Feature Comparison: LibreOffice - Microsoft Office
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This page compares the features of LibreOffice and Microsoft Office in several form factors. The comparisons separate major and minor feature differences and also includes notes on LibreOffice extensions. The comparison highlights differences and therefore does not display any features which are present in both office suites.
There are separate comparison tables available for:
- Desktop (notebooks, desktop computers): LibreOffice 24.8.4 (download) vs. Microsoft Office 2024 / 365
- Mobile (smartphones, tablets): LibreOffice-based mobile solutions (download) vs. Microsoft Office 365 mobile apps
- Online (web browser-based office): LibreOffice-based Collabora Online 23.05 ([1] [2]) vs. Microsoft Office for the web. This section also includes the LibreOffice-based Chromebook App (Collabora Office download [3]) for reasons explained in the section.
 |
The feature comparison table is continuously being updated and is work in progress. |
Desktop office: Notebooks, Desktop computers
Desktop Office suite, general features: LibreOffice vs. Microsoft Office
| Major Feature Differences | LibreOffice 24.8 | MS Office 2024 / 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-platform availability (desktop) | Yes. Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD, and Haiku. (based on the same code base). ChromeOS via Collabora Office.
Integrated office architecture: LibreOffice for the desktop shares the same processing engine, common to all modules, on all form factors (incl. mobile and online) [4]. |
Partial. Windows and macOS.
Windows and macOS versions have some document format compatibility problems, somewhat different feature sets and differences in the user interface; macOS version does not include the database application MS Access, does not include MS Publisher, and also lacks a number of other features (see below). Feature inconsistencies/differences in Windows versions, between "MS Office 2024" sales version and the "Office 365" rental version: some features are being subsequently included only in the rental version (newly added features also differ between macOS and MS Windows) leading to inconsistencies in the feature set (see below). |
| Supported versions of MS Windows | Yes. Windows 7 SP1, 8, 8.1, 10, 11, Windows Server 2008, 2012, 2016, 2019, 2022. ([5]). Version LibreOffice 5.4 still supported Windows XP SP3, Vista. | Yes. MS Office 2024 sales version: Windows 10, 11; Server 2019, 2022. MS Office 365 rental version: Windows 10, 11, Windows Server 2019, 2022 ([6]). |
| Supported versions of macOS | Yes. 10.15+ (Catalina). Intel and Apple Silicon. ([7]). | Yes. The newest three versions (as of July 2024: 13+ (Ventura). Intel and Apple Silicon. ([8]) |
| Portable version that runs on USB flash disks (without installation) | Yes (download) | No |
| Open Source | Yes, licensed under MPLv2 and others. | No, proprietary and closed-source |
| Full integration of all office components | Yes. From within each office component, files of all other components can be opened and be newly created. Central StartCenter with access to office modules, recently used files and templates. | No |
| Availability free of charge | Yes (download, donate) | No, proprietary software to purchase or rent. When subscription for the rental version ends, applications enter read-only mode (view or print) and no new documents can be created. The purchase-version is a perpetual license. One-month trial version available for the rental version (but not for the one-time purchase version). |
| Extension availability | Yes. Complex ecosystem of extensions (over 600 on extensions.libreoffice.org and over 800 on extensions.openoffice.org), including automatic updates. Extensions and templates can be installed from within LibreOffice ("Additions dialog"). | Partial, no centralized extension system for add-ons and macros. Microsoft AppSource for Office 365. [9] Office Apps not supported on macOS. |
| Localization | Yes. 120 languages (detailed list of languages supported by LibreOffice) | Partial. 91 languages in Windows version, 27 languages in macOS version (display language for (some) office applications) [10], [11], [12] |
Support of Right-to-left (RTL) languages (e.g. Arabic) and other complex scripts
|
Yes. Comprehensive support, based on HarfBuzz text shaping library
|
Yes |
| Additional writing aids | Yes. Extended support (spell-check dictionaries, hyphenation patterns, thesaurus and grammar check, specialized dictionaries as extensions ([13], [14]). Detailed list of LibreOffice writing aids for over 160 languages. | Partial. More limited, "proofing tools" for 92 languages in Windows version, 58 in macOS version [15], [16],[17] |
| Language technology | Yes. Comprehensive support, based on the most popular spellchecking library Hunspell
LibreOffice Language Technology – News & Best practices, YouTube, Hunspell 1.7, LibreOffice vs MS Office, Better coverage: words, Unicode, morphology, 3 false alarms in Word, zero in Writer |
Partial. Limited |
| Support of complex languages and special smart-font features (ligatures, true small caps, old style numbers, proportional or mono-spaced numbers, capital spacing, and true superscript/subscript) | Partial. Full support of SIL Graphite font technology ([18],[19]) and full support of OpenType optional features (Font features in 7.5, [20], [21], [22]) by syntax and UI (tdf#58941). See also LibreOffice Smart Font HowTo. Support for Apple Advanced Typography (AAT) available on all platforms. Interoperability: No support for optional OpenType features in OOXML (tdf#104281), and ODF 1.2 doesn’t provide OpenType optional features support (support scheduled for ODF later) | Partial. Limited via OpenType supporting ligatures, stylistic sets, number spacing options, number forms, and contextual alternates. [23] Support for optional OpenType features in OOXML. |
| Support of font variation | Partial. Limited support for font styles predefined on the STAT table, no support to reproduce font variation instances on different axis. tdf#152206 | Partial. Limited support for font rendering on screen, no support for printing and PDF export. |
| Easy access to vector clip art | Yes. via LO Gallery (clipart extensions ([24] or [25])). Extension for the integration of clipart from OpenClipart.org. Additional toolbar control to insert Emojis (experimental: tdf#100100) | Partial. Selection of clip art is asking for search with Bing in Online Pictures. Extended selection of "icons". Access to stock photos and icons. |
| Macro scripting languages | Yes. Multiple languages, support for wide variety of languages (LibreOffice Basic, JavaScript, BeanShell, and Python). ScriptForge libraries as extensible and robust collection of macro scripting resources for Basic and Python. Import and export of Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), see ([26] and the release notes). | Partial. Single language, support for Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). Indirectly also Visual Basic or Visual C# by using automation. |
| CMIS protocol support to access Document Management Systems | Yes. Support for Google Drive, MS OneDrive, Alfresco, IBM FileNet, IBM Connections Cloud, Lotus Quickr Domino, Nuxeo, OpenDataSpace, OpenText ELS, MS SharePoint, WebDAV, SSH, Windows share. (tdf#62437) | Partial. Inbuilt support only for MS SharePoint and MS OneDrive |
| Support of ISO standards OpenDocument Format (ODF)
|
Partial. Advanced support, ODF v1.3 extended. No support yet for upcoming standard ODF v1.4 (tdf#162118) | Partial. Limited support, ODF v.1.4 in MS Windows rental and sales versions; ODF v1.3, in online version. Support of OpenDocument ODF v1.4 in macOS rental and sales versions, as well as in mobile versions (Android, iOS) are more limited and require the use of an online file format conversion service. [27] [28] [29] |
| PDF export extended options | Yes. Support of PDF standard PDF 1.7. Multiple options (Additional options: Tagged PDF, Time stamp protocol, detailed image settings, Hybrid PDF, transition effects, extended security and permission options, PDF forms, initial view settings, extended handling of URLs, digital signatures, and PDF signatures according to PAdES standard). Support for font embedding of all font types (incl. OpenType CFF fonts (.otf)). Support for PDF/A-1, PDF/A-2 (archiving) and PDF/UA (universal accessibility) standards.
|
Partial. High or low quality PDF, page and markup to print in Access, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint [30]; pictures resolution and non-printing informations in Publisher. No support for font embedding of OpenType CFF fonts in PDF export [31]. |
| Document classification | Yes. Document classification in Writer, Calc, and Impress according to TSCP-standards (also with multiple policies). See: [32] and [33]. | Partial. No inbuilt document classification system, but Information Rights Management (IRM) supported |
| Import of SVG vector graphics (.svg, .svgz) | Yes | Yes, .svg files supported |
| Import of Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) vector graphics (.eps) | Yes (with some rendering issues: tdf#81497, tdf#67464) | No. Support for .eps images entirely removed in Office 2019 and rental version ([34]). In Office 2016 sales version, it was turned off by default due to security issues, but could be manually enabled via Windows registry ([35]). There were general rendering issues of .eps files in PDF export ([36]). |
| Insert PDF as an image into documents | Yes ([37]) | No |
| Creation of Hybrid PDFs (ODF file embedded in PDF for full editing) | Yes | No |
| Import from raster graphics software: Adobe Photoshop (.psd) | Yes | No |
| Import from vector graphics / DTP software: CorelDraw (v1-X7), Corel Presentation Exchange, Adobe/Macromedia Freehand (v3-11), Adobe PageMaker, Zoner/Callisto Draw (.zmf), QuarkXPress 3.1 to 4.1 | Yes | No |
| Import of MS Visio files | Yes. Supported (Visio 2000-2013) | No (only via MS Visio which is not part of MS Office) |
| Import of video and audio formats FLAC Audio (.flac), Flash Video (.flv), Matroska Media (.mkv), OGG Audio, Ogg Video, Quicktime Video, WebM Video, Real Audio (.ra), Real Media (.rm), Digital Video (.dv), Audio Codec (.ac3), and Ogg Opus (.opus) | Yes | No |
| Drawing and vector graphics software | Yes. LibreOffice Draw, drawing and vector graphics software that supports pages (up to 300cm x 300cm), layers, numerous drawing tools and DTP features. | Partial. MS PowerPoint provides some features of a drawing software. |
| PIM and email software | No. Not part of LibreOffice, referring to alternative PIM software such as Mozilla Thunderbird. See the comparison on this wiki: Mozilla Thunderbird vs. Microsoft Outlook.
Mail Merge Wizard sends out emails directly from LibreOffice without email software. LibreOffice-wide access to address books via Base. |
Yes. MS Outlook |
| Desktop publishing (DTP) software | Partial. Writer supports many advanced DTP features (see section on Writer in this comparison table). Draw supports frame-based DTP features. Import of MS Publisher files (and from other DTP software) in Draw. | Partial. MS Publisher (MS Publisher will be retired 2026.) |
| Integrated Development Environment (IDE) feature set | Partial. The BASIC Integrated Development Environment (IDE) does not have: 1. Refactoring facilities (Renaming affects dependencies/Extract Method/Extract interface etc.) (tdf#92251, tdf#94524, tdf#94526, tdf#94527, tdf#94528, tdf#94529, tdf#94530); 2. Intellisense (or any other code completion functionality) such as auto-code-completion and showing the properties and methods of an object (tdf#66185); 3. Error checking (the IDE actually knows its symbols). | Yes. Supported with Visual Basic for Applications and/or additional purchase of Office Developer Tools for Visual Studio (Windows-only). macOS version only supports a simplified Visual Basic Editor. |
| Import & Export of Microsoft OOXML files | Partial. Good and extended support of real life OOXML files (e.g. .xlsx, .docx, .pptx), standardized (transitional) OOXML files, as well as import of OOXML-strict files. [38] | Yes. Advanced support of transitional (default) and strict OOXML files |
| PDF Import | Partial, into Draw and Writer with the limitation that text is imported line-based (tdf#32249). | Yes, into MS Word |
| Synchronous collaborative editing | No. Not available in the desktop applications (tdf#133984), see development information: Collaborative Editing and Track changes. Plans for collaborative editing (Peer-to-peer collaboration) as of July 2024. | Yes. Support in desktop applications via MS OneDrive, MS SharePoint or MS Teams. Support in desktop applications varies: Real-time "co-authoring" in MS Word, MS PowerPoint, and MS Excel (only via AutoSave) [39] (MS PowerPoint 2021 sales version only allows for co-authoring (via AutoSave). Simplified "sharing" of office documents in MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint via OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint. AutoSave feature, which automatically saves every few seconds, is supported in MS Word, MS Excel, and MS PowerPoint, if files are stored on OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint Online. Supported in MS Office online versions. Collaboration with online versions is possible. |
| User Interface approach | Yes. Highly customizable UI concept "MUFFIN" [40],[41]: Available user interfaces: (1) Classic UI with multiple toolbars mode, and Sidebar panel. (2) Single Toolbar mode, and Sidebar panel. (3) Notebookbar Tabbed UI. (4) Notebookbar Grouped Compact UI. (5) Notebookbar Tabbed Compact UI. (6) Notebookbar Contextual Single UI (Writer and Draw). Customization possible: Several icon themes available (Karasa Jaga, Breeze, Breeze Dark, New Colibre, Elementary, Sifr, Sifr Dark, Sukapura, Tango). Colour themes "Normal" and "Dark" via ▸ ▸ ▸ . Light, dark and high contact modes Application color modes in 7.5, [42] | Partial. Ribbon UI; Colour themes ([43]) on MS Windows: Colorful, Dark Gray, Black, White, Dark mode. On macOS: Colorful, Classic, Dark mode. |
| User interface improved to enable use on touch screen devices on desktop operating systems. | No (tdf#102015) | Partial. Slightly adjusted user interface for touch screen devices, but no redesign. |
| Keyboard driven menu system (search function to better find features in office suite), Head-Up-Display (HUD). | Yes. It can be invoked with the menu ▸ or the shortcut ⇧ Shift + Esc. tdf#91874 blog | Yes. Tell Me search bar. Search with voice (supported in Windows rental version, not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions; not available on macOS) |
| Accessibility checker | Yes. Accessibility checker and support for PDF/UA. Accessibility improvements, Accessibility checker in 7.5, [44]. Extension for text documents: AccessODF. | Yes. [45], [46]. |
| Chat with other authors (collaborative editing) | No | Yes. In-app chat with co-authors for shared files on SharePoint Online or OneDrive for Business. Not supported for OneDrive Consumer or any other storage location. Non-persistent chat (history not preserved; new users see only newly incoming messages). (Not supported in MS Office 2019 sales version; not supported on Android and iOS). |
| Integration of instant Messaging (IM), voice, video, or screen sharing. | No | Yes. Skype integration (not supported in macOS version). |
| Dictation / speech recognition | No | Yes in MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Outlook [47]. Voice audio is sent to Microsoft cloud servers and returned as text. (Not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions) |
| Inserting and editing 3D models | No (previous support in Impress for glTF (.dae/.kmz) 3D models removed in version 6.0) | Yes in PowerPoint, Word, and Excel. Insert animated 3D graphics in PowerPoint, Word, and Excel (Supported in Windows rental version, not supported in MS Office sales versions.) |
| Support of color fonts | Partial. Support for color fonts using color layers (COLR/CPAL OpenType tables) and color bitmaps (CBLC/CBDT or sbix tables). No support for color fonts using SVGs (SVG table) and COLR version 1 format (tdf#151057). | Yes. [48] |
| Support of math fonts | No (tdf#103680), workaround using TexMaths extension with XeLaTeX/LuaLaTeX compiler. [49] | Yes |
| Minor Feature Differences | LibreOffice 24.8 | MS Office 2024 / 365 |
| Generation of QR codes and barcodes | Yes. QR codes and one-dimensional barcodes. In Impress, Draw, Writer and Calc | Yes. [50] |
| Support of graphics formats: WebP | Yes | Partial. Import only |
| Import of graphics formats APNG, DXF, MET, PBM, PCD, PCX, PGM, PPM, PPM, RAS, SGF, SVM, TGA, XBM, XPM | Yes | No |
| Import of Classic Mac OS legacy vector and bitmap graphics formats: BeagleWorks, ClarisWorks, GreatWorks, MacPaint, MacWorks, SuperPaint, MacDraw, MacDraw II, RagTime for Mac 2-3, ClarisDraw, MacDraft | Yes | No |
| Import of additional video and audio formats: CD Audio, Vivo Video. | Yes | No |
| Drawing features: Arrow endings | Yes. Substantially wider selection, including Crow’s feet notation | No. Less supported arrow endings |
| Drawing features: Point Eraser, Lasso, Sketched outline style. | No | Yes. ([51]) (not available on macOS). ([52]) |
| Drawing shapes: Sinusoid shape | Yes | No |
| Document metadata fields according to Dublin Core / XMP | Yes. Since LO 24.2 (tdf#138792) | No |
| Document converter wizard | Yes | No |
| Euro currency converter wizard | Yes | No |
| Expert config to access a multitude of settings from UI | Yes | No |
| Support for multiple color palette formats: Gimp (.gpl), Adobe Swatch Exchange (.ase), LibreOffice/Apache OpenOffice (.soc) | Yes (note: tdf#92354) | No |
| Import MathML formula from clipboard | Yes | No |
| Import of StarOffice binary file formats .sdc, .sda, .sdw | Partial. Basic support | No |
| Digital signatures / Signature Line | Yes. Multiple signatures, including OOXML signatures. Visible signatures in Writer, Calc and Draw. Round-trip with MS Office problematic (tdf#58442, tdf#58476). Import/export of PDF signatures. Support of XAdES standard (XML Advanced Electronic Signatures) and OpenPGP keys. Support for ECDSA keys (on Linux and macOS). Support for OpenPGP-based document encryption. ODF Wholesome Encryption (AES-GCM).
|
Yes (OOXML/XML-DSig and XAdES signatures) |
| Convert SVG image to shapes / polygon | Yes. Conversion supported in LO Draw. Additionally opening SVG files directly as shapes is supported in LO Draw. (tdf#115571) | Yes |
| Enhanced list of recent files and folders | Yes (tdf#61174, tdf#60743). Option to clear list of recent documents. Selectively delete Recent Documents (in StartCenter). Option to show office module specific recent documents. Option in start center to set recent files as permanent | Yes (option to set recent files as permanent) |
| Custom colors in formula editor | Yes. Full support of HTML colors in Math (RGB colors, UI in element pane) (tdf#40436) | Yes |
| Third-party software dependencies | Partial. Java runtime environment (JRE) installation required for certain - but not most - features of the software. Java is notably required for Base. | Yes. Not required |
| Shortcut keys for accented Latin characters | No (tdf#71176), workaround using Unicode conversion, see Unicode character input with Alt+X | Partial. Limited support |
| Inserting audio / video / pictures from online sources | No (tdf#42246). Work-around: Download of online video and embed it in presentation (incl. Flash videos) | Partial [53] Insert online videos (YouTube, Vimeo, SlideShare.net) to MS Word (not available on macOS). Insert online videos (YouTube, Vimeo, MS Stream, Flipgrid) to MS PowerPoint. Insert online pictures in Word, Excel, PowerPoint. |
| Collaboration with @mentions in comments | No | Yes, in PowerPoint, Excel, Word, and Outlook. [54] |
| Task assignment using @mentions | No | Yes. Create, assign and track tasks ([55]) |
| Like (thumbs up) reaction to comments | No | Yes, support comments with a Like reaction available in MS Word and MS Powerpoint |
| Quick access to email attachments | No | Yes, "Shared with me" feature in PowerPoint, Excel, Word. |
| Streaming of office applications/office on demand | No (possible via third party services) | Yes ([56]) |
| Ink drawings / annotations (e.g. on touch- and pen-enabled devices) | No (tdf#35092), (only support for import of existing ink annotations from MS Word file format) | Yes. Several pens, highlighters, colors and color effects, and pencils for inking to draw/annotate/highlight. Lasso Select (free-form tool for selecting ink). Ink replay feature |
| Recognition of shapes from ink drawings | No | Yes. [57] supported in MS Word, MS Excel, and MS PowerPoint |
| Recognition of text from ink drawings | No | Yes. [58] Conversion of ink to shapes in MS PowerPoint and MS Word (Not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions) |
| Automatic background removal of a picture | No (tdf#103424) | Yes. Supported in MS Windows version (not supported in macOS version) |
| Live preview while formatting | No (tdf#37048) | Yes |
| Inserting a screenshot from within applications | No | Yes |
| Import of graphics formats: MEZ, PCZ | No | Yes |
| Export to XPS format
|
No | Yes |
| Support for Touch Bar on Apple MacBook Pro | No (tdf#105803) | Yes (macOS only) |
Desktop Word processors: LibreOffice Writer vs. Microsoft Word
| Major Feature Differences | LO Writer 24.8 | MS Word 2024 / 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Handling of captions for graphics or image boxes | Yes. Stable layout | No. Layout problems |
| Styles (page styles, frame styles) | Yes | No |
| Overlining of text | Yes | No, but complicated workaround |
| Master documents for longer texts | Yes. Master documents and Master document templates supported | No. Supported but deprecated because it causes file corruption |
| Redaction tool / sanitization of classified information | Yes. Supported. Redaction & Automatic redaction tool | No |
| Register-true feature / register accuracy (DTP-feature) | Yes | No |
| Business card wizard | Yes (release notes) | No |
| Text auto completion of words already used before | Yes. [59] | No |
| XForms documents creation | Yes | No |
| Mathematical calculations in tables | Yes. Complex calculations | No. Only basic arithmetic |
| DocBook import & export | Yes | No |
| Export to MediaWiki (Wikipedia) format | Yes | No |
| Export to XHTML | Yes | No |
| Export to EPUB e-book file format (.epub)
|
Yes | No |
| Export document as image(s) | Yes. Supported, image formats: .jpg, .png | No |
| Import of Apple Pages documents | Yes. Support for Pages v1-5 [60] | No |
| Working with large documents | Yes. Stable layout | Partial. Some layout problems [61] |
| Extended label creation features (release notes) | Yes (generic database access, synchronise content) | Partial |
| Frames | Yes. DTP-like features like text in multiple columns and text-wrap around graphics | Partial. Concept of "horizontal frames" is more limited |
| DirectCursor (allows to enter text anywhere on a page) | Yes | Yes. Supported, under the name Click and type (advanced option) |
| Table styles | Partial (release notes 5.3 and release notes 6.0) (tdf#34391). | Yes |
| PDF export of comments | Partial. Export of comments according to PDF specification (via "File" > "Export as PDF"). PDF export of comments: inside the margin, at end of page, at end of document (activation complicated, only via: "Tools" > "Options" > "LibreOffice Writer" > "Print" (tdf#77650)) | Partial. Export only as comments inside margin |
| Grammar check | Yes. 4 languages with built-in grammar checker (English, Russian, Hungarian and Brazilian Portuguese). Grammar checker LanguageTool available as server-based grammar checker (remote or on local machine) or as extension: Languagetool for server-based checking and WritingTool LibreOffice extension (new repo for LibreOffice extension) for 31 languages plus 15 language variants (level of language support varies; 11 languages with more than 1000 rules). Other grammar checker extensions available: Grammalecte for French, CoGroo for Brazilian Portuguese | Yes. 21 languages (plus 1 language variant) were supported in MS Office 2013 with additional costs) ; no information on supported languages in MS Office 2016. Grammar check on macOS version limited to few languages. |
| Style sets (for paragraph styles) / document themes / document styles | Yes. Supported since LO 7.6. Other solutions: Templates provide this functionality, but more difficult to handle. Helpful extension: Template Changer (tdf#89286). Bugs on document themes: (tdf#90497) | Yes. Supported ("document themes") |
| Use of LaTeX syntax for formulas | No. Extension: TexMaths | Yes. Ability to type math using the LaTeX syntax (Not supported in macOS version) |
| Vertical alignment (top/center/bottom) of content on page | No (tdf#36117), workarounds via frame/table | Yes |
| Picture styles & additional effects | No (tdf#59906), but effects are preserved on import and export. Glow effect and soft edges supported | Yes |
| View changes in the margin in "track changes" mode | Partial Option to show track changes (additions or deletions) in margin (Tools - Options - LibreOffice Writer - View - Enable Tracked deletions in margin). Implementation misses some features, see: tdf#137770 tdf#147169 | Yes |
| Diagonal borders in tables | No (tdf#51665) | Yes |
| Extended reading mode of documents | No (tdf#55168) | Yes |
| Collapse and expand parts of a document | Yes. [62] (tdf#135310) | Yes |
| Instant messaging while collaborating on document | No | Yes ([63]) |
| Track changes only for own changes (while collaborative editing) | No | Yes. Option to track one's own changes without forcing others to track theirs ([64]). (not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions) |
| Reading aloud; Text-to-speech (TTS) ability | No. Extension Read Text. | Yes ([65]) |
| Minor Feature Differences | LO Writer 24.8 | MS Word 2024 / 365 |
| Protected cells in tables (allows better creation of forms) | Yes | No |
| Open erroneous .doc files | Yes. Better recovery mode ([66],[67]) | No. More frequently denies opening those files |
| Wizard to create personalized letter templates | Yes | No |
| Import & Export Unified Office Format text | Yes | No |
| Import & Export AportisDoc (Palm), PocketWord documents | Yes. Supported (requires Java) | No |
| Import of AbiWord files | Yes | No |
| Import of eBook formats: FictionBook 2.0, BroadBand, Plucker (Palm), eReader (Palm), zTXT (Palm), TealDoc (Palm), PalmDoc (Palm) | Yes | No |
| Import of legacy Mac OS word processing documents: MS Word for Mac (1-5.1), MS Works for Mac (1-4), ClarisWorks/AppleWorks, Write Now, MacWriteII/MacWritePro, DOCMaker 4, FullWrite Professional, HanMac Word-K/J, LightWayText for Mac 4.5, Mariner Write Mac Classic 1.6-3.5, MindWrite Document, Nisus Writer Mac Classic 3.4-6.5, TeachText/SimpleText 1, Tex-Edit 2, WriterPlus, Z-Write 1.3, eDOC 2, Acta Mac Classic, BeagleWorks/WordPerfect Works 1, GreatWorks, MacDoc 1, MoreMac 2-3, RagTime for Mac 2-3 | Yes | No |
| Import of DOS/Windows legacy word processing documents: Microsoft Word for DOS, Microsoft WinWord 5, Microsoft Word 6.0 / 95, Microsoft Write, Hangul WP97, Text 602 (T602), Lotus WordPro | Yes | No |
| Logo toolbar and interpreter | Yes [68] | No |
| Format text of all comments in document | Yes | No |
| Comments in headers and footers | Yes | No |
| Text boxes allow multiple columns | Yes | No |
| Markdown feature to automatic format *bold*, /italic/, -strikeout- and _underline_ | Yes. (How to switch on the feature). See also tdf#133023 | No |
| PDF export preserves footnote/endnote anchors | Yes. Links between anchors and footnotes or endnotes (even if not on the same page) are available in both direction. | No |
| Conditional text | Yes ([69], [70](PDF) [71]) | Partial ([72], [73]) |
| Automatic replacement of Emojis | Yes. supported. Additional toolbar control to insert Emojis (experimental: tdf#100100) | Partial. Manual creation of replacement lists |
| Number of columns per table in document | Yes. Unlimited columns | Partial. Limited to 63 columns |
| Multi-line headings for chapters | Yes. Multi-line headings for chapters by allowing a line break as separator between a chapter number and its name (in Heading Numbering dialog) | Partial. Only via work-around [74] |
| Maximum page size | Yes. 300cm x 300cm | Partial. 55.87cm x 55.87cm |
| Bibliographic features | Partial. Basic inbuilt support. Excellent free extensions: e.g. Zotero, JabRef as well as proprietary extensions. Work has been done to better integrate Zotero in LibreOffice [75]. DOI citation recognition (tdf#145925). | Yes. Inbuilt support. Excellent free extensions: e.g. Zotero as well as proprietary extensions. |
| Advanced find & replace / Special characters | Partial (tdf#38261). See List of Regular Expressions. Extension: Alternative dialog Find & Replace for Writer | Yes |
| Complex Outline numbering / Multilevel list | Partial. Different numerically equivalent format not supported (tdf#35217) | Yes |
| Default keyboard shortcuts | Partial. Less default shortcuts ([76]) | Yes. More default shortcuts ([77]) |
| Add watermarks to pages | Partial. Support for text watermarks. Workaround for picture watermarks via adding image to header/footer. | Partial (text and picture watermarks). This is not possible on Chromebooks as there is no app, Word for the web cannot do watermarks |
| Outline view | Partial Outline folding mode [78] (tdf#135310, alternative feature: Navigator > Content View to drag and promote/demote headings (see Improvements to Navigator in 7.0) | Yes |
| Complex/rich text formatting in comments (e.g. bullet points, text color, images, tables) | No. Some formatting features are supported, e.g. font type, font size, bold, italics, underline, text alignment (align, centered, justified). (tdf#81458) | Yes |
| Document/text translation | Yes Initial machine translation is available, backend by DeepL translate. Other extension: TradutorLibreText. | Yes ([79]) |
| Decorative page borders | No (tdf#39270) | Yes |
| Horizontal split view of the same document | No (tdf#31481), workaround: Windows > New Window to clone document window. | Yes |
| Draft view | No (tdf#67698) | Yes |
| Upload to blog servers | No, extension: Sun Weblog Publisher (outdated). | Yes (MS SharePoint Blog, Telligent-Community, TypePad, WordPress, MetaWebLog API) |
| Digital pen usage / ink gestures | No | Yes. [80] (Not supported in MS Office 2021 sales version and not supported in macOS version) |
| Transform document into a Sway web page | No | Yes. supported in MS Word. (Not supported in MS Office 2021 sales version and not supported in macOS version) |
| Line by line reading of text | No | Yes. Line Focus (removes removes distractions) feature in MS Word. |
| 'File name without extension' field | Yes. [81] | No. [82] [83] |
Desktop Spreadsheet applications: LibreOffice Calc vs. Microsoft Excel
| Major Feature Differences | LO Calc 24.8 | MS Excel 2024 / 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Spreadsheet functions (for details see Functions comparison of LibreOffice Calc and Excel) | Yes. 517 functions (30 functions unique to Calc) See an extensive description of Calc Functions | Yes. 492 functions (30 functions unique to Excel) |
| Unique Spreadsheet functions | Yes.
CURRENT; DAYSINMONTH; DAYSINYEAR; DDE; EASTERSUNDAY; FORECAST.ETS.MULT; FORECAST.ETS.STAT.MULT; FORECAST.ETS.PI.MULT; FOURIER; GOALSEEK; ISLEAPYEAR; MONTHS; MULTIPLE.OPERATIONS; MULTIRANGE; MVALUE; NEG; OPT_BARRIER; OPT_PROB_HIT; OPT_PROB_INMONEY; OPT_TOUCH; RAND.NV; RANDBETWEEN.NV; RAWSUBTRACT; REGEX; ROT13; ROUNDSIG; STYLE; WEEKS; WEEKSINYEAR; YEARS. Extensions: Kanji to Phonetic provides PHONETIC function; Lox365: XLOOKUP for LibreOffice provides IMAGE, TEXTSPLIT, TOCOL. |
Yes.
CUBEKPIMEMBER, CUBEMEMBER, CUBEMEMBERPROPERTY, CUBERANKEDMEMBER, CUBESET, CUBESETCOUNT, CUBEVALUE, RTD, DBCS, CALL, REGISTER.ID, PHONETIC; YEN; TEXTBEFORE (tdf#150864); TEXTAFTER (tdf#150865); TEXTSPLIT (tdf#150866); VSTACK (tdf#150867); HSTACK (tdf#150868); TOROW (tdf#150878), TOCOL (tdf#150879); WRAPROWS (tdf#150880); WRAPCOLS (tdf#150881); TAKE (tdf#150997); DROP (tdf#150998); CHOOSEROWS (tdf#150999); CHOOSECOLS (tdf#151000); EXPAND (tdf#151001); IMAGE (tdf#129129); the following functions are only available in MS Office 365 rental version, not in MS Office 2024: STOCKHISTORY GROUPBY (GroupBy), PIVOTBY (PivotBy), PERCENTOF (PercentOf) aggregation functions (tdf#161159). |
| Dynamic arrays | No (tdf#127808) | Yes. ([84])
Spilled range reference operator “#” (tdf#161399); Implicit intersection operator “@” (tdf#161470); Formulas that return more than one value but cannot populate all the adjacent cells will return error “#SPILL” (tdf#158620). |
| Dynamic charts (referencing dynamic arrays) | No | Yes([85]) |
| Picture / image in a cell | No | Yes, via IMAGE function or via insert image ([86]) |
| Comparison of two spreadsheet files | Yes | No |
| Page styles (in addition to cell styles) | Yes | No |
| Hyphenation of text in cells | Yes | No |
| AutoSpellcheck / Spelling as you type | Yes | No ([87]) |
| Export to XHTML | Yes | No |
| Full-Sheet Previews: Possibility to export all pages on a sheet as one page in the PDF | Yes | No |
| Exporting of a single chart as image (e.g. jpg, png, svg, pdf) | Yes | Yes. [88] |
| OpenFormula standard | Yes. Largely supported | Partial |
| Keep the copy of cells (usability of copy&paste) | Yes. (Copy of cells is kept for pasting, even if the user does other tasks like typing or inserting cells) | No ([89]) |
| Import of Apple Numbers spreadsheet documents | Yes. Support for Numbers v1-3 [90], see also this comparison | No |
| Maximum number of columns per sheet | Yes. 16,384. Jumbo spreadsheets supported since LO 7.4, see: [91], tdf#133764. | Yes. 16,384 (256 in compatibility mode) |
| Declaration of variables to be used in formulas | Partial. LET function (tdf#137543). | Yes.
LET function; Recursive LAMBDA and ETA-LAMBDA (“eta reduced lambda”) hyperfunctions with BYCOL (ByCol), BYROW (ByRow), ISOMITTED (IsOmitted), MAKEARRAY (MakeArray), MAP, REDUCE, SCAN helper functions (tdf#138749) and aggregation functions (tdf#161159). |
| Table styles | Partial. ▸ ▸ ▸ as well as ▸ provide part of this functionality. (tdf#77569, tdf#44762, tdf#44763, tdf#66377) | Yes |
| Record a macro | Partial. Limited support [92] | Yes |
| Insert a graphic into a spreadsheet header or footer | Partial. Inserted image cannot be resized nor cropped, usability issues. (tdf#74146) | Yes |
| Statistical / Analysis toolkit | Partial. Built-in Data Statistics Wizard with additional features: Chi2-test, Logarithmic regression, Power regression | Partial. Add-on, not activated by default. Additional features: Histogram, Random number generation, Rank and percentiles, and some more detailed options. |
| Allow expressions with references in inline arrays, not only constants | No (tdf#105683, tdf#161841) | Yes |
| Chart styles | No (tdf#62925, tdf#62540, tdf#39097) | Partial. Selection of some pre-set chart styles and layouts |
| Power Pivot features
|
No (tdf#96623 regarding DAX functions) | Yes |
| Additional chart types: Waterfall, Histogram, Pareto, Box & Whisker (Box plot), Treemap (Mosaic), Sunburst, Funnel | No (tdf#74665, tdf#81530, tdf#70361, tdf#72992, tdf#97832) | Yes |
| Relationships between tables, based on matching data in each table | No (work around: using function VLOOKUP) | Yes ([93]) |
| Integration of external data sources | No. Extension: New Jaguar Calc add-in provides SQLREQUEST function and Queryconnector provides graphical interface. | Yes. Queries and data sources via "Power Query" and "Power BI" [94]. (SQL.REQUEST removed in favor of Power Query since MS Excel 2010) |
| Linked data types | No | Yes. Data types from online sources: geography, stocks, organization, location, zip code, university, space, satellite, element, chemistry, food, exercise, movie, characters, medical, body, media, nature, activities, other (Not available in MS Office 2021 sales versions) [95],[96] |
| Forecasting data to predict future trends | Yes. Extended set of forecast functions (based on exponential smoothing algorithm) | Yes. Forecast functions and forecast charts (based on exponential smoothing algorithm) (not supported in macOS version) |
| Import MS Access databases | Partial. Via ODB file connected to database (needs MS Access installed on the system) | Yes |
| Multi-Core Processing / multithreading | Partial. Multithreading works, but some bugs remain tdf#114159. Further information: Multi-threaded calculation [97]. Multi-threaded import of XLSX documents Parallel formula compiling on the CPU. OpenCL/GPU threading in Calc core ([98],[99]) Presentation 2016 "Exploiting concurrency", Presentation "Making Calc Calculate in Parallel". | Yes. Starting in Excel 2010, the following features use multi-core processors: saving a file, opening a file, refreshing a PivotTable (for external data sources, except OLAP and SharePoint), sorting a cell table, sorting a PivotTable, and auto-sizing a column.
For operations that involve reading and loading or writing data, such as opening a file, saving a file or refreshing data, splitting the operation into two processes increases performance speed. The first process gets the data, and the second process loads the data into the appropriate structure in memory or writes the data to a file. In this way, as soon as the first process begins reading a portion of data, the second process can immediately start loading or writing that data, while the first process continues to read the next portion of data. Previously, the first process had to finish reading all the data in a certain section before the second process could load that section of the data into memory or write the data to a file. ([100], [101]) |
| Data-linked creation of flowcharts | No | Yes. Flow charts and organizational charts (supported in rental version, not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions) |
| Export generic XML | No | Yes |
| Customized sheet views (while collaborative editing) | No | Yes ([102]) |
| Minor Feature Differences | LO Calc 24.8 | MS Excel 2024 / 365 |
| Flexible CSV export | Yes. Supported ([103], [104]) | No |
| Advanced find & replace / regular expressions / special characters | Yes (List of Regular Expressions) | No |
| View clone of spreadsheet in new window | Yes. Independent window | No. Cannot be moved outside the application window |
| Median in PivotTable | Yes. tdf#61700 | No. [105] |
| Chart type Stepped lines for XY (Scatter) graphs | Yes | No |
| Use English function names | Yes. Possibility to switch between function names in local language and English | No |
| Import & Export Unified Office Format spreadsheet | Yes | No |
| Import of DOS/Windows legacy spreadsheet formats: Lotus 1-2-3, Quattro Pro (v1-5.5 DOS; v1.0-6.0 Windows), Microsoft Works spreadsheet, Microsoft Multiplan (v1-3 DOS) | Yes | No |
| Import of Classic Mac OS legacy spreadsheet formats: BeagleWorks, ClarisWorks, Claris Resolve, GreatWorks, MacWorks, Wingz, Microsoft Multiplan (v1.11) | Yes | No |
| Import & Export Pocket Excel | Yes. Supported (requires Java) | No |
| Ability to rotate entire chart | Yes | No |
| PDF export of comments | Yes. Export of comments according to PDF specification | No |
| Property mapping functionality for charts (conditional chart colors/borders) | Yes | No (Only available: Inverting colors for negative values) |
| Import from Gnumeric | Yes (not available on Windows, see tdf#94834) | No |
| Export cell range selection or a selected group of shapes (images) as .png or .jpg image | Yes | No |
| Export sheet/table as .png image | Yes | No |
| Formatting of cells | Yes. More detailed: Number formats: more flexible use of "Format Code" for custom adjustments, leading zeroes, language setting, percentages without percentage sign, thousands separator for percentages; Font: overligning of text, relief (embossed, engraved), outline, shadow, underline of individual words, spacing settings, kerning; Borders: shadow, spacing to contents; Protection: hide cells when printing. | Partial. Less features |
| Additional cell format types | Yes. Number format "Boolean value". Engineering notation. Natural language number format (spelling out numbers in various languages, spell our number and currency formats in 7.5. Easy work around for missing US zip code and US phone number formats. | Partial Engineering notation via custom formats. |
| Support negative year date (BCE) | Yes | Partial Using work-arounds. |
| Conditional formatting: icon sets | Yes. 2 additional smilies icon sets. | Yes. |
| Advanced find & replace / Cell Format | Partial (Styles supported, Cell Format not supported) | Yes |
| Formulae with entire columns or entire rows | Partial (tdf#34094, tdf#92452, tdf#92453) | Yes |
| Default keyboard and/or mouse shortcuts [106] | Partial. Less default shortcuts ([107], tdf#98259, tdf#92452, tdf#92453) | Yes. More default shortcuts ([108], [109], [110]) |
| Sheet protection options (allow users certain actions in protected sheets) | Partial. Supported for select protected/unprotected cells and insert/delete rows/columns. | Yes for select protected/unprotected cells, insert/delete rows/columns, format cells/columns/rows, insert hyperlinks, sort, use AutoFilter/Pivot Table reports, edit objects/scenarios. |
| Timeline filter in PivotTable | No | Yes. [111] |
| Chart: Automatically vary colours by point | No (only manually) | Yes |
| Chart type: xyz / surface charts | No, basic workaround [112] (tdf#51670) | Yes |
| Map charts and 3D geospatial visualization tool | No (tdf#160398; via extension: GeOOo) | Yes. Map charts and "3D Maps". |
| Different chart types for different data series | No (tdf#35629) | Yes |
| Printing of selected chart only | No, workarounds [113], [114] (tdf#45893) | Yes |
| Chart data labels "Value as percentage" | Yes | No |
| Chart data labels "Value from cells" | No | Yes |
| Automatized analysis and visualization features | No | Yes. Quick analysis feature and visual summaries, trends, and patterns. [115], [116]. Some of these features ("Ideas in Excel") supported in rental version, not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions; quick analysis feature not supported on macOS. |
| Flash fill | No (tdf#109003). Some (partial) workarounds suggested here tdf#109003#c1. | Yes |
| Chart recommendations | No | Yes |
| 'Publishing' spreadsheet for online team meetings | No | Yes |
| Sparklines (to give a quick overview of the trend in a data range) | Yes. [117] | Yes |
| Add points to a line, possibility to bend lines | No (tdf#36943) | Yes |
| Cell background options | Partial. Background color (bugs regarding pattern tdf#31205 and gradient tdf#49177). Extension: Hatch Patterns for Cells | Yes. Background color, pattern, gradient |
| Insert data from screenshot or picture | No | YesOCR and recognize tables from screenshots or pictures [118] (Not available in MS Office 2021 sales versions and only available on macOS) |
| Automatic recalculation on file open when flag is set | No (tdf#144819) | Yes |
Desktop Presentation software: LibreOffice Impress vs. Microsoft PowerPoint
| Major Feature Differences | LO Impress 24.8 | MS PowerPoint 2024 / 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Hyphenation support | Yes | No |
| Export to XHTML | Yes | No |
| Export to HTML | Yes | No (removed feature since MS Office 2013) |
| Export to vector graphic formats: SVG, EPS | Yes | Partial, to SVG (Supported in Windows rental version, not supported in MS Office sales versions.) |
| Presentation remote control for smartphones/tablets | Yes. For Android smartphones/tablets, iOS (iPhone/iPad), and Pebble smartwatches. | Partial. For Android (smartphones only), but with additional features for Excel and Word. (Not supported in macOS version). |
| 3D slide transitions | Yes. macOS, Linux, Windows | Partial. macOS, Windows |
| Edit embedded videos | Partial. Via external programs | Yes. Directly in the program |
| Comments and reply to comments | Partial | Yes |
| Color/document themes | Partial support of document themes in Impress: [119] [120] | Yes |
| Animated effects | Partial. Supported, but problems with: spinning text (tdf#87958), pixelated (tdf#87959), wobble/shake/vibrate (tdf#87960), objects stuck (tdf#88196) | Yes |
| Trim embedded video or audio | Yes Impress now supports cropped video for media shapes. | Yes. Supported (Not supported in MS Office 2016 sales version) |
| Zooming features for presentations (Prezi inspired) | No (tdf#38263) | Yes. Supported (Not supported in macOS sales version) [121] |
| Slides editable during presentation | Yes. Live-mode slideshow editing, new in LibreOffice 24.8. Fixed: tdf#34965. | Yes |
| Include the camera input of the presenter in the slide show | No | Yes, it is possible to include the live camera feed directly on a slide. Feature only available if subscribed to the rental version ([122]) |
| SmartArt diagrams | No (tdf#37932), solution: smArt extension | Yes |
| Save highlights and drawings during presentation | No (tdf#51928) | Yes |
| Compare presentations | No | Yes |
| Broadcast presentation on the Internet | No. Only via export to PDF or SWF | Yes. Additional support to publish to Microsoft Stream video-sharing site (Not supported in macOS version) |
| Animated diagrams | No | Yes |
| Record a slide show | No (tdf#34959) | Yes. ([123], [124]). |
| Slide design suggestions | No | Yes via PowerPoint "Designer" (not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions) |
| Navigate presentation using a Bluetooth pen | No | Yes. Supported with Bluetooth pen or Surface pen. Using digital pen as a slide-show clicker (Not supported in macOS version) |
| Optimization of slides for screen readers | No | Yes. ([125]) (not available on macOS) |
| Minor Feature Differences | LO Impress 24.8 | MS PowerPoint 2024 / 365 |
| Number of slide layouts | Yes. 12 | Partial. 9 |
| Physics based animations | Yes. [126] | No |
| Text background colour in text boxes | Yes | No |
| PDF export of comments | Yes. Export of comments according to PDF specification | No |
| Import & Export Unified Office Format presentation | Yes | No |
| Export to graphics formats: MET, PBM, PICT, PGM, PPM, RAS, XPM | Yes | No |
| Import of Apple Keynote files | Yes. Support for Keynote v1-6 [127] | No |
| Embedding of fonts in presentation file | Yes | Partial. Supported on Windows. No support for embedding fonts in PowerPoint on macOS, although displayed. No support for embedding OpenType CFF fonts. [128] |
| Maximum page size | Yes. 300cm x 300cm (Draw and Impress) | Partial. 142.22cm x 142.22cm |
| Editing of master slides | Partial. Limited editing, has been a GSOC 2013 project ([129]). | Yes. Powerful editing |
| Default keyboard shortcuts | Partial. Less default shortcuts ([130]) | Yes. More default shortcuts ([131], [132]) |
| Closed captions or subtitles to media | No | Yes, to audio and video files in presentations ([133]). |
| Conversion of hand-drawn shapes into diagrams / recognition of ink equations | No | Yes. [134] Conversion of ink to shapes/diagrams in MS PowerPoint; Ink equations (conversion of drawing to equation) in PowerPoint. (Not supported in MS Office 2021 sales versions and only available on Windows 10/11; not supported in macOS sales version). |
| Automatically suggesting presentation outline from online sources by entering subject | No | Yes. "QuickStarter feature (Not supported in MS Office 2016 sales version and not supported in Windows version) |
| "Morph" transition type | No | Yes. [135] |
| Creation of automatically starting presentations | No, extension: ImpressRunner | Yes |
| Export presentation to video formats | No (tdf#34959) | Yes. Supported to .mp4 and .wmv formats. Export up to 4K resolution. |
| Slide zoom and pan | No (tdf#150383) | Yes |
| Option to save as picture presentation | No (tdf#93589) | Yes |
| Using Surface Earbuds to control presentation | No | Yes[136] |
| Autogeneration of alt text for photos | No | Yes [137] (Supported in Windows rental version, not supported in MS Office sales versions; not supported on macOS) |
Desktop Database program: LibreOffice Base vs. Microsoft Access
| Major Feature Differences | LO Base 24.8 | MS Access 2024 / 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Available on all operating systems supported by the office suite | Yes | No. MS Access not available on macOS, online and mobile OS versions |
| SQL syntax highlighting | Yes | No |
| Native connectors for: MariaSQL, PostgreSQL, Novell GroupWise | Yes. Plus MySQL as extension. [138] | No, via ODBC |
| Integration of Mozilla Thunderbird address book, KDE address book, Evolution LDAP and storage, Windows system address book | Yes | No |
| Native JDBC driver | Yes | No |
| Connect to ODF spreadsheet (Calc) file format | Yes | No |
| Database engine | Yes. FirebirdSQL 3.0; HSQLDB 1.8.x (deprecated). In LibreOffice 6.2 FirebirdSQL is the default for new databases. Firebird Migration Assistant converts HSQLDB databases to FirebirdSQL | Partial. Jet |
| Integration of MS Outlook address book | Partial. Supported only on MS Windows. No support for Outlook (tdf#56903) and Outlook Express (tdf#56905) address book access in the native 64-bit Windows builds of LibreOffice. | Yes |
| Importing data sources (tables) from within the database application | Partial. Either via drag & drop from Calc or via drag & drop from another Base window with the data source being open. ([139]) (tdf#51872) | Yes |
| Exporting tables to different file formats from within the database application: | Partial. Only via drag&drop to LibreOffice Calc or via drag & drop from another Base window with the writable data source being open. ([140]) (tdf#73798) | Yes |
| Edit MS Access files | Partial. via "Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0" with read/write access to MDB and ACCDB files (Editing MS Access through 64-bit ODBC doesn't work tdf#148367). Driver works on Windows only. | Yes |
| Native connector for: Microsoft SQL Server | No, via ODBC | Yes |
| Crosstab queries | No. Not supported but reproducible with Pivot Table with Calc (FAQ 142 ) | Yes |
| "Linked tables" capability | No. Not supported but you can link text tables (FAQ 143) (tdf#56234) | Yes. Linked tables and Linked Tables Manager. |
| Imported table from spreadsheets - keep fields format | No | Yes |
| Import data from XML, HTML | No | Yes |
| Minor Feature Differences | LO Base 24.8 | MS Access 2024 / 365 |
| Native connector for: dBase databases | Yes | No. Not supported (removed feature since Office 2013) |
| Open LibreOffice Base (.odb) files | Yes | No |
| Open DOS/Windows legacy formats: Microsoft Works database | Yes | No |
| Native connector for: SharePoint lists | No | Yes |
| Link or import data from Salesforce and Dynamics 365 | No | Yes |
| Web service data connection | No | Yes |
| Password protection of database | No (tdf#70638) | Yes |
| Calculations in database tables | No (tdf#72787) | Yes |
Most important extensions for desktop LibreOffice
LibreOffice has a complex eco-system of extensions (over 600 on extensions.libreoffice.org and over 800 on extensions.openoffice.org). Additionally to the extensions already mentioned in above comparison table, here is a selection of some extensions adding valuable features to LibreOffice:
| LibreOffice Extensions | |
|---|---|
| General office suite: LibreOffice |
|
| LibreOffice Writer |
|
| LibreOffice Calc |
|
| LibreOffice Impress |
|
| LibreOffice Draw |
|
| LibreOffice Base |
|
| Accessibility extensions |
|
Mobile office: Smartphones, Tablets
Mobile Office suite, general features: LibreOffice vs. Microsoft Office
|
The comparison table of mobile office is Work in Progress.
|
| Major Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions | Mobile: MS Office 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Integrated office architecture | Yes. Integrated office architecture: LibreOffice mobile shares the same processing engine, common to all modules, on all form factors (incl. desktop and online) [141]. | No. Loose architecture differing between desktop (different between Windows and macOS), mobile and online office. |
| Versions of office suite for mobile operating systems (smartphones, tablets) | Yes. Mobile applications available as LibreOffice-based Collabora Office. LibreOffice viewer available for iOS/iPadOS and Android.
Android: Collabora Office on Google Play available for smartphones and tablets, release announcement (2019-12-10). LibreOffice Viewer for Android available, with basic and experimental editing features. Information on new LibreOffice Android app: [142]. More information: Android port wiki, Commits, [143], [144]. iOS/iPadOS: Collabora Office for iPhone and iPad available: Collabora Office in the Apple AppStore. More information: Collabora press release, Adfinis press release, LibreOffice as an iOS app on the iPad; Announcement for iOS; Commits: [145], [146]. ChromeOS: ChromeOS support is available in both Android and/or Linux on ChromeOS. Option 1) Android version optimised for ChromeOS is available as Collabora Office on Google Play, more information, XDA News Portal. Option 2) The full LibreOffice desktop version can be installed in Linux on Chromebooks. |
Partial. Android and iOS for smartphones and tablets with restricted features set. No support for ChromeOS when offline. No support for ChromeOS on tablets.
Professional users as well as users on tablets >10.1 inch are required to have an eligible Office 365 subscription at a monthly fee. Private users are allowed to view and print documents without registration private users, basic editing functionality requires registration. More comprehensive features require an eligible Office 365 subscription at a monthly fee. |
| Support of Right-to-left (RTL) languages (e.g. Arabic) and other complex scripts
|
No | Yes |
| Minor Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions | Mobile: MS Office 365 |
| Run Microsoft Visual Basic Macros. | Yes. Support for a large portion of Microsoft Visual Basic Macros (via Collabora Office). | No |
Mobile Word processors: LibreOffice Writer vs. Microsoft Word
| Major Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions: Writer | Mobile: MS Word 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Open password protected documents | Yes. (via Collabora Office) | No |
| Minor Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions: Writer | Mobile: MS Word 365 |
| XY | Partial | Partial. |
Mobile Spreadsheet applications: LibreOffice Calc vs. Microsoft Excel
| Major Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions: Calc | Mobile: MS Excel 365 |
|---|---|---|
| XY | Partial | Partial. |
| Minor Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions: Calc | Mobile: MS Excel 365 |
| XY | Partial | Partial. |
Mobile Presentation software: LibreOffice Impress vs. Microsoft PowerPoint
| Major Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions: Impress | Mobile: MS PowerPoint 365 |
|---|---|---|
| XY | Partial | Partial. |
| Minor Feature Differences | Mobile: LibreOffice-based solutions: Impress | Mobile: MS PowerPoint 365 |
| XY | Partial | Partial. |
Online office: Web browser (and Chromebooks)
|
The comparison table of online office is Work in Progress.
|
|
Chromebooks are in this Online office suite section for several reasons:
|
Online Office suite, general features: LibreOffice Online vs. Microsoft Office for the web
| Major Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office |
Online: MS Office for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
|---|---|---|
| Integrated office architecture | Yes. Integrated office architecture: Online LibreOffice shares the same processing engine, common to all modules, on all form factors (incl. mobile and desktop) [147]. | No. Loose architecture differing between desktop (different between Windows and macOS), mobile and online office. |
| Online/cloud version of office suite | Yes. Libreoffice-based Collabora Online with full document support and rendering fidelity, as well as collaborative editing. Advanced but reduced editing functionality compared to the desktop version. Online version supports Vereign compatible authentication & document signing. [148], [149], [150], [151], [152], [153]. See also: LibreOffice Online port development. | Partial. Office web apps, with reduced functionality when compared to the Word desktop version and Collabora Online. ([154]) |
| Applications | Yes. Writer, Calc, Impress, (Draw publishing capabilities are built in to Writer). | Yes. Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams |
| File format support equivalence to desktop | Yes. Supports opening file formats of many office suites and other applications with over 150 extensions supported. (LibreOffice supported file formats) (via Online and Chromebook App) | No |
| Integration of online office suite into (third-party) collaboration software and groupware / content management systems | Yes. Integration of LibreOffice Online in: OwnCloud and Nextcloud, Kolab, Pydio, Seafile, IceWarp, AG-I Solutions, Alinto, VNCLagoon, EGroupware, Univention App Center, Kopano Documents, Collabora Online, Corteza Community Server, Alfresco ([155]), Roove, Zimbra ([156]), Mastermost, Moodle, IServ Schulserver. MS SharePoint integration SharePoint 2016 Server. See also these lists: Collabora Online hosting partners, Collabora Online partners, Availability of LibreOffice Online. | Partial. MS Office Online Server integration in MS SharePoint |
| Availability of online office suite in (third-party) online services / Free & commercial office cloud hosts | Yes. Variety of available service providers: UrBerri, eqipe, New Access, Arawa, Artistanbul, TransfertPro, Extensys, Rono-IT, SecuredStore, StudioStorti, united hoster, Option Service Télécom, AggreCost, Webo.hosting, FileCloud, Retention Range, Workman.net.au, OffiDocs, CiviHosting, ETES, Sunjun, opendsi, GMS, OpenLogic, SwissStash, iOffice Cloud, cloudplan, EGroupware, ZenTao, SwissVON, CQ Net, Mijncloudoffice, mentorITe, PowerFolder, GMX Online Office, Mail.com Online Office, Web.de Online Office, hostiso.com, Kolab Now, Crest Tech. See also these lists: Collabora Online hosting partners, Collabora Online partners, Availability of LibreOffice Online. | Partial MS OneDrive |
| Synchronous collaborative editing | Yes. Supported in online versions of Writer, Calc and Impress. Editing in real-time and interactively with no extra lag or latency to see other users’ typing avoiding the need for paragraph locking and conflict resolution issues. | Partial. Supported in MS Word, Excel and Powerpoint, it is not possible to edit in real-time and interactively without delays to see other users’ typing, and due to this there can be file conflicts that require investigation and resolution to avoid data loss. |
| Support of Right-to-left (RTL) languages (e.g. Arabic) and other complex scripts for all Document Types
|
Yes. Comprehensive support, based on HarfBuzz text shaping library (from Collabora Online release 21.11). (via Online)
|
No |
| Minor Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office |
Online: MS Office for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
| Partial | Partial |
Online Word processors: LibreOffice Online Writer vs. Microsoft Word for the web
| Major Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online Writer 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office Writer |
Online: MS Word for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
|---|---|---|
| WYSIWYG - Full Fidelity Editing, PDF generation, Printing | Yes. What You See Is What You Get. Any document being edited looks the same when saved as a PDF or when printed (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. Documents being edited do not look the same when saved as a PDF or when printed [157] |
| Set, change or delete document open Password Protected Files (encryption password) | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. Word for the web can't encrypt a document with a password, and it can't open documents encrypted with a password[158] |
| Edit Password to Modify Documents | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [159] |
| Adjust Table Sort Order | Yes. And additional options: Sort in multiple sequential columns or rows, and for each column or row choose alphanumeric or numeric, ascending or descending. Option to match case (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. Not possible to sort by column or row[160] |
| Format Table Cells | Yes. By Number, Percent, Currency, Date, Time, Scientific, Fraction, Boolean Value and Text. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No |
| Headers and Footers appear in the editable document | Yes. It is a WYSIWYG word processor. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No |
| Find and Replace with options as available on desktop | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. Very Basic. |
| Clipboard (Copy and Paste) | Yes. Copying and pasting within the web app works with advanced document features. Pasting content copied from outside the web app is advanced (via Online) | Partial. Copying and pasting within the web app is functional for basic features available in the app. Pasting content copied from outside the web app is limited, such as it cannot copy and paste a hyperlink without losing the link. [161] |
| Word processor file format support equivalence to desktop | Yes. Supports opening word processor files in OpenDocument Format, and other formats from products such as Abiword, AportisDoc, Apple Pages, AppleWorks, Hangul WP 97, Ichitaro 8/9/10/11, Lotus Word Pro, MacWrite 1.5, Microsoft Pocket/RTF/Word 4/5/6.0/95/97-2003/2003XML/2007-2021/for Mac/for Windows2.0/Write, PDF, Software602, StarOffice StarWriter 3/4/5, WordPerfect, WordPerfect Suite 2000/Office 1.0, WriteNow 4.0.
And others: Adobe PageMaker, Microsoft Publisher, QuarkXPress 3–4, HTML (LibreOffice supported file formats) (via Online and Chromebook App) |
No. It will edit docx, dotx and ods (OpenDocument Format). It will open doc but cannot save it back in the same format. It will open docm and dotm but the macros will not run. It will not open or edit other formats that are supported in the desktop versions for Windows and Mac. (Word supported file formats) |
| PDF & EPUB Export Options | Yes. Options available are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online) | No. |
| Minor Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online Writer 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office Writer |
Online: MS Word for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
| Templates, browse and start from professionally designed templates | Yes. (via Online) | No [162] |
| Save in Microsoft Word 97 - Word 2003 format (.doc) | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [163] |
| Save in EPUB e-book format (.epub) | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No |
| Edit and Run Microsoft Visual Basic Macros, (docm, dotm) | Yes. Support a large portion of Microsoft Visual Basic Macros (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [164] |
| Title Page | Yes. With options for number of title pages, page to start at, title style, title numbering (via Online and Chromebook App) | No |
| Thesaurus | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No |
| Page Gutter Margins (book / thesis binding) | Yes. Gutter Margins can be positioned on the left or top (via Online) | No |
| Add and Edit Page Backgrounds | Yes. Colour, Gradients, Bitmap, Pattern and Hatch, options available for each of these are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online and Chromebook App) | Partial. Very Basic. |
| Add and Edit Page Transparency | Yes. Transparencies, options available are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [165] |
| Add and Edit Page Borders | Yes. Borders, options available are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [166] |
| Add and Edit Page Columns | Yes. Columns, options available are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. [https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/servicedescriptions/office-online-service-description/office-online-service-description |
| Display Headers and Footers, Footnotes, Endnotes in-line in the document | Yes. A WYSIWYG word processor (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [167] |
| Add, Edit, View Charts | Yes. Full options as available in desktop (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. They appear as placeholders that you cannot edit, move or resize [168] |
| Add, Edit, View Shapes | Yes. Full options as available in desktop (via Online) | No. They appear as placeholders that you cannot edit, move or resize [169] |
| Add, Edit, View SmartArt and WordArt (aka Fontwork) | Yes. (via Online) | No. They appear as placeholders that you cannot edit, move or resize [170] |
| Watermarks | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [171] |
| Bookmarks | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No [172] |
| Fields | Yes. (With options under sub-categories of Documents, Cross-references, Functions, DocInformation and variables (via Online) Chromebook App has a few less options | No [173] |
| Edit Cross References | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. It is not possible to edit the destination [174] |
| Index | Yes. options available are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online) | No [175] |
| Table: "Optimal Column Widths" and "Optimal Row Height" | Yes. (via Online) | No [176] |
| Full control of anchoring with visible anchor points for images etc. | Yes. WYSIWYG precision visible anchoring (via Online) | No |
| Text Box | Yes. With full desktop options including, size, anchors, protection, borders, rotation, corners, shading, etc. (via Online) | Partial. Basic [177] |
| Citations and bibliography | Yes. (via Online) | No [178] |
| Rich Fields Support - tab through editable fields; skip protected sections | Yes. DOC and DOCX forms | No |
| PDF export extended options | Yes. PDF fillable forms created using content controls. (from Collabora Online 22.05), (the developer’s blog post). (via Online) | No |
| Table of contents | Yes. Options available are the same or similar as in the LibreOffice desktop applications (via Online and Chromebook App) | Partial. Basic options. [179] |
| Page Sizes | Yes. Letter, Legal, A3, A4, A5, A6, B4 (ISO), B5 (ISO), B6 (ISO), Long Bond, Tabloid, B4 (JIS), B5 (JIS), B6 (JIS), 16 Kai, 32 Kai, Big 32 Kai, User, DL Envelope, C6 Envelope, C6/5 Envelope, C5 Envelope, C4 Envelope, #6 3/4 Envelope, #7 3/4 (Monarch) Envelope, #9 Envelope, #10 Envelope, #11 Envelope, #12 Envelope, Japanese Postcard. (via Online and Chromebook App) | Partial. Letter, Legal, Executive, A4, A5, and custom size layouts [180] |
| Wrap text around images | Yes. Full options for wrapping text around images including: before, after, parallel, contour wrapping, in front and behind, precision visible anchoring (via Online) | Partial. No effective wrapping, the text does not wrap around images. |
| Word count and character count | Yes. Accurate count of words and characters. (via Online and Chromebook App) | Partial. A rough count of words. [181] |
| Keyboard shortcuts | Yes. Advanced: all users can use their own language’s keyboard shortcuts when editing a file collaboratively. Holding the ‘Alt’ key highlight shortcuts, tab sequence then works, options for learnability and improved accessability. (from Collabora Online release 23.05). (via Online) | Partial. Less shortcuts, with no mention of whether the users own language is used for keyboard shortcuts when editing a file collaboratively. ([182]) |
| Screen Reader | Yes. Using NVDA. [183] (via Online) | Partial. Requires adjunct browser based screen reader. |
| Co-authoring between online and native app | No. For more information the see the row "Synchronous collaborative editing" | Yes. MS Office 2019 sales version on Windows introduced real-time co-authoring with Word for the web |
| Table Autoformat Styles to choose from | No (#4356) | Yes |
| Add-ins | No | Yes |
| Dictate | No | Yes |
| Emoji | No | Yes |
| Share as Embedded HTML | No | Yes |
| Reuse Files | No | Yes. Open another document in a preview enabling selection of paragraphs or images for insertion, or for adding a link to that document. |
| Catchup | No | Yes. View changes your collaborators have made to a file since you last opened it. |
| Insert Equations with Structures | No. (#4049) | Yes |
| Insert Image options | Partial. Select by folder and file only. (via Online and Chromebook App) | Yes. Select by folder and file, also by previewing categorised images |
| Margins | Partial. Custom options. (via Online and Chromebook App) | Yes. Custom options and 5 presets. |
| Captions | No | No [184] |
| Mail Merge | No | No [185] |
| Cover Pages | Yes. via Styles First Page | Yes. Includes samples [186] |
| Translate | Yes. (from Collabora Online release 22.05.7.3), (tdf#34058), (#4285). (via Online) | Yes. [187] |
| Bullets, Numbering, Outline, Images, Alignment | Yes. 79 bullets inc 71 resizable images, 8 numbering, 8 outline, comprehensive position alignment options. (via Online and Chromebook App) | Yes. 17 bullets inc 13 images*, 15 numbering, 3 outline, minimal position alignment options. *not resizable, but has option to define new bullet points from the Symbol library |
| Accessibility checker | Yes. (via Online) | Yes |
Online Spreadsheet applications: LibreOffice Online Calc vs. Microsoft Excel for the web
| Major Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online Calc 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office Calc |
Online: MS Excel for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
|---|---|---|
| Spreadsheet file format support equivalence to desktop | Yes. Supports opening spreadsheet files in OpenDocument Format, and other formats from products such as Apple Numbers, Data Interchange Format, Gnumeric, Lotus 1-2-3, Microsoft Excel (4/5/6/2003XML/97-2003/2007-2021/Pocket), Quattro Pro 6.0, SYLK, StarOffice StarCalc 3/4/5 and other applications. (LibreOffice supported file formats) (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. It will edit xlsx, xlsb and ods (OpenDocument Format). It will open xls and csv but cannot save them back in the same format. It will not open or edit other formats that are supported in the desktop versions for Windows and Mac. (Excel supported file formats) |
| CSV support, (Comma Separated Value(s), .csv) | Yes. Opening a CSV shows an Import dialog (Define character set, language, define import starting row, specify separator options, edit string delimiter) and shows a Preview screen. It is possible to Download as CSV. (from any device, from CODE release 6.4.9). (via Online and Chromebook App) | Partial. Opening a CSV converts it to .xlsx without an import dialog and without a preview. No option to download as CSV. (Excel CSV limitations) |
| Minor Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online Calc 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office Calc |
Online: MS Excel for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
| Save in Microsoft Excel 97 - Excel 2003 (.xls) format | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App). | No |
| Sparklines (to give a quick overview of the trend in a data range) | Yes. Full support (via Online) | No |
| Defining and managing Range Names | Yes. (from CODE release 6.4.3). (via Online and Chromebook App). | No |
| Line Borders | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App). | Partial. A subset of line borders used in the desktop application are supported |
Online Presentation software: LibreOffice Online Impress vs. Microsoft PowerPoint for the web
| Major Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online Impress 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office Impress |
Online: MS PowerPoint for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
|---|---|---|
| Presentation file format support equivalence to desktop | Yes. Supports opening presentation files in OpenDocument Format, and other formats from products such as Apple Keynote, Microsoft Powerpoint97-2003/2007-2021, OpenOffice.org XML, Photo CD, StarOffice/StarImpress and others. (LibreOffice supported file formats) (via Online and Chromebook App) | No. It will edit pptx, ppsx and odp (OpenDocument Format). It will open ppt and pps but cannot save them back in the same format. It will not open or edit other formats that are supported in the desktop versions for Windows and Mac. (PowerPoint supported file formats) |
| Minor Feature Differences | Online: LibreOffice-based Collabora Online Impress 23.05
Chromebook App: Collabora Office Impress |
Online: MS PowerPoint for the web
Chromebook App: Discontinued |
| Save in Microsoft Powerpoint 97 - Powerpoint 2003 (.ppt) format | Yes. (via Online and Chromebook App). | No |
| Online Video | No (tdf#42246). Work-around: Download of online video and embed it in presentation (incl. Flash videos) (via Online) | Yes. With preview, supported video providers: YouTube, SlideShare, Vimeo, Stream, Flipgrid, TED |
See also
- The Programming Languages Beacon: LibreOffice is written in C++, Java, Python; Microsoft Office is written in C++, C, (ASM).
- How LibreOffice Writer Tops MS Word: 12 Features, by Bruce Byfield (2012-04-10).
- LibreOffice vs. MS Office: Spreadsheets and Slide Shows, by Bruce Byfield (2012-06-06)
- How Microsoft Office Tops LibreOffice: 11 Features, by Bruce Byfield (2012-04-26).
- Microsoft Office vs. OpenOffice.org - Idealware does a head-to-head comparison of the two office suites, by Brett Bonfield and Laura S. Quinn (2010-07-02).
- Duell am Arbeitsplatz, by Ralf Nebelo and Dorothee Wiegand (c't 22/2008, German).