How to install and use Microsoft Office on Linux

The most widely used Office suite in the world is Microsoft Office. If your PC is running Windows 10 or macOS, it is likely that you are using Microsoft Office. But what if you don't use Windows or macOS? How to install and use Microsoft Office on Linux? Along TipsMake.com learn through the following article offline!

There are 3 ways to run Microsoft Office on a Linux computer:

1. Use Office Online in the browser.
2. Install Microsoft Office with PlayOnLinux.
3. Use Microsoft Office in Windows virtual machine.

Each option has its advantages and disadvantages. Consider each option in turn.

Option 1: Use Microsoft Office Online in the browser

Microsoft Office Online may not be the full Microsoft Office, but what is provided through the browser is definitely good enough for most Office-based tasks. This is an easy way to get started without paying for the full Microsoft Office suite.

Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook can all be accessed via your browser and Microsoft account.

Use Office Online in the Linux browser

If you use Microsoft Office in Office 365 through a product subscription, you'll also have access to browser-based tools. Since the suite is browser-based, it will not be available offline. However, it is possible to make everything smoother by placing office.live.com as a shortcut on the screen.

Office Online is just a browser-based alternative with a limited collection of features, so don't expect too much.

Option 2: Install Microsoft Office with PlayOnLinux

You can install Microsoft Office with Wine and PlayOnLinux. The following instructions are for Ubuntu, but can be similarly applied to other distributions, using different package managers.

Install Wine and PlayOnLinux

Start by opening a terminal window and entering:

 sudo apt install wine 

Next, add the pulley key for PlayOnLinux software to run with Wine:

 wget -q "http://deb.playonlinux.com/public.gpg" -O- | sudo apt-key add - 

Follow this by adding PPA information to the package manager:

 sudo wget http://deb.playonlinux.com/playonlinux_precise.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/playonlinux.list 

Next, update and then install PlayOnLinux:

 sudo apt update sudo apt install playonlinux 

Now all you need to do is launch PlayOnLinux from Menu> Applications . Here, click the Office tab , and then select the appropriate Microsoft Office option.

However, with PlayOnLinux, users are limited to Microsoft Office 2013 version (32-bit version). For the best and most stable results, use Microsoft Office 2010. You will need the disk (or ISO file) and genuine key.

You will find the official download here. Product key must be entered before downloading the software.

Install Microsoft Office on Ubuntu with PlayOnLinux

PlayOnLinux is ready. All that is needed now is to install the appropriate version of Microsoft Office.

PlayOnLinux will prompt you to select DVD-ROM or installation file. Select the appropriate option, then click Next. If you use the installation file, you will need to browse to this section.

Click Next to proceed with the installation and after completion, Microsoft Office 2010 will be ready to use. This is the latest version that can be installed without problems, although there are beta scripts for Microsoft Office 2013 and 2016.

Microsoft Office will run from the desktop without loading PlayOnLinux separately (although PlayOnLinux will run in the background).

If for some reason PlayOnLinux doesn't work, you can also consider CrossOver. This is a paid tool with a free trial version and can run newer versions of Microsoft Office. At the time of writing, Office 2016 is not fully supported by PlayOnLinux / Wine but runs in CrossOver.

The installation of CrossOver is simpler than PlayOnLinux, and the process of installing Office with these 2 tools is similar.

Windows software can run easily on Linux PC. Really great, right? You can see that PlayOnLinux can support a number of other applications, as well as many Windows games.

Option 3: Install Microsoft Office 365 in a virtual machine

There is another option for anyone who wants to install Microsoft Office on a Linux computer. This is not as easy as on other operating systems, unless you have run a Windows virtual machine.

In this case, all you need to do is start the virtual machine, log in to Windows and install Microsoft Office. This will be especially useful if you want to install Office 365, because Office 365 cannot be installed on Linux.

Microsoft Office is not the best choice to run Office tasks on a Linux system. However, if that's what you need to get the job done, there are three options to use Microsoft Office on Linux.

Alternative open source alternatives will be best for most Office tasks on Linux but installing Microsoft Office will help fix document compatibility issues.

But if you don't mind the problem, consider an alternative solution such as a virtual machine or Wine.

Hope you are succesful.