ArtCraft Releases Free Word, Excel and PowerPoint Alternatives After Adobe-Style Apps
The maker of free Adobe-style creative apps is now taking on Microsoft Office. ArtCraft has released WordCraft, GridCraft and DeckCraft as open-source alternatives to Word, Excel and PowerPoint. The apps are available at no cost, but they are early versions—not free copies of Microsoft’s software.
What do the new Office alternatives do?
WordCraft is a word processor with a familiar ribbon interface. It can open and save .docx documents and includes tools for styles, tables, comments and tracked changes.
GridCraft is a spreadsheet app that uses .xlsx files. It offers formulas, charts, tables and PivotTables, alongside a layout intended to feel familiar to Excel users.
DeckCraft creates presentations and opens and saves .pptx files. Its features include slide layouts, charts, animations and full-screen presentations.
All three projects offer desktop builds for Windows, macOS and Linux through their GitHub releases. Their code is also available for developers to inspect and build on. The team describes the apps as independent projects, not products from or endorsed by Microsoft or Adobe.
Can they replace Microsoft Office yet?
Not for everyone. The ArtCraft team labels all three apps alpha, meaning important work remains. WordCraft’s roadmap, for example, calls for more testing with real-world documents, better handling of some embedded content and closer matching of Word’s page layout. GridCraft’s roadmap highlights further work on compatibility with complex spreadsheets.
Anyone trying the apps for work or school should keep a backup and check files after opening and saving them, especially documents with detailed formatting, complicated formulas or elaborate slides. Support for an Office file format does not guarantee that every file will look or behave exactly as it does in Microsoft’s apps.
These are not the first free Office alternatives. LibreOffice already offers a word processor, spreadsheet and presentation app, while Microsoft itself provides free browser versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. ArtCraft’s distinction is its effort to build separate, familiar-looking open-source apps for each task.
Why the launch is drawing attention
ArtCraft had already drawn interest with creative tools modeled on workflows associated with apps such as Photoshop and Premiere Pro. Developer Brandon Thomas has used AI coding tools while building the projects, making the rapid expansion a visible example of how AI-assisted development can help create software.
The harder test is whether the new apps can reliably handle years of Office files and everyday use. For now, WordCraft, GridCraft and DeckCraft give curious users three free tools to try—not a proven, complete replacement for Microsoft Office.
