Switch from Microsoft SharePoint to Google Workspace

Want to use Google apps at work or school? Sign up for a Google Workspace trial

Learn the differences between Microsoft SharePoint and Google Workspace and get best practices for collaboration at work or school.

Comparison at a glance

Expand all | Collapse all

In SharePoint...	In Google Workspace...*
Create a team site	Create a site in Google Sites Choose an option: From the Sites homepage, at the top, click Create , or to choose a template, click Template gallery and select a template. From Google Drive, click New MoreGoogle Sites. For more details, see Get started with Sites.
Add content to a site library	Add content to a team site In Sites, open a team site. On the right, click Pages and click the page that you want to add content to. On the page, double-click where you want to add the content. Choose the type of content that you want to add or how to add it. For more details, see Get started with Sites.
Change the look of a team site	Customize the look of a team site in Sites Edit text, organize content, add images, and more. For details, see Get started with Sites.
Create a document library	Create a shared drive in Google Drive Open Google Drive. On the left, click Shared drives. Shared drives are available only if your organization supports them. For help, contact your administrator. At the top, click New. Enter a name and click Create. For more details, see Get started with shared drives.
Add files and folders to a document library	Add files and folders to a shared drive Create folders in shared drives and add files. For details, see Get started with shared drives.
Share and collaborate on files in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel	Share and collaborate on Drive files in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides or in Office Select the file you want to share. Click Share or Share . Enter the email address or Google group you want to share with. To decide what role people will have on your file, select Viewer, Commenter, or Editor. If your account is eligible, you can add an expiration date for access. Choose to notify people. If you want to notify people that you shared an item with them, check the box next to Notify people. If you notify people, each email address you enter will be included in the email. If you don't want to notify people, uncheck the box. Click Send or Share. For more details, see Get started with Drive. To collaborate on Office files, see Work with Microsoft Office files.
Open Office files in a browser	Open Office files with Drive If you're sharing Office files with people who only have Office, you can work on them in Docs, Sheets, and Slides, but save them as Microsoft files in Drive. Chrome Browser only Remove the Office Editing for Docs, Sheets, & Slides extension if it's installed: Open Chrome Browser and in the top-right corner, click More More ToolsExtensions. If you see the Office Editing for Docs, Sheets, & Slides extension, click Remove. Office files now open using Office Editing instead of the Chrome extension. In Drive, right-click an Office fileOpen withGoogle Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides. Edit and collaborate on the file. All changes are saved to the original Office file. For more details, see Work with Microsoft Office files.

* Note: The instructions in this guide are primarily web only. Get instructions for mobile devices.

On this page

What you'll need

Comparison at a glance

Related topics