It looks like Google is going to make a very unpopular change to Gmail
Messages sent by Google to those creating a new Gmail account mesh with a change made to Google support documentation.
Google is making a change to Gmail that most won't like. | Image by PhoneArena
When you open a personal Gmail account, Google gives you 15 GB of free storage. Once your storage drops, you have some options to consider including the purchase of additional storage from Google One. For example, for only $1.99 per month, you could buy 100 GB of storage that can be shared with up to five others.
Google One offers different tiers of storage options for Google apps
The extra storage can be used on Gmail, Drive and Google Photos. There are additional tiers available from Google One. For $7.99 per month (the Google AI Plus tier), you can share 200 GB of storage with up to five others along with the Gemini 3.1 Pro, and limited access to Veo 3.1, Gemini in Gmail, Calendar, and Meet, Flow with higher access to Veo 3.1, and NotebookLM with more access.
For $9.99 per month, Google One can equip you with 2 TB of storage that can be shared with up to five others. This level has all of the features found in the 200 GB tier but adds additional perks such as getting 10% back from the Google Store on purchases like devices. Other perks include the ability to have longer Google Meet group video calls than the one-hour limit for non-subscribers, and enhanced appointment scheduling for Google Calendar.
There is a simple way to avoid paying for more storage and all you need to do is delete some content
Of course, you might not need to add storage at all if you delete content from your emails, photos, and Google Drive. Also counting against your storage limit is the backup you created for your device. Some device users will simply open up a new Gmail account to get another 15 GB of storage and as you might imagine, Google is not happy with this workaround.
As a result, the rumor mill says that Google is reducing the amount of free storage on new Gmail accounts to 5 GB from 15 GB. That would be a massive 67% decline in free storage. The truth is that the rumor mill might be getting ahead of itself and Google is simply performing one of those A/B tests that it is known for.
Google is looking to stop the creation of thousands of Gmail accounts that will be used by spammers
On Reddit, a Gmail user shared a screenshot of a message received after the Redditor opened a new Gmail account. This message said that he was entitled to receiving only 5 GB in free storage since he didn't include a phone number when creating the new Gmail account. Interestingly, Google's message gave the Redditor a choice to keep the 5 GB of storage or unlock 15 GB in free storage by using his phone number to open the new Gmail account.
Screenshot of message sent to someone who just opened a new Gmail account. | Image by Android Police
Why is Google giving you an incentive to include your phone number with the creation of a new Gmail account? Well, as hinted above, it could be to prevent users from opening new Gmail accounts just to bypass storage limits. But it also could be to prevent the opening of thousands of spam accounts by one person.
It should be pointed out that Google updated its support documentation on March 18. The text changed from "Your Google Account comes with 15 GB" to "up to 15 GB." This subtle adjustment seems to be proof that Google will reduce the amount of free storage for those opening a new Gmail account without a phone number from 15 GB to 5 GB.
The question is whether Google will eventually cut the amount of free storage for new Gmail accounts to 5 GB regardless of whether a phone number was submitted with the new account request.
How to find the Google One website and iOS/Android apps
You might notice that the screenshot showing the message from Google states that Google will use your phone number to make sure that storage is added only once per person. By the way, if you are interested in adding additional storage from Google One, you can visit the website by clicking on this link.
Or, you can install the app from the Google Play Store by pressing on this link. Or, you can install the Google One app for the iPhone from the App Store.
Honestly, if you don't feel like spending money on additional storage, go through your Gmail inbox and your Google Photos gallery. Surely there are emails and photos that you can delete to free up storage.
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