To help you navigate the consumer Google+ shutdown, here’s a list of common questions that may come up for you during this process. As more information becomes available, we’ll add it here.
FAQ updates
Below are some notable changes in the FAQ. To see all changes, see the full FAQ below. New questions will be marked with [new]. Revised questions will be marked [revised].
- We have added a summary of the consumer Google+ shutdown here.
- Photos and videos backed up to Google Photos will not be deleted. Learn more about backing up your photos and videos from Google+, including to Google Photos.
- All events created in Google+ will be removed from Google Calendar and birthdays of people in your Google+ Circles will no longer be displayed (birthdays from your Contacts will not be affected) as early as March 11, 2019. Events created from Google Calendar will not be impacted.
- Community owners and moderators can download and save data for their public Google+ Communities with additional details for every community post. Learn more
- The Google+ shutdown should not affect your Google My Business listing. These are two separate products with different accounts. Learn more
- Some YouTube functionality that was built with Google+ may be impacted including channel art and channel icon editing on mobile, private video sharing to Google+ circles, links to Google+ profiles on YouTube channel pages, Google+ custom URLs for channel pages, and commenting with outdated versions of the YouTube mobile app. Learn more
What’s happening?
- On April 2, 2019 we are shutting down the consumer (personal) version of Google+, a social network by Google.
- If you want, you can download and save your Google+ data; this may take time so get started before March 31, 2019.
- If you have a Google Workspace Account, as part of your work or school, you can continue to use Google+ within your organization.
- No other Google products (such as Gmail, Google Photos, Google Drive, YouTube) will be shut down as part of the consumer Google+ shutdown. The Google Account you use to sign in to these services will remain.
- You can delete your Google+ account before the consumer Google+ shutdown.
General questions
Given the challenges in creating and maintaining a successful Google+ that meets our consumer users’ expectations, we decided to sunset the consumer version of Google+. We’re committed to focusing on our enterprise efforts, and will be launching new features purpose-built for businesses. Read the announcement.
No other Google products (such as Gmail, Google Photos, Google Drive, YouTube) will be shut down as part of the consumer Google+ shutdown, and the Google Account you use to sign in to these services will remain. Your brand account will continue to exist without Google+, so you can continue to use it with other Google products such as YouTube channels.
Between now and the shutdown, we recommend you let your followers know where they can see your content outside of Google+. Consider creating a post that lists your website, blog, social media channels, and other ways to stay in touch.
As part of the consumer Google+ shutdown, we are deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts (other than content we’re required to keep for legal reasons). Photos and videos from Google+ in your Album Archive and your Google+ pages will also be deleted. Downloading your Google+ content may take time, so get started before March 31, 2019. Note that your photos and videos already backed up in Google Photos will not be deleted.
While we bring consumer Google+ to a close, we are continuing our investment in Google+ for the enterprise. More details here. You can check to see if you have a Google Workspace account here.
Certain Google+ content may not be deleted from consumer Google+ and/or Album Archive if it is needed in order to meet any applicable law, regulation, legal process, legal obligation (including legal preservation obligations), or governmental request.
The process of deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts, Google+ Pages, and Google+ content in Album Archive will take a few months, and content may remain through this time. For example, users may still see parts of their Google+ account via activity log and some consumer Google+ content may remain visible to Google Workspace users until consumer Google+ is deleted. Until your content from your Google+ account is deleted, you may be able to download and save your remaining Google+ content and delete your Google+ profile. You may also be able to view or delete your remaining Google+ activity.
Google+ vanity URL names will no longer be supported and will be deleted. Any links that use Google+ vanity URLs, including Album Archive, will no longer work.
Downloading your Google+ content
On April 2nd, your Google+ account and any Google+ pages you created will be shut down and we will begin deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts. Photos and videos from Google+ in your Album Archive and your Google+ pages will also be deleted. You can download and save your content, just make sure to do so before April.
You can download and save your Google+ data, including your Circles, Communities, Streams, and +1s. Downloading your Google+ content may take time, so get started before March 31, 2019.
Yes, you can download and save your content multiple times. Downloading your Google+ content may take time, so get started before March 31, 2019.
If you have a considerable amount of Google+ content, your request to download all of this content may take multiple days to complete. We recommend that you start downloading your Google+ content as soon as possible before March 31, 2019.
To save photos and videos from Google+, you should follow the instructions here.
Yes. See this help article to learn more about what happens when you delete your Google+ profile. Make sure to download and save any Google+ data you want to keep before deleting your Google+ account or page.
Community owners and moderators may download and save data for their Google+ Communities. Previously this downloaded data only included links to community posts. Starting March 11, 2019, additional details from public communities, including author, body, and photos for every community post are downloaded when you download and save your Google+ communities content. However, if the author of a post has turned off photo and video downloads, those will not be downloaded. See this help article under "Google+ Communities."
No, photos and videos from consumer Google+ accounts and Google+ pages in Album Archive will be deleted as early as April 2, 2019. You can download and save your content, but it may take time, so get started before March 31, 2019. After you download your photos to your device, you can store them on your device or upload them to Google Photos or another photo service. Learn more
Photos and videos backed up in Google Photos will not be deleted. Note that some photos and videos uploaded from Google+ may remain available in Google Photos. These photos and videos will remain in Google Photos after the Google+ shutdown:
- Photos and videos uploaded to Google+ before Google Photos launched in 2015
- Photos and videos backed up at any time using older versions of Google+ mobile apps (from 2015 or earlier)
- Photos and videos that were associated with Google+ Events
If you’re unsure if these conditions apply and you want to keep your photos and videos from Google+, we recommend you download and save all photos and videos from Google+.
When you previously deleted your consumer Google+ account or your Google+ page, we informed you that your photos and videos from Google+ wouldn’t be deleted from Album Archive and that your Google+ Events content wouldn’t be deleted. This will also be deleted starting April 2. If you want to save these photos, videos, and event content, you need to download and save this content. Downloading your Google+ content may take time, so get started before March 31, 2019.
Google Workspace and Google+
Google Workspace is an integrated suite of collaboration and productivity apps for businesses that includes Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, Hangouts Meet and more. Learn more
Google Workspace users include businesses who pay for its services and educational institutions and other organizations that use Google Workspace at no cost.
If you use Google+ for work or school, you probably have a Google Workspace account. You can check to see if you have a Google Workspace account here.
Google Workspace customers may see some upcoming changes to Google+ features related to the consumer shutdown. If you’re a Google Workspace customer, you can find more details here or you can talk to your administrator to learn more.
Organizations using Education edition will have the same access as other Google Workspace customers. If you participate in Google+ communities, please note that some Google+ communities may be impacted as part of the shutdown. For more information about the effect of the shutdown on communities, find details here.
Google+ pages are not part of Google Workspace and will be shut down and deleted with the rest of the consumer Google+ platform. The associated brand accounts will continue to exist without Google+, so you can continue to use them with other Google products such as YouTube channels.
How the Google+ shutdown affects other applications
Google+ APIs were shut down on March 7, 2019, including Google+ Sign-in. Developers should migrate to the more comprehensive Google Sign-in authentication system. In advance of the shut down, we made some changes to mitigate the impact of the Google+ API shutdown. For more information, see our Google+ API shutdown page.
Google+ integrations for web and mobile apps stopped functioning on March 7, 2019. The Google+ Sign-in feature was also shut down on March 7, 2019. Developers should migrate to the more comprehensive Google Sign-in authentication system. In advance of the shut down, we made some changes to mitigate the impact of the Google+ API shutdown. For more information, see our Google+ API shutdown page.
Blogger and other sites may have used Google+ for their commenting system. Comments on blogs may also exist as posts or comments on Google+. This feature has been removed from Blogger and other sites. All your Google+ comments on all sites will be deleted starting April 2, 2019. You can download and save these comments. Learn more about how the Google+ shutdown will impact Blogger.
While we strongly encourage developers to migrate to the more comprehensive Google Sign-in authentication system, legacy applications can continue to use Google+ Sign-in until they can migrate. For more information, see our Google+ API shutdown page.
No, photos uploaded by Local Guides to Google Maps will not be impacted.
Most YouTube users won’t be impacted. However, some YouTube functionality that was built with Google+ may be impacted including channel art and channel icon editing on mobile, private video sharing to Google+ circles, links to Google+ profiles on YouTube channel pages, Google+ custom URLs for channel pages, and commenting with outdated versions of the YouTube mobile app. Learn more
All events created in Google+ will be removed from Google Calendar and birthdays of people in your Google+ Circles will no longer be displayed (birthdays from your Contacts will not be affected) as early as March 11, 2019. Events created from Google Calendar will not be impacted.
No other Google products (such as Gmail, Google Photos, Google Drive, YouTube) will be shut down as part of the consumer Google+ shutdown. However, as we begin shutting down Google+, users who have opted in to the Google Play Services Public Beta Program may experience issues using Google apps like Gmail and Hangouts. To avoid any interruption in service, users can leave the Beta Program.
All +1s made on external websites will be deleted. If you wish to keep this data, please download and save it.
If your phone number is only used for Google+ notifications, we will delete it. But if your phone number is used with other Google services on your Google Account, it won’t be deleted. You can check the status of your phone number here.
The Google+ shutdown should not affect your Google My Business listing. These are two separate products with different accounts. Learn more
Additional help and resources
What if I have more questions?
If you need help or have unanswered questions about your personal Google+ account or your brand account’s Google+ page, you can get support on our help channels listed here.
