Apple iCloud vs. Microsoft 365

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Apple iCloud
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Apple iCloud is a document management software offering from Apple. It includes features such as access to music, photos, calendars, contacts, and documents, and it is built into every new iOS device.
$0.99
per month
Microsoft 365
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) is a Microsoft Cloud subscription service that includes Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, and Access). The software can be installed across multiple devices and ensures that users always have the most up-to-date version of the included Office applications.
$5
Per User Per Month
Pricing
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
Editions & Modules
50GB
$0.99
per month
200GB
$2.99
per month
2TB
$9.99
per month
Business Basic
$5.00
Per User Per Month
Individual
$5.84
*Per Month
Business - Apps
$8.25
Per User Per Month
Enterprise - F3
$10.00
Per User Per Month
Business Standard
$12.50
Per User Per Month
Business Premium
$20.00
Per User Per Month
Enterprise - E3
$32.00
Per User Per Month
Enterprise - E5
$57.00
Per User Per Month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details*When billed annually.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
Features
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
File Sharing & Management
Comparison of File Sharing & Management features of Product A and Product B
Apple iCloud
8.4
Ratings
0% below category average
Microsoft 365
-
Ratings
Versioning8.70 Ratings00 Ratings
Video files9.30 Ratings00 Ratings
Audio files9.30 Ratings00 Ratings
Document collaboration7.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Access control7.70 Ratings00 Ratings
File search8.60 Ratings00 Ratings
Device sync8.60 Ratings00 Ratings
Cloud Storage Security & Administration
Comparison of Cloud Storage Security & Administration features of Product A and Product B
Apple iCloud
7.5
Ratings
15% below category average
Microsoft 365
-
Ratings
User and role management6.90 Ratings00 Ratings
File organization8.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Device management7.30 Ratings00 Ratings
Cloud Storage Platform
Comparison of Cloud Storage Platform features of Product A and Product B
Apple iCloud
7.1
Ratings
18% below category average
Microsoft 365
-
Ratings
Performance7.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Reliability8.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Storage Reports6.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
Small Businesses
SugarSync
SugarSync
Score 5.8 out of 10
Google Workspace
Google Workspace
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Druva Security Cloud
Druva Security Cloud
Score 9.7 out of 10
Google Workspace
Google Workspace
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Druva Security Cloud
Druva Security Cloud
Score 9.7 out of 10
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Score 8.8 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
Likelihood to Recommend
9.2
(0 ratings)
7.8
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(0 ratings)
9.5
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.5
(0 ratings)
7.2
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.2
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.5
(0 ratings)
8.9
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Apple iCloudMicrosoft 365
Likelihood to Recommend
iCloud is also great to keep access to photos synced across devices. Ex: I can snap a photo at a job site and have access to that photo on my desktop when I return to my office. I can then drop the photo into a document that is stored in iCloud and have instant access to that document on my iPad at a client's office later in the day. Seamless transitions make life much easier.
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I usually recommend Microsoft 365 to my clients to keep them away from the Exchange server (sorry!) Our business has a lot of issues with exchange email functions and copy machines. I always recommend they download the desktop version and use the online version as needed. You never know when you will be without an internet connection, but you can usually trust your laptop will have a decent charge, and you can still be productive! Let it sync when the powers are back on - or your connection is alive.
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Pros
  • Syncing files, appointments, Notes and contacts. If I'm away from home, and set an appointment using my phone, that appointment automatically updates real time to my home laptop and vice-versa.
  • It stores files (e.g photos) nicely
  • Once it's set up, it's fairly easy to use.
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  • keeps me extremely organized. It is so easy to link calendars, emails, and documents.
  • keeps me well connected. It is so easy to send a quick message on teams or send an email to a group (for example, my particular team within the company).
  • easy to use. Everything is straightforward, making it easy to find an answer to a question. There is even a search option to figure out how to do something within Microsoft.
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Cons
  • Customization - iCloud is great at the stuff it does well. But it lacks features that some competitors (in Google Drive or Dropbox) do really well. API support for third-party apps is really great for some other people.
  • Remote use - Managing or accessing information from iCloud while not on one of your logged-in apple devices can sometimes be an issue. From a work computer for example. It doable, but the experience is much less user-friendly.
  • Ability to edit documents on the cloud similar to google docs or some other competitors
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  • I wish it was a little simpler to integrate things from one Microsoft Feature into another one. Perhaps I just don't know the tricks for that yet...after all these years of using it.
  • I didn't like how it defaulted to saving the document automatically with changes, like Google Docs, but it seems that has now changed, and is better now.
  • Generally, I really like how the suite works as is.
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Likelihood to Renew
It's so seamless that I can't imagine another product doing a better job synchronizing all of my devices. I simply do not think about it at all. Everything happens behind the scenes and I'm confident that Apple keeps my data safe and secure. I'm a happy customer as far as this is concerned. I have not had a bad experience with this service.
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I am completely satisfied with the product, and helps me on a daily basis. I do not the exact cost (it is not a cheap suite) but on the medium and long term the return on investment is guaranteed.
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Usability
While it may be great to use with other Apple products, I find it's an absolutist-style workflow to be debilitating and to lead to many problems. When you sign into the cloud, it completely takes over your device in many ways that you don't notice at first until there is a problem.
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It being the default office suite means it's user experience and idioms are things that everyone is generally very used to and fluent with.
The sharing is relatively simple, being directly hooked into Entra AD, and expiry being a first class concern.
It's usability decreases at scale, with multiple people simultaneously making edits can make documents unusable.
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Performance
Occasionally, large files that haven't yet been synced require a few minutes to pull down but I've rarely noticed delays. It does a good job of keeping data cached on my local machines while updating them with changes from other machines transparently.
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No answers on this topic
Support Rating
I never used Apple iCloud support, but have never needed to do so. It has become more of a personal issue with computers in my organization, where the business solution has been with Dropbox. I do have to admit when my Mac went down, having things on Apple iCloud did help to get things restored. However, since I had more than one photo file for my Business and Personal data, I was not able to recover my Business Photos. Apple iCloud should have been able to do this.
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Over the past 8 years of using Microsoft 365, I have noticed that they change vendors often. This always leads to a poor experience in the beginning, then levels out after some time for the company to get things worked out. As a customer, it is really frustrating because I don't have time when something isn't working to have them "look into my issue" and get back with me. They have even closed a ticket I specifically told them to keep open. Your applications are only as good as the support.
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Implementation Rating
No answers on this topic
Everything works and I use it all the time.
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Alternatives Considered
As I have mentioned, the seamless integration across Apple's ecosystem is what keeps us using this product. However, the robust value of the Microsoft 365 Business Premium suite and functionality of their AI companion - Copilot - makes it superior at an organization level. The same could be said for Google AI (Gemini) as well as their cloud services like Drive.
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BTE, this search bar is not the best; I couldn't find Google Suite. In any case, it's challenging to find a suite with advanced tools that serves as an office. Google comes close, no one uses OpenOffice (hyperbole), and there isn't much else to use. If you add to that the recent collaborative functionalities, nothing really stacks up or compares; this has everything a person in an office (oversimplifying) needs to get work done.
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Return on Investment
  • The ability to access saved content across devices no matter where I am located reduces missed opportunities to share and collaborate.
  • The version history has allowed my team to re-visit previous renditions when errors occur - saving valuable time determining the root cause.
  • The cloud reduces the number of physical documents one must remember when traveling for work.
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  • Microsoft 365 has really been effective and cost saving option for our organization in terms of managing the mailboxes, collaboration and messaging.
  • There is multiple must have features which comes all together in one package and therefore is cost effective.
  • The only negative impact according to me is its inability to protect the environment or domain from external attacks effectively.
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ScreenShots