For years people have been asking age old questions, like what came first the chicken or the egg, what would happen if Pinocchio said “my nose will now grow”, and one of the most important (and the topic of this investigation) which is better Microsoft Word or Google Docs. This seems like a simple question at first but to really be able to give a definitive answer we must look at the pros and the cons of each of the platforms.
For starters i began to look at google docs’ strengths and I found out that peoples primary reason for preferring Google Docs is it’s user friendliness. To quote Reddit user Sambhavi-For-Writing “For me, Google Doc just seems simpler to work with. For some weird reason, even finding basic things like the option to format the document (change line spacing, etc.) becomes difficult in Microsoft Word. I’m pretty sure it’s just a ‘me’ thing. Sharing also feels a lot easier, not to mention everything gets backed up in Drive (does that happen with Microsoft OneDrive? I don’t know since I’ve never used it)” or Reddit user MrTalkingmonkey “I don’t think that G docs are superior quite yet. But they don’t really have to be for most document creation, and Google knows that. They are certainly a no brainer to work with though. And since pretty much everyone already has a Google account, they’re are much easier to share and use for in-doc collaboration. The Comment and Suggestion tools are really easy to use. Just make sure to archive an original before letting the hounds loose to make edits or comments.”. It is clear that part of the glamour of Google Docs is that anyone can figure it out in a couple minutes. I have also come to the conclusion that it is easier to collaborate with others in the Doc platform because it can sometimes be annoying to share documents with people who do not have an office subscription, which brings me to Google Docs largest edge, it is free while Word is not. Google docs is certainly not without it’s downsides. One said downside has been brought up by numerous people, when working on a 50+ page document, Docs’ loading and update time is terrible. But this only happens to select people who make 50+ page documents, unlike Docs’ biggest issue that affects everyone who uses it, your data is not as private, meaning your trading privacy for convenience.
Word on the other hand can be more daunting towards a brand new user, and can be confusing especially if you are used to the simplicity of Docs. Word’s strength comes from it’s software and if you are willing to pay for Office and spend some time learning how to use it, there are more complex things you can accomplish. This advanced software gives users a smoother experience especially in large documents which is something that Docs’ lacks in. It definitely has more options if you use these type of platforms as a living, which is one of the reasons it leaves more amateur writers confused. Docs’ loading speed does have the edge on Word since it opens 10x faster.
In conclusion, both platforms have their strengths and weaknesses and it really depends on what you are aiming to accomplish to decide which you should use. But, if you are looking for a definitive answer, Docs’ universal usability triumphs over Word’s computing power.