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Google Docs vs Paginel

Google Docs taught the world to write together. Paginel does the same on real Word files, with a desktop app that works without a network, and data in France. Here is where each one wins.

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A single .docx file, opened by each tool: each has its cursor in it.

In short Which one should you choose?

Keep Google Docs

if you already live in Google Workspace (Gmail, Drive, Sheets), if you want suggestion mode, Gemini, or a free and proven tool.

Use Paginel

if your documents must stay .docx, if you want a real offline desktop app, or data with a French company, hosted in France.

In detail What really changes

Real Word files

Google Docs opens .docx files, but shows them with its own layout. Paginel is built around Word’s format: it lays out pages like Word (headers, footers, footnotes, sections, page breaks), and rewrites only what changed in the original file. The document that goes back to your client is the same file.

A desktop app, without a network

Google Docs lives in the browser; offline, you need Chrome or Edge and an extension. Paginel has a desktop app (macOS, Linux) that opens your files in your folders, works without a network, and merges your changes with everyone else’s when you reconnect.

Inviting: both do it

To be fair: Google Docs already lets people write without an account, through a link open for editing; the guest shows up as an “anonymous animal”. Paginel lets guests in with a code, under their own name, for a time you choose (one session, 24 hours, 7 days), and you can remove the code at any time.

Your data

Google is a US company, subject to the CLOUD Act, even when its data is in Europe. Paginel is published in France and hosted in France. See a sovereign Google Docs and Data management.

Honestly What Paginel does not do (yet)

  • Paginel is in beta, open to everyone and free. It is a young product.
  • Tables cannot be edited yet: tables in a .docx show as plain lines (cells separated by tabs), on screen and in the PDF. Saving into the original file keeps them intact. A document full of tables is not for Paginel yet.
  • No track changes and no suggestion mode. Comments exist in Paginel, but are not yet written into the .docx.
  • Desktop app for macOS (Apple silicon) and Linux; Windows is planned, with no date. On phones and tablets: the browser only.
  • No built-in AI assistant: you connect your own agent (MCP, API), from the provider you choose.
  • A word processor, nothing else: no spreadsheet, no slides, no email.

The table Google Docs and Paginel, point by point

Google Docs and Paginel, point by point
Paginel Google Docs
Price Free during the beta. Planned: a free plan, and €20 a year (VAT incl.) for unlimited use. Free with a Google account; Workspace from €6.80 per user per month (excl. VAT).
.docx files Yes (lead) Read and written by Paginel itself; what it does not change stays as it was in the file. Partly Opened and edited without conversion; Docs itself flags the Word features it does not support.
Page layout, pages Yes (lead) Pages, headers, footers, footnotes; PDF view identical to the export. Partly Approximate: Docs has its own layout.
Tables No Not editable yet. Yes (lead)
Suggestions No Not yet. Yes (lead) Suggestion mode.
Comments Yes Threads, replies, resolve. Yes
Real-time co-editing Yes Browser and desktop app, on the same document. Yes The heart of the product, since 2006.
Offline Yes (lead) Desktop app; changes merge automatically on reconnection, no conflicts to resolve. Partly Extension for Chrome or Edge, one account per profile; admins can turn it off.
Desktop app Yes (lead) macOS (Apple silicon) and Linux; Windows planned. No No: browser.
Guests without an account Yes Code or link, for a time you choose; guests enter their name, no account. Yes “Anyone with the link” editing without an account (“anonymous animal”); visitors with a PIN in Workspace.
Markdown Yes (lead) Markdown, Edit, PDF: three views of the same document. Partly Import, export, shortcuts.
AI Partly Your own agents (MCP, API), in the sections you give them; no built-in assistant. Yes (lead) Gemini, in Docs with Workspace Business Standard and above.
Spreadsheet, slides No Yes (lead) Sheets, Slides.
Where your data lives French company, hosted in France. Google (United States): European data regions on some Workspace plans, but subject to US law (CLOUD Act).
On your own servers Coming soon (lead) Enterprise plan, planned after the beta. No

Yes : the highlighted word marks the lead on that point.

. Our rule: say when another tool will suit you better, and what Paginel does not do yet. Spotted a mistake? Write to us and we will fix it.

Frequently asked questions

Is Paginel free like Google Docs?

During the beta, yes. Afterwards, a free plan (10 personal documents, 5 shared ones) and a €20 yearly licence are planned.

Can I import my Google Docs?

Yes, by downloading them as Word (.docx) from Google Docs, then opening them in Paginel.

Does Paginel have a suggestion mode?

Not yet. Comments and version history exist; suggestions are planned.

Try Paginel

The beta is open and free: create your account in a minute.

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Other comparisons

Sources

Prices and features of other products checked on the date above, on their official pages. They change often: check before you decide.