There’s no doubt at all that Microsoft Word is top of its game, providing excellent word processing services. The problem is that it’s also a monopoly. People tend to forget that there are alternatives. Because so many companies and institutions use Word, you often feel forced to follow suit, spending a lot of cash in the process. However, there are free alternatives out there such as WPS Office 2016 Free, which can do much of the same.
Word for Word
WPS Office 2016 Free recreates much of Microsoft’s Word’s environment, so it isn’t much of a leap to try it out. There will be an inevitable period of adjustment as you try to find your usual settings and controls, but the developers have done a good job of making this software intuitive in its own right. One standout feature is the ability to drag, resize and drop whole paragraphs, getting the shape and formatting you want in a fluid way. You can also have various document types open, using tabs within the program. This software can open .docx but can only save as .doc.
A Real Alternative
WPS Office 2016 Free is a viable alternative to Word for those on a low budget, thanks to a pretty good set of features and compatibility. However, your time is limited on the free trial. Useful as a workaround but less so as a permanent replacement.
