Choosing the right intranet is no longer simply about finding a place to publish company news and store documents.
For organizations already using Microsoft 365, the bigger question is:
Should you build your intranet directly with SharePoint, use a SharePoint-based intranet product, or choose a broader employee experience platform that integrates with Microsoft 365?
The answer depends on your organization’s size, Microsoft 365 investment, employee experience requirements, governance model, customization needs, budget, and long-term digital workplace strategy.
The best SharePoint intranet solutions in 2026 include Microsoft SharePoint, Beyond Intranet, Unily, Powell Intranet, Origami Connect, hubley, LumApps, Staffbase, Simpplr, and other Microsoft 365-connected employee experience platforms.
However, these solutions are not identical. Some are built directly on SharePoint, some extend SharePoint with pre-built functionality, and others provide a separate employee experience layer that connects to SharePoint and Microsoft 365.
This guide compares the leading options and explains which type of SharePoint intranet solution is best suited to different organizations.
Quick Answer: What Are the Best SharePoint Intranet Solutions?
There is no single SharePoint intranet platform that is right for every organization.
The following comparison provides a starting point:
| Solution | Type | Best For | SharePoint Relationship | Key Strength |
Microsoft SharePoint + SharePoint app in Teams | Native Microsoft solution | Microsoft 365-first organizations | Native | Flexibility, governance and Microsoft ecosystem |
Beyond Intranet | SharePoint intranet product | Organizations wanting a ready-to-deploy modern SharePoint intranet | Built around SharePoint & Microsoft 365 | Modern UX, customization, governance and enterprise intranet capabilities |
Unily | Employee experience platform | Large enterprises | Microsoft 365/SharePoint integration | Enterprise employee experience |
Powell Intranet | SharePoint intranet platform | Organizations wanting a packaged SharePoint experience | Built on SharePoint | Templates, personalization and governance |
Origami Connect | SharePoint intranet platform | Organizations wanting a modern SharePoint UX | Native SharePoint/SPFx | Pre-built components and templates |
hubley | SharePoint intranet platform | Organizations wanting a modern Microsoft 365 intranet | SharePoint/Microsoft 365 | Communication, personalization and AI |
LumApps | Employee experience platform | Enterprise employee experience | Microsoft 365/SharePoint integration | Knowledge and employee experience |
Staffbase | Employee communications platform | Frontline and distributed workforces | Microsoft 365 integration | Employee communications |
Simpplr | Employee experience platform | Employee engagement and personalization | SharePoint/OneDrive integration | Personalized employee experience |
Haiilo | Employee communications platform | Enterprise internal communications | Microsoft 365/SharePoint integration | Multichannel communication |
The right choice depends on whether you need a native SharePoint intranet, a SharePoint-based intranet product, or a broader employee experience platform.
A SharePoint intranet is an internal digital workplace built using Microsoft SharePoint to help employees access company information, documents, news, applications, resources, people, and business processes.
A modern SharePoint intranet can bring together:
Instead of functioning as a static internal website, a modern intranet can become a central digital workplace where employees discover information, communicate with the organization, find colleagues, access applications, complete tasks, and work with business knowledge.
Microsoft’s SharePoint guidance positions the home site as an important gateway to an organization’s intranet and recommends planning information architecture, content ownership, governance and adoption before implementation.
Before comparing individual platforms, it is important to understand the three broad approaches available to Microsoft 365 organizations.
The first approach is to build the intranet directly using Microsoft SharePoint and Microsoft 365.
A typical architecture might include:
SharePoint Home Site → Hub Sites → Department Sites → Teams → Business Applications
This approach gives organizations significant control over:
It is particularly suitable for organizations that already have Microsoft 365 and either have SharePoint expertise internally or work with a SharePoint implementation partner.
The second category consists of products designed specifically to provide a more packaged intranet experience around SharePoint and Microsoft 365.
Examples include:
These products can provide pre-built components, modern layouts, personalization, communication features, governance capabilities, integrations and other functionality that would otherwise require more custom SharePoint development.
This approach can be attractive to organizations that want to retain SharePoint as their foundation without building every intranet capability from scratch.
The third category includes employee experience and communications platforms that integrate with Microsoft 365 and SharePoint.
Examples include:
These platforms can provide a broader employee experience across communication, knowledge, engagement, personalisation and frontline use cases.
They can be particularly relevant when employee communications and engagement are as important as the underlying SharePoint architecture.
A good intranet comparison should not be based simply on the number of features a vendor lists on its website.
We recommend evaluating SharePoint intranet solutions across the following areas.
Does the solution:
Understanding the architecture is important because it affects governance, security, customization, data and long-term platform strategy.
Evaluate integration with:
Look at:
A modern intranet should make it easier for employees to find information.
Evaluate:
Consider:
Evaluate whether the solution can support:
Consider the effort required for:
Best for: Microsoft 365-first organizations that want maximum flexibility and control
Microsoft SharePoint remains one of the strongest foundations for building an enterprise intranet.
Organizations can combine SharePoint sites, pages, document libraries, lists, search, Microsoft Teams, Power Platform and other Microsoft 365 capabilities into a connected digital workplace.
The SharePoint app in Teams also brings the SharePoint experience into Microsoft Teams, helping employees access intranet content without constantly switching applications.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
SharePoint provides the underlying platform and building blocks, but organizations may need additional strategy, UX, development and governance expertise.
A successful SharePoint intranet still requires:
Best suited for
Organizations that:
Best for: Enterprise Organizations looking for a modern, customizable SharePoint intranet product
Beyond Intranet is a SharePoint-based intranet product designed to help organizations create a modern digital workplace within their Microsoft 365 environment.
Unlike a traditional SharePoint implementation that may require organizations to build many intranet components from the ground up, Beyond Intranet provides a more packaged intranet experience that can be customized around an organization’s branding, information architecture, employee needs and business requirements.
Beyond Intranet combines the product with SharePoint and Microsoft 365 expertise, allowing organizations to use the platform while also getting access to customization, integration, implementation and adoption capabilities.
Key capabilities
Why organizations consider Beyond Intranet
Organizations can use Beyond Intranet when they want the flexibility of SharePoint but prefer a more packaged intranet experience.
The platform can be particularly useful when an organization needs:
Beyond Intranet vs native SharePoint
The distinction is straightforward:
SharePoint provides the underlying Microsoft platform and building blocks. Beyond Intranet provides a more packaged intranet product and experience built around that SharePoint foundation.
Organizations can therefore choose between building an intranet primarily from SharePoint components or using Beyond Intranet to accelerate the creation of a modern intranet experience.
Best suited for
Beyond Intranet is particularly relevant for organizations that:
Best for: Large enterprises looking for an enterprise employee experience platform
Unily is an enterprise employee experience platform that integrates with Microsoft 365 and SharePoint.
It can bring information, communications, knowledge and employee experiences together while connecting with existing Microsoft technology.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Unily is an additional enterprise platform, so organizations should consider:
Best suited for
Large enterprises with complex employee experience requirements and multiple systems that need to be connected through a unified employee experience.
Best for: Organizations that want to enhance SharePoint with a packaged intranet experience
Powell Intranet is designed to work with SharePoint and Microsoft 365.
The platform provides pre-built templates, components, personalization, communication capabilities and governance functionality.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Organizations should evaluate:
Best suited for
Microsoft 365 organizations that want to retain SharePoint while accelerating the creation of a polished intranet experience.
Best for: Organizations looking for a modern, customizable SharePoint intranet
Origami Connect is a SharePoint-focused intranet solution that provides pre-built templates and components for creating modern SharePoint experiences.
The solution is designed to work within SharePoint Online rather than replacing SharePoint with a completely separate platform.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Organizations still need to plan:
Best suited for
Organizations that want to remain within SharePoint Online while reducing the amount of design and development work required to create a modern intranet.
Best for: Organizations wanting a modern SharePoint and Microsoft 365 intranet
hubley positions its intranet around SharePoint and Microsoft 365 and provides capabilities for communication, personalization, employee experience and AI.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Organizations should assess:
Best suited for
Organizations looking for a packaged SharePoint intranet with modern employee experience and communication capabilities.
Best for: Enterprise organizations focused on employee experience and knowledge
LumApps is an employee experience platform that integrates with Microsoft 365 and SharePoint.
It can surface SharePoint content alongside employee communications, knowledge and other workplace experiences.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
LumApps is an additional employee experience platform rather than simply a native SharePoint implementation.
Organizations should therefore evaluate:
Best suited for
Organizations that want a broader employee experience platform while continuing to use Microsoft 365 and SharePoint.
Best for: Employee communications and frontline workforces
Staffbase focuses heavily on employee communications and connecting employees across different locations and work environments.
Its Microsoft 365 integrations can connect employees with content and information from Microsoft systems.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Organizations primarily looking for a deeply SharePoint-native intranet should compare Staffbase with native SharePoint solutions and SharePoint-based products.
Best suited for
Organizations with large frontline, distributed or deskless workforces where employee communication and engagement are major priorities.
Best for: Employee experience, engagement and personalization
Simpplr is an employee experience platform that integrates with Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive.
It is designed to help organizations provide personalized employee content and improve engagement.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Simpplr is an additional employee experience platform rather than a native SharePoint intranet framework.
Organizations should consider:
Best suited for
Organizations that prioritize employee experience and engagement while continuing to use SharePoint and Microsoft 365.
Best for: Enterprise internal communications
Haiilo focuses on employee communication and engagement and provides integrations with Microsoft 365 and SharePoint.
Key strengths
Potential limitations
Organizations looking for a completely SharePoint-native architecture may prefer Microsoft SharePoint or a SharePoint-focused intranet product.
Best suited for
Organizations that prioritize employee communications and need to connect information across Microsoft 365 and other workplace systems.
One of the most important decisions is whether to build directly on SharePoint or use a SharePoint-based intranet product.
| Factor | Native SharePoint | SharePoint Intranet Product |
| Microsoft 365 integration | Excellent | Excellent |
| SharePoint foundation | Native | Usually native/SharePoint-focused |
| Customization | Very high | High |
| Pre-built intranet features | Depends on implementation | Usually high |
| Development effort | Can be higher | Usually lower |
| Design effort | Depends on project | Often reduced |
| Governance | Strong | Strong |
| Additional product licensing | No separate intranet product required | Usually additional |
| Vendor dependency | Lower | Higher |
| Implementation speed | Depends on scope | Often faster |
| Best for | Maximum control | Faster packaged intranet |
The key difference
Native SharePoint gives you the building blocks.
A SharePoint intranet product can give you those building blocks plus a more complete employee experience.
For organizations evaluating Beyond Intranet specifically, the decision can be simplified.
| Requirement | Native SharePoint | Beyond Intranet |
| Microsoft 365 integration | Excellent | Excellent |
| SharePoint foundation | Native | SharePoint-based |
| Modern intranet experience | Requires design/configuration | Product-based experience |
| Customization | Very high | High |
| Pre-built intranet capabilities | Depends on implementation | Yes |
| Personalization | Can be configured | Available |
| Governance | Yes | Yes |
| Custom development | Yes | Yes |
| Industry-specific solutions | Requires development | Available |
| Implementation services | Requires partner/internal team | Product + services |
| Best for | Organizations wanting maximum control | Organizations wanting a packaged SharePoint intranet |
The choice ultimately depends on whether your organization wants to build its intranet primarily from SharePoint’s native components or use a dedicated SharePoint intranet product to accelerate the experience.
The decision is different when employee engagement and communications are the primary objectives.
| Requirement | SharePoint | Employee Experience Platform |
| Document management | Excellent | Usually integrates with SharePoint |
| Microsoft 365 integration | Native | Strong |
| Intranet architecture | Excellent | Varies |
| Employee communications | Strong | Often advanced |
| Personalization | Strong | Often advanced |
| Social engagement | Requires configuration/additional tools | Often built in |
| Frontline communication | Depends on architecture | Often strong |
| Governance | Strong | Platform dependent |
| Custom development | Very high | Varies |
| Additional platform | No | Usually yes |
There are three common approaches to implementing an enterprise intranet.
Build directly on SharePoint
Choose this approach when:
Advantages
Challenges
Use a SharePoint Intranet Product
Choose this approach when:
Advantages
Challenges
Use a Dedicated Employee Experience Platform
Choose this approach when:
Advantages
Challenges
Use the following framework as a starting point.
Choose Microsoft SharePoint if:
Consider Beyond Intranet if:
Consider Powell, Origami or hubley if:
Consider Unily or LumApps if:
Consider Staffbase if:
Consider Simpplr if:
Consider Haiilo if:
Artificial intelligence is changing the way employees interact with workplace information.
But an AI-ready intranet is not simply an intranet with an AI chatbot.
The underlying content needs to be:
Employees should be able to ask questions naturally instead of relying only on exact keywords.
AI experiences must respect existing access permissions.
Poorly organized information creates poor search and AI experiences.
Organizations should define:
Organizations deploying Copilot should understand:
AI cannot reliably answer questions when the underlying content is outdated, duplicated or poorly maintained.
The quality of the AI experience is therefore closely connected to the quality of the intranet itself.
Governance is one of the most important parts of an intranet implementation.
A large SharePoint environment may include:
Without governance, the environment can become difficult to manage.
A good governance framework should define:
Content ownership
Who is responsible for each area?
Review cycles
When should important content be reviewed?
Site provisioning
Who can create new SharePoint sites?
Permissions
Who can view, edit and publish information?
Lifecycle management
When should old content be archived?
Taxonomy
How should content be categorized?
Analytics
How will you measure adoption and usage?
Still having doubts, Read our guide on SharePoint Governance
A beautiful homepage cannot fix poor information architecture.
Old content should be reviewed before migration.
Ask:
HR, communications, business teams and employees should also participate.
Without content owners and review processes, information becomes outdated.
More SharePoint sites do not necessarily create a better intranet.
An intranet requires continuous optimization.
AI cannot compensate for poor information architecture and unmanaged content.
A successful intranet should help employees:
A successful intranet is not simply a collection of SharePoint pages.
The technology provides the foundation, but the employee experience depends on how that foundation is designed and governed.
Information architecture matters more than visual design
Employees should not need to understand your organizational structure to find information.
The navigation should reflect how employees actually work.
Content governance should start early
Don’t wait until launch to determine who owns your content.
Search depends on content quality
Improving the search interface cannot compensate for duplicate, outdated or poorly structured information.
Personalization should solve a real problem
Personalization should reduce information overload rather than simply add more features.
The homepage is not the entire intranet
Employees may access information through:
The experience should work across all these entry points.
Adoption requires more than a launch email
Employees need:
Secrets of the successful SharePoint Intranet Implementation
Before selecting a platform or partner, ask these questions.
Product
Microsoft 365
User experience
Governance
Implementation
Commercials
There is no universal price for a SharePoint intranet.
The total cost depends on:
This is why organizations should compare total cost of ownership, rather than only comparing software license prices.
A native SharePoint implementation may have a different cost structure from a packaged SharePoint intranet product or a dedicated employee experience platform.
Implementation time depends on the complexity of the organization and the scope of the project.
A simple intranet can be implemented much faster than a global enterprise intranet involving:
The project timeline should therefore be determined after assessing:
The objective should not simply be to launch quickly.
The objective should be to launch an intranet that employees actually use.
Before selecting a solution, ask:
Architecture
Employee Experience
Search and AI
Governance
Implementation
Commercial
The best SharePoint intranet solution depends on what your organization is trying to achieve.
Choose Microsoft SharePoint when you want maximum flexibility and control and have the expertise to design and manage the environment.
Choose Beyond Intranet when you want a modern, customizable SharePoint intranet product with packaged capabilities while retaining the Microsoft 365 and SharePoint foundation.
Choose a SharePoint-focused platform such as Powell, Origami or hubley when you want to accelerate the creation of a modern SharePoint intranet with pre-built functionality.
Choose an employee experience platform such as Unily or LumApps when you need a broader employee experience across Microsoft 365 and other enterprise systems.
Choose communication-focused platforms such as Staffbase or Haiilo when employee communications and frontline engagement are major priorities.
The most important question is therefore not:
“Which intranet platform has the most features?”
It is:
“Which SharePoint intranet approach best fits the way our employees work, how our organization manages knowledge, and how we plan to use Microsoft 365 in the future?”
A successful intranet should make information easier to find, communication easier to manage, applications easier to access, and everyday work easier for employees.
Beyond Intranet provides a SharePoint-based intranet product along with the expertise needed to design, customize, implement and optimize modern digital workplaces.
Whether you’re:
Beyond Intranet can help you plan and implement the right SharePoint intranet strategy for your organization.
Ready to build a modern SharePoint intranet?
Book a Free SharePoint Intranet Consultation
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Sachin Jain