ONLYOFFICE Docs vs Google Docs
ONLYOFFICE Docs is a European alternative to Google Docs: same other use case, headquartered in Latvia and operating under GDPR by default, while Google Docs is based in the United States.
By the EU Alternatives team Last updated
Open source office suite with high Microsoft format compatibility, real-time co-editing, and self-hosted or cloud deployment.
- Jurisdiction
- EU / EEA
- GDPR by default
- Yes
- US CLOUD Act exposure
- No
- Open source
- Yes
- Free tier
- Yes
A curated collection of the best European alternatives to Google Docs.
- Jurisdiction
- US
- GDPR by default
- Requires DPA + TIA
- US CLOUD Act exposure
- Yes
ONLYOFFICE Docs vs Google Docs at a glance
| ONLYOFFICE Docs | Google Docs | |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Latvia | US |
| Data jurisdiction | EU / EEA | US law applies |
| GDPR by default | Yes | Requires DPA + transfer assessment |
| US CLOUD Act exposure | No | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Free tier | Yes | — |
| Best for | Teams that need other with EU data residency | Teams already invested in the Google Docs ecosystem |
Choose ONLYOFFICE Docs if…
- You want your data to stay under EU law without extra legal paperwork
- GDPR compliance or public-sector requirements apply to you
- You want to start free and scale up later
- Open-source code and self-hosting matter to you
- You'd rather back the European tech ecosystem
Stick with Google Docs if…
- You depend on integrations only available in the Google Docs ecosystem
- Your organisation has no EU data-residency constraints
- Migration costs outweigh the jurisdiction benefits for now
About ONLYOFFICE Docs
ONLYOFFICE Docs is a Latvian open source office suite built around the highest OOXML fidelity in the open source world: documents, spreadsheets, and presentations created in Microsoft Office open and save without layout breakage. That makes it the pragmatic choice for teams leaving Microsoft 365 who still exchange .docx and .xlsx files daily.
The suite runs in the browser with real-time co-editing, comments, tracked changes, and version history, and integrates into more than 40 platforms including Nextcloud, ownCloud, Moodle, and Odoo. Desktop and mobile apps cover offline work, and the AGPL community edition self-hosts for free on your own hardware.
Key features:
- High Microsoft format compatibility for .docx, .xlsx, and .pptx round-trips
- Real-time co-editing with fast and strict modes, comments, and mentions
- Three editors covering documents, spreadsheets, and presentations
- 40+ integrations including Nextcloud, ownCloud, Moodle, and Odoo
- Self-hosted community edition free under AGPL
- Desktop and mobile apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android
- Plugins and macros extend editors with translation, OCR, and custom tools
ONLYOFFICE is developed by Ascensio System SIA, headquartered in Riga, Latvia, and the self-hosted deployment model keeps documents entirely on infrastructure you control, with GDPR compliance by design for European organizations.
Ideal for organizations that need Word-grade format fidelity in a European, auditable office suite.
Why choose ONLYOFFICE Docs over Google Docs?
The decisive argument is data jurisdiction. Google Docs is headquartered in US, which means personal data processed through it can be subject to non-EU legal regimes: the US CLOUD Act, FISA 702, or similar laws depending on the provider. After the 2020 Schrems II ruling, EU organisations must carry out a transfer impact assessment for every such data flow.
ONLYOFFICE Docs removes that overhead. As a Latvia-based provider, it operates natively under GDPR, and data stays inside the EU/EEA by default. For regulated sectors such as health, public administration, and finance, that's not a nice-to-have but a requirement. For everyone else, it's concentration-risk insurance: you avoid depending on a single non-EU jurisdiction that can change the rules without warning.