Microsoft 365 is a powerful office suite that perfectly represents the great and not-so-great things about software as a service. It's continually receiving updates, feature improvements, and security patches — but you're also continually paying the subscription fee. For macOS users, that's a tough sell. After all, the iWork suite of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote are included with all versions of macOS free-of-charge.

Although I'd recommend you consider whether iWork can satisfy your needs for free, there are five key reasons owners of the best Macs might choose to pay for Microsoft 365 instead.

5 Copilot integration in Microsoft 365 apps

The AI assistant can make difficult Microsoft 365 projects easy

Apple Intelligence is now available on Apple silicon Macs, but Microsoft has a clear head start in the artificial intelligence race. Its AI suite is particularly useful for advanced office tasks in Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and the rest of the Microsoft 365 portfolio. All these apps feature a Copilot sidebar that you can communicate with in conversational language, allowing you to complete actions that would take hours of practice to master. While Copilot in Microsoft 365 requires an additional Copilot Pro subscription, it's available on the macOS versions of the company's apps, too.

Copilot is great at basic tasks, like analyzing data, picking up on trends, and more. These uses are particularly helpful for extremely large data sets that could take a while for humans to manually comb through. Additionally, Microsoft 365 users can ask Copilot to help them create formulas, apply design and formatting changes, and understand databases. For people who don't want to spend time learning the nitty-gritty tips and tricks for office software, having an AI assistant on your side is crucial. While Apple Intelligence has Writing Tools, there's no direct competitor for Copilot in iWork.

4 You won't lose crucial Apple features

Handoff and other great iWork features can be used with Microsoft 365, too

People in the Apple ecosystem quickly flock to iWork based on the misconception that they have to use the company's office software to get certain macOS features. However, that isn't the case. Features like Handoff — the tool that lets you pick up right where you left off on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS — are available with Microsoft 365, too. It's possible to start working on a PowerPoint on your phone and switch to a Mac, immediately opening up the original copy on your other devices. Since the Microsoft 365 and Handoff integration accesses the original file, you won't run into issues related to having multiple versions.

Handoff is a key feature of iWork for many macOS users, and it's currently available on Microsoft 365, meaning that you shouldn't have to stick with the former for that feature alone.

3 Excel is more powerful than Numbers

Pages and Keynote are great, but some people just need Excel

In general, iWork stacks up nicely against the suite's Microsoft 365 equivalents. Pages has complete feature parity with Microsoft Word, and many iWork fans think that Keynote is superior to PowerPoint in at least a few areas. However, Mac and PC users seem to agree that Microsoft Excel is more powerful than Numbers. From formulas to data visualizers, Excel is an incredibly powerful piece of software that can be used for making tables and basic spreadsheets. Numbers, meanwhile, is better suited for something like a family finance tracker rather than a big business operation.

2 Excellent collaboration features

Teams and schools can work together in ways they couldn't with iWork

Whether you should use iWork or Microsoft 365 can be answered with another question: do you need to share your work with others? If you do, Microsoft 365 is almost certainly the better option. Many enterprises and schools use versions of Microsoft 365 that make sharing files from outside the network difficult, if not impossible. Additionally, if all your coworkers or teachers use Microsoft services, it's probably easier to join the group.

The set of office apps neatly integrate with Microsoft Teams and other collaborative software, like how you can notify a team when a task related to Word, PowerPoint, or Excel changes status with Power Automate. Even if you don't need these collaboration features, simply sharing an iWork document can be tricky. You can export a Pages, Numbers, or Keynote file to their Microsoft equivalents, but formatting and font issues are prevalent. For sharing and collaboration, Microsoft 365 is worth paying for on macOS.

1 Better cross-platform support

The moment you leave the Apple ecosystem, iWork falters

Technically speaking, you can use iWork apps on any device with a web browser. There are web versions of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote that can be accessed through the iCloud web portal. You can view, edit, and share these files — even if you aren't using an Apple device. Microsoft 365 has a web client, too. Plus, Microsoft offers native apps for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, Android, and Windows. When it comes to compatibility and versatility, the Microsoft 365 suite is unmatched. For people who rely on Android and Windows devices in addition to their Macs, it's worth subscribing to Microsoft 365.

iWork and Microsoft Office 2024 are good alternatives to Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 is a great software suite that's certainly worth paying for — depending on your needs. Usually, if a subscription helps you get work done (and earn more money!) it's worth paying for. However, if you're a casual macOS user who just wants a set of basic office apps for personal use, iWork might be a solid and free alternative. Otherwise, don't forget about Microsoft Office 2024 for Mac. It's available as a one-time purchase and will give you the Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps. Unlike Microsoft 365, the license for Microsoft Office 2024 doesn't include continuous feature updates.

• Office Home 2024

  The essentials to get it all done. Office Home 2024 is for students and families who want classic Office apps including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for Windows 11 and Windows 10. A one-time purchase installed on 1 PC or Mac for use at home or school.

  $149.99 at Microsoft

• Microsoft Office Home & Business 2024

  Office Home & Business 2024 includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, plus the rights to use the apps in commercial environments.

  $250 at Best Buy $270 at Amazon $250 at Microsoft