Elain Brown Tech 05.18.2022 04:May AM EDT

Google Offers 'Transition Path' Instead of Outrightly Removing G Suite Legacy Free Edition — Will Users Be Happier Now?

In a surprising turn of events, Google G Suite Legacy will not totally eliminate a free edition after all. However, there are still some limitations to the free version, including the limitation that it can only be for personal use.

Google's G Suite Legacy Phase Out Plan

In January, administrators of the G Suite Legacy free edition got an email announcing that support for the service they and their organizations had been using for 16 years was being phased off.

All the loyal Google G Suite Legacy users were upset after this announcement was made, causing havoc of complaints all over the company and on social media. Users were baffled as to why Google sought to force on them the brand-new and enhanced workspace in its place while charging them for access.

Google responded within a week, indicating that instead of being forced to upgrade, those individuals and businesses will be able to migrate their non-Workspace premium content and most of their data to a free option outside of Google Workspace.

Google's Free G Suite Legacy

Google G Suite Legacy for Business, beginning on June 27, 2022, Google G Suite Legacy for Business will no longer be available, according to The Verge.

For businesses, legacy users are encouraged by Google to immediately upgrade to a Google Workspace membership that is tailored to their specific needs so that they may start making use of their brand new security and collaboration features at no cost until August 1, 2022.

On the other hand, customers who are using the G Suite legacy free edition for non-commercial purposes have the ability to opt out of the transition to Google Workspace by clicking here and going to the Google Admin console.

This option is only available to customers using the G Suite legacy free edition. This G Suite transition path lets users keep using Gmail with their own personalized domains and still have access to free Google services like Google Drive and Google Meet, as well as their past purchases and data.

The free version of G Suite legacy is only for personal, non-business use. G Suite will move a user's account to Google Workspace if they are using the free version of G Suite for business.

Furthermore, it is also important to note that the G Suite legacy free edition doesn't come with support, and the company stated that they might take away some business features in the future.

Upgrading Google Workspace for Business

If users want to continue using their accounts for business purposes, they should upgrade to a Google Workspace subscription. If users do not upgrade by June 27, 2022, Google will upgrade their accounts automatically based on the services they are currently using.

According to Google Workspace, Google's transition to making G Suite Legacy has been met unwelcomely by its current user base due to the products' having a price tag. With that, Google decided to give away massive discounts on Google Workspace Business editions, starting at 50% off for the first year after August 1, 2022, based on a user's region.

Users can sign in to their Admin console to see their discounts. If a user chooses the Business edition of Google Workspace and the Flexible payment plan, they won't be charged until August 1, 2022.

However, if users do not want to use Google's Workspace anymore, they can most certainly transfer or download their data. Users will only need to enable Takeout on their Google accounts.

Users' administrator accounts can export and cancel a legacy subscription if users want to migrate their data. If a customer wishes to export data from other Google services, visit takeout.google.com.