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Productivity · head to head

Google Slides vs Microsoft OneNote

Google Slides logo

Google Slides

Productivity

Google's browser presentation editor, free with a Google account and included in every Workspace edition

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Microsoft OneNote logo

Microsoft OneNote

Productivity

Microsoft's free-form notebook, free with a Microsoft account and synced through OneDrive

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Google Slides fonts are limited to what Google hosts, so a brand's licensed typeface cannot be installed, and decks built to a corporate template either substitute a lookalike or lose the visual identity the template exists to enforce.; Microsoft OneNote notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
  • They diverge on capability: Google Slides covers Simultaneous editing, Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Google Slides and Microsoft OneNote actually diverge.

Attributes where Google Slides and Microsoft OneNote differ
AttributeGoogle SlidesMicrosoft OneNote
PlatformsWebWeb, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows
FoundedUnknown1975

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Productivity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Google Slides

  • Simultaneous editing
  • Version history
  • Comments and suggestions
  • PowerPoint import and export
  • Linked charts from Sheets
  • Presenter view
  • Offline editing
  • Apps Script and add-ons

Only in Microsoft OneNote

  • Free-form page canvas
  • Notebook hierarchy
  • Indexed handwriting
  • Audio recording
  • Web clipper and Outlook capture
  • Shared notebooks
  • Cross-platform clients
  • Tags and cross-notebook search

Both cover

  • No licence cost

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Google Slides

  • A deck several people must build at once before a deadline, where merging emailed versions would be the actual failure mode.not Microsoft OneNote
  • Recurring reports where the charts should update from a spreadsheet rather than being pasted in again each time.not Microsoft OneNote
  • Teaching and classroom use, where the tool is free and runs on inexpensive hardware.not Microsoft OneNote
  • Sharing a deck with people outside the organisation by link rather than as an attachment that immediately goes stale.not Microsoft OneNote

Microsoft OneNote

  • Handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote.not Google Slides
  • Lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time.not Google Slides
  • A team already inside Microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval.not Google Slides
  • Collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.not Google Slides

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Google Slides

  • Fonts are limited to what Google hosts, so a brand's licensed typeface cannot be installed, and decks built to a corporate template either substitute a lookalike or lose the visual identity the template exists to enforce.
  • PowerPoint conversion is lossy in both directions, with animations, transitions, embedded video, diagrams and precise positioning all liable to shift, so a deck that must end up in a client's PowerPoint needs checking slide by slide and is often rebuilt.
  • Offline access has to be arranged before the connection is lost, so a deck not marked for offline use in advance is simply unavailable, which is a recurring failure on the way to present at a customer site.
  • Animation, master slide control, image editing and typographic precision sit behind PowerPoint and Keynote, so design-led work meets a ceiling that no add-on removes and the designers work elsewhere.
  • The governance features an organisation eventually needs, including retention and legal hold, data loss prevention and data residency controls, belong to higher Workspace editions, so a tool adopted because it was free carries an upgrade cost that surfaces only when compliance asks.

Microsoft OneNote

  • Notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
  • Personal notebooks consume OneDrive quota, which is 5 GB on a free Microsoft account, so a notebook full of scans, images and recordings quietly exhausts the whole account including the space Outlook needs for mail.
  • Sync happens at section level and conflicts are resolved by placing both versions on the page, so simultaneous edits to a large or media-heavy section produce duplicated content that somebody has to merge by hand.
  • Search behaves differently across clients, so what the Windows desktop app finds inside handwriting, images and attachments is not necessarily what the browser or mobile version finds, and the same query gives different answers on different devices.
  • There is no relational structure, no database and no properties, so anything that needs a table of records with fields has to be maintained by hand or moved elsewhere, and OneNote's own tables cannot be queried or filtered.

Pricing, plan by plan

Google Slides

Free
  • Starter$6.8/month
    • Google Slides access
    • 30 GB storage
    • Custom business email
  • Standard$13.6/month
    • Google Slides with enhanced features
    • 2 TB storage
    • Advanced email and Gemini capabilities
  • Plus$21.1/month
    • Google Slides with advanced features
    • 5 TB storage
    • Advanced security features

Microsoft OneNote

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Microsoft OneNote review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Google Slides if

  • You need simultaneous editing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want version history.
Google Slides review

Choose Microsoft OneNote if

  • You need free-form page canvas.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
  • You also want notebook hierarchy.
Microsoft OneNote review

Questions people ask

Is Google Slides or Microsoft OneNote better?
Neither clearly leads. Google Slides starts at Free and Microsoft OneNote at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Google Slides or Microsoft OneNote?
Google Slides starts at Free and Microsoft OneNote at Free.
Does Google Slides or Microsoft OneNote run on more platforms?
Google Slides runs on Web. Microsoft OneNote runs on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
Can I use Google Slides for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Google Slides best used for?
Google Slides is most often used for a deck several people must build at once before a deadline, where merging emailed versions would be the actual failure mode., recurring reports where the charts should update from a spreadsheet rather than being pasted in again each time., teaching and classroom use, where the tool is free and runs on inexpensive hardware., sharing a deck with people outside the organisation by link rather than as an attachment that immediately goes stale.. Of those, a deck several people must build at once before a deadline, where merging emailed versions would be the actual failure mode. and recurring reports where the charts should update from a spreadsheet rather than being pasted in again each time. are not what Microsoft OneNote is typically brought in for.
What can Google Slides do that Microsoft OneNote cannot?
Google Slides covers Simultaneous editing, Version history, Comments and suggestions, PowerPoint import and export. Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas, Notebook hierarchy, Indexed handwriting, Audio recording. Both handle No licence cost.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Google Slides: Is Google Slides free?

Yes, with a personal Google account and no time limit or feature gate on the editor. What costs money is Workspace, which adds storage, administration and the governance controls.

Microsoft OneNote: Is OneNote really free?

Yes. The application is free with a Microsoft account, with no time limit and no feature gate. What you may end up paying for is the OneDrive storage the notebooks consume.

Google Slides: Can I open and edit PowerPoint files?

Yes, and .pptx files can be edited directly in Drive. Complex decks lose animations, effects and exact positioning in the conversion, so check anything that came from a designer.

Microsoft OneNote: Can I keep notebooks off Microsoft's cloud?

The Windows desktop app can keep local notebooks, but they will not sync to other devices and any shared access requires OneDrive or SharePoint.

Google Slides: Does it work offline?

Yes in Chrome, but only if the file was made available offline beforehand. It cannot be arranged after you have lost the connection, which is when people usually try.

Microsoft OneNote: How do I get my notes out?

Section by section as a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document. A OneNote package preserves a whole notebook but only for another copy of OneNote. Third-party converters exist and the page layout usually does not survive them.

Google Slides: Is it good enough for a client-facing deck?

For a standard business deck, yes. For a design-led deck using brand typefaces and animation it will hold you back, and the export to PowerPoint will not be clean.

Microsoft OneNote: Which version should I install?

Microsoft consolidated onto a single OneNote application on Windows after retiring the Store version, so install the one distributed with Microsoft 365 rather than looking for an alternative.

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