Google Discontinues G Suite Legacy Accounts-Pay Up or Lose Everything

In line with Google’s move to remove their free services, the new move is Google’s removal of G Suite Legacy free edition users.

TL;DR

• All G Suite Legacy free users will be migrated to paid Google Workspace accounts, prices starting from AUD$8.40 per user per month.
• There is no provision to fall back to a regular Gmail account (at time of writing)
• The deadline is 1 May 2022 to select a paid plan and to add a billing option by 1 July 2022. Failure to do so will result in your account being suspended.
• Alternative to Google Workspace is Microsoft 365 starting from AUD$6.90 per user per month
• Update: A “no-cost” option is now available for Google Suite legacy option in Admin Console.

Launched in 2006, the service allows businesses and individuals to set up a custom domain using Google’s Gmail services. Google Apps gained popularity as it offers a free service for small businesses, schools, nonprofits, and individuals needing email, storage, and more using their own domain.

In 2012, Google shut down the free Google Apps tier in line with the rebranding to G Suite. Existing users continue to enjoy the services without any fees. Over the years, G Suite has evolved into Google Workspaces, offering a plethora of features and applications. In Jan 2022, Google announced that it is shutting down G Suite’s legacy free edition.

Google will transition remaining users to an upgraded paid Google Workspace subscription based on your current usage. Nonprofits and Education will still be enjoying the free plans. Plans start at AUD$8.40 to AUD$25.20 per month per user. This is similar to Google’s recent move of removing unlimited storage for Google Photos.

For smaller businesses looking at options to downgrade to free Google Mail, there is no option to do so. While you can migrate your data out of G Suite, there is no path to fall back to the regular Google Mail account.

How much would Google Workspace cost?

Google offers a few plans ranging from AUD$8.40 to AUD$25.20 per month per user. Google is offering discount options for those upgrading from G Suite legacy free edition for up to 12 months after 1 July 2022.

What services are impacted?

According to the email sent out by Google, your account will be automatically upgraded to the corresponding Google Workspace plan by 1 May 2022. If you do not enter billing details by 1 July 2022, your account will be suspended. According to the email, “After 60 days in suspension, you will no longer have access to Google Workspace core services, such as Gmail, Calendar, and Meet. You may still retain access to additional Google services, such as YouTube and Google Photos. Enter a valid form of payment to restore your suspended account”

If you are using Google sign-in features in third-party services, apps, or websites, there will also be a disruption if you are migrating your domain out of Google Workspace. Remember to change your Google sign-in to an alternate email ID to avoid unnecessary disruptions.

As far as we are aware, there is also no way to migrate purchases for things like Google Play content or grandfathered subscriptions like YouTube music.

Deadline to opt-out of Google Workspace

All G Suite Legacy users have until 1 May 2022 to select a new plan, thereafter Google will automatically select the most appropriate plan according to your usage. You will not be billed for the first two months after the transition, but failure to do so after 1 July 2022 will result in your account being suspended.

Migrating out of Google

You can export your account data like email, photos, save bookmarks in a Google Takeout and migrate the files to a free Google account or other alternative services. Additional details on exporting data out of your account are available here

While there are a variety of alternatives available, it may be worth quickly accessing all your options before the deadline. If you are an individual or business looking for a similar solution, check out Microsoft 365.

Microsoft 365 for home starts from AU$99 per year or get a family plan for AUD$129 per year for up to 4 persons.

For Business, Microsoft 365 starts for AU$6.90 up to AU$27.50 per user per month.

If you are a business looking for an alternative to Google Workspace, speak to us about transitioning to Microsoft 365, which offers, best-in-class Office apps, intelligent cloud services, and advanced security.

UPDATE – 4 FEB 2022

Google has announced a new version of Google Workspace – Google Workspace Essentials, which is an alternative to Google Suite Legacy users, minus the email element. So for those who are using the other applications, you can still opt to use Google and probably host your email elsewhere. Not exactly the solution most of the users are hoping for as email remains the critical factor in using Google Suite Legacy.

UPDATE – 8 APRIL 2022

Google recently sent out an email to all legacy Google Suite users on the ‘no-cost’ option. Since the last update (image as above) of Google Workspace Essential, there has been little information on what the no-cost option actually is. There is also no option to opt for this in the Admin Console, nor is there any sign-up. Below is a snapshot from Google’s site

UPDATE – 15 JUNE 2022

Google has opened up the ‘no-cost’ option for former Google Suite Legacy users as long as it is for personal use. This option is available in the administrator setting. You will need to opt in in the Admin Console and agree with the terms of use.