Office in the browser is one of the most common wishes for a Nextcloud — open Word, Excel, PowerPoint straight from the cloud, edit together with others in real time. There are three options, plus the question of whether the office engine runs on the same server as your Nextcloud or on a dedicated one.
The short answer for xaweho customers: Euro-Office comes preinstalled in every Nextcloud plan with us — nothing to set up, nothing to add on. The rest of this article explains what’s behind it and when one of the alternatives is worth it.
The three options
Euro-Office (our default)
- Preinstalled in all Nextcloud plans at xaweho — no setup, no extra charge
- A sovereign office suite from Europe: backed among others by Nextcloud, IONOS, XWiki and OpenProject, independent of Microsoft 365 and Google Docs
- Builds on the proven OnlyOffice engine — hence excellent
.docx,.xlsx,.pptxcompatibility - Fully open source: no editions, no connection licenses, no fine print
- Co-editing: multiple users in parallel, in real time; the shared office backend in the Nextcloud plans carries up to 20 simultaneous editors
- Open formats (ODF) natively — no format lock-in
OnlyOffice
- Microsoft Office compatible: outstanding
.docx,.xlsx,.pptxsupport — more format-faithful than Collabora - Modern UI: Microsoft-Office-like, many users find their way around immediately
- Co-editing: multiple users in parallel, fast and stable
- License:
- Community Edition free (limited to 20 parallel editors)
- Commercial license paid (50/100/200 simultaneous connections, official vendor support)
- When instead of Euro-Office? When your organization needs or mandates a vendor support contract with guaranteed SLAs on the software.
Collabora Online
- LibreOffice-based: geared specifically to .odt/.ods/.odp; .docx support is good, but with occasional layout quirks
- Classic LibreOffice UI: familiar for LibreOffice users
- Co-editing: possible, but less stable with many parallel editors than the OnlyOffice engine
- License:
- CODE (free): no cost, restricted feature set
- Collabora Online (paid): full feature set, commercial support
Comparison table
| Aspect | Euro-Office | OnlyOffice | Collabora |
|---|---|---|---|
| MS Office compatibility | very good | very good | good, occasional layout issues |
| OpenDocument compatibility | very good | good | very good |
| Co-editing stability | very good | very good | good |
| UI look | Microsoft-Office-like | Microsoft-Office-like | LibreOffice-like |
| License costs | none — open source | commercial license beyond 20 editors | commercial version paid |
| At xaweho | preinstalled in every Nextcloud plan | dedicated server available | on request |
Shared backend vs dedicated server
The office engine can run in two ways:
- On shared infrastructure, or the same one as Nextcloud — for self-hosters typically as an app-store package on the Nextcloud server; with us, as a cleanly separated, shared office backend (up to 20 simultaneous editors, included in every plan).
- As a dedicated server — a separate machine just for you, from which your Nextcloud draws its office functionality.
The app-store variant has problems, above all with serious multi-user use — this mainly affects self-hosters. More in Why app-store office is problematic.
The dedicated server is the most stable option. As soon as many people regularly edit at the same time or performance has to be predictable, it pays off.
Available at xaweho
Euro-Office Hosting (dedicated server)
A dedicated Euro-Office document server per customer, in four sizes up to 200 simultaneous editors — with zero license costs, because it’s open source. Fully managed, also for platforms outside Nextcloud (Confluence, Mattermost, your own apps via REST API).
Plans and prices: Euro-Office Hosting
OnlyOffice Hosting (dedicated server, optionally with a commercial license)
A dedicated OnlyOffice document server per customer — from the community entry level (up to 20 editors) up to 200 simultaneous connections with a commercial license. You order the license from us in the same go; we handle activation and renewal.
Plans and prices: OnlyOffice Hosting
Collabora Online (commercial)
The commercial Collabora license, with setup and maintenance, we arrange on request — open a ticket.
Which combination for whom?
| Setup | Use case |
|---|---|
| Euro-Office in a Nextcloud plan (preinstalled) | Private users, families, clubs, small teams — up to 20 parallel editors |
| Euro-Office dedicated server | Regular multi-user editing, predictable performance, no license costs |
| OnlyOffice dedicated server + commercial license | Organizations that need or mandate official vendor support |
| Collabora Online (commercial, dedicated) | When ODF format fidelity is mandatory |
Which one should I pick?
Stick with Euro-Office if:
- You just want to get going — it’s already running for you
- Microsoft Office compatibility matters (the engine delivers it)
- You don’t want license costs
Pick OnlyOffice if:
- Your organization needs a commercial vendor support contract
- You want the official commercial license with a major-update guarantee
Pick Collabora if:
- LibreOffice / the OpenDocument format is primary
- You prefer the classic LibreOffice UI
Several in parallel?
Yes, possible. Some setups have multiple office suites installed — users can choose per file which editor opens it. At xaweho we set that up on request.
What office in Nextcloud can do (with any variant)
- Edit in the browser: open Word/Excel/PowerPoint without an Office license
- Co-editing: multiple users at once, watching each other type
- Auto-save: changes are saved continuously
- Version history: restore older versions
- Comments and suggestions: collaborative review workflows
- Mobile: on iOS and Android via the Nextcloud apps
- Offline editing: via the Nextcloud desktop client + a local office app
What office in Nextcloud can’t do (well)
- Macros / VBA scripts: not supported. Complex Excel files with VBA are better left to MS Office on the desktop.
- Very large spreadsheets (100,000+ rows): performance limits.
- The lowest co-editing latency: Google Docs is marginally faster with very many parallel editors.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to set anything up as a xaweho customer? No. Euro-Office is preinstalled in every Nextcloud plan — click a file, the editor opens. If you’d rather have OnlyOffice or Collabora, open a ticket.
What is Euro-Office technically — a completely new program? No, and that’s the advantage: Euro-Office builds on the proven OnlyOffice engine, deployed millions of times, and is developed further in the open under European stewardship. You get the mature MS Office compatibility of an established engine — with no license costs.
What does a dedicated office server at xaweho cost? It’s on the product pages: Euro-Office Hosting (no license costs) and OnlyOffice Hosting (optionally with a commercial license). Both cancel monthly.
Do I need several suites? Rarely. One is enough. All of them cover practically every standard office feature.
What happens to my files if I disable the office app? The files stay untouched. You just can’t edit them in the browser anymore — downloading and opening them with a local office suite still works.
Do my office documents migrate between the suites?
Yes, they all use standard formats. A .docx you edited in Euro-Office also opens in OnlyOffice or Collabora — occasional layout quirks are possible, though (especially with complex formatting).
How many users can edit at the same time?
- Euro-Office in a Nextcloud plan: up to 20 in parallel (shared backend)
- Euro-Office dedicated server: depending on plan size, up to 200 — a hardware guideline, not a license cap
- OnlyOffice Community: 20 in parallel (license limit)
- OnlyOffice commercial license: 50/100/200 depending on the license tier
- Collabora CODE: a few (restricted), more with the commercial version
Office via the mobile app? Limited functionality. Reading works well; editing on a small screen is naturally constrained. Okay for tablet use, but for serious editing the desktop browser is better.
What’s next
First login as a Nextcloud admin
What to do after your Nextcloud is provisioned — login, profile, the important first settings, what we handle and what you handle.
Admin GUI overview — what you'll find where
Nextcloud's administration settings are big. Here's a tour of the sections that matter and what they do.
Creating users and groups
Create users for family, club or team, organize groups, set quotas, control login behavior.
Sharing — files with others, internally and externally
Sharing files in Nextcloud — within your cloud with other users, with groups, or externally via sharing link.