Google Workspace is getting a Gemini makeover – but prices are going to increase

Google has removed add-on fees for Gemini in Workspace, though the firm is upping the price of its plans to reflect the addition of this offering.

Gemini will be built into Workspace’s business and enterprise plans without the need to purchase pricey plan upgrades, which previously could add an additional $20 per user per month.

For example, a customer using the old annual ‘Business Standard’ plan with a Gemini Business add-on paid $32 per user, per month, compared with $12 per user, per month for the default Business Standard plan.

The new annual price of the Business Standard plan will increase by $2 though, from $12 per user, per month to $14. Google called this a simplification of the old price plan to bring the “added value” of Gemini to all Workspace customers.

“We believe AI is foundational to the future of work and its transformative power should be accessible to every business and every employee, at an affordable price,” Jerry Dischler, president of Cloud Applications, wrote in the announcement.

The pricing will take effect for new customers and on March 17 this year for those on monthly subscription plans. For those on annual and fixed-term plans, pricing effects will take place on renewal dates, unless renewal dates are earlier than March 17.

Small business customers will not be subject to the pricing changes at this time, Dischler said.

At the start of 2024, Google rolled out price changes specific to its monthly subscription-based plans, upping the cost of ‘Starter,’ ‘Standard,’ and ‘Plus’ business plans by $1.20, $2.40, and $3.60, respectively.

New pricing gives Google a competitive edge

Google’s decision to do away with add-on pricing is a bold move according to Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder, and may put the firm in a stronger position to compete with productivity suite rival Microsoft.

“Until Google’s announcement, embedded solutions required expensive add-on licenses. Google’s bold move here reminds us that products can evolve into features; viable offerings seek monetization in other ways; and tempts us to say Google failed, but it could be a competitive boon,” J.P. Gownder told ITPro.

While it may not be time to switch from Microsoft 365 to Google Workspace, Gownder said Workspace will now be more competitive with Microsoft 365.

“Attractive pricing matters. Especially when, at its new price, Google brings credible performance, a small but non-trivial roster of enterprise clients, and also some differentiated generative AI features, including the innovative NotebookLM and Vids, a video-creation generative AI tool,” Gownder said.

“Despite Google’s appeal, Microsoft 365’s ubiquity and quality remain hard to dislodge. Migrating M365 documents, SharePoint sites, and macros to Workspace remains a monumental effort. Microsoft will, however, feel pricing pressure,” he added.