Free, open-source software makes the world go round, but the open-source community also creates some of the best apps out there, many of which trump their paid alternatives. We recently shared five standout examples of free and open-source apps that hold their ground against their paid rivals, and today I'm sharing another batch of fantastic FOSS apps that are completely free and better than what you'd pay for.
LibreOffice has been around for more than 15 years, and in that time, it has evolved into the best Microsoft Office (or Microsoft 365, if you want to call it that) alternative on the market. It's done that while staying open-source and completely free.
The suite consists of six apps that cover most of what Microsoft Office offers, and then some, and its biggest strengths are that everything you create is shared only with the people you want to share it with and that the entire suite works fully offline. In recent years, LibreOffice has also been a better choice because it doesn't push a ton of unnecessary AI features down your throat, something that can't be said about Microsoft 365 apps.
The suite works fine with Microsoft Office file types, but it actually uses its own native format, called OpenDocument, which is free to use and isn't controlled by any company. Unlike its biggest paid rival, LibreOffice works the same across Windows, macOS, and Linux. It's also flexible, letting you choose between a modern ribbon and a classic toolbar-style layout, write macros in Basic or Python, and use the suite however you like.
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