What it is
Google Workspace is business email on your own domain, plus Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive, Calendar, Meet and admin controls.
The reason to buy it is the email. Using a gmail.com or hotmail.com address for a business costs credibility with exactly the customers who notice, and it now fails the authentication policies that decide whether bulk email arrives.
It is one of the first two subscriptions I set up for any new business, alongside accounting software.
What it does
Email on your domain with Gmail's interface, spam filtering and search, which remains the best email experience available.
Docs, Sheets and Slides handle collaborative document work properly, with real-time editing that Microsoft took years to match.
Drive storage with sharing controls, and Meet for video calls with no separate subscription.
Admin controls let you add and remove staff accounts, enforce two-factor authentication and recover a departed employee's mailbox, which matters the first time somebody leaves.
Who it's for
Features
Pros and cons
Pricing
| PLAN | WHAT YOU GET | WORTH IT FOR |
|---|---|---|
| Business Starter | Email, 30GB per user, Meet. | Solo businesses and very small teams. |
| Business Standard | 2TB per user, recording, more Meet features. | Most small businesses. The usual tier. |
| Business Plus | 5TB, advanced security and retention. | Businesses with compliance needs. |
| Enterprise | Advanced controls and unlimited storage options. | Larger organisations. |
Priced per user per month. Business Standard is the tier most small businesses need, largely for the storage difference.
Business Standard. Starter's 30GB per user runs out faster than you expect, and the upgrade mid-year is more annoying than paying the difference now.
Alternatives
My verdict
Google Workspace is one of the two subscriptions I would buy before anything else for a new business. Email on your own domain is not a nicety, it is the difference between looking like a business and looking like a hobby.
Between this and Microsoft 365 the choice is genuine preference. Microsoft's desktop applications are better for complex documents; Google's collaboration is better and its email is the best there is.
Do not use your web host's bundled email. It is free, the deliverability is poor, and it will cost you an important message eventually.
Try Google Workspace →Who should use it
Who should avoid it
Related articles
Affiliate disclosure
Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you buy through one, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you, and it never changes the price you pay. It also does not decide what appears on this page: I recommend tools with no affiliate programme just as readily, and leave off tools with generous ones when they do not deserve the space.