How to cancel Google Workspace

Google Workspace can be canceled or deleted in just a few steps. When deleting a Google account, keep in mind that all connected data will be lost. Ad­min­is­tra­tors can cancel the sub­scrip­tion in their Workspace account.

Google Workspace was known as G Suite until 2022. At the end of June 2022, Google switched G Suite to Google Workspace“). For private users, Google Workspace now includes common tools like Gmail, Docs, Calendar, Sheets, Slides, YouTube and Meet free of charge.

Companies pre­vi­ous­ly using a paid G Suite sub­scrip­tion for in­di­vid­ual or multiple users were switched to the paid Workspace version. Solo en­tre­pre­neurs, on the other hand, use Google Workspace In­di­vid­ual. Google currently offers four paid plans as part of Workspace: Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus and En­ter­prise. These differ in terms of their price, range of functions and storage space, con­fer­ence tools and security and man­age­ment functions. (As of November 2022)

Step-by-step in­struc­tions for canceling Google Workspace

Canceling your Workspace sub­scrip­tion or deleting your entire Google account, which also deletes your Gmail account, can be done in a few easy steps. However, keep in mind that when you delete a Google account, all data related to your contacts, chats, saved documents, files and connected YouTube accounts will be lost. Can­cel­la­tion, on the other hand, removes only the user accounts and data as­so­ci­at­ed with Google Workspace, as well as as­so­ci­at­ed groups and or­ga­ni­za­tion­al units.

If you ac­ci­den­tal­ly delete the wrong Google Workspace account or change your mind, you can restore your Google account and ad­min­is­tra­tor accounts. However, this option is only available for up to 20 days after deletion.

To cancel your Workspace sub­scrip­tion or delete your Google Workspace account, do the following:

How to cancel your Google Workspace sub­scrip­tion

As a one-person company or a company with multiple Workspace users, you can cancel the sub­scrip­tion directly through Google Workspace Admin.

Step 1: Log in to Google Workspace Admin with your user cre­den­tials.

Step 2: Navigate to Billing and select Sub­scrip­tions.

Step 3: Select the relevant workspace sub­scrip­tion (if there is more than one) and go to More. Now click on Cancel sub­scrip­tions. Select a reason for can­cel­la­tion and confirm the selection with Next.

Step 4: To proceed, confirm your selection with Cancel sub­scrip­tion and enter your Google address again.

Step 5: You should now receive an automatic can­cel­la­tion con­fir­ma­tion via email. The can­cel­la­tion should be completed in 84 days at the latest.

How to delete Google Workspace and your Google account

If you no longer wish to use Google services and/or prefer to switch to a Workspace al­ter­na­tive, you need to cancel your account, not just the sub­scrip­tion. You will also need to delete your entire Google account. As a private user, you’ll perform the same action if you no longer want to use the services included in the free Workspace plan, such as Gmail, Docs or Meet.

Follow these quick in­struc­tions to delete your Google account:

Step 1: Log in to your Google account using your cre­den­tials.

Step 2: Go to Data and privacy.

Step 3: Scroll to Data and privacy options and under More options go to Delete Google account.

Step 4: Now, follow the steps to delete the account. Accept the terms and confirm deletion by clicking Delete account.

Is there a can­cel­la­tion period with Google Workspace?

You can cancel a Google Workspace sub­scrip­tion at any time. When it goes into effect depends on the selected billing period. With a flexible payment plan, billing ends after the current month and in the case of annual/fixed-term payment plans after the deduction of any out­stand­ing fees.

Google Workspace offers a 14-day trial period. At the end of this period, the sub­scrip­tion is not au­to­mat­i­cal­ly converted into a paid sub­scrip­tion. The tran­si­tion to a paid Workspace sub­scrip­tion will only happen if you confirm your domain for Workspace or set up billing for Google Workspace within the 14 days.

Does it impact other Google services?

Deleting or canceling your Workspace account affects the data and ap­pli­ca­tions you use and store in Google. For example, when you delete your Workspace account, you lose access to services such as Gmail, Calendar, Meet and Docs. Likewise, files, at­tach­ments and user per­mis­sions stored in Drive or Gmail will also be lost.

When you cancel (but don’t delete) your Google services sub­scrip­tion, features such as YouTube or Photos will still be available. User accounts, or­ga­ni­za­tion­al units, and groups belonging to your Workspace account will be lost but can be re­ac­ti­vat­ed within a period of 51 days after can­cel­la­tion.

What are some al­ter­na­tives to Google Workspace?

When it comes to teamwork and col­lab­o­ra­tion, Google Workspace is one of the most practical cloud service solutions. However, not everyone has a need for Google Workspace. In this case, you can opt for al­ter­na­tive providers of col­lab­o­ra­tion tools or groupware such as Microsoft’s Exchange Server. You can also set up your own Docker mail server.

Microsoft 365 and Microsoft 365 al­ter­na­tives are also useful solutions for email, office and col­lab­o­ra­tion tools. You can read a com­par­i­son of Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 in our dedicated guide. Other powerful Workspace com­peti­tors include Microsoft’s OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, or Dropbox Business.