Google Docs alternative

The Google Docs alternative that’s built for proposals

Google Docs is a great place to write, and it's where most proposals start. But each new one begins as a copy of the last, and once you share the link, all you can do is wait for a reply. Nusii is just as easy to pick up: start from a template that fills in your client's details, and see when it's read, signed and paid.

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The short version

Google Docs
Google Docs is free, familiar and made for writing together: everyone edits at once, comments and suggests changes, and a shared link always shows the latest version. But it's a document, not a sales process. Every proposal starts as a copy of the last one, and once it's shared, you can't see what happens to it.
Nusii
Nusii is built only for proposals, and it's just as easy to pick up. Templates and reusable sections fill in your client's details, Nusii emails the proposal from your own address and tells you when it's opened, and your client picks options, signs and pays a deposit on the same page.

Stick with Google Docs for documents you write together with colleagues or clients. Choose Nusii if you send proposals every week and want them out faster, read and signed.

Previously we used Google Docs for all our proposals, but wanted to up our game. After testing several proposal software options, Nusii was the only contender that lasted. A great user interface and a great overall experience.

Jonathan WoldXWP

Why switch

Why people look for an alternative to Google Docs

Google Docs is a brilliant place to write. A proposal isn't just writing, though: it's a sale, with a document in the middle.

  1. 1

    Every proposal starts as a copy

    File, Make a copy, then hunt down every old name, date and price, and hope find and replace caught them all.

  2. 2

    Formatting that drifts

    Tables, page breaks and sections pasted from other docs bring their own fonts and spacing, and every teammate formats a little differently.

  3. 3

    Shared, then silence

    Copy the link, paste it into an email and wait. Google Docs won't tell you when your client opens it.

  4. 4

    Signing and paying happen elsewhere

    E-signatures need Workspace Individual or Business Standard and up, and there's no way to take a deposit the moment your client says yes.

Putting it together

Just as easy as a Google Doc, without the copy and paste

The same proposal, put together twice

Design

Your brand, set once, for everyone on your team

In Google Docs, the look lives in each document. Fonts, colors, tables and page breaks get fixed by hand, and they drift a little more every time someone copies last month's proposal or pastes in a section from another doc.

In Nusii, design is one settings page: your logo, a Classic or Modern layout, two fonts and your colors. Set it once and every proposal from everyone on your team comes out on brand, on any screen. You write; the theme takes care of the rest.

I love how I can reuse and reorder sections inside a single window. No more fooling around with typesetting, converting documents, and stressing about layout!

Maurice Cherry, Founder at 3eighteen media

Point by point

Google Docs vs Nusii, point by point

Google Docs is better at writing together. Nusii is better at everything that happens once the proposal goes to your client.

Starting a proposal
Google Docs: Make a copy of last month's proposal and replace the names by hand, or set up variable chips on Business Standard and up.
Nusii: Pick a template and a client. Their name, company and details fill themselves in, on every plan.
Reusing content
Google Docs: Copy and paste from other docs and fix the formatting, or save custom building blocks on Business Standard and up.
Nusii: Save any section (about us, case studies, terms) and drop it into any proposal, already styled, on every plan.
Looking on brand
Google Docs: Each doc carries its own fonts, colors and layout, and proposals drift as your team copies them.
Nusii: Set your logo, fonts and colors once. Every proposal from everyone on your team looks the same.
Writing together
Google Docs: Everyone edits at once, with comments, suggestions and version history.
Nusii: Your team works on proposals in one account, but there's no live co-editing or comments.
Sending it
Google Docs: Choose who can open it, copy the link and paste it into an email. Your client reads it in the Docs editor, in view-only mode.
Nusii: Nusii emails it for you, from your own address, with a link that reads well on a phone.
Knowing it was read
Google Docs: No notification when your client opens it. The Activity dashboard lists viewers from your own organization.
Nusii: A notification when they open the email and when they view the proposal, and on what kind of device.
Making changes
Google Docs: The link always shows the latest version, so a fix reaches your client straight away.
Nusii: The link you sent shows every edit too, and the proposal locks once it's signed.
Pricing options
Google Docs: A table your client can only read. No totals unless you link one from Sheets, and every change is yours to make.
Nusii: Optional sections and line items they can tick, with a total that updates as they choose.
Signing
Google Docs: On Workspace Individual and Business Standard and up, your client signs a PDF copy. Otherwise another tool, or print and scan.
Nusii: Legally binding e-signatures on every plan, right in the proposal. Nothing to set up.
Getting paid
Google Docs: A separate invoice once it's signed.
Nusii: Connect Stripe and collect a deposit as soon as they sign.

After you share it

Google Docs stops at the link. Your deal doesn’t.

Tracking

Know when it’s read, and follow up at the right moment

Share a Google Doc and you find out it was read when your client replies. Docs never lets you know when someone opens a document. On work accounts its Activity dashboard lists viewers from your own organization, and a client from outside it only appears if their organization allows it.

With Nusii you get an email when your client opens your email and when they open the proposal, and every view lands in its activity with the kind of device they used. So you call while it's fresh in their mind. And when a proposal is still waiting after a few days, Nusii reminds you to check in.

I can see when a prospective client opens the email and views the proposal, which is really useful for following up. And getting that notification when they accept? Yippee! That never gets old.

Russell Brown, Owner & Director at Digital Stream
Pricing options

Let your client choose, and watch the total add up

A pricing table in Google Docs is text your client can only read. It won't add itself up unless you link one from Sheets, and there's nothing for your client to tick: if they want the extra, they email you and you change the doc.

In Nusii, extras go in optional sections or line items. Your client ticks what they want and the total updates right there, so the upsell happens while they read, instead of in a week of back-and-forth.

Great way to templatize your proposals. If your service offering is like Tetris pieces and you have to mix and match and keep track of, account for, and do all the math to track each one, Nusii is your solution. Give it a shot!

Mark Heninger, President at 11 Amps
Signing

Signed and paid on the page they’re reading

Google Docs can request e-signatures on Workspace Individual and on Business Standard and up: you add signature fields and your client signs a PDF copy made from the doc. On Business Starter or a free account, it's another tool, or print, sign and scan. Either way, there's no way to take a deposit when your client says yes.

In Nusii, signing comes with every plan. Your client types their name or draws a signature right in the proposal, clicks accept and you get the email straight away. Connect Stripe and they can pay a deposit right after.

My clients really enjoy being able to sign electronically instead of printing, scanning, or emailing documents back and forth.

Janelle Hardin, Founder at Dingo Integrated Marketing
API and AI

Your AI assistant, working on real proposals

Gemini in Google Docs can draft a proposal from your other files, and Claude and ChatGPT can now create and edit Google Docs too. But a doc doesn't record whether your client opened it, signed it or paid, so an assistant reading your Drive can't tell you which proposals are still waiting, or how many you won this quarter.

Nusii MCP connects Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini or Microsoft Copilot to your proposals themselves, on every plan. Ask for a draft from your template, change the pricing in a sentence, then review and send it in Nusii. Assistants only work on drafts: sending is always done by you.

See the Nusii API, the CLI and Nusii MCP.

The same in ChatGPT, Gemini and Microsoft Copilot

What it costs

Google Docs is free. Your time isn’t.

Google Docs costs nothing, and many teams already pay for Google Workspace. Nusii is a subscription on top. The real cost of a proposal in Docs is the hours around it: making the copy, fixing names and formatting, sharing it and chasing a reply.

The software
Google Docs: Free with a Google account, or part of Google Workspace.
Nusii: Freelancer $29 a month (1 user, 5 active proposals), Agency $49 (3 users, 20 active proposals), Business $129 (5 users, 50+). Extra users are $19 a month on Agency and $29 on Business.
E-signatures
Google Docs: With Workspace Individual or Business Standard and up ($16.80 per user a month, billed monthly). Not on Business Starter or a free account.
Nusii: Included on every plan.
Tracking
Google Docs: No notifications. The Activity dashboard only lists viewers from your own organization.
Nusii: Included on every plan.
Deposits and reminders
Google Docs: A separate invoice, and your own calendar.
Nusii: Stripe deposits and automatic follow-up reminders on Agency and Business.
Your time
Google Docs: Copying, fixing, sharing and chasing, for every proposal.
Nusii: Templates, reusable sections and variables do the repetitive part.

The time is the real cost. Strategica Partners measured theirs: sending proposals through Nusii saved them an average of 2 hours per proposal. At 10 proposals a month, that's 20 hours back for the price of the $49 Agency plan.

Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial and a 60-day money-back guarantee. Compare the plans

Instead of spending hours formatting documents and creating proposals from scratch, I can put together polished, professional proposals in much less time.

Shaikh SaqibFounder & CEO, House of Smart Services

Which should you use?

An honest answer: it depends on how you sell

Stick with Google Docs if…

  • You write proposals together with colleagues or clients, line by line.
  • You only send a handful of proposals a year.
  • Your proposals are long documents that many people edit, like answers to an RFP.

Good fit: A small team that sends a few proposals a year and writes each one together.

What Google Docs does well

  • Free, and everyone already knows how to use it
  • Everyone edits at once, with comments and suggestions
  • A shared link always shows the latest version
  • Variables, e-signatures and Gemini on Business Standard and up

Choose Nusii if…

  • You send proposals every week and need to know which ones are being read.
  • Work only starts once the client has signed.
  • You offer packages or extras and want clients to pick them.
  • Several people on your team write proposals, and they should all look the same.

Good fit: An agency or professional services team that sends proposals every week and needs them read, signed and paid.

The trade-offs

  • A monthly subscription, where Google Docs is free
  • No live co-editing or comments like in Google Docs
  • Themes and covers instead of a free-form page layout

Switching

Moving from Google Docs to Nusii

Your Google Docs proposals come with you as content, not files. Paste the best one in once and Nusii turns the parts you repeat into templates and reusable sections.

What comes with you

Your best proposal
Paste it into Nusii once and save it as a template. Every new proposal starts from there.
Your boilerplate
About us, case studies and terms become reusable sections you drop into any proposal.
Your look
Your logo, brand colors and a cover image appear on every proposal you send.

What works differently

The layout
Nusii uses themes rather than a blank page. No more fixing tables and page breaks, but a hand-built layout won't carry over exactly.
Client details
Names and companies come from variables, so you write {{ client.first_name }} once instead of replacing names in every proposal.
Writing together
Comments and suggestions stay in Google Docs. If your team drafts long sections together, keep doing that there and paste the final text into Nusii.

How we help

  • Most people are set up within a day.
  • Free proposal templates to start from if you'd rather not paste your own.
  • Our support team answers by email at support@nusii.com.

Start from a free proposal template or see how templates work.

A few years back, we realised that we needed a more consistent approach to proposals other than a simple email. We found Nusii, and it’s been a breath of fresh air, easy for both our team and our prospective clients to use and understand.

Lee PanchbhayaFounder, Pixxel

Customers who switched

From copy and paste to templates

You could just duplicate a winning proposal for another client. You change the client that it’s assigned to and Bob’s your uncle. … It’s really just a question of reassigning it to the new client and it auto populates all of the client’s information and data into the proposal.

Julian CrasciManaging Director, Webrisor

For the first couple of years, we struggled to send, format, and track proposals. We tried a few options, then happily settled on Nusii.

Colin GillespieCTO, Jumping Rivers

Before Nusii, our proposals were spread across documents and templates that were hard to keep consistent. Now we build from reusable sections, so every proposal looks professional and on-brand, and the team spends less time formatting and more time on the actual scope.

Aswin KumarIntegrator, CRMified

Frequently asked questions

Google Docs vs Nusii: your questions

Can you write business proposals in Google Docs?

Of course, and plenty of businesses start there because it's free and familiar. The trouble is everything around the writing: copying last month's proposal, replacing names, keeping the formatting tidy, finding out whether it was read and getting it signed. Proposal software takes care of exactly those steps.

Why use proposal software instead of Google Docs?

Speed, visibility and signing. Templates, reusable sections and variables replace making a copy and find and replace. Notifications tell you the moment a client opens your proposal. And e-signatures and deposits let the deal close on the same page it was read.

Does Google Docs have e-signatures?

Yes, on Workspace Individual and on Business Standard and higher, but not on Business Starter or a free Google account. You add signature fields to the doc and send a request; your client signs a PDF copy made from it, and you get the signed PDF with an audit trail. Nusii includes e-signatures on every plan with nothing to set up: your client signs right in the proposal they're reading, and can pay a deposit straight after.

Can I see when a client opens a Google Doc?

Not really. Google Docs never notifies you when someone opens a document. On work accounts, its Activity dashboard lists viewers from your own organization, and a client from outside it only shows up if their own organization allows it. Nusii notifies you when your client opens the email and when they view the proposal, along with the kind of device they used.

Can’t Google Docs fill in my client’s name for me?

On Business Standard and up, variable chips can: set the client's name once and it updates throughout the doc. Nusii's variables come with every plan and fill in from the client you pick, with their company and other details, so a new proposal starts with them already in place.

What about Gemini, or Claude and ChatGPT writing Google Docs?

Gemini in Docs (on Business Standard and up) can draft a proposal from your other files, and Claude and ChatGPT can create and edit Google Docs through their connectors. The result is still a document that doesn't know whether it was opened, signed or paid. Nusii MCP connects your assistant to your proposals themselves: it can tell you what's waiting on a signature, draft a proposal from your templates and update the pricing on a draft. Sending is always done by you, in Nusii.

Is Nusii free like Google Docs?

No. Plans start at $29 a month for one user, or $49 a month for a team of three. Every plan comes with a 14-day free trial and a 60-day money-back guarantee, so you can see whether the time it saves is worth it.

Can I keep writing in Google Docs and send the proposal with Nusii?

Yes. Some teams still draft long sections together in Google Docs, then paste the final text into a Nusii proposal to send, track and get signed. Once a section is in Nusii, save it as a reusable section and you won't need to paste it again.

Do my clients need a Google account or any software?

No. Clients open a link in any browser, on a phone or a computer, and sign online. Nothing to install and no account to make.

Can I still download my proposals as PDFs?

Yes. Your clients get a link to the web version of your proposal, and both you and they can download a PDF copy at any time.

Can I reuse my existing Google Docs proposals in Nusii?

Yes. Paste your content in once, save the parts you use often as reusable sections and turn your best proposal into a template. Most people are set up within a day, and our support team is happy to help.

Comparing other tools? See how Nusii compares with Word, sending PDFs, InDesign, PandaDoc and Proposify, or see our comparison of the best proposal software.

Your next proposal, without making a copy

Start from a template, see when it's read and get it signed and paid in the browser.

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