If your business lives in Excel, swaps Word files with public bodies and partners, or relies on software that plugs into Outlook — choose Microsoft 365. If your team works mostly in the browser, on a mix of laptops, and values effortless document sharing — Google Workspace will feel more comfortable and is usually easier to look after. On price, the comparable plans are now very close.
That is the short answer. The longer one depends on five things I check with every client before recommending anything, and that is what this article is about. I have configured and migrated both platforms, so I have no reason to push one over the other.
Five questions that settle the choice
Rather than starting with a feature table, start with these questions. Answering them takes ten minutes.
- Does anyone work with heavy spreadsheets? VBA macros, Power Query, pivot tables over hundreds of thousands of rows, formula-laden files from your accountant — all of these point to Microsoft. Google Sheets handles most everyday work, but you will feel the difference on heavy Excel files.
- Which software does your email need to work with? Many accounting packages, CRMs and industry systems ship with Outlook add-ins and Teams integrations. Check your own list of tools.
- What hardware do you use? All Windows machines on a domain — Microsoft has the edge thanks to Intune and Entra ID. A mix of Macs, Chromebooks and phones — Google is simpler.
- How do you exchange documents with the outside world? Tenders, public bodies and large firms in your supply chain usually expect .docx and .xlsx files. Google opens them, but complex formatting can drift.
- Who will administer it? Google's admin console is easier for a non-technical person. Microsoft offers more options, but also more places to get a setting wrong.
If the first four answers lean towards "Excel, Outlook, Windows, public bodies", you have your decision. If they lean towards "browser, mixed hardware, live collaboration", you have it too.
Pricing: what a business plan costs
Both price lists changed several times during 2025 and 2026, partly because AI features were bundled in (Gemini at Google, Copilot Chat at Microsoft). Below are indicative net prices per user per month on an annual commitment, based on Polish price lists and converted at roughly 1 PLN ≈ £0.22. UK list prices differ, so always check the current price with the vendor or a partner before buying.
| Plan | Google Workspace | Microsoft 365 | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Business Starter: about £7 | Business Basic: about £5.50–£6.60 | Email on your own domain, browser apps, cloud file storage, video calls |
| Standard | Business Standard: about £14 | Business Standard: about £12–£13 | As above plus more storage; Microsoft adds full desktop Office apps |
| Advanced | Business Plus: about £22 | Business Premium: about £21–£22 | Advanced security, archiving, device management |
Paying monthly without a commitment costs noticeably more with both vendors — Google's current Polish list shows roughly 20% extra (Business Standard at about £16.60 instead of £14).
Two things that only become obvious in practice:
- Microsoft Business Basic does not include desktop apps. Anyone who genuinely needs "proper" Excel needs Business Standard. In a ten-person company a mix often pays off: Standard for three people in finance and sales, Basic for everyone else. Microsoft lets you combine plans in one tenant.
- Google allows only limited plan mixing — typically the whole organisation sits on one edition. Simpler, but sometimes more expensive.
Security: what is included and what you pay extra for
Security is like the lock on your front door — both suites have good locks, but in many businesses I look at, nobody has actually turned the key. When I review environments, I usually find the same three problems whichever vendor is in use:
- No MFA (two-factor sign-in) on admin and finance accounts. It is the first thing I switch on, and both suites include it in every plan.
- Former employees' accounts still active, often with mail forwarding to a private address.
- Files shared with "anyone with the link" and no expiry date.
The differences start at the advanced tier. Microsoft Business Premium includes Intune (laptop and phone management), Defender for Business and Conditional Access — for example, blocking sign-ins from outside Poland or from an unmanaged computer. Google Business Plus adds Vault (archiving and eDiscovery) plus advanced device management. If your business falls under NIS2 or receives security questionnaires from customers, the advanced plan soon stops being a luxury — more on that in my article on NIS2 for small and medium-sized businesses.
Day-to-day work: where each one wins
Email and calendar
Gmail has better search and a less cluttered interface. Outlook handles shared mailboxes (office@, invoices@), calendar delegation and rules better. Where an assistant runs the managing director's diary, Outlook is usually the more comfortable choice.
Documents and spreadsheets
Live co-editing is smoother in Google — still a real strength of Docs and Sheets. Microsoft has caught up a lot in its web versions, but Excel's full power lives in the desktop app.
Files and shared drives
Google shared drives are simple: one folder per team, permissions, done. SharePoint offers more (libraries, metadata, versioning, site-level permissions), but a poorly designed one quickly becomes a maze. When I deploy M365, I keep the layout simple: one site per department and no folders nested more than three levels deep.
Meetings and chat
Teams combines chat, meetings, files and telephony in one place — powerful but heavy. Google Meet and Chat are lighter and quicker to use, but integrate less well with external phone systems.
AI in the bundle
In 2026 Gemini is included in Google Workspace plans, with the feature set depending on the plan. Microsoft includes Copilot Chat in its business plans, while the full Microsoft 365 Copilot that works across your own files is a separate licence. If AI is part of your decision, do not compare feature names — compare whether the model can see your documents and email, and whether you actually want it to.
Migration: how long it takes and what can go wrong
Switching suites is about more than moving mailboxes. Here is an example scenario for a 15-person company moving off old email hosted by a web host:
| Stage | Indicative time | What to watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Inventory of mailboxes, aliases and distribution lists | 1 day | Forgotten aliases such as invoices@ that documents still arrive at |
| Setting up the new tenant, MFA and permissions | 1–2 days | Configure SPF, DKIM and DMARC before the switch |
| Copying mail and files | 2–5 days in the background | Mailboxes over 20–30 GB take a long time |
| Switching MX records (ideally on a Friday evening) | a few hours | Lower the TTL the day before |
| Setting up phones and computers, Monday support | 1–2 days | Passwords saved on phones and old Outlook profiles |
In my experience, the biggest problems come not from the data but from things nobody can see: a scanner-printer sending to the old SMTP address, a website form sending through an old mailbox, accounting software with a saved password. That is why, before any migration, I list every device and system that sends email. In manufacturing firms — and there are plenty around Kostrzyn — there are often several of these "hidden senders": besides printers, measuring equipment or alarm systems that email their reports.
I configure and migrate both suites as part of my Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace service, and if you need someone to manage it day to day, have a look at ongoing IT support for businesses.
My recommendation in three scenarios
- Accounting firm, manufacturer, trading business with complex spreadsheets: Microsoft 365 — Business Standard for the people who work in Excel, Basic for everyone else, and Business Premium once you have a dozen or more laptops and security requirements.
- Agency, service business, distributed team, lots of work on phones: Google Workspace Business Standard.
- A 2–5 person business that mainly needs email on its own domain: the cheapest plan from either vendor — pick the one closer to your team's habits.
One thing I would not do: keep both suites running "just in case". You pay twice, and your files end up scattered across two clouds.
FAQ
Is Google Workspace cheaper than Microsoft 365?
On the entry and standard plans, prices are now close, and Microsoft can be marginally cheaper on an annual commitment. Real savings tend to come from mixing plans within Microsoft 365 rather than from the choice of vendor itself.
Can I use Word and Excel with Google Workspace?
You can open and edit Office files in Docs and Sheets, but you do not get Microsoft's desktop apps. With complex spreadsheets and macros, that is a genuine limitation.
Does migrating email cause downtime?
With a well-planned switchover — copying in the background and changing MX records in the evening — there is practically no downtime. Problems usually come from forgotten devices that send email.
Which suite is more secure?
Both are secure when configured properly. Microsoft offers more device control tools in Business Premium; Google offers simpler administration. Turning on MFA and keeping accounts tidy matters more than the choice of vendor.
Can we switch from Microsoft 365 to Google Workspace later (or the other way round)?
Yes — both migrations are routine and have ready-made tools. For a company of around fifteen people, it is usually a week of work spread over time, but it is better to choose well the first time.
Summary
Price rarely decides between Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. Far more often it comes down to what your team already uses, which software your email needs to connect to and who will manage it. Answer the five questions at the start of this article, and in most cases the decision makes itself.
If you are still unsure, or you want to move your business to a new suite without losing email or facing a stressful Monday morning, drop me a message. I will look at what you use today and tell you plainly which option makes sense.