Have you made the switch to a Mac? If so, you’re likely stuck with the dilemma of which word processor to use.
Do you stick to Microsoft Word which you’ve always used on your PC? Or do you now try Apple Pages for creating documents?
Both are great choices but for the sake of convenience, you’ll have to pick one to regularly use.
So which is the winner between Pages vs Word?
Here are the pros and cons of each for you to decide:
Cost
On Macs, Apple Pages is now completely free to use. The software comes installed on newer Macs — previously it was part of the ‘iWork’ package that you had to buy separately.
For Microsoft Word, you’ll have to pay a subscription fee each year to use the software.
At the lowest price, you can expect to pay $99.99 per year. If you stop paying the subscription fee, you won’t be able to create new documents.
Both applications will offer upgrades at no additional charge. If you’re on a tight budget, then Apple Pages is the clear winner.
Pages or Word for Access?
The major disadvantage of Apple Pages is that it only works on Macs and other Apple devices. With Microsoft Word, you can use them on Macs and PCs as well as various smartphone operating systems.
You have to consider how often you’ll need to produce documents. If you write on occasion, your best bet might be Pages.
If you always need to access your documents, then you’ve got to stick to Microsoft Word.
You also have to consider whether you have a need for collaboration.
For example, if you’ve written a book you’ll need to send it to your editor. Does your editor use Pages or Word? Chances are, they’ll use the latter.
For greater access, Word is the winner. You should opt for Pages if you are the only person who needs to access a document.
Ease of Use
We’ve all grown up with Microsoft Word so you’ll likely find it much easier to use. While you might have to learn tweaks to master the software, a basic knowledge of Word will often be sufficient.
With Pages, there’s a greater learning curve for some users. For example, you will have to understand how to create text boxes for writing. At times, you’ll have difficulty formatting your documents.
The biggest challenge with Pages is to create a Doc or Docx file. This is often where the formatting gets ruined. You might create a neat document with Pages, and then it’ll look untidy and poorly formatted in Word.
In fact, your best bet might be to use a conversion tool. If you use Pages, you might have to create a PDF document and then convert it to Docx.
In this category, there’s no clear winner. If you’re a creative type, you might find it easy to adapt to Pages. For the average user, Microsoft Word might be simpler.
Do You Need to Design?
If you need to design documents then you’ll find more flexibility with Pages. For example, you can create brochures, flyers, movie posters, and much more.
The Pages software has pre-designed templates for creating different types of documents. You can also create your own templates for future use.
Pages often get used for creating online magazines and newsletters. It’s a much better option for creatives than Microsoft Word.
For working beyond standard written documents, Pages is the clear winner.
Saving Your Work
It’s crucial that you find a way to backup your documents whenever anything goes wrong. Both Word and Pages have an autosave option and have worked to reduce the loss of work.
As of this publication, Microsoft Word saves your document every two minutes. Apple Pages saves it every few seconds. Microsoft Word gives you a small disclaimer at the bottom that it’s saving. Apple Pages doesn’t do this.
On balance, Pages is the better software since it saves every few seconds. The one caveat is that it’s not as easy to recover a previous version of your document.
For example, if you close your document and you re-open it you might not get to ‘undo’ any changes you don’t like.
Pages also work seamlessly with iCloud. If you connect the software to your iCloud, it will automatically backup all documents to your iCloud. If you delete your Pages documents from your Mac, you can recover them from your iCloud.
For Self-Publishing
One of the main uses of word processors is to self-publish your content. This can include essays, white papers, and ebooks among other types of content.
As such, the type of content you wish to produce depends on what word processor works best for you.
Let’s start with publishing essays and blog posts. It’s always easier to write them in Microsoft Word. You can then upload them to a cloud drive and share them with your audience.
If you use a Content Management System (CMS) to publish blog posts, it’s easier to import from Word than from Pages.
White papers work with both word processors. A white paper will get saved as a PDF and will often contain media. This works well with both word processors, however, Pages makes it easier to create a template and add graphics.
If you publish ebooks you’ll have to consider your publishing platform first. If you publish and sell ebooks on your own, either word processor works.
However, if you want to publish ebooks on Kindle then Microsoft Word works while Pages doesn’t work at all! Amazon will also require Microsoft Word documents to publish paperback copies of your book.
Pages vs Word: Who Wins?
In the battle of Pages vs Word, there’s no clear winner as you can see! You have to prioritize what works best for your needs.
Do you value ease of use? Are you willing to learn the software to create well-designed documents?
You also have to consider what types of documents you’ll need to create. You also want to know what word processor works well with your devices, CMS, and collaborators.
It’s also crucial that you know whether to create your documents in Doc/Docx or PDF versions. Check out our take on the matter.