If you’re leaving Gmail for something better, or if you just want to end an old account, it’s easy to delete your Gmail account and all its data. We’ll show you how to do that.
RELATED: How to delete your old online accounts (and why you should)
Want to keep your other Google services?
If you want to get rid of your Gmail account but keep access to Google’s other services, such as Maps and Drive, Google offers the option to remove only your Gmail service.
That way, your Gmail service will be removed, but your Google account will remain. You can then use the account to sign in to various services, but you won’t be able to access Gmail. Check out our special piece on how to delete Gmail from a Google account to learn how to do that. If you want the entire account to be deleted, read on.
Know this when you permanently delete a Gmail account
If you’ve made the decision to permanently delete your Gmail account and aren’t interested in keeping Google’s other services on your devices, closing your account with the company is easy.
When you do that, your subscriptions purchased with your Google account will be gone. You can’t sign in to your devices where you use your Google account. If you have a Chromebook, you’ll need to use a different Gmail account to sign in.
Deleting a Gmail account is a permanent thing, so make sure to back up your data first.
How To Delete Your Gmail Account Permanently
To delete your Gmail account and all its data, launch a web browser on your device and go to the Gmail site. Log in to your account there if you have not already done so.
Once you’ve signed up, in the top right corner of Gmail, select your profile icon followed by “Manage your Google Account.”
Gmail will take you to the Google Account site. On this site, click on “Data & Privacy” in the left sidebar.
On the “Data & Privacy” page, scroll to the “More options” section. Click here on ‘Delete your Google account’.
Enter your Gmail account password if prompted. It is easy to recover your Gmail password if you have forgotten it.
After entering the correct password, you will be taken to the ‘Delete your Google Account’ page. On this page, you will see a list of items that you will lose access to.
Scroll down the page to continue deleting your Gmail account. Enable both confirmation options and then click ‘Delete account’.
You will see a confirmation message from Google that your account and all data has been deleted. You are all set to enjoy a life without Google! Or, if you want to stay with Google, you can create a brand new Gmail account.
RELATED: How To Remove Google From Your Life (And Why It’s Nearly Impossible)