Google Workspace works well for a lot of Perth businesses, and switching platforms just for the sake of it rarely pays off. But there are specific, practical signs that a business has genuinely outgrown it - or hit a requirement it can't cleanly meet. Here's what to look for before deciding either way.
1. Staff are fighting Google Sheets for complex work
If your bookkeeper, ops manager, or anyone building serious spreadsheet models is regularly hitting the limits of Google Sheets - slow performance on large datasets, missing pivot table features, macros that don't translate - that's a genuine productivity cost, not a minor annoyance. Excel's desktop app, available from Microsoft 365 Business Standard up, handles this work more capably.
2. A client, insurer, or tender is asking Microsoft-specific questions
Cyber insurance questionnaires and client procurement processes are increasingly written with Microsoft 365 terminology built in - Conditional Access, Intune-managed devices, Defender for Business. Google Workspace has capable equivalents, but if you're spending time explaining how your Google-based controls map to a Microsoft-worded question, that friction is itself a cost. See our guide to the Essential Eight for how this shows up in practice.
3. Your line-of-business software expects Outlook or Windows
Some industry software - particularly in accounting, legal, and trades - integrates natively with Outlook and Exchange, or assumes a Windows environment. If your team is working around a tool that was built to expect Microsoft 365, that's a sign the underlying platform mismatch is costing you time.
4. You're growing past a flat file-sharing model
Google Drive works well for smaller teams sharing files loosely. As a business grows past a certain size, the structured permissions, document libraries, and version control in SharePoint tend to suit more formal operations better - particularly if departments need genuinely separate, permission-controlled spaces rather than one shared Drive.
5. You're standardising on Windows devices anyway
If your business is moving away from Chromebooks toward Windows laptops - often driven by software needs elsewhere - Microsoft 365's tighter integration with Windows (single sign-on, Intune device management, native OneDrive sync) becomes a bigger practical advantage than it would be for a Chromebook-first team.
6. You need deeper device management across a growing team
Google Workspace has endpoint management, but Microsoft Intune - included in Microsoft 365 Business Premium - offers more granular control over company-owned and BYOD devices, particularly for Windows PCs. If you're scaling past a handful of staff and device management is becoming a manual chore, this is worth weighing up.
When it's fine to stay on Google Workspace
If your team works comfortably in a browser, doesn't rely on advanced Excel or Word features, and isn't facing a specific compliance or software requirement, there's no inherent reason to move. Google Workspace remains a strong, well-supported platform - the decision should be driven by an actual gap, not by Microsoft 365 simply being the more common choice. If you're staying put, make sure it's properly locked down - see our Google Workspace security best practices guide.
If a few of the signs above sound familiar, our Google Workspace to Microsoft 365 migration guide walks through exactly what the move involves, and our Microsoft 365 vs Google Workspace comparison covers the full feature and pricing breakdown.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it worth switching from Google Workspace if we're happy with it?
No, not by default. If your team works comfortably in a browser, doesn't need advanced Excel or Word features, and has no specific compliance or client requirement pointing to Microsoft, staying on Google Workspace is a perfectly reasonable choice. Switching platforms has a real cost in time, money, and staff adjustment, so it should be driven by an actual business need, not by Microsoft 365 simply being more common.
What's usually the tipping point for Perth businesses?
Most often it's a specific, concrete trigger rather than general dissatisfaction: a cyber insurance renewal asking questions Microsoft 365's tooling answers more directly, a client or government tender requiring specific security controls, or a new hire whose role depends on advanced Excel work that Google Sheets can't handle well. Vague unhappiness with Google Workspace rarely justifies a migration on its own - a specific, business-critical gap usually does.
Not sure if switching makes sense for you?
Talk to our Perth team - we'll give you an honest read on whether Microsoft 365 solves an actual problem for your business, no pressure either way.
Get a Free ConsultationFor related reading, see our migration cost breakdown and migration checklist.