In response another post, I wrote:
I’m tempted to cancel the iWorks subscription and subscribe to MS Office 365. It is a better deal for those who only need a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation app, cloud storage, and syncing. The temptation to return to MS Office (not Windows) grows stronger every day.
Is that a crazy idea? For those who may ask, I know that Google Workplace is free, but I dislike working in the Google apps more than I do MS Office.
It does seem a little crazy given that you only paid $30 for one year of access to the enhanced versions of the iWorks apps.
No. Pages and Numbers aren’t business class applications like MS Office or Google Workspace. And I doubt there are many accounting departments that don’t use Excel, even those in companies that have standardized on Google Workspace.
I learned MS Word and Excel when they were introduced in the mid 80’s because I supported people who used these programs. I’ve rarely needed either but they are the standard in businesses.
Gmail is free. Google Workspace with Gemini starts around $14/month with a yearly subscription. Google’s Cloud Next 26 Keynote included a lot of GW AI announcements in case you are interested.
No, not at all, if you’re not using the free versions of the iWork apps.
First of all, you’re a Claude user now, if if recall correctly: Claude has a connector for Excel, Powerpoint, and Word. I can’t vouch for Word or Powerpoint, but Claude in Excel is a terrific tool.
Claude can now work across apps to coordinate between the Excel, PowerPoint, and Word add-ins. Instead of switching between apps and providing context each time, Claude can read from one app and make changes in another. For example, you can ask Claude to analyze data in an Excel workbook, then create a presentation in PowerPoint using those results, without copying and pasting between apps.
I have no idea how powerful the AI capabilities are in the iWork apps in Apple Creator Studio, but I’ll hazard a guess that at the moment at lease, Claude + Office 365 is more powerful.
IMO yes it’s crazy. Dump the both and switch to the LibreOffice Suite,. You can create files in MS formats if required and the whole thing is free.
Re Claude connections. I have Claude doing everything using only LibreOffice inputs and outputs it is a one liner instruction in my Claude.md file
“- Never use Microsoft formats (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx). Use LibreOffice equivalents (.odt, .ods, .odp).”
My only real complaint about Docs and Sheets is that they don’t have real Mac desktop clients: they’re first and foremost web apps. You can sort of work offline, but it’s not straightforward. It’s not equivalent to opening Word or Pages and starting a new document.
Are there Mac, iPad, and iPhone apps and do the docs sync across devices?
That’s why I prefer them. As long as my browser can connect to the Internet my tools will work and I don’t have to hope my files will sync properly.
That one of the reasons I can use an iPad as my primary computer. I’m not limited to just the apps that Apple allows in the App Store. But most of the App Store apps I do use, banking, email, YouTube, etc still run on servers.
True. But everywhere I worked in my last 30 years depended on conductivity. So my job, when we were offline, was to get us back online. 
And when that wasn’t possible everyone went home.
It doesn’t work for everyone, but there have been hundreds of millions of students and educators that have used Google Workspace for Education and many of them choose to use it in their businesses and startups.
What problem(s) are you trying to solve? Here are three as considerations:
You seem to have put the last concern as the foremost important evaluation criteria (i.e. … it is a “better deal”). But, is the tradeoff getting something cheaper in cost but higher in UI clutter and/or friction to be compatible with the world around you.
In addition, where are you trying to improve your workflow in comparison to what you have now? Only in text-documents (e.g. Word), only in presentations (e.g. PowerPoint), only in spreadsheets (e.g. Excel), or in some combination of these three (or in some combination plus something else)?
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JJW
I’m actually the Google Workspace administrator for one of the nonprofits I work with. (We get it for free.) It’s great as a collaborative space for a small organization.
From what I’ve read it seems to be working well for companies like Verizon, Salesforce, and Whirlpool too.
I use Collabora Office on iPad and iPhone. I never edit on iPhone and only occasionally on iPad. I keep working docs I might need in Obsidian and use Obsidian sync so yes, sync across devices is flawless. I’ve never tried iCloud but it “should” just work. Collabora is actually surprisingly good but not full featured. So test before trying to do major work on a mobile device.
I have been using Microsoft365 (previously Office365) with macOS for well over a decade now.
I work in a mixed environment, and I am more concerned about other person being able to read the document I sent rather than having to convert files every time before sending. It’s just what I prefer.
Plus over the years MS Office apps on macOS have gotten really better (except Outlook!) which is an added bonus
So, I don’t think using MS Office on macOS is a bad idea.
PS: LibreOffice is a solid alternative.
From a pensioner’s perspective, absolutely not.
I had to decide which subscriptions remain, based on use and budget.
I decided for MS Office because I worked with it my “whole life”. I was once using Google apps, but found it not easy to use. I tried Pages, skipped also that, nobody is using it in a working environment.
I installed LibreOffice, the software failed to work with Apple Mail… Uninstall.
Softmaker, very good but in the same price range as MS, so why learning something new?
I made a similar process for my photos, tried Apple with Photomator. And ended again with Adobe, similar price range, so I decided to go for the market leader.
This is for my life as a pensioner, all I need. The remaining things I do with ink and paper, there is no need for additional software.
I’m in the UK and in work life you cannot avoid MS Office docs. Some councils send office docs, my kids school send office docs, my accountant sends office docs and so on. I also don’t want the kerfuffle of converting docs every time.
Besides all that Word is still an excellent word processor and I still need to use one at times. It’s also better value for me compared to Creator Studio and the apps work on all devices really well.
I also believe you use IA Writer which converts docx files on import. It does not convert Page files.
It does depend heavily on your needs as well as your personal tastes.
Because…
MS Office also has business class bloat. As familiar as I am with Excel at work (on Windows) and as bizarrely different as I find Numbers for basic calculation work, I still choose not only to use Numbers at home, but also to keep Office off my computers.
Better value is what prompted my post. For less money, one gets more applications, more storage, and universal compatibility. From a purely financial perspective, Microsoft Office offers more value for the dollar for my needs.
Cost, however, is not the only consideration. Most artificial intelligence tools work best with Markdown, Microsoft Office applications, and PDFs. I use Claude Max Cowork extensively. Claude cannot work with Pages, Numbers, and Keynote without extensive conversion processes, whereas it can with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Dollar for dollar, Google Workspace offers the best deal, but I dislike working with Google applications. I prefer the graphical interface clutter of Microsoft Office over Google’s offerings.
I will probably stay with Creator Studio, but I am unhappy with Apple’s decision to add a paywall to its basic productivity applications. I would not object so much if Apple had added a subscription of approximately fifty dollars per year for Pages, Numbers, and Keynote alone. I will never use the other applications included in the Studio bundle.
Why are you asking everyone in this forum? You know you’re going to get 1000 different opinions. Sounds like you have already convinced yourself to do it. It’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t work out for you. Good luck.
Of course, and I find that valuable. It helps me to see and assess different perspectives. And, no, I have not made a decision or I would not have asked. 
