Microsoft Loop is like your nearby coffee shop. ☕
Simply show up with all your friends, and you can work together while sipping some well-caffeinated beverage. While Microsoft Loop may not be able to provide drinks and food, it does help you collaborate virtually with peers!
Using a simple user interface, the platform helps both students and businesses collaborate on the same project simultaneously. But it’s not the only solution out there! It’s important to be discerning and get a taste for other tools—just like how you would try out multiple coffee shops before finding your go-to place!
To make the decision-making process easier for you, we’ve put together a list of the top 10 Microsoft Loop alternatives that have redefined team collaboration logistics!
10 Best Microsoft Loop Alternatives That Make Collaboration Look Easy
Summarize this article for me pleaseWhat Is Microsoft Loop?
Microsoft Loop is a platform that facilitates real-time collaboration and information sharing with multiple people under one roof.
Created to avoid juggling between other Microsoft Apps like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint Presentation, this tool helps you create workspaces to ideate, comment, and work on the same project together.
In fact, you can also make ideation simpler with its AI Copilot. Just type in a question and the AI assistant will help you with answers that give a little boost to your workday.
Plus, the platform’s search bar lets you find templates based on specific keywords, such as a marketing campaign outline. Also, you can easily work across multiple projects with its project management and productivity tools.
Overall, Microsoft Loop serves as a collaborative workspace (think Notion), but its feature set is not for everybody. Some users find it to have features similar to those of existing competitors and believe it doesn’t offer anything too unique that can lead them to make the switch.
Summarize this article for me pleaseWhat Should You Look for in a Microsoft Loop Alternative?
Consider these features as a benchmark when choosing your Microsoft Loop alternative:
- Project templates: Be on the hunt for a Microsoft Loop alternative that provides easy project assistance through high-quality templates for various use cases
- Online collaboration: One of the biggest functionalities of Microsoft Loop is setting users up with a collaboration platform for real-time, streamlined communication. It’s only natural to expect its alternative to offer features for co-creation, such as comment threads, digital whiteboards, and user tagging
- AI support: You can’t have a collaboration tool without AI in this day and age! Find an alternative that provides AI support for tasks like writing and brainstorming ideas
- Compatibility: It’s good to have a tool that works across all devices and not just stay restricted to Windows or MacOS (i.e. Microsoft Teams or Google Docs)
- Integrations: It’s never a bad idea to go with a tool that integrates with other apps and minimizes the disruptive back-and-forth to manage projects
- Document management: Look for a solution that helps you edit and manage all documents for your projects in one place, making it easy for you to keep up!
Summarize this article for me please10 Best Microsoft Loop Alternatives to Boost Team Collaboration
Based on the features mentioned above, we’ve curated a list of 10 Microsoft Loop alternatives that you can get your hands on right away. Go through each option’s features, pros, and cons to make the best choice! ❤️
1. ClickUp
You can’t mention modern-day collaboration without ClickUp! Created for fast-paced teams that depend on real-time teamwork, ClickUp provides all project management collaboration tools in one place! ⭐
Getting started is as easy as browsing the internet! Just click on your Workspace avatar and choose + New Workspace. Workspaces are at the top of the ClickUp Project Hierarchy, and from this point on, you can break them down into Spaces, Folders, Lists, and more.
Need a streamlined solution to edit, store, and manage documents? If yes, then ClickUp Docs is your best friend! You can create documents with nested pages and trackable tags and edit them with your collaborators simultaneously.
In fact, with ClickUp Live Collaboration Detection, users can see when other members are typing and editing together, so there’s no duplication of efforts!
Did we mention the option to use ClickUp AI for easy text writing and editing? The platform’s native AI assistant comes with 100+ role-specific prompts to complete tasks like:
- Writing a document—such as a project timeline or a content brief—from scratch
- Optimizing existing documents for grammar and tone
- Summarizing lengthy content
- Translating documents (10+ languages supported)
Collaborating with remote and distributed teams is a breeze, thanks to the ClickUp Chat view that allows sharing current updates, requests, links, and feedback internally.
Multi-department teams will love the ClickUp Cross-Functional Project Template to manage task dependencies, progress, and communication without friction!
Let’s say you want to brainstorm with your team. Just launch ClickUp Whiteboards in your Workspace, invite people over, and put your collective intelligence to work. The canvas comes equipped with a drag-and-drop feature to help your team add context to discussions with tasks, files, Docs, and other components!
ClickUp best features
- Comprehensive knowledge management and collaboration platform
- Easy-to-use Whiteboard and Docs that expedite team processes
- Manage and track all projects in one place
- AI-assisted writing and editing
- 15+ views to manage tasks and workloads
- Holistic Chat view that enables sharing links and embeds
- 1,000+ templates for project management
- Multi-platform availability
- 1,000+ integrations to minimize context switching
- Proofing and Form Builder tools for seamless feedback and internal requests
- One-click switch between Workspaces in ClickUp 3.0
ClickUp limitations
- The wide range of features creates a learning curve for new users—but the abundant tutorials and guides make the transition smooth
- Could use more formatting options within Gantt charts
ClickUp pricing
- Free Forever
- Unlimited: $7/month per user
- Business: $12/month per user
- Enterprise: Contact for pricing
- ClickUp AI is available on all paid plans for $5 per Workspace member per month
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
ClickUp ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (9,100+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (3,900+ reviews)
2. Confluence
Confluence is a popular web-based tool that allows knowledge sharing and collaboration. Create dynamic pages on the platform and give your team a place to create and collaborate on any project.
Its activity page lets you keep an eye on all current projects and track their progress. Here, you can even tag other members and send them alerts for any suggestions!
Using permission settings, admins can restrict user access to specific content. Another benefit you’ll love is the wide range of templates here. With a library of 70+ templates across 10+ categories, you can get started with project planning and documentation activities instantly!
Confluence best features
- Allows real-time collaboration
- Integrates with apps like Lucidchart, Microsoft Teams, and Google Docs or Sheets
- Unlimited spaces and pages
- Structured content tree to manage projects or knowledge hubs
- 70+ templates
Confluence limitations
- Templates may take a while to load
- New users might struggle with configuring permissions
Confluence pricing
- Free
- Standard: $600/year
- Premium: $1,150/year
- Enterprise: Contact for pricing
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Confluence ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.1/ 5 (3,690+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/ 5 (3,180+ reviews)
3. Basecamp
Basecamp allows people to set up a virtual workspace and organize group presentations and projects with ease. Each space consists of numerous tools that may help teams to collaborate in multiple ways, such as sharing to-do lists, schedules, files, and meeting reminders.
Basecamp provides a comprehensive view of all meetings, documents, and checklists in one dashboard. On the main project page, you can find updates about recent activities alongside the names of the members who’ve made those changes.
If you’re looking for continuous improvement tools, you’ll love Basecamp’s Kanban boards. They’re ideal for establishing process-oriented workflows that require constant optimization.
Basecamp best features
- Single view for chat, documents, and Kanban boards
- Ability to add or remove tools in workspaces
- Feed of recent activities
- Schedule listing and meeting arrangement
Basecamp limitations
- Lack of integrations may be a turn-off for some teams
- Can do better with task prioritization
Basecamp pricing
- Basecamp: $15/month per user
- Basecamp Pro Unlimited: $299/month
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Basecamp ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.1/ 5 (5,250+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/ 5 (14,330+ reviews)
4. Asana
Looking for something to help you handle personal and business team projects with confidence? Asana’s got your back! The main functionality of this tool is to help businesses visualize the progress of each project and assess any potential risks early on.
For a smoother and quicker workflow, managers can use configurations to get prompts for when a task is completed and needs their green light. They also have the option to create Timelines, Milestones, and Boards and see whether each department is getting their work done on time.
Being a comprehensive project management tool, it allows tracking projects in real time and keeping an eye out for delays. One of its cool support features is the ability to build reports for incomplete monthly tasks of each department!
Asana best features
- Visualize the progress of each project with Milestones, Timelines, and Boards
- Prompts for workflow approval when managing tasks
- Easy project tracking and interactive pages
- Monthly reports for task delays
- Integrate with 200+ tools
Asana limitations
- The interface can overwhelm new users
- Lack of cloud storage can diminish user experience
Asana pricing
- Personal: Free
- Starter: $10.99/month
- Advanced: $24.99/ month
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Asana ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.3/ 5 (9,520+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/ 5 (12,270+ reviews)
5. Figma
Through Figma, design teams can execute their creative ideas using advanced features and tools. Enhance your teamwork using this visual collaboration software that empowers you to create, share, and test designs for your company’s website with end-to-end team visibility.
The platform is created to make the design process easier—Figma hosts real-time co-editing along with an Observation Mode to help you view your designers’ screens and provide feedback. Users can offer suggestions for improvement within the design/prototype itself.
Using permission controls, admins give users the authority to leave comments, edit, and view. For those looking for version control options, you can easily track any changes a user makes.
Figma’s shared asset library helps you standardize components throughout your design projects.
Bonus: Here are some Figma alternatives for you to check out!
Figma best features
- Co-editing for expediting design workflow
- Observation Mode for stronger collaboration
- Permission settings
- View edit history
- Shared asset library
- Seamless feedback loops on designs or prototypes
Figma limitations
- Load time can be slow, occasionally
- Limited support for file formats may cause teams to struggle with importing/exporting
Figma pricing
- Starter: Free
- Figma Professional: $12/month
- Figma organization: $45/ month
- Enterprise: $75/month
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Figma ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/ 5 (980+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.8/ 5 (680+ reviews)
6. GatherContent
GatherContent solves a common problem that many business teams face—structuring content. It helps you go from having dozens of channels and document files to a simple tool where everyone in your company can view all current projects.
Using a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor, users can easily work on documents in real time. GatherContent also offers various templates that can reduce the time spent creating all kinds of project documents.
You can allocate the right task to the appropriate team using automated workflows. Plus, the platform offers an audit trail of changes made to the content, essentially what was changed, by whom, and when.
We recommend leveraging the GatherContent’s content calendar for better organization of tasks on the same page.
GatherContent best features
- Supports real-time editing
- Automated and custom workflows
- WYSIWYG editor
- Various content templates
- Audit trail of changes
GatherContent limitations
- Not many features to improve written content
- May not provide higher levels of customization for web templates
GatherContent pricing
- Request a demo to get a quote
GatherContent ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.3/ 5 (75+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.2/ 5 (15+ reviews)
7. Quip
Quip is a mobile- and web-friendly online platform that primarily focuses on collaboration among sales teams. It allows teams to create, modify, and edit documents and spreadsheets as a group. The centralized visibility enables salespeople to collaborate on processes like:
- Account planning
- Mutual close plans
- Qualification notes
The way the collaboration unfolds is pretty straightforward. For every document or spreadsheet you create, Quip adds a team chat. The result? You and your team can have specific discussions and reach your communication goals faster than going back and forth in traditional general chat rooms!
All your data is stored on the cloud (managed by Salesforce) and is entirely encrypted. You have the liberty to change access controls for users.
Quip best features
- Focuses on sales team collabs
- Specific chats for each document and spreadsheet created
- Data securely stored on the cloud
- Handy admin controls
Quip limitations
- The mobile app can be buggy during autoclose
- Users may be unable to view the edit history of a document sometimes
Quip pricing
- Starter: $10/month
- Quip plus: $25/month
- Quip Advanced: $100/month
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Quip ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.0/5 (1,090+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/ 5 (190+ reviews)
8. Creately
Creately is designed to be a central hub for managing people and processes. 🌷
With Creately, teams can enjoy both synchronous and asynchronous collaboration. Thanks to monitoring-friendly features, like live mouse tracking, synced change previews, and comment discussion threads, your team can get things done quicker than ever.
As a digital whiteboard software, Creately lets users take creativity to the next level. Additionally, it provides you with a good number of templates for structuring visual data and diagrams. They feature a drag-and-drop editor with predefined and custom-made shapes that can be used to build the desired diagram efficiently.
Admins can decide the amount of data every user on the workspace can access.
Creately best features
- Digital whiteboard with unlimited space
- Templates for diagramming
- Integrates with apps like Microsoft Office and Google Workspace
- Drag-and-drop feature
- Admin data access control
Creately limitations
- Its business plans can be pricier compared to other alternatives
- Limited integrations with workspaces limit functionality
Creately pricing
- Personal: $5/month
- Team: $10/month per user
- Business: $89/month (flat rate)
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Creately ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.4/ 5 (1,070+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/ 5 (160+ reviews)
9. Conceptboard
Conceptboard is another digital workspace software focusing on designs and prototypes. It allows teams to brainstorm ideas, collaborate on projects, and test prototypes. Thanks to infinite whiteboards with live pointers, you can easily see which person is making a specific edit!
Team leaders can make team collaboration transparent by organizing whiteboards, giving and revoking access from users, and managing past versions.
Users can leverage sticky notes and comments to leave any suggestions for designers. As long as you have an internet connection, you can use this tool on multiple devices and kick back since all data on your whiteboards is auto-saved.
For each whiteboard space you share, you’re provided with a password-protected link. Uploading or downloading is effortless thanks to Conceptboard’s ability to import and export multiple file formats.
Conceptboard best features
- Limitless whiteboard canvas
- Live pointers
- Robust security system
- Supports multiple file types
Conceptboard limitations
- An onboarding tutorial would help users master the features
- May fall behind in terms of new-age features compared to other tools
Conceptboard pricing
- Free
- Premium: $6/month per user
- Business: $9.50/month per user
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Conceptboard ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.6/5 (90+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.6/5 (40+ reviews)
10. Notion
Notion needs no introduction! As a collaborative platform, it helps teams visualize multiple projects at once. Built to help organize projects, wikis, and documents, Notion does a great job helping managers get a comprehensive view of tasks with custom Gantt charts and Kanban boards.
Teams can easily collaborate in real time on the same document or wiki using quick drag-and-drop moves. People who are tagged in comments receive email notifications to stay alert. Tasks can further be divided into cards within databases where members can use the “/” command to add any table, list, toggle, heading, or callout.
One of Notion’s most remarkable features is its AI add-on. It arranges your databases and documents into clear, actionable information you can interact with in a Q&A format!
Notion best features
- Project visualization via Kanban boards and Gantt charts
- User-friendly databases and tables
- Real-time editing within the same document
- AI assistant to improve accessibility of work data
Notion limitations
- The initial learning curve can be steep for new users
- The price for the AI assistant can be relatively high (compared to alternatives like ClickUp AI)
Notion pricing
- Free
- Plus: $8/month per user
- Business: $15/month per user
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
- Notion AI is available on all paid plans for $8 per user
*All listed prices refer to the yearly billing model
Notion ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (4,900+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.8/5 (2,000+ reviews)
Summarize this article for me pleaseStrengthen Your Team with ClickUp: The Best Microsoft Loop Alternative!
All the alternatives mentioned above are great for a variety of teams such as agile developers, designers, writers, or even managers.
But if you’re still in doubt, try giving ClickUp your time! As a free-to-use platform, it comes with a unique feature set made to remove collaboration roadblocks, ensuring your team is always informed, well-connected, and ready to tackle any challenges! ✌️
Questions? Comments? Visit our Help Center for support.