7 Best Free Microsoft Word Alternatives for Mac

When switching from Windows to Mac, the cost of Microsoft Office 365 deters many potential clients. You’ll need appropriate software whether your friend wants to check out a document (.docx) or you want to edit a Microsoft Word file on your Mac. Here are some of the top free Microsoft Word alternatives for Mac available right now.

Free Microsoft Word Alternatives – Mac

Depending on your preferences, you can use an online or offline app. Some of these applications provide a free trial period to see if they are right for you.

1. Apple Pages

Apple Pages is a pre-installed program that is one of the greatest free Microsoft Word alternatives for Mac. This native application has many capabilities that are similar to those found in Microsoft Word. You’ll find a collaboration tool for editing a group project with others, as well as templates and cloud storage. Users using Microsoft Word have access to OneDrive, whereas Apple Pages is linked to iCloud Drive.

Apple Pages offers some of the most important capabilities, yet it appears that something is lacking. You can include anything into your document, from a table to a chart to an image or video. You can export a Pages file to.docx even if your pals use Microsoft Word. Tables and charts may not show as they are in Microsoft Word when opened in Apple Pages. When you use this free Microsoft Word alternative, you’ll notice a significant disadvantage.

Pros:

• Improved compatibility
• UI that is not cluttered
• Set up a password
• Support for many formats
• Compatibility with iCloud Drive
• Within the document, play a YouTube video.

Cons:

• Support for DOCX tables and charts is lacking.

Get Apple Pages (free)

2. Drafts

Drafts are more of a Text Edit replacement than a Microsoft Word replacement. Despite the fact that it is free and can be downloaded from the official app store, it is unable to open.docx files. However, because the UI includes a file management panel, generating and editing native files is more convenient. In other words, it saves files directly on the user interface so that they may be opened with a single click.

You may categorize all the files or notes with a tag and then filter them to find something specific. The app’s main feature is that you may save the file in nearly any format or service that is compatible with other apps like Google Docs, Evernote, and OneDrive. When you click on Actions, the entire list expands. Both free and premium versions have all of these features and settings. Drafts’ commercial edition includes additional features such as dark themes, workspaces, and more.

Pros:

• Features that are simple to understand
• Tags for note organization
• Save in a variety of formats

Cons:

• The .docx file could not be opened.
• In the free edition, there is no dark theme.
• Lack of free features

Get Drafts (free, in-app purchase)

3. Ulysses: Microsoft Word Alternative Mac

The multi-tab is Ulysses’ main and most important feature. You may need to open multiple notes or documents at times. Instead of modifying them one at a time, you can work on them simultaneously by opening numerous tabs or windows. It has a similar user experience as Drafts, but it is more fluid.

Ulysses, like most modern programs, allows you to choose a dark theme. The Editor mode is the next important feature. To put it another way, you can hide all the other columns and only reveal the writing pane to concentrate on writing. Although it appears to be useful, you will need to understand a few markups in order to design the content. #heading 1 will, for example, make the word Heading 1.

Pros:

• Multiple tabs and windows
• Focus mode for a fluid user interface

Cons:

• Markup that is unique to you

Get Ulysses (free trial, in-app purchase)

4. Scrivener: Microsoft Word Alternative Mac

Because of its UI and functionality, Scrivener is perhaps the finest free Microsoft Word alternative for macOS. Scrivener has most of the same functions like Microsoft Word, such as saving files in various formats, creating/using templates, setting up pages, and so on. Aside from that, you can add a picture, a link, a comment, a footnote, and a mathematical calculation, among other things.

Unlike some other programs, you may select your own font type and size, as well as paragraph and line spacing. Because of the tree-view arrangement, you won’t have any problems, despite the fact that it shows two additional columns on each side. The Layout option, for example, allows you to adjust Scrivener’s overall layout.

Pros:

• Feature-rich
• Save the file in a variety of formats.
• Support for a footnote and a mathematical equation
• Setup with a tree view

Cons:

• Word chart compatibility is lacking.

Get Scrivener (free trial)

5. Dropbox Paper

Dropbox Paper is a relatively new online tool that opens a Microsoft Word document and assists you in creating it. It’s definitely the most straightforward way to work in peace without having to sift through a plethora of possibilities. The user interface is clean, which allows daily authors to focus on the writing part first.

As long as you want to make a simple document with tables, bullet points, numeric lists, photographs, comments, and so on, paper is acceptable. It does, however, lack a number of features, such as the ability to enter a pie chart, a header, and so on. It supports templates, however, the list is pretty short.

Pros:

• UI that is not cluttered
• Creating targeted content
• Support for online collaboration and cloud storage

Cons:

• Options are limited.

Get Dropbox Paper

6. Word Online

When you don’t have Office 365, what is the best free Microsoft Word alternative for opening.docx files? Without a doubt, Word Online? It’s a Microsoft-owned online version of Word’s desktop software, as the name implies. It has reached a stage where you can rely on it up to a point after evolving for a number of years.

If you’re switching from the desktop edition of Microsoft Word, you won’t have to go through the features because most of them are in the same position on the web version. It saves all files to OneDrive as an online editing tool so that users may simply access and share them. It’s simple to collaborate with other users on Microsoft Word Online, which is similar to Google Docs.

Pros:

• Word’s user interface is similar to that of a desktop program.
• Support for several platforms
• Integration of many Microsoft services
• Editor mode is available.
• Support for voice typing

Cons:

• There is no free desktop version available.

7. Google Docs

When it comes to a web-based Microsoft Word replacement, Google Docs outperforms Word Online. It may not have a long list of capabilities like Microsoft Word for Windows or Apple Pages, but it has practically all the important options for regular use. It saves all of your papers in Google Drive, so you can access them from any device, anywhere.

The next important feature of Google Docs is that it supports add-ons. It means you can improve your job’s functionality and productivity by adding the appropriate add-on. There’s also good news for typeface nerds. Users can install any font from the Google Fonts repository because it is a Google-powered service. As long as your acquaintance has a Gmail account, you can collaborate online. Last but not least, you can save files in a variety of formats, such as.docx,.odt,.rtf, and.pdf.

Pros:

• More file types are supported.
• Online cooperation has never been better.
• Typing using your voice
• Support for add-ons
• Download the file in a variety of formats.
• Support for native tables and pie charts

Cons:

• Insertion of a complex image

Must Check out: Best Microsoft Clipboard Alternatives

Conclusion: Microsoft Word Alternatives for Mac

Although there are more free Microsoft Word alternatives, this is the conclusion of the list. Because you might not discover all the necessary features in just one program, it’s a good idea to check out all of these tools.