks
- Assigning tasks to different team members
- Deadline for each task
- Tracking progress of tasks
Jira is a google alternative for ongoing projects with a lot of tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule.
Pricing:
Jira offers a free plan that comes free for 10 users. The other paid plans are as follows:
- Standard – $6.25 – Per user, per month billed annually ($7.5 billed monthly)
- Premium – $12.08 – Per user, per month billed annually ($14.5 billed monthly)
- Enterprise -Enterprise plan for big business, Contact Sales for pricing.
Pros of Jira:
- Great for managing ongoing projects with many tasks
- Lets you assign team members to different tasks
- Lets you set deadlines for different tasks and track progress as the project unfolds.
- Clear task list that lets you see all your team’s tasks in one place – whether they’re completed or not
- Easily track progress of different tasks over time
- Provides reports on your team’s productivity.
Cons of Jira:
- Not suitable for one off projects without defined end dates, as it gives you no way to keep track of your project once the tasks are complete.
7. Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is a collaboration tool within the Microsoft Office 365 suite. It combines chat, meetings and documents into one workspace to keep everyone on the team connected.
Teams also has built in integration with Microsoft Office. This means you can attach files from OneDrive, SharePoint and OneDrive for Business to chats, channels and private conversations. This makes it google alternative for ongoing projects with many tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule or who require file sharing.
Key features:
- Chat, meetings and documents
- One workspace for all your team’s needs
- Built in integration with Microsoft Office
Microsoft Teams is a Google Workspace alternative for ongoing projects with many tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule or who require file sharing.
Pricing:
Microsoft Teams also offers a free plan and provides features such as Unlimited group meetings for up to 60 minutes, Up to 100 participants per meeting and 5 GB of cloud storage per user. The other paid plans are as follows:
- Essentials – $4 – Per user, per month billed annually
- Business Basic – $5 – Per user, per month billed annually
- Business Standard -$12.5 – Per user, per month billed annually
Pros of Microsoft Teams:
- One workspace for all your team’s needs
- Built in integration with Microsoft Office
- Chat, meetings and documents all in one place
- Easily track progress of different tasks over time.
- Great for sharing files with your team
- Lets you easily schedule meetings and chats in one place
- Keeps teams connected, even when people are working from different locations.
Cons of Microsoft Teams:
- Not suitable for ongoing projects without a fixed end date – because there’s no way to keep track of your project once its complete.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
Is Google the only option for a Workspace service?
No, there are a number of different Google Workspace Alternatives that offer similar or even better features than Google. Some of the best alternatives to Google Workspace include Microsoft Office 365, Cisco WebEx, and SalesforceIQ.
Do you need to use Googles email as your primary email?
No, you can use Google’s email service independently of their workspace service.
How do I know which one is right for me?
Each of the services listed offer a variety of different plans that are tailored to fit the needs of businesses of all sizes. You can easily find the right service for your company by comparing the features and pricing of each one.
How much do these services cost?
The cost of each Google Workspace Alternative varies, but most offer a comparable price point to that of Google’s and also offers a free plan to test their features.
Conclusion
There are a number of different google alternatives for ongoing projects with lots of tasks that need to be completed on a specific schedule. Each tool has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it’s important to choose the right one for your needs. Do some research and find the tool that’s best for you.
