Title: How to Delete Your Google Account: A Step-by-Step Guide
Introduction:
In an age where our lives are deeply intertwined with the internet, it's not uncommon to have multiple online accounts. If you've decided that it's time to part ways with your Google account, whether due to privacy concerns, a desire to declutter your digital life, or for any other reason, we've got you covered. In this step-by-step guide, we'll walk you through the process of deleting your Google account.
Deleting your Google account might seem impossible, especially if you're entrenched in its ecosystem. However, if you decide to leave Google behind, the process is simple and easy to follow. Kudos to Google for allowing users to remove themselves from its services. You can either delete your entire Google account in one go or delete specific Google services like Gmail and Google Drive and then move away from its other services. Whether you use an Android, iPhone, Windows, Mac, or a top Chromebook, vanishing from Google servers doesn't take more than a few minutes.
before You deleting your Google account
When you delete your entire Google account, you lose access to the apps, subscriptions, services, and data linked to your account. Here are some of the things that are impacted by deleting your Google account:
You lose access to data saved on Google services like Google Drive, Gmail, YouTube, Google Contacts, and Google Photos.
You lose your online history, including your Google Maps travel history, Google Search history, and YouTube watch history.
You can't recover any accounts created on third-party websites using your Google account.
You lose access to the Play Store if you use an Android smartphone.
You can't use your Chromebook effectively without a Google account. You can use a guest account, but it deletes all the files, cookies, website data, and browsing activity once you log off your session.
Your current Google username is lost forever, and you can't recreate your Google account with the same username.
When you delete a Google account, you lose all the data associated with that account. So, if you're ready to wave goodbye to Google, you could lose a lot. But you don't have to lose your data. Google lets you download your account data. We recommend following these steps to download your data before deleting your Google account forever.
Before you deleting your Google account take backup data in Google takeout
Launched in 2011, Google Takeout is a platform that lets you download a copy of the data Google has on you. The platform makes it easy to export and download data from all Google apps and services in one go. The benefit of using Google Takeout is that instead of exporting data separately from multiple Google apps, you can use Google Takeout to get all your data in one place. You can download your contacts, photos, notes, Google Maps history, emails, and everything else that Google has on you.
Open the Google Takeout settings page by going to takeout.google.com. This opens a list of all the Google services you used.
Everything is automatically selected by default, so deselect the information you don't want to download.
Click the Next Step button.
Select your data's delivery method. You can get a download link via email or save it to cloud services like Drive, OneDrive, Box, or Dropbox.
Choose the frequency, file type, and size, though the default settings should work fine.
Click the Create export button to proceed.
Depending on the download size, Google might take a while before sending you the download link. Once you receive the link, you have one week to download your data.
Use Google Takeout on your phone
If you are on the go, use Google Takeout from the company's official app on Android or iPhone. Let's quickly go through it.
Open the Google app on your phone and tap the account picture at the top.
Select Manage your Google Account.
Select Data and privacy and tap Download your data. It opens Google Takeout on the mobile web.
Select the data you want to include and tap Next step.
Choose the file type, frequency, and destination.
Tap Create export to start the backup process.
How to delete your Google account your desktop browser
With everything backed up, it's time to take the final step: deleting your Google account for good. Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots that shows how to delete your Google account.
Visit the Google account settings page by going to accounts.google.com.
Select the Data & privacy option and scroll to the More options menu.
Click the Delete your Google Account option.
Authenticate using your Google account password.
Accept the two acknowledgements at end of the page.
Click the Delete account button to delete your Google account forever.
How to delete your Google account on Android
You can use the default Google app on Android to delete the account. Keep the implications of deleting a Google account on your Android phone in mind. You lose access to the Play Store. If you have several Google accounts on Android, change the default one on your phone before following the steps below.
Swipe down from the homescreen to access the Google app.
Tap your profile picture in the upper-right corner.
Select Manage your Google Account.
Slide to Data and privacy.
Scroll to Delete your Google Account.
Enter your Google account password for verification.
How to delete your Google account on iPhone or iPad
If you are settled in the Apple ecosystem and want to get rid of Google completely, use the steps below to delete your Google account.
Download the Google app from the App Store.
Open it and sign in with your Google account details.
Tap your account picture and select Manage your Google Account.
Select Data and privacy.
Select Delete your Google Account.
Authenticate your account and check the instructions to complete the job.
Delete individual Google services: a less drastic alternative
Google allows users to delete individual services. It's a less drastic alternative to deleting all the data associated with your Google account. For example, you can keep your Gmail account active but delete all other linked services like YouTube, Google Maps, and more.
Open the Google account settings page by going to accounts.google.com.
Select the Data & privacy option and scroll down to find the Download or delete your data option.
Click the Delete a Google service option and authenticate with your password.
Click the trash icon next to a Google service to delete it.
How long it takes Google to delete your account
When you delete your Google account, all the front-facing data is immediately deleted, and you can no longer access your account. However, your data remains on Google's servers. Google has not given clear documentation on how long your data remains on its server.
Delete individual Google services on Android or iPhone
You can delete individual Google services on mobile. Once you download the Google app on an iPhone or iPad, the steps are mostly identical on both platforms.
Open the Manage your Google Account menu in the Google app (check the steps above).
Move to Data and privacy and select Delete a Google service.
You can check the number of videos uploaded to YouTube, Gmail conversations, Google Pay, and other data.
Tap the trash icon beside a service you want to delete.
Confirm your decision from the pop-up menu.
Google's Privacy & Terms for deleted data mentions that it can take up to two months to delete personal data from its server, as Google gives you some time to recover your deleted data. But this is mentioned in the context of deleting data from your Google account and not your account, so the actual time may vary.
Conclusion:
Deleting your Google account is a significant step that should not be taken lightly. Make sure you've backed up any essential data and understand the implications of this decision. If you've followed the steps outlined in this guide, you'll be well on your way to a Google-free digital life. Remember that you can always create a new Google account if your circumstances change in the future.