Free 15GB Google Cloud Storage to Shared Between Drive, Gmail, Google+ Photos

Google free 15GB cloud storage is now shared between Drive, Gmail and Google+ Photos. (tweet this)

Google free storage was separated into 5GB Google Drive and Google+ photos; 10GB for Gmail messages and attachments. With the new update, you get a universal 15GB storage pool for Drive, Google+ photos and Gmail.

Tip: Only photos larger than 2048 pixels use Google Drive storage. You can store unlimited number of smaller photos for free.

Your Gmail may take up a little space, and you store big files in Drive. Or, you can use the space to store high-resolution images in Google+ photos. It is up to you on how to use the cloud storage space.

For non-Gmail users who use Google Drive to store their files on Google cloud, this means they will get free 3x storage upgrade from 5GB to 15GB! On the other hand, non-Google Drive Gmail users now receive more space for their email attachments.

For Gmail and Google Drive users, the update do not give you extra storage space (still total 15GB) but you no longer need to remember how much free space you left in each Gmail and Google Drive.

Now you only need to remember one total space. You can check your storage usage at new Google Drive storage page.

Mouse over the pie chart will show you the breakdown of your storage use across Drive, Gmail and Google+ Photos.

Need more Google Drive space? Upgrade plan start at USD$4.99/month for 100GB. It is same price as before update. I noticed that 25GB upgrade (USD$2.49/month) has been removed.

The Google Drive storage update will roll out over the next few weeks. Google Apps users will also getting the shared storage.

[via Google Drive blog]