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Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

workspace.google.com

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Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#71

Post by bl4ckneon »

mrbonner wrote: post #59

It is time for me to evaluate my custom domain email service. I had the original/free Google workspace with custom email domain. In 2021, they charged me $6/month to keep that option afloat. To be honest, I think $6/month is a bit expensive for just email usage. I don't even use any other stuff coming with Suite. My question for this group: how do I get out of this without losing my email domain?

Zoho is a good option if it's just you and you want a custom domain for your email. Used them for a few years without needing to pay. Moved over to proton mail (paid) for my email now, it comes with cloud storage, calandar, and VPN too. You also get simpleLogin included, a mail forwarding service for your custom domain names so you can make burner email addresses if you want.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#72

Post by ilyt »

mrbonner wrote: post #59

It is time for me to evaluate my custom domain email service. I had the original/free Google workspace with custom email domain. In 2021, they charged me $6/month to keep that option afloat. To be honest, I think $6/month is a bit expensive for just email usage. I don't even use any other stuff coming with Suite. My question for this group: how do I get out of this without losing my email domain?

Pay another provider to host it (I assume you own the DNS domain). Running your own is also an option but honestly if you don't have knowledge to set it up right now it's probably not all that great option.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#73

Post by pottertheotter »

IshKebab wrote: post #62
partiallypro wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Zoho is great, if you only need email and basics. O365 and GSuite are still unmatched as a package though. Still think O365 is the best deal (for SMBs+), though it's a bit more.

Google's office tools are much nicer than Microsoft's web ones. I'd say they even give the desktop versions a run for their money. And Meet is amazing. The only video conferencing system I've used that actually works reliably . I recently moved from a company using Zoom to one using Meet and the difference is insane. Makes a step difference to the quality of remote work. I presume they can do it because Google owns t…

That's so interesting. We have Workspace at work but we have bought Zoom licenses for several us because we find Meet to be a much worse experience. We're now considering buying Zoom licenses for everyone at the company.

I also find Google Sheets to be inferior to Excel, and we have Office licenses for myself and a few others that use spreadsheets.

The only thing I think is good with Workspace is Gmail and Calendar. Everything else is kind of meh.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#74

Post by rhaway84773 »

prepend wrote: post #66

For monthly, saas, products why would the price increase “to reflect value added to our products” since it’s a recurring fee it should always pay for new features to be added. It’s sad to see the “digital magic economies” of software slowly transform to normal commodity slow price increases to support brands and locked in markets. I guess it will be a race to suck between Office and Google. I hope an innovator comes…

> For monthly, saas, products why would the price increase “to reflect value added to our products” since it’s a recurring fee it should always pay for new features to be added.

Without commenting on the specific of Google Workspace, in general, this makes sense if you’ve added a bunch of additional value.

In fact, ironically, Slack’s antitrust complaint against MS re: Teams is precisely the fact that they bundled all this additional functionality in without charging extra for it.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#75

Post by prepend »

IshKebab wrote: post #62
partiallypro wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Zoho is great, if you only need email and basics. O365 and GSuite are still unmatched as a package though. Still think O365 is the best deal (for SMBs+), though it's a bit more.

Google's office tools are much nicer than Microsoft's web ones. I'd say they even give the desktop versions a run for their money. And Meet is amazing. The only video conferencing system I've used that actually works reliably . I recently moved from a company using Zoom to one using Meet and the difference is insane. Makes a step difference to the quality of remote work. I presume they can do it because Google owns t…

I like Microsoft is a better value as you also get desktop versions of word and excel that are better than the browser based versions. This is particular helpful with outlook.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#76

Post by xahrepap »

rhaway84773 wrote: post #74
prepend wrote: post #66

For monthly, saas, products why would the price increase “to reflect value added to our products” since it’s a recurring fee it should always pay for new features to be added. It’s sad to see the “digital magic economies” of software slowly transform to normal commodity slow price increases to support brands and locked in markets. I guess it will be a race to suck between Office and Google. I hope an innovator comes…

> For monthly, saas, products why would the price increase “to reflect value added to our products” since it’s a recurring fee it should always pay for new features to be added. Without commenting on the specific of Google Workspace, in general, this makes sense if you’ve added a bunch of additional value. In fact, ironically, Slack’s antitrust complaint against MS re: Teams is precisely the fact that they bundled al…

I think what your parent is saying (at least how I read it) is in the context of comparing it to boxed software. I buy MS Word 1995 for $100. Then they release added value and box it up as MS Word 1998 for $100. Then they release added value and box it up as MS Word 2000 for $100.

Now we pay $10/mo. If you average it out, it's not too different than just paying for the added value as it grows.

And worse, if I cancel I don't keep to keep using it without the added value. So I'm painted in a corner. It's objectively worse in that sense.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#77

Post by dotBen »

Even at twice the price, the value of the collective Google Workspaces suite for most people is a no brainer.

I pay more per month to the calendar scheduling SaaS provider I use than I do to Google - who provide the calendar plus email, drive, docs, meet, etc.

An important lesson here for founders is price anchoring. Google is in a tough place because the prices are anchored to historically low amounts - they're increasing them by $1/m because that's about all they can do and the talk of 'all the next value' is their best attempt to break out of that anchor. If they were to bring this suite to the market today, I bet it would start at the $20/m mark.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#79

Post by sschueller »

I'm done, first they force all previously grandfathered accounts to pay and now they are increasing the price less than a few months later.

Additionally if a legacy user that had extra storage accidentally lets the renewal lapse you can not repurchase it, you are forced to upgrade all users to a higher tier at a ridiculous cost.

I'm giving Tutanota a try and use other self hosted services for photos and drive.

Re: Google Workspace increasing prices from April 11, 2023

#80

Post by codeslave13 »

bl4ckneon wrote: post #71
mrbonner wrote: post #59

It is time for me to evaluate my custom domain email service. I had the original/free Google workspace with custom email domain. In 2021, they charged me $6/month to keep that option afloat. To be honest, I think $6/month is a bit expensive for just email usage. I don't even use any other stuff coming with Suite. My question for this group: how do I get out of this without losing my email domain?

Zoho is a good option if it's just you and you want a custom domain for your email. Used them for a few years without needing to pay. Moved over to proton mail (paid) for my email now, it comes with cloud storage, calandar, and VPN too. You also get simpleLogin included, a mail forwarding service for your custom domain names so you can make burner email addresses if you want.

I migrate my family to zohos family plan when all the crap started with the free google plan. Been about a year and no complaints. Zohos spam filters are much better too imho.
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