Google One: Is It Worth the Subscription?

Deciding whether Google One is a worthwhile subscription depends heavily on your specific needs for cloud storage and the value you place on Google’s expanding ecosystem of perks. For individuals and families deeply integrated into Google’s services, the benefits can extend far beyond simple file storage, potentially offering significant savings and enhanced productivity.

Should you find that two terabytes of storage isn’t sufficient, you have the option to upgrade. This is available to current subscribers in select countries, with larger plans offering more space. The 5 TB plan is priced at $25 monthly or $250 annually, while the 10 TB option costs $50 per month without an annual discount. Both of these higher-tier plans include family sharing and the full suite of Premium Plan benefits.

The primary advantage of a Google One membership is the expanded cloud storage, which you can share with as many as five family members. While the storage pool is shared, each person’s private photos and documents remain secure and inaccessible to others unless they are deliberately shared. All members residing in the same country can also take advantage of the additional features.

One standout feature is unlimited saves for the Magic Editor in Google Photos. This powerful tool uses generative AI to remove unwanted objects or people from your pictures, adjust the sky’s appearance, or reposition subjects. Without a subscription, you are limited to just ten saves each month. It’s worth noting that Pixel phone users can access these editing features even without a Google One plan.

Subscribers to the 2 TB plan receive 10 percent cash back in Google Store credit on their purchases. This reward can be particularly valuable if you frequently buy Google hardware like phones or smart home devices. Be aware that the credit may take up to thirty days to appear in your account and it does come with an expiration date.

The Premium plan also bundles Google Workspace Premium, which unlocks advanced capabilities in apps like Meet and Calendar. You can host longer video conferences with sophisticated background noise suppression and create professional booking pages to streamline scheduling appointments with colleagues or clients.

Access to Gemini Pro provides a gateway to Google’s advanced AI models, offering assistance with complex reasoning, programming tasks, and creative projects. You can generate short videos from text prompts using Veo 2, utilize a Deep Research function for in-depth project work, and upload extensive documents for analysis thanks to a generous context window.

For video creation, Flow Pro gives you a monthly allowance of AI credits to generate cohesive narratives and videos. Similarly, Whisk Pro allows you to transform still photographs into brief video clips. NotebookLM Pro enhances your note-taking with more audio summaries and sources, plus the ability to customize the style of your notebooks and collaborate with others.

Gemini’s integration across Google’s core apps is another major benefit. In Gmail and Docs, it can help you draft everything from party invitations to professional resumes. In Slides, it can create custom imagery, and in Meet, it can improve video call quality.

The top-tier AI Ultra plan includes early access to cutting-edge prototypes like Project Mariner, an agentic research tool designed to manage multiple tasks from a single dashboard. It also provides early access to Gemini within the Chrome browser, where it can summarize webpages or even automatically fill out forms for you.

A significant bundled service is YouTube Premium, which removes advertisements from videos, allows for offline viewing, and includes access to YouTube Music. This is included as an individual plan with the AI Ultra subscription.

For users in the UK, there are additional compelling inclusions. The 2 TB Premium plan and above now come with a Nest Aware subscription for extended video history from home security cameras. Given that Nest Aware typically costs £8 per month on its own, this represents a substantial saving. Similarly, Fitbit Premium, a service for advanced health analytics and workouts, is also bundled at no extra charge in the UK.

Beyond these core features, Google One members occasionally receive Google Play credits to spend on apps, games, books, or movies. The value and frequency of these credits can vary. You might also encounter random offers for discounted Google services, extended free trials, or even free hardware like a Nest Mini, though these promotions appear and vanish without much warning.

Signing up for Google One is a straightforward process. You simply need a Google account. You can subscribe directly through the Google One website or by downloading the dedicated application on your Android or iOS device.

(Source: Wired)