I’m letting my free Google One subscription expire, and I’m shockingly happy about it

It was an expense I didn’t need.

So when I saw I was getting a free extended trial of the service again, I was a bit more excited to see what had changed and what hadn’t.

Suffice it to say, the Google One service still hasn’t impressed me, and I won’t be paying for it after I lose the trial.

Still, I did get some mileage out of it, so it wasn’t a complete waste. It just might not be worth the full subscription cost.

Moreover, you can technically make full use of this on any platform; you don’t necessarily need to have a powerful Android phone to access it, as everything is integrated into Google services that you can access on your computer.

Google One has different paid plans

All my available plans include AI usage

In the app, Google One offers bundled plans that generally include the same perks, such as more storage space, increased Gemini app usage, Gemini integration in Gmail and Docs, and premium access to other Google apps like NotebookLM and YouTube.

If interested, you can also view the full list on the Plans & Pricing landing page.

I was on the lowest AI tier plan, Google AI Pro 5TB, which normally costs around $28 CAD, or about $20 USD per month.

Ironically, when I saw that it came with 5TB, I was excited since I have been managing my small 15GB of storage space forever.

Sadly, despite my initial excitement, I ended up being frugal, so I barely made a dent in my massive storage upgrade.

Part of that reason is that I also knew I did not want to clean up the excess storage after canceling, so I avoided using it.

So then, it came down to how often I used the other features. I tried Gemini in Docs, and that was likely my favorite.

It was like I received a little extra reinforcement to my workflow, if I needed it with the rewrite feature.

Though I did use this tool sparingly, as a writer, I don’t want my work altered. Instead, I mostly used it to support my research.

The tool helped me parse through sections that were sometimes a bit too technical for me to understand, especially when I preferred using the Gemini app for other things.

But still, I would say I used this Gemini in Docs around 5% of the time each month, which isn’t enough to justify a nearly $30 subscription.

The next Gemini integration that I had active with the subscription was with Google Drive.

Basically, it can be treated like an assistant. It can produce summaries from your uploaded files and suggest how to organize loose files.

I never really used it. I have a very particular way of organizing my files (sometimes it makes me feel like a digital librarian), and I pre-make all my folders and upload images and videos in batches to match each folder.

I upload my files, store them locally, and then delete them.

Credit: Lucas Gouveia / Android Police

For my Google Docs, I also don’t like keeping everything in one place, since I worry about losing access to my drafts in case something were to ever happen to my Google account.

Google Drive is pretty much what I use to transfer files from my phone to my computer.

Instead, I found the Gemini integration to be a bit of a nuisance.

Every time I uploaded files and checked them on my computer, there was always a noticeable slowdown until I could access them freely.

This is because Gemini automatically analyzes your files whenever you upload something new to Drive, likely to prepare to help you immediately.

But I would have preferred it as an option or a button — since, unfortunately, the small delays in uploading new files do add up.

Finally, the last relevant factor is Gemini.

All main plans offer four times the limit, access to Deep Research, and the Pro model.

While I liked never running into prompt restrictions and using a smarter model, it didn’t really move the needle that much.

It turns out that the more I worked with LLM-based AIs, the more I switched to different models.

I like Gemini for my workflow, but I also really like ChatGPT and Claude when I need more technical help.

So this last perk felt more like a luxury than a necessity.

Who is the Google One subscription for?

Maybe not the average user or individual

So then, the real question becomes, who is buying Google One? It isn’t me, even though I use Google Docs, Gemini, Gmail, and Drive daily.

The large storage options were overkill (though I can see how it would be nice to share it with your family, since each plan lets you add up to five other users).

Plus, if you are an active content creator, you might use Google Drive to store larger files, such as videos, more frequently. The larger storage might prove beneficial, especially compared to the meager 15GB that’s given.

But there are still plenty of good cloud storage options, like OneDrive, Proton, and even iCloud, that can make uploading files more secure and affordable.

Another perk for content creators is that if you pay for the highest tier, Ultra, you get ad-free YouTube and YouTube Music as part of the YouTube Premium bundle.

If you love Google Gemini and its Advanced features, you can’t really say no to at least upgrading to the Pro tier, as you get access to better models and integration with your Google apps.

But, for me, it wasn’t working out, since I am a mixed-ecosystem user and it is hard to change habits I’ve developed over years of practice.

To Gemini or not to Gemini

My views on relying on and integrating Gemini more into my workflow will probably be influenced by how Gemini Intelligence pans out for future phones.

Gemini has already replaced Google Assistant across multiple ecosystems, so I can only infer that its support will continue to grow.

Right now, I am not in a hurry to use Gemini with my Google apps all the time until I can find a better way to offload my old, rigid systems in place of new ones that Gemini can automate for me.

So far, I’ve mostly latched onto Ask Gemini for screening long-winded content on Chrome, but the jury is still out with other applications.