Microsoft Office for Windows users can now sync files with Google Drive

By Robert Nazarian July 22, 2015

how to get the most out of bing image search in microsoft office shutterstock 231219571 — Gil C / Shutterstock.com

Microsoft Office for Windows users already have the ability to use OneDrive and Dropbox for their cloud storage needs, but a lot of people prefer Google Drive.

By downloading and installing a new Google Drive plug-in for Office for Windows, users will be able to open and edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents directly from their Google Drive storage. You can then save them back to Drive after any edits.

Google_Dirve_Microsoft_Office_Plugin_01 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Google points out that if you happen to be working on a file that isn’t already in Google Drive, you can still save a copy directly to Drive as well.

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This new feature is useful for those that like to use the cloud for most of their storage needs, making it easier to access files from anywhere or share with others.

Google_Dirve_Microsoft_Office_Plugin_02 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

We need to point out that if you already have the Google Drive app on your computer, you probably don’t need this plug-in. The Google Drive app automatically syncs the files that on your computer with Google Drive, so you could essentially open those files from your local folder in Office, and Google Drive will automatically sync any changes. This new plug-in is for those that don’t want to sync their local files with Google Drive.

While many people will find this new feature useful, Google Drive syncing won’t work with mobile Office apps because it’s only for the Windows version of the Office software. Hopefully Microsoft will implement similar functionality for them, soon.

Click here to download the plug-in from Google.

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Robert Nazarian

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Robert Nazarian became a technology enthusiast when his parents bought him a Radio Shack TRS-80 Color. Now his biggest…

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