Both Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace are excellent, and plenty of small teams are happy on either. The better choice usually comes down to how your people already work, not the feature list.
how your team works
If your team lives in Word and Excel, especially with big spreadsheets or documents sent to clients, Microsoft 365 is the smoother fit, because its desktop apps are the standard for Office files. If people mostly collaborate in the browser and edit the same document together, Google Workspace feels lighter and quicker to learn.
Mixed teams are common too. Plenty of businesses use one platform for email and files while a few people keep a favourite tool on the side. That is fine, as long as everyone agrees where the master copy of a document lives.
email, files and admin
- Email and calendar: Outlook suits people who like a traditional inbox. Gmail is simpler and search-led.
- Office files: Google can open and edit Word and Excel files, but complex formatting and macros can behave differently.
- Security and admin: both support MFA, device controls and audit logs. Microsoft offers more depth but takes more setting up. Google is quicker to get right.
- Cost: both charge per user per month and the price depends on the plan, so compare the plan you need rather than the headline figure.
moving from one to the other
Both can import email, calendars and files. The real work is in the detail: shared mailboxes, folder permissions, forwarding rules and people's habits. Plan the switch for a quiet week, and keep the old system until everyone has checked their mail.
Not sure which suits you? Our free tech health check looks at how your team works today and gives you a straight recommendation.
written by
Langridge.co team
managed IT, family office tech and business tools