Sharing Google One Storage: A Comprehensive Guide for Families

Key Takeaways

Running out of Google's free 15GB storage limit is a common issue. A Google One membership offers a solution by providing additional storage for Gmail, Drive, and Photos.

Google One provides a range of storage plans with varying prices to suit different budgets and storage needs. These plans range from 100GB to 30TB.

To share your Google One storage with your family, you must first create a family group and then activate the sharing feature either via the Google Account page or the Google One app. Once their personal storage is full, family members can then access the shared storage.

What Is Google One?

How to Share Google One Storage with Your Family and Avoid Running Out of 15GB Free Limit

Google One is a subscription plan that offers extra cloud storage for Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. It includes additional perks like access to Google experts for assistance, family sharing, as well as exciting features like Magic Eraser and Dark Web monitoring. The service provides both monthly and annual subscription options, with various storage plans available to suit different budgets and storage needs.

Basic: $1.99/month or $19.99/year for 100GB

Standard: $2.99/month or $29.99/year for 200GB

Premium membership is available at a cost of $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, offering 2TB of storage. If these plans do not meet your storage requirements, there is the option to spend between $25 and $150 per month for higher-tier plans with storage capacities ranging from 5TB to 30TB.

Storage can only be shared with members who have their own Google accounts and reside in the same country as you.

Step 1: Set Up a Family Group

To begin, establish a family group for the purpose of sharing your Google One storage. If you have already completed this task, you can proceed without performing this step.

Navigate to the Google Families page and click on the "Get Started" button. This link can be accessed from your desktop, laptop, phone, or tablet.

Click on the "Create a family group" button. A family manager manages group members and the Google apps and services shared with them.

Confirm your status as a family manager.

Add up to five family members by entering their names or email addresses. Children below 13 can be added via Google Family Link. You can skip this step for now if you want.

Congratulations! Your family group has been successfully created. In case you didn't skip the previous step, an invitation email will be sent to your family members to join the group. As soon as they become a part of the group, you will receive a notification via email.

The invite expires in two weeks, so let them know.

To add your family members, follow these steps:

1. Visit the Google Families page.

2. Click on the "Get Started" button.

3. Next, click on the "Send invitations" button.

4. Enter the email addresses of your family members.

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Step 2: Share Your Google One Storage

Now that your family group is up and running, let’s set up your Google One shared storage.

From the Web

Visit your Google Account page and click on the "Go to Google Account" button.

Click the "Go to Google One" tab.

Click the settings icon located on the top right.

Click the "Manage Family Settings" drop-down and toggle the "Share Google One with family" button to on.

From the Google One Mobile App

If you have the Google One app on Android or iPhone, you can start sharing your storage by following these steps:

Open the Google One app and tap the sidebar from the left-hand side.

Click on "Settings."

Now, your family members can access the shared storage provided by Google One. After utilizing their initial 15GB of free storage, they will automatically utilize the extra shared storage. However, please note that they won't have access to your files and data unless you explicitly share them.

How to Stop Sharing Storage

If you need to stop sharing your Google One storage with your family, then follow these steps:

Stop Sharing Storage From the Web

Visit your Google Account page and click on the "Go to Google Account" button.

Click the "Go to Google One" tab.

Click the settings icon located on the top right.

Click the "Manage Family Settings" drop-down and toggle the "Share Google One with family" button to off.

Stop Sharing Storage From the Google One App

If you have the Google One app on Android or iOS, you can stop sharing your storage by following these steps:

Open the Google One app and tap the sidebar from the left-hand side.

Click on "Settings."

Your family will lose access to the additional storage if you stop sharing it with them. If they have used up all their personal storage, their existing files will still be secure. However, they won't be able to save anything new. Google provides a helpful explanation of this.

Editor's P/S

As a hard fan of Google One, I am thrilled about the ability to share storage with my family. This feature is a game-changer for families who want to preserve their cherished memories without worrying about storage limits.

The process of setting up a family group and activating the sharing feature is straightforward and user-friendly. I appreciate the flexibility of choosing from various storage plans to accommodate different budgets and needs. The additional perks, such as access to Google experts and exciting features like Magic Eraser and Dark Web monitoring, make Google One an even more compelling choice.

Overall, I believe that Google One is an excellent solution for families looking to expand their cloud storage and keep their digital memories safe and accessible. I highly recommend it to anyone who values convenience, security, and peace of mind when it comes to their digital storage needs.