I love exploring alternatives to apps I use daily. A recent exploration of Fossify’s suite of apps ended up replacing half of Google’s apps on my phone, but these were mostly utility apps I value for functionality above all.
There are plenty of clocks, calendars, and calculators on the Play Store, and for the most part, they can replace their Google counterparts.
But after a couple of weeks of using Fossify’s apps, I realized that I hadn’t considered replacing the Google app I use every day for personal and professional purposes.
Google Docs has become such a staple of my life that I use it without thinking. Whether I’ve been drafting a cover letter, planning a holiday, or jotting down story ideas, it’s been my go-to service since I started using it in 2012.
Yes, there are dedicated apps that are better for simple note-taking, but if I need to write something down, my instinct is to go straight to Docs.
But as Google steadily adds more features behind a paywall, I’ve begun thinking that it might be time for a change. However, when Docs is so ingrained in my life, can I really abandon it so easily?
How I established what I needed from a document editor
Going back to basics helps you realize what you’re missing
It’s tough to identify what you need, rather than what you want.
To find out which features of Google Docs I needed, I switched to a physical notebook for a week. No backups, no collaboration, no spell-checking. Just the core functionality of words on paper.
It sounds a little silly, but I quickly realized that most of the features I thought I relied on weren’t actually so important.
At the end of a week of this experiment, I established the core features I need from a document editor:
- Accessible wherever I am. Forgetting my notebook forced me to temporarily switch to Docs on my phone, fragmenting my notes.
- Backups. Losing my notebook would have been disastrous.
- Basic formatting tools. For example, bullet points, headings, tables.
- Collaboration tools. Crucial for work and personal use.
I discovered that I didn’t need templates, spellcheckers, image support, extensions, a dictionary, voice typing, or many other features baked into Google Docs.
Armed with the knowledge of the four pillars of what I needed, I chose two alternatives to test: Proton Docs and Craft.
Why I didn’t consider Microsoft Word
It might seem like Microsoft Office is the best alternative to Google Docs. However, Microsoft is developing its apps in the same way as Google. That means AI, and lots of it.
Yes, Craft incorporates an AI assistant, but it’s relatively unobtrusive.
Proton Docs has drastically improved since its launch
It now feels like a true Google Docs competitor
The first service I tried was Proton Docs. Fellow AP writer Parth Shah tried replacing Google Docs with Proton Docs in 2024, and noted that while Proton Docs couldn’t match Google Docs’ range of features, its privacy tools were unmatched.
However, the biggest issue I noted at the time was that, as most people don’t have Proton accounts, sharing documents required collaborators to create a new account.
The first thing I noticed about Proton Docs is that upon creating a new account, I was automatically prompted to download a document containing a security phrase in case I was locked out of my account.
It’s easy to overlook these basic security steps, so I’m glad Proton did the hard work for me. But what about the four points I established earlier?
Proton Docs certainly has far fewer features than Google Docs, but it still has all the basic formatting tools I needed.
Even better, you don’t need a Proton account to view a document anymore. This was going to be my biggest sticking point, so overall, Proton Docs is a perfect alternative to Google Docs.
Proton Docs is lightweight, with a cleaner UI and far better security features than those on your Google account.
Craft is the ultimate document hub for multitasking
However, its range of features is too much for most people
Craft launched in 2021 as an iOS-exclusive document editor. Five years later, it’s a productivity suite available for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. It’s best experienced as an app on your desktop, but the browser version is perfectly functional.
Where Proton Docs feels like a stripped-down version of Google Docs, Craft feels like a completely new beast.
It has a distinct macOS feel and is packed with productivity features that let you quickly check tasks and attachments.
There’s also a massive library of carefully curated customization tools that turn black-and-white documents into stunning presentations.
However, impressive as Craft’s range of features is, it isn’t for me. I tried doing my regular work in the app and found that I wasn’t using most of its features.
I was deeply impressed by its futuristic design and clever UI, but it was too much for what I needed.
Proton is building the best alternative to Google’s suite of apps
If you fell in love with Google Docs’ simplicity and accessibility as I did, I recommend switching to Proton Docs.
While Proton Docs and its fellow apps have far fewer features than Google’s office suite, it’s much more suitable for simple document editing.
I’ve used Proton Docs as a replacement for Google Docs for a week now, and if I didn’t need the latter for work, I would have switched over entirely.
However, I don’t want to dismiss Craft out of hand. If you like keeping all your documents, tasks, and related attachments organized and accessible, Craft is the best document hub for multitasking.
