What Document Foundation does

The Document Foundation (TDF) is a charitable foundation under German law, established in 2010 and headquartered in Berlin (Winterfeldtstraße 52, 10781 Berlin). It was created by Free Software advocates to steward LibreOffice, the forked successor of OpenOffice.org, and the related Document Liberation Project for converting proprietary file formats to ODF. The foundation operates with a small professional team of 18 full-time staff worldwide, managed by Executive Director Florian Effenberger since 2014, supported by hundreds of volunteer contributors handling development, documentation, QA, translations, and marketing.

LibreOffice is a comprehensive office productivity suite composed of six modules — Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Math, and Base — built on approximately 7 million lines of C++ code with Qt and GTK for UI rendering and Skia for graphics on macOS and Windows. The suite deploys across Windows, macOS, and Linux, is available in 114+ languages, and uses the Open Document Format (ODF, ISO/IEC 26300) as its native file format. Active development tracks include ODF 1.4 support, WebAssembly/browser prototypes, planned Android and iOS mobile builds via Qt 6, and a revived LibreOffice Online (LOOL) cloud version after five years of dormancy.

TDF funds itself almost entirely through voluntary donations from end users — 140,593 transactions totaling €1,807,780 (net) in 2025, up approximately 30% over 2024. Secondary revenue comes from corporate and government-sponsored development projects (e.g., the Austrian military) and a non-monetized certification program for developers, migration professionals, and trainers. The go-to-market is community-led: software is distributed free via direct download, Linux distributions, Microsoft Store, and Mac App Store, with awareness generated through events (LibreOffice Conference, FOSDEM), social channels, and the digital sovereignty agenda of European governments — visible in migrations by Denmark's Ministry of Digitalisation, the Austrian military, the Schleswig-Holstein region, and the broader French civil service.

Name

Document Foundation

Legal name

The Document Foundation

Website

https://documentfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Document Foundation is a Berlin-based non-profit foundation stewarding LibreOffice, the leading free open-source office suite, coordinating an 18-person professional team and a global volunteer community serving individual users, enterprises, and European governments.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Donations from end users: LibreOffice is free software made possible by thousands of volunteers around the globe and by the generosity of donors. Users can make one-time or recurring donations through the website using PayPal, Stripe, credit cards, and cryptocurrency. In 2025, TDF received 140,593 donation transactions totaling €1,807,780 net of processing fees, representing approximately 30% growth over 2024.
2. Professional Certification: TDF operates a certification program for LibreOffice professionals including Certified Developers, Certified Migration Professionals, and Certified Professional Trainers. Certification is free to access but involves peer-review process. Certified professionals offer paid services to enterprises deploying or training on LibreOffice.
3. Enterprise and Government Development Projects: TDF pursues corporate or government donations through development projects. For example, the Austrian military funded specific features and gave a talk about their migration to LibreOffice at the LibreOffice Conference 2025.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Document Foundation develops and stewards LibreOffice, a free open-source office productivity suite that includes word processing (Writer), spreadsheets (Calc), presentations (Impress), vector graphics (Draw), formula editing (Math), and database management (Base). The suite uses Open Document Format (ODF) as its native format and is compatible with Microsoft Office file formats. The foundation also operates the Document Liberation Project for proprietary format conversion and a certification program for LibreOffice professionals.

Product overview

The Document Foundation coordinates LibreOffice, a comprehensive free open-source office suite with six core modules: Writer (word processing), Calc (spreadsheets), Impress (presentations), Draw (vector graphics), Math (formula editor), and Base (database management). The suite also includes the Document Liberation Project for proprietary format conversion. TDF is developing cloud capabilities through LibreOffice Online (LOOL), a revived browser-based version, while planning future WebAssembly browser deployment and mobile apps for Android/iOS. A document server component for collaborative editing is also planned. The foundation operates a certification program for developers, migration professionals, and trainers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LibreOffice: Free, open-source office suite including Writer (word processing), Calc (spreadsheets), Impress (presentations), Draw (vector graphics), Math (formula editor), and Base (database management). Available in 114 languages.
• Document Liberation Project

Products and services

• LibreOffice A free, open-source office productivity suite compatible with Microsoft Office/365, available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Includes six modules covering word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, vector graphics, formula editing, and database management, with native ODF support.
• Document Liberation Project A community of developers united to free users from vendor lock-in by providing powerful tools for the conversion of proprietary file formats to the corresponding ODF format.
• LibreOffice Certification Program Certification program assessing competence in LibreOffice development, migrations, trainings, and support. Includes Certified Developer, Certified Migration Professional, and Certified Professional Trainer categories. Certification is free to access but involves a peer-review process.
• LibreOffice Getting Started Guide Comprehensive introductory guide covering all aspects of LibreOffice including Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Math, and Base, available for free download from the LibreOffice Bookshelf Project and coordinated by the Documentation Coordinator.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 100 million users worldwide, with 44.8 million downloads in 2025 alone
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• NextcloudminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Nextcloud partnered with IONOS to launch Euro-Office, a fork of OnlyOffice positioned as a sovereign European alternative. OnlyOffice has suspended its partnership with Nextcloud in response to the fork, citing AGPL license violations. The relationship between TDF and Nextcloud has been complicated by Nextcloud's role in the Euro-Office initiative that TDF publicly criticized.
• IONOSminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025German cloud vendor IONOS, along with Nextcloud, launched Euro-Office as a fork of OnlyOffice. IONOS offers Nextcloud Workspace with integrated Euro-Office. TDF has criticized Euro-Office for using Microsoft's OOXML format rather than open ODF standards.
• EurostackminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Eurostack is one of the European tech firms (along with IONOS, Nextcloud, XWiki, OpenProject, Soverin, Abilian, and BTactic) behind the Euro-Office initiative, a browser-based open-source office suite launched June 9, 2025 as part of European digital sovereignty efforts.
• CollaboracoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Collabora has served as the primary commercial developer of LibreOffice's online/cloud versions since 2015, dominating the cloud-based office suite space for over a decade. However, the relationship has become controversial following TDF's decision to revive LibreOffice Online (LOOL) development after five years of dormancy, with Collabora co-founder Michael Meeks calling it an 'extraordinary decision' that undermines the value of their contributions. TDF expelled Collabora engineers from membership rolls in April 2026, removing governance voting rights while preserving their ability to contribute code.
• Collabora OfficecoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2015Collabora Office is a UK-based open-source office suite derived from LibreOffice, offering commercial support and enterprise deployments of LibreOffice-based technology.
• AllotropiaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAllotropia contributed engineers to LibreOffice development. In April 2026, TDF expelled Allotropia representatives from TDF membership rolls alongside Collabora engineers, characterizing the removals as necessary to prevent corporate capture of the foundation.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Apple iWork (Pages, Numbers, Keynote): Apple's consumer and prosumer office suite bundled with macOS/iOS. Competes in the same document creation category with strong platform integration for Apple users, though less relevant in enterprise Windows/Linux deployments where LibreOffice is strongest.
• Zoho Workplace: Cloud office and collaboration suite (Writer, Sheet, Show, Mail, Cliq) targeting SMBs with bundled productivity apps. Competes broadly in the same category and is sometimes positioned alongside open-source suites in cost-sensitive and sovereign-IT procurement conversations.
• Microsoft (Microsoft 365 / Office): Dominant commercial office productivity suite with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and OneDrive. Captures roughly 96% of the addressable market alongside Google and is the primary incumbent TDF positions against in government and enterprise procurement.
• Google (Google Workspace): Cloud-native office suite (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive) sharing the same productivity category and competing for the same end users and enterprise buyers. Strong in education and SMB segments and represents the second pillar of the duopoly TDF challenges.

Emerging players

• SoftMaker Office: Commercial office suite from a German vendor offering TextMaker, PlanMaker, and Presentations with strong Microsoft Office format support. Competes for the same Microsoft Office alternative buyer, particularly in European SMB and enterprise segments.
• WPS Office (Kingsoft): Freemium office suite from Kingsoft offering Writer, Spreadsheet, Presentation, and PDF tools with strong Microsoft Office compatibility. Targets similar cost-conscious individual and SMB users, particularly in Asia, and competes for the same freemium productivity niche.

Direct peers

• Collabora (Collabora Office / Online): UK-based commercial vendor that has been the primary commercial developer of LibreOffice's online/cloud version for over a decade and sells a LibreOffice-derived enterprise suite. Most direct commercial peer and a former core strategic partner whose relationship with TDF is now contested.
• OnlyOffice (Ascensio System): Open-source office and productivity suite offering document, spreadsheet, and presentation editors with strong OOXML/ODF support. Direct competitor in the sovereign/open-source office market and the upstream for the Euro-Office initiative that TDF publicly criticised.
• OpenOffice.org (Apache OpenOffice): Predecessor project from which LibreOffice forked in 2010; maintained by the Apache Software Foundation. Shares LibreOffice's heritage and target users but has lagged in release cadence and feature parity.
• Calligra Suite (KDE): Free/open-source office and graphics suite from the KDE community, including Words, Sheets, and Stage. Comparable open-source office productivity offering with overlapping Linux desktop distribution channels but a smaller user base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/LibreOfficeTheDocumentFoundation
• Facebookfacebook.com/documentfoundation
• Xx.com/tdforg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/Document-Foundation-3469260

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Document Foundation