SharePoint Alternatives – The 11 Safest Software Solutions for Companies

Why Consider SharePoint Alternatives?

Microsoft SharePoint is one of the most popular platforms for collaboration and document management worldwide, yet its security problems—highlighted again by the latest incident—high licence costs, implementation complexity and limited adaptability are prompting many organisations to look for alternative intranet solutions. Bringing every key requirement together in a single product is anything but easy.

• Highest security and GDPR‑compliant data protection

• Flexible deployment in cloud, on premises or hybrid environments

• Cost control with the option of open‑source models

• Simple operation and seamless integration

• Support for mobile work and modern team communication

Recent press reports indicate that locally hosted SharePoint servers are especially vulnerable to a zero‑day flaw called “ToolShell”, which allows attackers to seize full control of the collaboration software within minutes. More than 100 servers have already been compromised in Germany alone, leading to data theft, ransom demands and persistent backdoors. Experts and Germany’s BSI therefore warn companies to act quickly and consider alternatives to SharePoint. But which options are available, how do they differ and what are their advantages and disadvantages?

Why Consider SharePoint Alternatives?

When you are looking for Microsoft SharePoint alternatives, you should focus on several key aspects that go well beyond a simple feature list and largely determine usability, security and long‑term costs. It is also worth consulting reviews from other users of each SharePoint alternative to check whether your specific use case is covered.

Security features:
A strong alternative must offer robust security mechanisms. These include end‑to‑end encryption (both for data in transit and at rest), options for granular access control and, ideally, two‑factor authentication (MFA) enabled by default. In corporate environments and when dealing with sensitive data, GDPR compliance is essential. This involves a comprehensive audit and rights‑management system, encryption of all data movements (e.g. via HTTPS/SSL) and measures to log and secure every access.

Feature scope:
Core functions cover collaboration (e.g. co‑authoring documents, chats, task management), advanced document management (versioning, permissions, search), workflow and process automation, plus broad integration options with existing office applications and third‑party software. High‑performance alternatives often provide APIs or plug‑ins that let you shape workflows flexibly and adapt them to internal processes.

Operating model:
Decide whether an open‑source system, an on‑premises solution (run locally in your own data centre) or a cloud service best meets your requirements. Open‑source models offer maximum flexibility and cost control, together with an active community ecosystem, whereas cloud offerings guarantee quick deployment and low maintenance but may be less customisable and raise organisational challenges around data protection.

Scalability and adaptability:
SharePoint alternatives must work reliably for small teams and large enterprises alike and grow with increasing data volumes and user numbers. Important factors include flexible storage options, multi‑tenant capability, granular permission models and a modular architecture that allows features to be added as needed. Cloud‑based alternatives and established open‑source solutions are particularly strong in this area.

Support and community:
Commercial vendors provide rapid assistance in the event of problems; open‑source offerings benefit from an engaged community, user‑driven feature development and often exceptional transparency in updates and security patches. Especially for security and GDPR topics, a reliable, up‑to‑date support partner is crucial to respond quickly to risks such as newly reported zero‑day vulnerabilities.

Flip Employee App: The best and safest SharePoint alternative?

In light of the recent security breaches, it is clear that protecting sensitive company data is paramount. This is exactly where the employee app Flip comes in: it leads the field in functionality and usability among employee‑experience software solutions, and it impresses above all with a clear, comprehensive security concept:

• End‑to‑end encryption for all data and communication channels

• GDPR‑compliant storage exclusively in certified European data centres

• Zero‑trust principle: only authorised users gain access to critical content

• Regular security audits and international certifications

• Intuitive rights and role model for maximum control

With Flip you ensure that attacks like the recent ones on Microsoft SharePoint no longer pose a threat to your organisation. Flip meets the highest compliance standards while providing a modern, user‑friendly platform for team communication, document management and knowledge management. This makes Flip the consistently safest and most innovative SharePoint alternative on the market. The G2 reviews speak for themselves.

But Flip is more than just a SharePoint replacement for document management or a collaboration tool with chat functions. Whereas SharePoint is heavily centred on document management and intranet‑portal structures, straightforward employee reach and real‑time communication are not its core strengths. Flip, by contrast, addresses every employee group—from the production floor to the office—through its intuitive, mobile employee platform. This keeps the entry barrier far lower than with SharePoint, which is often perceived as complex and overloaded. As a result, companies benefit from higher adoption rates and a wider reach for internal communication.

Open‑source SharePoint alternatives: maximum independence and flexibility

Open‑source solutions are becoming increasingly important, mainly thanks to their transparency, lower overall costs and complete control over data. Here are the best SharePoint alternatives from the open‑source space:

OpenProject

OpenProject delivers advanced project management, task tracking and team collaboration for businesses. The software is fully open source, can be installed on‑premises if desired and guarantees the highest level of data security. Using OpenProject together with Nextcloud for document management is especially popular.

Advantages

• Open source and GDPR compliant

• Powerful task and Gantt management

• Customisable and extensible

Nextcloud Hub

Nextcloud is the market‑leading open‑source alternative to SharePoint for file sharing, teamwork and document storage, available as a fully self‑hosted or cloud solution.

Advantages

• File storage, synchronisation and online office

• Wide range of apps for collaboration and communication

• On‑premises operation possible

Alfresco Community Edition

Alfresco is a proven open‑source enterprise content‑management system that excels at complex document‑management tasks. It can run in the cloud or on‑premises.

Advantages

• Open source and expandable

• Powerful document management

• Flexible connectors, for example with Microsoft Office

ONLYOFFICE Workspace & DocSpace

ONLYOFFICE combines an office suite with collaboration tools, document management and CRM. The open‑source version allows local installation and is ideal for small and medium‑sized businesses that need data sovereignty.

Advantages

• Compatible with common Office formats

• Free starter version available

• Strong user management

Liferay DXP (Community Edition)

Liferay is an enterprise portal and digital‑experience platform that supports comprehensive intranet solutions focused on content, document management and workflow automation.

Free SharePoint alternatives: efficient solutions for any budget

Smaller businesses and start‑ups, in particular, benefit from free SharePoint alternatives that still provide professional features:

SharePoint alternative on‑premise: control and data protection in your own hands

Many German companies still prefer an on‑premises setup, mainly for security and compliance reasons.

Top on‑premises options:

• OpenProject: extensive installation and operation choices for in‑house servers

• Alfresco: powerful ECM, highly flexible

• Nextcloud Hub: leader in protecting sensitive data in your own data centre

• ONLYOFFICE Workspace / DocSpace: office apps plus document storage, fully installable locally

• Liferay DXP: robust portal platform, also deployable as a standalone instance

• Bitrix24: supports local operation with collaboration, CRM and management tools

• Redmine: open‑source project management, a lightweight on‑premises choice

• XWiki: flexible knowledge management, on‑premises and open source

Conclusion: The 11 safest SharePoint alternatives at a glance

1. Flip
   Flip is the safest alternative to SharePoint. Its intuitive employee app enables secure, mobile, GDPR‑compliant communication for every member of staff, including frontline teams, while still integrating at the highest data‑protection level.

2. OpenProject
   As noted above, OpenProject is open source, excels in project management and offers a broad range of features for modern teams.

3. Nextcloud Hub
   A leading solution for team and file collaboration, backed by a large community and rapid updates. Data is stored entirely on your own servers.

4. ONLYOFFICE DocSpace / Workspace
   Provides easy, GDPR‑compliant teamwork with familiar Office functions. A free starter version is available.

5. Alfresco Community Edition
   Well suited to large companies that have strict documentation and compliance needs. Runs in the cloud or on premises.

6. Liferay DXP
   An ideal SharePoint replacement for portals, intranets and complex web platforms. A free community edition supports team collaboration.

7. Bitrix24
   All‑in‑one business platform with its own messenger, CRM and project‑management tools to streamline teamwork, available in the cloud or on premises.

8. Google Workspace
   Cloud solution designed for real‑time collaboration, especially valuable to teams that rely on Gmail integration. Data sovereignty is limited.

9. Confluence (Atlassian)
   Widely used knowledge‑management and collaboration tool, suitable for organising projects and processes.

10. XWiki
    Open‑source enterprise wiki for knowledge management. Can be run on premises if required.

11. ClickUp
    Modern cloud project‑management platform with a wide feature set and a free entry‑level version.

Whether open‑source, free of charge or on‑premises, there are many SharePoint alternatives and their advantages over Microsoft SharePoint are compelling: stronger security, greater flexibility and lower costs. Choosing the right solution not only protects your data but, as the Flip example shows, can also boost productivity and team culture in a lasting way.

Sources:
Here is the Check Point article on the hacker attack against SharePoint servers. Here you can find the BSI warning (Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security).