Over the years, Google’s productivity suite has had many names. What started as Google Apps became G Suite and is now known as Workspace. Over that same timeframe, the company has offered just as many ways to access that software, announcing new subscription plans while doing away with older ones. It now plans to sunset a tier that had survived the suite’s most recent rebranding.
In an email spotted by 9to5Google, the company told Workspace administrators it won’t offer G Suite legacy free edition as of July 1st, 2022. The company plans to transition those users to paid accounts starting on May 1st. Google says it will automatically select a subscription plan for users who don’t pick one on their own by the start of May, noting it will look at their current usage when making the decision. Any individual or organization the company migrates to a paid subscription plan automatically won’t be billed for at least two months. However, the company says it will suspend the accounts of individuals and organizations that don’t input their billing information by July 1st.
Business and enterprise Workspace accounts start at a monthly cost of $6 per user. The company will offer “deep” discounts to those affected by the decision. To be clear, if you’re using Gmail, Docs, Sheets and other apps through a free Google account, you won’t be affected by the move. What’s more, Google will continue to offer free Workspace plans to nonprofits and schools that qualify for its Fundamentals tier. That’s not changing with today’s announcement, nor do organizations with legacy G Suite Basic, Business, Education or Nonprofit subscriptions have to worry about a potential surprise bill.
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