Google Docs, Sheets and Slides for iOS Now Support Office Editing Mode

Google productivity tools Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides for iOS can now edit Microsoft Office files. Google shared the development in a blog post that states that the new feature eliminates the need to download separate apps to edit Office files. Google had last year updated Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides web client with the said feature while the same update came to Android in September this year. The software giant says that the new update is available to both regular iOS Google productivity tools users as well as to those users with Google Workspace plans.

“This feature brings the collaborative and assistive features of Google Workspace to your Microsoft Office files when you’re using your iOS device,” the company said in the blog post. Google also notes that the update for Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides for iOS will streamline workflows by reducing the need to convert file types. Office editing will replace Quickoffice (sometimes known as Office Compatibility Mode), which has limited functionality and collaboration capabilities. The ability to edit Microsoft Office files will be on by default, Google added.

In a separate post, it was noted that the Microsoft Office files that are compatible with either Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides include doc, .docx, .dot for Word files, .xls, .xlsx, .xlt, .xlsm for Excel files, and .ppt, .pptx, .pps, .pot for PowerPoint files. As mentioned, the automatic edit feature is available to personal Google Accounts as well as Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers. Google adds the feature is rolling out at the moment, and users are advised to updates the apps from Apple App store.

Last month, Google had also updated Google Drive to enable users to edit Microsoft Office. Before that, the compatible Office files opened in the preview mode after double-clicking on them and users had to enable the edit mode manually by clicking a dedicated button.

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