Separate a Google Workspace account into two accounts

If you have a Google Workspace account with multiple domains, you can move a domain to its own Google Workspace account.

For example, a company has one Google Workspace account with two domains. When the company splits into two separate companies, they move one of the domains to a separate Google Workspace account. Each company manages their own domain, administrators, users, and billing.

Google Workspace for Education and Chrome devices

If you’re an administrator for Google Workspace for Education and your users are on managed Chrome devices, the process to separate a Google Workspace for Education account is different:

1. You need to file a support ticket to change your primary domain. For more information, go to Change your primary domain for Google Workspace.
2. Create new Google Workspace for Education accounts with Get started with Google Workspace for Education.
3. You then need to deprovision the Chrome devices that you want to move to the new accounts and provision them in those new accounts.

Google partners can also help you set up separate Google Workspace accounts. Find a Google Workspace partner.

How it works

In this overview, your Google Workspace account has a primary domain, solarmora.com, and a secondary domain, example.com. You are moving example.com to its own Google Workspace account.

1. Sign up for a new Google Workspace account with a domain or subdomain that you own, such as temp.example.com. The domain acts as a placeholder until you switch domains.

2. For each user in your current account at example.com, you create a user account in the new account at temp.example.com.

   

3. Copy users' email, files, and data from their current accounts to their user accounts in the new account. For example, you copy email for [e-mail] to [e-mail].
4. Remove example.com from your current account.
5. Add example.com as a secondary domain in your new account.
6. In your new Google Workspace account, switch the primary domain from temp.example.com to example.com. Then update your users' addresses to use example.com.
   
   

Now you have a separate Google Workspace account and users at example.com.

Before you begin

• Perform this procedure when an extended amount of downtime won’t disrupt your business or organization. You might not be able to use your secondary or alias domain for up to 48 hours.
• Ensure you can sign in as a super administrator for both your current and new Google Workspace accounts.
• Ensure you can update your domain's MX and TXT records (to set up email and verify that you own the domain).
• Verify that you’re able to change your primary domain. Changing the primary domain is not available for some types of Google Workspace or G Suite accounts. For details on other restrictions, go to Change your primary domain for Google Workspace.

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1. Download Google Workspace data (optional)

Download any Google Workspace data you want to save as a backup. This data includes Gmail messages, Google Calendar events, and files stored in Google Drive. The easiest way to download and export your users’ data is to use the data export tool. For details, go to Export your organization's data.

Note: You can't upload the downloaded data to any other Google Workspace account. You can, however, open the downloaded data with the Google Cloud Platform Console

2. Set up the new Google Workspace account

These steps refer to a Google Workspace account with a primary domain, solarmora.com, and secondary domain, example.com. Later, the domain example.com will be moved to a separate Google Workspace account.

1. Sign up for Google Workspace

   Sign up for a new Google Workspace account with a domain or subdomain that you own, such as temp.example.com (temp.yourdomain.com). The domain acts as a placeholder until you switch domains.

2. Set up your new Google Workspace account

   Verify your placeholder domain temp.example.com and set up email. Then start a paid Google Workspace subscription. Learn how to pay early

3. Create users and groups
   For each user in your current Google Workspace secondary domain, create a user with the same name and aliases in your new Google Workspace account.
   
   For example, if you have [e-mail], then create the user, [e-mail] in the new Google Workspace account. Learn how to create users
   Important: Do not delete or rename any users in your current Google Workspace account.

 

Current Google Workspace account Secondary domain example.com	New Google Workspace account Primary domain temp.example.com
[e-mail] [e-mail]	[e-mail] [e-mail]

Then recreate groups in your new Google Workspace account. Learn how to create a group

3. Copy users' data to the new account

For each user in the secondary domain, you copy their email and files from their current Google Workspaceaccount to their new account. For example, copy email for [e-mail] to [e-mail]

Important: Do not delete or rename any users in your current Google Workspace account.

1. Learn how to transfer data between Google Workspace accounts.
2. Copy users' email to their new Google Workspace account..
3. Download or zip up the files for each user’s Google Drive folder. Then upload the files to each user’s Google Drive at temp.example.com.
4. Give users instructions to copy other types of data (such as Google Calendar events) and forward incoming email to their new temporary account. Or you can sign in your users' accounts and do this for them.

4. Remove the secondary domain from your current account

You remove the secondary domain from your current account so you can add the domain to your new account.

You temporarily switch users at your secondary domain example.com to use your primary domain, solarmora.com. Then you remove the secondary domain example.com from your current Google Workspace account.

Step 1: Choose the time for the switch

After you remove the domain, your users can't use Gmail, Drive, and other services until you add and verify the domain in your new Google Workspace account. Also, you might need to wait up to 24 hours before you can add the domain to your new Google Workspace account. Learn more

1. Decide when to remove the domain from your account. You might choose the weekend or a less busy time for your organization
2. Notify your users about the move and that their accounts and emails will be temporarily unavailable.
3. You then need to deprovision the Chrome devices that you want to move to the new accounts and provision them in those new accounts.

Step 2: Remove the domain from your current account

Remove the secondary domain (example.com) from your users, groups, and aliases. Then you can remove the secondary domain from your current Google Workspace account.

Important: Do not delete any user accounts in your current Google Workspace account.

1. If you use Google Sites: Removing a domain permanently deletes any sites built in that domain. Before removing the domain, copy any sites that you want to save to your new Google Workspace account. Sign in to your current Google Workspace account, and follow the steps to copy a classic site.

2. Delete groups that use the domain.

3. Switch users to temporarily use the primary domain in your current Google Workspace account. Later, when you set up your new Google Workspace account, you can delete those users.
   1. In the Admin console, go to Menu  DirectoryUsers.
   2. in the search bar at the top of the Admin console, enter domain=example.com (replace example.com with your secondary domain). Tip: If you have a large number of users, you can rename them in bulk.
   3. In the Users list, click a user's name.
   4. Next to @, click the Down arrow and select your primary domain (or another secondary domain).

      

   5. Click Update user.

4. Remove the secondary domain, example.com, from the user's alternate address (email alias).

   1. In the Admin console, go to Menu  DirectoryUsers.
   2. In the Users list, click a user's name.
   3. Click Add Alternate Emails.
   4. If the email address uses the secondary domain, click Remove.

      

5. Set up your new Google Workspace account with the domain

You add the domain, example.com to your new Google Workspace account. Then switch the primary domain, temp.example.com, to example.com.

Managing user accounts associated with a Google Play Developer account

These user accounts lose their Google Play Developer association when you move them to a new domain. After you delete the user account in the old domain, create a Play Developer account using a new account. Request to have apps transferred to the new account. For details, go to Transfer apps to a different developer account.

1. In your new account, add example.com as a secondary domain. You might get the message, "This domain name has already been used as an alias or domain". After you remove a domain, it can take up to 24 hours before you can add the domain to your new account.

2. Activate Gmail for example.com in your new Google Workspace account.

3. Switch your primary domain from temp.example.com to example.com. Note: Don't delete the temp.example.com domain.

   

4. Update each user's address to use example.com as the domain for their primary email.

   

5. Help users upload any files to Drive, and update their user password. Now users have accounts and their data at example.com.

6. (Optional): Remove the secondary domain, temp.example.com, from your Google Workspace account.

Related articles

• Add a secondary domain
• Change your primary domain
• Remove a domain
• Merge domains from separate accounts