Skip to content
Ditchly
Menu

Last checked November 12, 2026

Free alternatives to Office 365 A1

Office 365 A1 is an education plan. Microsoft's service description says it includes Exchange Online Plan 1 and Teams for Education, plus SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Microsoft 365 for the web. It does not include the desktop Office applications. Those are on A3 and A5 in that same table. Microsoft's education FAQ, in the November 5, 2026 announcement, says web-direct sales of Office 365 A1 ended on November 5, 2026. Partner sales, including CSP and volume licensing, end on May 1, 2027. The plan retires on January 1, 2028. A school with an enrollment that began before May 1, 2027 can keep using its A1 licenses until that enrollment ends. At a renewal or expiration on or after January 1, 2028, those licenses cannot be renewed. The no-cost student plan that replaces the free student path is Microsoft 365 Education A0. The same FAQ says A0 does not include Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, or Teams. The portfolio table says A0 does include Office apps and OneDrive for Business. A student mailbox is the piece A0 leaves out.

EnterprisesSmall teamsPrice checked

What you pay for Office 365 A1

Web-direct sales stopped on November 5, 2026. The plan retires at renewal on or after January 1, 2028. No-cost A0 has Office and OneDrive, and no Exchange mail.

Checked November 12, 2026. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/educator-center/instructor-materials/microsoft-365-education-frequently-asked-questions says Office 365 A1 reaches end of sale on the web direct channel on November 5, 2026, and through partner channels on May 1, 2027. It retires on January 1, 2028. An enrollment that began before May 1, 2027 can keep its A1 footprint until that term ends. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/news/m365education-update, dated November 5, 2026, says the portfolio updates take effect at the first renewal, extension, or new agreement on or after January 1, 2028, and names the retirement of Office 365 A1, the Student Use Benefit, and free Exchange Online for Alumni. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/servicedescriptions/office-365-platform-service-description/office-365-education says A1 includes Exchange Online Plan 1 and Teams for Education, and that desktop Office applications are not on A1. The FAQ says Microsoft 365 Education A0 is available at no additional cost and that Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, and Teams are not included. The portfolio page's comparison table marks OneDrive for Business and Microsoft 365 Apps on A0. Neither page prints a dollar price for A1 or for A0. Faculty pricing for existing suites with Teams is described as unchanged, with the note that a renewal price might still vary.

Office 365 A1 website·Price page

For enterprises and small teams. Its price on file: Web-direct sales stopped on November 5, 2026. The plan retires at renewal on or after January 1, 2028. No-cost A0 has Office and OneDrive, and no Exchange mail. It is in the Office suites group.

How to switch

The closest free app on the checklist is Nextcloud. Cost and details. Move from Office 365 A1 to Nextcloud.

Files and chat, or the mailbox

These scores are from the checklist on this page. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement. We check each app against public docs and price pages.

Nextcloud is #1 (80). mailcow is #2 (46). LibreOffice is #3 (35).

Nextcloud

#1 · Closest

6 of 6 checked features. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement.

You only get part of: a mailbox on the school's domain and word, Excel, and PowerPoint files.

mailcow

#2

6 of 6 checked features. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement.

What you give up: shared files for the school, word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, and team chat. You only get part of: a shared calendar.

LibreOffice

#3

6 of 6 checked features. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement.

What you give up: a mailbox on the school's domain, shared files for the school, and team chat, and 1 more.

Where they differ

  • A mailbox on the school's domain

    Worth 10 points. Nextcloud does part of it. Nextcloud Mail is a client. The mailbox still needs a mail server. mailcow does all of it. A mail server you run, with SOGo webmail. It does not import an Exchange mailbox in one step. LibreOffice does none of it. No mailbox.

  • Shared files for the school

    Worth 8 points. Nextcloud does all of it. File sync is the core app. Shared OneDrive links do not come with the copy. mailcow does none of it. No file sync. OneDrive and SharePoint stay a separate copy. LibreOffice does none of it. No shared drive.

  • Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files

    Worth 8 points. Nextcloud does part of it. Browser editing needs Collabora or ONLYOFFICE on the same server. mailcow does none of it. No Word, Excel, or PowerPoint editor. LibreOffice does all of it. Writer, Calc, and Impress open DOCX, XLSX, and PPTX on Mac, Windows, and Linux.

  • Team chat

    Worth 6 points. Nextcloud does all of it. Nextcloud Talk is the chat and call app. It does not import a Teams meeting. mailcow does none of it. No team chat. LibreOffice does none of it.

  • A shared calendar

    Worth 6 points. Nextcloud does all of it. The calendar app is part of the hub. An ICS file is a separate export from Outlook. mailcow does part of it. SOGo includes a calendar. The Microsoft 365 comparison on this listing marks that the same way. LibreOffice does none of it.

Nextcloud, mailcow, and LibreOffice do all of these: no fee for each student on the copy you run.

How close is it?

How this works

A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement. #1 is the closest free app that did not pay us. An ad, when one is sold, is marked and sits after #1. Paying does not change the score. Open source means you can use, change, and share the code. Run it yourself means the app can live on a computer you control.

  1. #1 · ClosestOpen sourceNotes on the review

    Nextcloud

    Dropbox you run yourself, plus the apps you turn on.

    6 of 6 checked features. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement.

    You only get part of: a mailbox on the school's domain and word, Excel, and PowerPoint files.

    Last checked October 29, 2026 · License: AGPL-3.0

    MacWindowsLinuxiOSAndroidWebRun it yourself
    Cost and detailsHow to switchWebsite
  2. #2Open sourceNotes on the review

    mailcow

    A Docker mail server with SOGo webmail and Rspamd.

    6 of 6 checked features. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement.

    What you give up: shared files for the school, word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, and team chat. You only get part of: a shared calendar.

    Last checked October 29, 2026 · License: GPL-3.0

    WebRun it yourselfLinux
    Cost and detailsWebsite
  3. #3Open sourceNotes on the review

    LibreOffice

    A desktop suite that opens Office files.

    6 of 6 checked features. A full score means it matches our checklist. It is not a drop-in replacement.

    What you give up: a mailbox on the school's domain, shared files for the school, and team chat, and 1 more.

    Last checked October 29, 2026 · License: MPL-2.0

    MacWindowsLinux
    Cost and detailsWebsite

Feature by feature

Full means it does the whole job. Partial means it does some of it. Missing means it does not. Not checked counts as zero. The number under each feature is how much it counts. A bigger number moves the score more.

Scroll sideways to see every app.

Feature comparison. Full, partial, missing, or not checked.
FeatureNextcloud#1 · 806 of 6 checked featuresmailcow#2 · 466 of 6 checked featuresLibreOffice#3 · 356 of 6 checked features
A mailbox on the school's domainCounts for 10PartialNextcloud Mail is a client. The mailbox still needs a mail server.FullA mail server you run, with SOGo webmail. It does not import an Exchange mailbox in one step.MissingNo mailbox.
Shared files for the schoolCounts for 8FullFile sync is the core app. Shared OneDrive links do not come with the copy.MissingNo file sync. OneDrive and SharePoint stay a separate copy.MissingNo shared drive.
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint filesCounts for 8PartialBrowser editing needs Collabora or ONLYOFFICE on the same server.MissingNo Word, Excel, or PowerPoint editor.FullWriter, Calc, and Impress open DOCX, XLSX, and PPTX on Mac, Windows, and Linux.
Team chatCounts for 6FullNextcloud Talk is the chat and call app. It does not import a Teams meeting.MissingNo team chat.Missing
A shared calendarCounts for 6FullThe calendar app is part of the hub. An ICS file is a separate export from Outlook.PartialSOGo includes a calendar. The Microsoft 365 comparison on this listing marks that the same way.Missing
No fee for each student on the copy you runCounts for 8FullThe server is free to host. You pay for the machine, not a license for each student.FullThe software is free to run. You pay for the machine and for outbound mail that other servers will accept.FullThe desktop apps are free to install. There is no per-student fee in the app.

What it costs

Nextcloud

Free plan
The server is free to host. Nextcloud GmbH sells enterprise support. Many hosting companies sell managed Nextcloud.
They host it
No hosted price on file.
Run it yourself
Setup: medium. A small team fits in Docker or a snap. Backups, upgrades, and the office suite are the ongoing work. You need a small server. Prices depend on your host.

mailcow

Free plan
The software is free to run. You pay for the machine, DNS, and a way to send mail that other servers will accept.
They host it
No hosted price on file.
Run it yourself
Hard. Docker Compose on a Linux host, plus DNS records for the domain. The project documents IMAP, SMTP, SOGo, and Rspamd as part of the stack. You need a small server. Prices depend on your host.

LibreOffice

Free plan
The desktop apps are free to download.
They host it
No hosted price on file.
Run it yourself
This app does not run on your own computer. The desktop apps are not a server. Collabora Online is the browser version.

Did you switch?

If you left Office 365 A1, tell us if it worked and how long it took. Notes stay private until we approve them. Nothing is shown until at least five are approved.

How did it go?

Closest pair

Move from Office 365 A1 to Nextcloud

A1 mailboxes are Exchange. Nextcloud stores the files, the calendar, and Talk. The mailbox needs a separate mail server. A0 keeps OneDrive and Office, and it drops Exchange.

Read how to switch

Related alternatives

Office suites alternatives

Switch guides

Free apps in this group

Questions

When does school email on Office 365 A1 end?
Not on one day for every school. Web-direct sales stopped on November 5, 2026. Partner sales end on May 1, 2027. The plan retires on January 1, 2028, at the enrollment's renewal or expiration on or after that date. An enrollment that began before May 1, 2027 keeps its current A1 licenses until that term ends. The no-cost A0 plan does not include Exchange Online. OneDrive and the Office apps are still on A0.
What is the closest free app?
Nextcloud, for the files, the calendar, and Talk. Browser documents need Collabora or ONLYOFFICE on that server. Nextcloud Mail is a client. The mailboxes need a server such as mailcow. LibreOffice opens the desktop documents and does not host mail or files. None of the three is a student information system.
Does A0 keep student email?
No. Microsoft's FAQ says Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, and Teams are not included on A0. The portfolio table includes OneDrive for Business and the Office desktop and web apps on A0. A school that still wants student mailboxes has to move them to a paid education plan or to a mail server it runs. Free Exchange Online for Alumni also retires on January 1, 2028. The paid alumni mailbox is a separate offer.
Is this the same increase as Business Basic?
No. Business Basic, Business Standard, Microsoft 365 E3, and Office 365 E3 changed on July 1, 2026. That list is on the Microsoft 365 page. Office 365 A1 is the education plan, and the November 5, 2026 note does not print a dollar price for it. The Student Use Benefit retires on the same January 1, 2028 date.