Quick Answer Google Workspace features include Gmail with a custom domain, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Meet and Chat, plus Gemini AI, NotebookLM, Google Vids, AppSheet and Workspace Studio for AI agents, all managed from one Admin console. Every business plan includes the core apps, the Gemini app and Gemini in Gmail. Business Standard ($14 per user per month) adds Gemini in Docs, Sheets and Meet, meeting recordings, 2 TB storage, eSignature and booking pages. Plans: Business Starter $7, Standard $14, Plus $22 per user per month (annual), Enterprise custom
Google Workspace is Google's business productivity suite. It takes the free Google apps millions of people already use, such as Gmail, Drive and Docs, and adds a custom email domain, more storage, admin and security controls, and Google's business AI tools. This guide explains each Google Workspace feature, which plan includes it, and where the limits are, with every detail checked against Google's pricing comparison on October 3, 2026. Prices are in USD for US customers.
Google Workspace features by plan at a glance
| Feature | Business Starter | Business Standard | Business Plus | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (annual / flexible) | $7 / $8.40 | $14 / $16.80 | $22 / $26.40 | Custom |
| Storage per user | 30 GB | 2 TB | 5 TB | 5 TB, more on request |
| Meet participants | 100 | 150 | 500 | 1,000 |
| Meet recordings to Drive | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Noise cancellation in Meet | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Appointment booking pages | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| eSignature in Docs and PDFs | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Gemini app | Basic | Expanded | Expanded | Expanded |
| Gemini in Gmail | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Gemini in Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive, Meet, Chat | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| NotebookLM | Basic | Expanded | Expanded | Expanded |
| Google Vids, Gems, AppSheet | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Endpoint management | Fundamental | Fundamental | Advanced | Enterprise |
| DLP, context-aware access, data regions | No | No | No | Yes |
Source: Google Workspace pricing, checked October 3, 2026. All plans allow meetings up to 24 hours.
Key Takeaways: Google Workspace Features in 2026
- Every plan includes the core apps: Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Meet and Chat.
- AI is built in, not an add-on. All plans get the Gemini app, Gemini in Gmail, NotebookLM, Gems and Google Vids.
- Business Standard is the AI tier. It adds Gemini in Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive and Meet, plus recordings and 2 TB storage.
- Business Plus is the security tier. It adds 5 TB storage, 500-person meetings and advanced endpoint management.
- Enterprise adds compliance controls like data loss prevention, context-aware access and data regions.
What Is Google Workspace?
Google Workspace is a cloud productivity suite from Google for businesses, schools and nonprofits. It was called G Suite until October 2020. Everything runs in the browser and on mobile apps, files live in Google Drive, and several people can edit the same document at once.
The main difference from free Google accounts: a Workspace account uses your company's email domain, gives admins central control over users and security, adds more storage, and includes business-grade AI and support. A free personal Google account includes 15 GB of storage shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos.
Communication Features
Gmail with a custom domain
Gmail in Workspace uses your own domain ([email protected]), with spam and phishing protection, shared mailboxes through groups, and admin-managed security. Gemini in Gmail is included on every business plan: it summarizes threads, drafts replies and finds information in your inbox.
Google Calendar and appointment booking
Calendar handles shared team calendars, room booking and scheduling across time zones. From Business Standard, appointment booking pages let clients book time directly, replacing a separate scheduling tool for many small businesses.
Google Meet
Meet runs video meetings in the browser with no download, for up to 24 hours. Participant limits grow by plan: 100 on Starter, 150 on Standard, 500 on Plus and 1,000 on Enterprise. From Business Standard, Meet adds recordings saved to Drive, Studio Sound noise cancellation and Gemini in Meet for notes and summaries.
Google Chat
Chat provides direct messages and team spaces, connected to Drive files and Meet calls. From Business Standard, Gemini in Chat can summarize conversations.
Content and Collaboration Features
Google Drive
Drive stores and shares files, with 30 GB per user on Starter, 2 TB on Standard and 5 TB on Plus and Enterprise. Files can be shared with edit, comment or view permissions, and Drive search finds text inside documents and images.
Docs, Sheets and Slides
Docs (documents), Sheets (spreadsheets) and Slides (presentations) let multiple people edit at once, with comments, suggestions and version history. They open and save Microsoft Office formats. From Business Standard, the Gemini side panel can draft text, build formulas, summarize documents and generate slide images, and eSignature lets you collect signatures on Docs and PDFs.
Forms, Sites and Keep
Forms builds surveys, quizzes and registration forms that feed results into Sheets. Sites builds internal websites and project pages without code. Keep holds notes and checklists that sync with Docs.
AI Features in Google Workspace
Google bundled Gemini into Workspace Business and Enterprise plans in January 2025, replacing the earlier paid Gemini add-ons.
Gemini app and Gems
The Gemini app is Google's AI assistant with business data protections. Business Starter gets basic access; Standard and above get expanded access. Gems are custom Gemini assistants you set up for repeated tasks, such as a proposal reviewer or a style-guide checker, available on every plan. CBAI covers the model itself on its Gemini page.
Gemini in Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive and Meet
Gemini in Gmail is on every plan. Gemini inside Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive, Meet and Chat starts at Business Standard, which is the main reason most teams choose Standard over Starter.
NotebookLM
NotebookLM is an AI research assistant that answers questions from the documents you upload and creates audio overviews. Business Starter gets basic access (3 audio overviews a day); Standard and above get expanded access (20 a day).
Google Vids
Google Vids is Google's AI video creation app, included on every plan. It turns scripts, Slides decks and documents into videos with AI avatars, AI voiceovers and Veo 3.1 clips. Business Starter users get 10 AI avatars and 200 seconds of AI video per month; Standard and Plus users get 25 avatars and 500 seconds. Read our Google Vids features guide or the full Google Vids review.
Workspace Studio (formerly Flows)
Google Workspace Studio lets you build Gemini-powered AI agents without code. An agent has a starter (such as a new email or a scheduled time), steps (actions such as labeling an email or sending a Chat message) and variables. Google launched it as Workspace Studio on December 3, 2025, renaming the earlier Workspace Flows, with availability across Business, Enterprise and Education plans.
AppSheet
AppSheet builds custom business apps without code from Sheets or other data sources, such as inventory trackers or field inspection forms. It's included on every business plan.
Admin and Security Features
Admin console
Admins add and remove users, reset passwords, manage groups, control sharing and turn apps on or off by department from one console. For example, admins can switch Google Vids on or off for specific teams; see Google Vids integrations.
Security by plan
- All plans: two-step verification, spam and phishing protection, security alerts and fundamental endpoint management for phones and laptops.
- Business Plus: advanced endpoint management and Google Vault for eDiscovery and data retention.
- Enterprise: data loss prevention (DLP), context-aware access and data regions for compliance-heavy organizations.
Which Google Workspace Plan Do You Need?
- Business Starter ($7): small teams that mainly need custom-domain email, Meet and shared files. Watch the 30 GB storage limit.
- Business Standard ($14): most businesses. It's the cheapest plan with Gemini in Docs, Sheets and Meet, meeting recordings, booking pages and 2 TB storage.
- Business Plus ($22): teams with compliance or device-management needs, or meetings over 150 people.
- Enterprise (custom): large or regulated organizations that need DLP, data regions and 1,000-person meetings.
Annual plans cost about 16% less than flexible plans. Google offers a 14-day free trial.
Start a 14-day Google Workspace trial →
Google Workspace Limits to Know
- Business plans cap at 300 users. Larger organizations need Enterprise.
- Starter storage is small. 30 GB per user fills quickly with video and design files.
- Most AI writing features need Business Standard. Starter is limited to the Gemini app, Gemini in Gmail and basic NotebookLM.
- Desktop Office apps aren't included. Docs, Sheets and Slides open Office files, but complex Excel models and Word layouts can lose formatting.
- AI limits apply in some apps. Google Vids, for example, caps AI avatars and AI video seconds by plan.
If one of these limits rules Workspace out, compare Microsoft 365, Zoho Workplace and others in our Google Workspace alternatives guide.
Google Workspace vs Other Tools
Google Workspace is strongest at live collaboration and browser-first work. Microsoft 365 is stronger for desktop Office apps and Teams, but charges extra for Microsoft Copilot. Many Workspace teams add specialist tools on top rather than switching: Notion AI for wikis and projects, or Miro AI for whiteboarding since Google retired Jamboard at the end of 2024. For automation beyond Workspace Studio, see Zapier.
Google also has AI tools outside Workspace worth knowing; see 7 hidden AI tools from Google you're probably not using yet and 6 free Google AI tools.
How We Researched Google Workspace Features
CompareBestAI scores every tool with the same framework, described in how we rank tools and our editorial guidelines. For this guide we:
- Checked Google's Workspace pricing comparison for every plan's storage, Meet limits, AI access and security features
- Checked Google's announcements for Gemini packaging (January 2025) and Workspace Studio (December 2025)
- Used Google's Vids help center for Vids AI limits by plan
- Removed outdated prices and statistics from the earlier version of this page that we could not trace to their sources
We did not run a new hands-on test for this update. Google changes plan features often, so confirm on Google's pricing page before buying.
Google Workspace Features FAQs
What is included in Google Workspace?
Google Workspace includes Gmail with a custom domain, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Sites, Keep, Meet and Chat, plus the Gemini app, NotebookLM, Google Vids, Gems, AppSheet, Workspace Studio and an Admin console. Storage, meeting size, AI access and security controls increase with each plan.
What is the difference between Business Starter and Business Standard?
Business Standard ($14 per user per month, annual) adds Gemini in Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive and Meet, meeting recordings, noise cancellation, appointment booking, eSignature, 150-person meetings and 2 TB storage per user. Business Starter ($7) has 30 GB storage, 100-person meetings and Gemini only in the Gemini app and Gmail.
Does Google Workspace include Gemini AI?
Yes. Since January 2025, Gemini is included in Google Workspace Business and Enterprise plans at no extra cost. Every plan gets the Gemini app and Gemini in Gmail. Gemini inside Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive, Meet and Chat starts at Business Standard.
How many people can join a Google Meet call on Workspace?
Google Meet supports 100 participants on Business Starter, 150 on Business Standard, 500 on Business Plus and 1,000 on Enterprise. Meetings can run up to 24 hours on every plan, and recordings are available from Business Standard.
How much storage does Google Workspace include?
Google Workspace includes 30 GB per user on Business Starter, 2 TB per user on Business Standard, and 5 TB per user on Business Plus and Enterprise. Enterprise customers can request more. Storage is shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos.
Is Google Workspace free?
No. Google Workspace business plans start at $7 per user per month on annual billing, with a 14-day free trial. Personal Google accounts get free Gmail, Drive, Docs and Meet with 15 GB of storage, but without a custom domain, admin controls or business AI features.
Final Verdict: Are Google Workspace Features Worth It?
Google Workspace gives small and mid-sized businesses everything they need to email, meet, store files and collaborate, with AI now built into every plan. For most teams, Business Standard at $14 per user per month is the right choice: it's the cheapest plan with Gemini in Docs, Sheets and Meet, meeting recordings and 2 TB of storage. Choose Starter only if your team mainly needs email and light file sharing, and Plus or Enterprise if compliance and device management matter.
Read next: our Google Workspace alternatives guide, or browse the Productivity & Collaboration category and our AI productivity tools guide.
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