XWiki vs Sharepoint

Open source vs. Proprietary

XWiki is a leading European alternative and open-source knowledge base software to Microsoft SharePoint. Why does this matter? Unlike SharePoint, which is a proprietary Microsoft product tied to the Microsoft 365 ecosystem, XWiki offers full transparency, flexibility, and freedom in hosting and organizing information. As open-source advocates, we believe in giving users full control over their software and data. This means no vendor lock-in and no mandatory cloud subscription. You can download, modify, and host XWiki on your own infrastructure or opt for our managed XWiki Cloud solution. Microsoft SharePoint locks you into its pricing model, platform rules, and future decisions about the hosting infrastructure.

When self-hosted, XWiki gives organizations total autonomy over their data and environment, making it ideal for companies with strict compliance, privacy, or sovereignty requirements. This is precisely why global tech players like Amazon and Lenovo rely on XWiki; for its flexibility, independence, the assurance of full control and the support of a dedicated open-source community and experienced team.

Microsoft SharePoint

Microsoft SharePoint is a web-based collaboration and document management platform that organizations use to store, organize, share, and access information securely. As part of the Microsoft 365 suite, it integrates seamlessly with tools like Word, Excel, Teams, and Outlook, making it a natural fit for companies already embedded in the Microsoft ecosystem.

Primarily, Microsoft SharePoint is designed around Office document management, with features that support intranet portals, internal communication, and basic collaboration tools. While it does offer wiki functionality, this feature is underdeveloped and is not designed to be the core of the user experience, limiting its effectiveness as a dedicated knowledge base for small teams or those looking to build a knowledge base with rich interlinked content. Wikis are just one among many modules and receive minimal emphasis. The structure doesn’t promote deep linking or tight integration between wiki content and other platform components.

Microsoft SharePoint also provides a development framework that allows for customizations tailored to business-specific needs, although it requires expertise in Microsoft-centric technologies such as .NET and Power Platform. This makes it a powerful but complex tool, best suited for organizations looking for a generalist platform that consolidates Office file workflows, intranet functions, and limited knowledge management in a single, Microsoft-aligned environment.

Microsoft SharePoint is available in 3 main plans:

• A standalone Plan 1 for basic file sharing and collaboration
• Microsoft 365 Business Standard for advanced data governance and enterprise content management
• Microsoft 365 Copilot which bundle SharePoint with Office apps, Teams, email, and advanced security features

Documents library: Users can edit documents with Office 365Image source: SharePoint's Document Library Tutorial

XWiki

Wikis are collaborative platforms designed for creating, editing, and organizing content collectively. Popularized by projects like Wikipedia, a wiki functions as a dynamic collection of web pages that users can modify in real time, provided they have the necessary permissions. Wikis are ideal for knowledge sharing, internal documentation, and team collaboration, especially when multiple contributors are involved.

XWiki goes beyond traditional wikis by offering a powerful, open-source platform designed for internal and external knowledge management, collaboration, and custom business applications. While first-generation wikis focus on simple content creation, XWiki introduces advanced features that cater to both SMBs and enterprise needs such as:

• Over 900 freely available community extensions that enhance your wiki's functionality with some of these extensions already bundled by default into the open-source product
• Many features in the native open-source software dedicated to knowledge management and collaboration which enhance productivity without the need for third-party plugins (comments, annotations, notifications, user mentions, discussion threads etc.)
• Office documents import (i.e. a Word document is transformed into a wiki page; XWiki retains the layout, images contained in the document and also the documents attached to the page)
• The management of unstructured data (like Wikipedia), as well as structured data (forms, spreadsheets etc.)
• Export of the data in many formats (PDF, HTML, XAR etc.)
• The customization of the wiki (logo, colors, and look and feel of menus)
• The possibility to create web applications through App Within Minutes without any technical knowledge
• Advanced version control, dedicated edit history, rollback, and powerful search capabilities
• Granular rights management by space, page, user groups
• Connection to the Enterprise Directory (data retrieval, SSO)

Apart from these features, XWiki SAS also offers support on top of XWiki and a wide range of business-oriented applications (also known as Pro Applications) maintained at all times. The license and support for all the Pro Applications are included in any Silver, Gold, or Platinum support plan, on-premises or Cloud. Additionally, the XWiki SAS company provides a full range of services including consulting, development, support, training and hosting.

Wiki page in edition mode, directly from your web browser. The WYSIWYG editor allows you to easily edit the document (links, pages, tables, layout options)

	XWiki	Microsoft SharePoint
Open source	Yes	No
Deployment	Cloud | On-premises (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle)	Cloud | On-premises (only Microsoft SQL Server)
OS	Any platform supporting JDK 1.8 or higher	Windows, some Linux compatibility (not native)
License	LGPL v2.1	Proprietary
Programming language	Java	JavaScript
Costs scheme	Monthly payment | Annual subscription | Quote-based	Monthly | Annual subscription | Quote-based
Features	USE CASES Wikis Documentation Content management Intranet Extranet Workflows Helpdesk Knowledge base Organization manual Procedures Integrated management system Collaboration for teams Project management Blog Website Digital Workplace Data Management System Discussion boards and forums ✅ Confluence migration	USE CASES Wikis Documentation Content management Intranet Extranet Workflows Helpdesk Knowledge base Organization manual Procedures Integrated management system Collaboration for teams Project management Blog Website Digital Workplace Data Management System Discussion boards and forums ❌ For some use cases, purchasing a higher tier plan is mandatory in order to benefit from specific functionalities.
	COLLABORATION Authentication Import/Export Workflow Extension Forms Tags and Tag cloud Users and Groups management Comments User mention Task Manager Templates Visual Editor (rich text editor with CKEditor) Working with drafts & approvals Word Import Content transfer (with translation) Diagrams (draw.io, BPMN) Dynamic content elements (Videos, Lists, etc.) Advanced search engine Internationalization Page hierarchy via subpages Analytics application User profile Attachments Calendar Reminder & resubmission App Within Minutes Customizable navigation Dynamic Live Data File Manager Flash Messages (reminders) Forum Ideas Application Meeting Application Notes Notifications Polls Real-time WYSIWYG Editor Rollback User directory ✅ Annotations ✅ Blog app ✅ Versioning (of all pages) ✅ Sub-wikis	COLLABORATION Authentication Import/Export Workflow feature Forms Tag and Tag cloud Users and Groups management Comments User mention Task feature Templates & Page template Visual editor Working with drafts & approvals Word import Content transfer (with translation) Diagrams through different apps Dynamic content elements (Videos, Lists, etc.) Search engine Internationalization Page hierarchy via subpages Extended statistics extension User profile Attachments Calendar Reminder & resubmission Microsoft lists Customizable navigation Dynamic Live Data File Manager Reminders Forum Lists or Power App Meetings Notes Notifications Polls Real-time WYSIWYG Editor Rollback User directory ❌ Very basic blog app Only of documents ❌ Some collaboration features need a higher subscription plan to access them as part of Microsoft 365 Business Standard subscription.
Programming capabilities	Advanced, through Velocity, Groovy and Java using thousands of available APIs	Medium, using JavaScript, SPFx (SharePoint Framework), Power Automate, and Power Apps
Supported Integrations	LDAP Microsoft Active Directory Application Azure AD Kerberos OpenID SAML Microsoft ADFS Microsoft EntraID Oracle Access Manager Ping Identity Diagram AI integrations: DeepL through community extension, ChatGPT and Ollama are both available through the XWiki AI assistant (BETA) Office 365 Media Calendar Maps Elastic Search Atlassian JIRA ✅ AWS SSO ✅ Amazon Cognito ✅ Gitlab ✅ Google OAuth ✅ Keycloak ✅ NextCloud ✅ Okta ✅ WSO2 ✅ Google Apps integration ✅ ONLYOffice ✅ Collabora Online ✅ Kibana ✅ Piwik ✅ Matomo ✅ Swagger You can implement various authentication methods in XWiki, as many already exist as community extensions.	LDAP Microsoft Active Directory Azure AD Kerberos OpenID SAML Microsoft ADFS Microsoft EntraID Oracle Access Manager Ping Identity Diagram: Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, Microsoft Power Apps AI integrations: Copilot Office 365 Media: Vimeo, YouTube, SoundCloud Calendar Maps Azure Cognitive Search Microsoft Power Automate ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌
Customer support	Phone | Email | Ticket	Phone | Email | Ticket
Training	Webinar Documentation Videos In person	Webinar Documentation Videos In person
Internationalization	40 languages, with 17 of them translated at 85% or higher	50 languages
AI-assistant	BETA	Available only in Microsoft 365 Copilot plan or as a separate add-on. Difficult to deactivate without technical knowledge.

In terms of pricing

Microsoft SharePoint starts at $5 per user/month when billed annually (or $6/month with monthly billing). This entry-level plan includes access to SharePoint, OneDrive, and Microsoft Lists. However, Microsoft bundles Copilot, its AI assistant, into the highest Microsoft 365 plans by default, making it difficult to deactivate. This forces organizations to pay for features they may not want, while potentially exposing themselves to security concerns tied to AI usage. Additionally, SharePoint’s full functionality often depends on other Microsoft products like Windows Server, SQL Server, and Microsoft Office, which may result in additional licensing costs. Furthermore, storage overages are billed at $0.20 per GB/month, and performance limitations can arise when lists exceed 5,000 items, potentially requiring costly third-party add-ons like Nintex, which can range from $10 to $50 or more per user/month. For organizations looking to host Microsoft SharePoint on-premises, separate server licenses and infrastructure are required, tying the organization further into Microsoft’s ecosystem. Pricing may also vary by region.

In contrast, XWiki offers a more transparent and flexible pricing model, suitable for both SMBs and large enterprises. The open-source edition is entirely free to use and self-host, with no license fees or vendor lock-in. Organizations retain full ownership and control over their data and infrastructure, especially with on-premises deployments. Support and advanced services are available through optional paid plans, with pricing adapted to the size and complexity of the deployment. The Bronze plan starts at €1 per user/month when billed annually (or €1.2/user/month with monthly billing). Unlike SharePoint, there are no hidden costs or forced upgrades based on feature tiers. Additionally, XWiki provides a financial balance by offering numerous applications that you can activate only if you need them, with pricing fair relative to the value these tools deliver.

When comparing SharePoint and XWiki pricing models, it becomes clear that XWiki provides a more predictable, scalable, and ownership-centric model for organizations of all sizes.

In terms of creating and managing content

In 2025, Microsoft SharePoint remains focused on document-based content creation, built around the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. You typically create and manage content through Office apps like Word and Excel, with AI-powered features like Copilot assisting you with metadata tagging, summaries, and compliance (as a paid add-on or included in the Microsoft 365 Copilot package). However, creating structured content (like databases or custom forms) often requires add-ons such as Power Apps, which increases both cost and complexity. Wiki and blog features exist but remain secondary and limited in usability, making SharePoint less intuitive for collaborative content creation outside of document workflows.

XWiki, on the other hand, is built around the concept that everything is a page, from documents to databases. This unified content model supports collaborative editing, version control, comments, and annotations on any type of page, whether it holds unstructured text or structured data. No-code tools like App Within Minutes make it easy to create forms and applications without technical expertise. Real-time editing, offline access, and export options (PDF, Word, etc.) further enhance content usability. Unlike Microsoft SharePoint, XWiki is browser-native and open source, ensuring full control over both content and platform.

Both platforms are powerful in their own right, but they serve different organizational cultures and workflows. While SharePoint excels at managing Office-based documents within Microsoft’s ecosystem, XWiki provides a more flexible, page-driven approach ideal for teams that prioritize open collaboration, structured content, and platform independence.

In terms of collaboration

SharePoint organizes content in separate silos: blogs, wikis, document libraries, and custom apps are functionally and spatially divided. Most collaboration revolves around sharing Office documents stored in team or department-specific libraries, with limited ability to cross-reference related content. Although the integration of tools like Microsoft Loop and Teams aims to improve cross-functional collaboration, it adds another layer of complexity, and it doesn’t fully address the fragmentation. Consequently, only document-stored information can be shared, while structured and unstructured information, even though important, is not shared through the tool and remains isolated. Additionally, SharePoint’s permission model can be error-prone. Users may be unintentionally excluded from relevant content or granted access to sensitive documents due to overly broad sharing settings.

In contrast, XWiki provides a unified collaboration space where everything (structured data, documents, notes) exists as interlinked pages within a flexible knowledge base. Contributors can edit content collaboratively, leave comments, or annotate pages in real time. Information is easily discoverable through powerful search across individual sub-wikis (e.g., marketing, HR, support) or the entire wiki. Since XWiki is browser-based and open by design, collaboration is fluid, centralized, and not limited to traditional documents.

SharePoint: Information is organized in silos/document library.	XWiki: Each document is a wiki page that can be linked to others.

In terms of technical aspects

SharePoint is limited to Microsoft SQL Server and tightly integrated with the Microsoft ecosystem (Windows Server, Active Directory). Installation and updates are often complex, with major upgrades requiring full migrations that may break custom developments. Standalone use is difficult due to reliance on NTLM or Kerberos authentication.

In contrast, XWiki supports multiple databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle), uses standard UTF-8 encoding, and is platform-independent. It offers smoother upgrades with better backward compatibility, reducing the risk and cost of long-term maintenance.

Why choose XWiki as an alternative to SharePoint?

Below, we've summarized several reasons, from different points of view, that explain why XWiki could be the most suitable tool for your organization.

From a financial point of view	From a human point of view	From a technological point of view
No license fees Transparent and predictable pricing Lower total cost of ownership than SharePoint No mandatory cloud subscription Full budget can be allocated to custom development and technical support of said development	Quick project implementation Dynamic, responsive support team Open, transparent software empowering users	Superior information organization via wiki pages Highly customizable with numerous community extensions Extensive native collaboration features No vendor lock-in Freedom to choose your hosting option

While both Microsoft SharePoint and XWiki support collaboration, XWiki stands out with its comprehensive native features, greater flexibility, transparent cost structure, and ability to self-host. Its ease of migration from SharePoint, combined with full data ownership and customization, makes it an ideal choice for organizations seeking a scalable, user-friendly, and cost-effective solution.

Thanks to XWiki, our clients can benefit from an up-to-date documentation of our products, from everywhere in the world. – Philippe Franck, Product Management Director at EasyVista

LEARN HOW TO MIGRATE FROM SHAREPOINT TO XWIKI