Apple Keynote vs. Google Slides

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Apple Keynote
Score 7.9 out of 10
N/A
Keynote, from Apple is a presentation software with tools and effects, designed to make it easy to create memorable presentations, and comes included with most Apple devices. Use Apple Pencil on an iPad to create diagrams or illustrations that bring slides to life. With its real‑time collaboration features, teams can work together, whether they’re on Mac, iPad, iPhone, or using a PC.N/A
Google Slides
Score 7.9 out of 10
N/A
Google Slides is a presentation tool that enables users to create, edit, collaborate, and present. It is free for personal use, and available to businesses via a Google Workspaces subscription.N/A
Pricing
Apple KeynoteGoogle Slides
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Apple KeynoteGoogle Slides
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Apple KeynoteGoogle Slides
Best Alternatives
Apple KeynoteGoogle Slides
Small Businesses
Canva
Canva
Score 9.1 out of 10
Canva
Canva
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Mentimeter
Mentimeter
Score 7.2 out of 10
Mentimeter
Mentimeter
Score 7.2 out of 10
Enterprises
Mentimeter
Mentimeter
Score 7.2 out of 10
Mentimeter
Mentimeter
Score 7.2 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Apple KeynoteGoogle Slides
Likelihood to Recommend
7.7
(0 ratings)
6.0
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(0 ratings)
7.3
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Apple KeynoteGoogle Slides
Likelihood to Recommend
Well Suited: Setting up in-person presentations for clients. The transitions are nicely integrated, the master template easily adjusted, and the file size relatively small for ease in download and emailing as a leave behind. Less Appropriate: Clients often feel that EVERYTHING needs to be set up as a slide deck. However, it is key to listen to the client's needs to first determine the final output. What was initially predetermined to be a slide deck may often be more effective as an email, brochure, or flyer. Keynote does what it is intended to, well, but that doesn't mean that it should ALWAYS be the end product format.
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Google Slides is perfect for teams working on a presentation for a customer, where multiple people can be working on the same presentation at the same time. It is also helpful to see who is currently viewing the presentation and if and what they are currently editing. Google Slides might not be the best solution for all presentations as sometimes a customer requests a live demo.
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Pros
  • Enables the integration text, images and graphics extremely seamlessly
  • Allows realtime collaboration across teams
  • Allows fine tuned control over graphic elements, images and text to achieve superior design (relative to PPT or Slides)
  • Enables for presentation or for print equally well
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  • Easy to create and manage (lecturer side).
  • Intuitive and easy to use (students side).
  • Various sharing options, well integrated in most web browsers.
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Cons
  • The way you adjust timings for builds and transitions was a bit counterintuitive for me. Once I got the hang of it, it was fine. The timings don't work the same as they do in PowerPoint. So if you are a PowerPoint user, that may be something you have to adjust to when you switch to Keynote.
  • I feel that adding images can be clunky when working with image placeholders. Apple Keynote forces you to use the Photo app to replace image placeholders.
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  • Sometimes bugs in changing fonts or other formatting
  • Edit tracking, while good, could still be improved
  • Better basic flow-charting
  • Better UI navigation, specifically around zooming instead of 'enlarging everything in browser'
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Likelihood to Renew
It is already included with my Macbook and the design functionality is pretty advanced so I can upload my custom brand fonts and it is easy to create templates where you can drag and drop different images while keeping overall alignment and placement the same
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The popularity for Google Slides among the casual technology tool users is so great that we are not in a position to replace this tool with anything else. Every other tool either doesn't have the popularity, or doesn't match the ease of sharing level of Slides. The training needed to learn a different tool is too great. Google Slides is very easy to pick up and master.
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Usability
Apple Keynote is incredibly user-friendly and largely intuitive. In the rare areas that Apple Keynote is not intuitive, there is a robust online community of fellow Apple Keynote users that can answer most questions I have about the program. I would encourage any of my coworkers - and anyone else in my same line of work - to adopt Apple Keynote because of its user-friendliness.
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It fairly easy to use and manage, especially if you are already in the Google Suite - however design styling is often lacking and missing - which can be a major draw back if you are presenting to an external party. For those cases I will typically use Keynote or Figma Slides
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Alternatives Considered
If you want to create presentations more often, Prezi and Canva or not even options, both of tools take a lot of time. So the real competitor for Apple Keynote is Microsoft Powerpoint. For me, Powerpoint is so feature-filled that makes it a little complex. On the other hand, Apple Keynote is a very simple and elegant, and easy-to-use tool.
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Google Slides works both online and offline, they are free to use if you have a Google account. Easy to share and are supported by most web browsers. A great addition to your arsenal of interactive educational online platforms.
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Return on Investment
  • Improved efficiency since my presentations are quick to update
  • Improved efficacy since the UI makes creating attractive presentations easy to create
  • There have been a few occasions when I need to convert my files to PowerPoint when using virtual conference platforms since Keynote is not as ubiquitous
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  • We're switching from microsoft to google and it has had a decently positive ROI due to reduced friction of figuring out and managing sharepoint
  • The negative impact is that it does not do everything we need for product and design so we do have to supplement it with more specific software
  • Another positive is that it has reduced the friction in easily creating and sharing PPTs during client-facing meetings making it easier for our bd, sales and product teams to make a positive impact on potential + current clients
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ScreenShots