Microsoft 365 vs Google Workspace for Small Business: How to Choose

There is no universal winner between Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. The right pick comes down to which apps your team already lives in and how much security and device management you want bundled into the price. Microsoft 365 fits businesses that rely on desktop Word and Excel, exchange files with clients who use Office, and want a security stack included in one plan. Google Workspace fits browser-first teams that draft and share constantly and prefer a simpler admin console. Both are mature and reliable, and the entry prices sit in the same neighborhood. The differences that matter show up in three places: the heavy apps (Excel versus Sheets), the security tier you would need to buy, and how your clients and vendors work.

Comparing Microsoft's own plans to each other instead? That decision is covered separately in Business Premium vs Business Standard. This article is Microsoft vs Google.

At a glance	Microsoft 365	Google Workspace
Best fit	Teams that live in desktop Word and Excel	Browser-first teams that draft and share constantly
Apps	Full desktop Office apps plus web and mobile versions	Web-first Docs, Sheets and Slides with offline modes
Email	Outlook and Exchange Online	Gmail
Storage	1 TB OneDrive per user on Business plans	30 GB pooled per user on Business Starter, 2 TB on Business Standard, 5 TB on Business Plus
Bundled security	Business Premium includes Defender, Intune, Entra ID P1 and Purview data loss prevention	Strong basics on every tier; Vault, advanced endpoint management and context-aware access sit in Business Plus and Enterprise
Entry price (paid yearly)	Business Basic listed at $7.00 per user per month on Microsoft's pricing page at the time of writing	Business Starter at a similar entry point; see Google's pricing page for the current figure
AI assistant	Copilot sold as an add-on or bundled plan	Gemini features included in current Business plans
Offline work	Stronger; the desktop apps run locally	Offline modes exist, but the platform is built for the browser
Admin console	More controls, more to manage	Simpler to run

A note on the older names: Microsoft renamed its Office 365 business plans to Microsoft 365 in 2020, and Google renamed G Suite to Google Workspace the same year. Only the branding changed, so if you are working from older quotes, reviews or internal notes that say "Office 365 vs G Suite," they describe this same decision under the previous labels.

Microsoft 365 vs Google Workspace: which is better for a small business?

Pick Microsoft 365 if your work depends on full desktop Excel, complex documents with tracked changes, or you want security tools bundled into one plan. Pick Google Workspace if your team works mostly in a browser, shares documents constantly, and prefers a lighter admin experience. Most firms are happy on either once it is set up well, and the unhappy ones are usually the firms that chose on price and discovered the app friction later.

How do Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace prices compare?

They land close together at the entry level. At the time of writing, Microsoft's pricing pages list Business Basic at $7.00, Business Standard at $14.00 and Business Premium at $22.00 per user per month, all paid yearly. Google publishes Business Starter, Business Standard and Business Plus tiers on its own pricing page, with a discount for an annual commitment. The headline monthly figure rarely decides it. The real cost difference shows up in what you have to add: security tooling, extra storage, backup, and AI features. Microsoft sells Copilot as a paid add-on or as a bundled "with Copilot" plan; Google has folded its Gemini features into the current Business plans. Confirm both on the vendors' pages before you sign, because this is the part that changes most often.

Which is more secure: Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace?

Both platforms are secure at the infrastructure level, and both support multifactor authentication on every tier. The difference is what you get at the plan you are likely to buy. Microsoft's Business Premium bundles Defender for Business (endpoint detection and response), Defender for Office 365 (phishing and attachment protection), Intune device management, Entra ID P1 Conditional Access and Purview data loss prevention into one per-user price, so a 15-person firm gets those controls without buying five separate tools. Google Workspace has strong native email security and basic endpoint management on every tier, and its browser-first model reduces some local-device risk, but matching Microsoft's bundled compliance features (data retention with Vault, advanced device management, context-aware access) generally means stepping up to Business Plus or Enterprise. If you handle regulated data in healthcare, finance or law, weigh the compliance tooling heavily, not the app icons. Whichever platform you pick, the security comes from configuration: MFA enforced everywhere, backups independent of the vendor, and access controls set on day one rather than bolted on later.

Which apps will your team use?

Be honest about how people work. Teams that build detailed spreadsheets, track changes in long documents, or exchange files with clients who use Office feel friction on anything but Microsoft 365, because Sheets and Docs open Excel and Word files with occasional formatting loss and some Excel features have no Sheets equivalent. Teams that draft together, live in shared docs and rarely touch a desktop app often prefer Google's speed. Email, calendar, chat, video and cloud storage are excellent on both, so the deciding apps are the heavy ones: Excel versus Sheets, Word versus Docs, and Outlook versus Gmail for people who run their day from the inbox.

Microsoft 365 vs Google Workspace by business type

• Law firms, accounting firms and financial services. Microsoft 365, almost always. Clients and courts exchange Word and Excel files, compliance tooling matters, and Business Premium covers most of what an insurer or regulator asks about.
• Agencies, design studios and startups. Google Workspace is common and works well, especially for teams that collaborate in real time and use Mac hardware. The trade-off is buying security and backup separately as the firm grows.
• Healthcare and dental practices. Either can be configured for HIPAA, and both vendors sign business associate agreements. Practices with Windows-based practice management software tend to land on Microsoft.
• Construction and field service. Both work from a phone. The decision usually follows the office manager's spreadsheets and the estimating software's file formats.
• Nonprofits. Both vendors run nonprofit programs. The choice comes down to the same app and security questions as everyone else.

Can you switch later or run both?

You can, but plan it. Migrating email, files and calendars between the two is routine for an experienced IT team, though it takes preparation to avoid lost mail or broken sharing links. Running both at once is common during a transition or when one department has a real need, but it doubles the admin surface and the security policies you maintain, so it is rarely a good permanent setup. Our Microsoft 365 management service handles setup and ongoing security on the Microsoft side, our managed IT services cover both platforms day to day, and you can read more on picking a provider in our managed IT FAQ for small businesses.

How does a migration between the two work?

1. Inventory. Mailboxes, shared drives, calendars, groups and the third-party apps signed in through Google or Microsoft accounts.
2. Identity first. Create the users and groups in the new platform, turn on MFA before anyone signs in, and decide how single sign-on to other apps will work.
3. Mail and calendar. Copy historical mail and calendars with a migration tool, then cut the domain's mail records over at a quiet time so new mail lands in the new platform.
4. Files. Move shared drives to SharePoint or Google Drive with permissions mapped by role, then fix the sharing links people have bookmarked.
5. Devices and apps. Reconfigure Outlook or the Google apps, enroll devices in management, and reconnect the line-of-business tools.
6. Backup and decommission. Set up backup independent of the vendor, run a parallel period, then close the old tenant.

Our cloud migration FAQ covers the questions owners ask most before a move.

Frequently asked questions

Is Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace cheaper?

Entry tiers are close, both starting around the same per-user price on annual plans. Total cost depends on the tier you need. Microsoft's Business Premium costs more per seat than the entry plans but folds in security tools you would otherwise buy separately, which can make it the cheaper option overall for a business that needs those protections.

Is Google Workspace the same as Microsoft 365?

No. They are competing suites from different companies. Both include email, calendar, chat, video meetings, cloud storage and office apps, but Microsoft's apps are desktop-first and Google's are browser-first, and the security and management tooling is packaged differently.

Can I keep my existing email address if I switch?

Yes. Both platforms use your own domain, so an address like you@yourcompany.com moves with you. A migration copies your existing mail, contacts and calendar into the new platform. The switch is invisible to your clients as long as it is planned and the domain records are updated correctly.

Can I use Outlook with Google Workspace?

Yes. Google provides a sync tool for Outlook, and Gmail also works over standard mail protocols. It works, but it is a compromise: some calendar and contact features behave differently, which is one reason firms that are attached to Outlook usually end up on Microsoft 365.

Does Microsoft 365 work offline better than Google Workspace?

Generally yes, because the desktop Office apps run locally and sync when you reconnect. Google Workspace offers offline modes for its core apps, but it is built browser-first, so teams that frequently work without internet tend to prefer Microsoft's installed applications.

What about AI features like Copilot and Gemini?

Microsoft sells Microsoft 365 Copilot as an add-on or a bundled plan, with Copilot Chat included on eligible subscriptions. Google includes Gemini features in its current Business plans. Both can draft email, summarize documents and build spreadsheet formulas. Whether the paid Microsoft option is worth it depends on your workflows; we break that down in whether Copilot is worth it.

Which is better for a 10-person company?

If the ten people exchange Office files with clients, handle sensitive data, or want one plan that includes security, Microsoft 365 Business Premium. If they collaborate in shared docs all day, rarely open a desktop app, and want the lightest admin burden, Google Workspace Business Standard. Either way, enforce MFA and set up backup before the first week is out.

Not sure which platform fits your team, or dreading the migration? Contact The NetSys Group for a complimentary consultation. We will recommend the right suite and handle the move end to end.

By Latoya Reed for The NetSys Group, which has delivered managed IT, cybersecurity and cloud services since 1998. Our engineers hold degrees in electrical and computer engineering and are certified Microsoft and Cisco instructors, serving businesses across NY, NJ, CT, PA and Southwest Florida.