Proton launches its own encrypted alternative to Excel and Google Sheets

Swiss technology company Proton has developed a wide range of privacy-focused productivity apps over the years, from Proton Mail for email and Proton VPN for encrypted connections to Proton Pass for password management and Proton Drive for cloud storage.

Proton is now strengthening its office offerings with Proton Sheets, the new online spreadsheet that is part of Proton Drive. This alternative to Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets has a major selling point: its built-in end-to-end encryption that prevents anyone, including Proton itself, from accessing the data in your spreadsheets.

Anyone with a Proton Drive account can use Proton Sheets for free. Proton Drive offers a free plan with 5 GB of storage, with paid plans for more storage capacity: 200 GB Drive Plus costs $4.99/month, 500 GB Proton Unlimited costs $12.99/month, and 2 TB Proton Duo costs $19.99/month.

In addition to cloud storage, Proton Drive also includes Proton Docs (the encrypted word processor) and Proton Photos (the encrypted photo organizer). With Sheets, Proton becomes a real threat to both Microsoft and Google, especially with growing privacy concerns among users who want to dissociate themselves from today’s data giants.