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The Microsoft Places alternative
for your entire office

desk.ly is a workplace management platform for booking desks, meeting rooms and parking spaces. It is an alternative to Microsoft Places for organisations that want individual desk booking without per-space licences, per-user pricing and data hosting in Germany. desk.ly integrates with Microsoft Teams, Outlook and Entra ID and works equally well with Google Workspace.

ISO OMR DB Q4-26 OMR Leader WM Q4-26

desk.ly vs. Microsoft Places: a comparison

desk.ly is a workplace management platform for booking desks, meeting rooms and parking spaces. It is an alternative to Microsoft Places for organisations that want individual desk booking without per-space licences, per-user pricing and data hosting in Germany. desk.ly integrates with Microsoft Teams, Outlook and Entra ID and works equally well with Google Workspace.
 
ISO OMR DB Q4-26 OMR Leader WM Q4-26
deskly Workplace Management Home Hero ENG
buchung-icon-grau Booking
Quick and easy  
design-icon-grau Optimise space
Transparent occupancy data  
icon-check Works council compliant
Hosted in Frankfurt, Germany  
onboarding-icon-grau Onboarding
Ready in under a week  
datenschutz-icon-grau GDPR & ISO 27001
Certified and secure  
support-icon-grau Support
Personal and fast  

desk.ly and Microsoft Places compared

As of October 2026. Microsoft Places information based on Microsoft Learn. Existing Teams Premium customers keep premium features until renewal.

Microsoft Places

Setup & administration: Set up via the Places admin portal and PowerShell. Floor plans in IMDF format, uploaded via PowerShell.
Features: Book rooms, desk pools and individual desks via floor plans and calendars in Outlook and Teams.
Occupancy data: Occupancy reports and analytics via a dedicated dashboard. Actual occupancy relies on signals from Teams meetings or sensors; occupancy reports require a licence per space.
Integrations: Native to Microsoft 365, with Teams, Outlook and Exchange.
Guests and visitors: Guests can reserve a desk on site via a Teams desk hub device.
Licensing model: Core features included in many Microsoft 365 plans. Premium features are licensed per space.
Data protection: ISO 27001 certified and GDPR compliant.

desk.ly

  Setup and administration: Up and running in under a week. Managed in the admin area, with personal support from our Customer Success team.
  Features: Desks, rooms and parking spaces, including number plate capture, catering, recurring bookings and priority rules.
  Occupancy data: Analytics at resource level and heatmaps. With desk.ly Connect, you get real usage data rather than just booking figures, with no hardware sensors required.
  Integrations: Directly in Teams and Outlook, with users synced via Entra ID. HR systems automatically release desks during absences. 250+ integrations in total.
  Guests and visitors: Guest booking for desks, rooms and parking spaces (Enterprise and above). Visitor management with reception overview and check-in (Enterprise Plus and above).
   Licensing model: Billed per user, monthly or annually. All rooms, desks and parking spaces included.
  Data protection: Hosted in Germany (Frankfurt), GDPR compliant and ISO 27001 certified.

Over 1,000 companies worldwide trust in desk.ly

How desk.ly differs from Microsoft Places

Booking desks, meeting rooms and parking places
One platform for desks, rooms and parking

Your teams book desks, meeting rooms and parking spaces on one interactive floor plan. Catering for meetings and licence plate capture for parking are part of the Enterprise plan.

Integrationen Microsoft Integrationen desk.ly
Independent of your Microsoft licences

desk.ly connects to Microsoft 365, Teams and Outlook without depending on them. It integrates with more than 250 systems, including Google Workspace and HR tools such as Personio.

best-customer-support-team
Personal support from day one

A German- or English-speaking customer success team supports you from the first call to go-live. Most organisations are ready to start in less than a week.

Which option fits your organisation?

Microsoft Places suits organisations that work entirely in Microsoft 365 and mainly book meeting rooms and desk pools inside Teams and Outlook.

desk.ly suits organisations that manage desks, meeting rooms and parking in one place. It also fits teams that need individual desk booking without per-space licences or run mixed Microsoft and Google environments.

Security and GDPR compliance

desk.ly is ISO 27001 certified and compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). All data is hosted in Frankfurt, Germany. The platform is built for use under works council agreements, a key requirement for organisations in Germany.

Sneak peek into the product

How to book a desk

 

 

All booking features

More than just a desk: manage your entire workspace

All booking options in desk.ly

Meeting rooms

Book meeting rooms with catering and sync them with Outlook or Google Calendar.

Parking spaces

Book parking spaces and arrive stress-free with reservations and licence plate capture.

Visualise attendance

See which colleagues are in the office with kiosk mode.

Transparent licensing

Pricing that grows with your people, not your floor space

desk.ly charges per user and month.

Unlimited resources Create as many desks, rooms and parking spaces as your offices need, at no extra cost.  
Flexible per user

Billed per user, monthly or annually. Light licences cover employees who book only occasionally.

 
No hidden fees

Onboarding with our customer success team is free, and there is no service or platform fee.

 
desk.ly Connect

Occupancy data you can plan with

Bookings show planned attendance.

desk.ly analytics show how desks and meeting rooms are used, down to the individual resource. With the add-on desk.ly Connect, check-ins happen automatically as soon as a laptop connects to a docking station or monitor at the desk.

desk.ly Connect automates desk bookings and check-ins

Frequently asked questions about Microsoft Places alternatives

As of October 2026

Is desk.ly an alternative to Microsoft Places?

Yes. desk.ly is a ready-to-use solution for desks, meeting rooms and parking spaces that runs directly in Teams and Outlook and is up and running in under a week. It also offers parking space booking with number plate capture, guest booking, occupancy analytics and integration with HR systems. Data is hosted in Germany, and desk.ly is ISO 27001 certified.

How do the licensing models of desk.ly and Microsoft Places differ?

desk.ly is billed per user, monthly or annually. All rooms, desks and parking spaces are included, and new spaces cost nothing extra. With Microsoft Places, premium features are licensed per space, so you need to keep track of which spaces are licensed.

Can I use desk.ly in Microsoft Teams and Outlook?

Yes. desk.ly integrates with Microsoft Teams, Outlook and Entra ID. Your employees book desks, rooms and parking spaces right where they already work, without switching to another tool.

Microsoft Places is included in our Microsoft 365 licence. Why should we use desk.ly?

True, booking rooms and desk pools with Microsoft Places is included in many Microsoft 365 plans. For individual desk booking, auto-release and occupancy reports, however, every space has needed its own licence since April 2026 (Microsoft Learn: licensing requirements). With desk.ly, all rooms, desks and parking spaces are included, along with occupancy analytics and without per-space licences. Booking happens directly in Teams and Outlook, and you also get parking space booking with number plate capture, meeting rooms with catering and guest bookings.

Can we connect desk.ly to our HR system?

Yes. desk.ly integrates with HR systems such as Personio, SAP SuccessFactors and HR WORKS. New employees are created automatically, and absences recorded in the HR system release booked spaces again.

How much effort does it take to implement desk.ly?

desk.ly is usually up and running in under a week. Users are created automatically via Entra ID, and our Customer Success team supports you free of charge from the first conversation through to go-live. A tailored setup service is available as an optional add-on.

See desk.ly in action
Book a personal demo with our team, or start with up to 15 users for free, with no time limit.

Microsoft Places is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. desk.ly is not affiliated with Microsoft.