Get started with Google Workspace for Education

This document is for K–12 and higher institutions.

Google Workspace for Education provides a suite of cloud-based tools to K–12 and higher-education institutions and U.S. homeschools. The tools and services include messaging and collaboration apps, such as Gmail, Google Drive, Google Calendar, and Classroom.

If your school has complex IT needs, consider Google Workspace for Education Plus. It offers more advanced features, such as powerful administrator controls and better analytics.

Does my organization qualify?

To qualify for Google Workspace for Education, K–12 and higher institutions must be a government-recognized, formally-accredited institution delivering nationally or internationally-approved degrees at primary, secondary, or third level. For a complete list of requirements, go to Qualifications for Google Workspace for Education.

Sign-up process for K–12 or higher-education institutions

After you submit your request and verify your domain, we review your organization's eligibility. Approval requests are typically resolved within 14 business days.

Step 1: Request approval for Google Workspace for Education

You get approval for Google Workspace for Education by signing up or upgrading your existing Google Workspace subscription.

Upgrade your Google Workspace subscription

  1. Sign in to your Google Workspace administrator account.
  2. Open the upgrade form.
  3. Complete the form and click Submit.

Sign up for Google Workspace for Education

  1. Go to the Google Workspace for Education sign-up page.
  2. Enter your details in the form.
  3. Review the Google Workspace for Education School Consent terms and click Agree and Continue.
  4. Review the Google Workspace for Education Agreement terms and click Agree and create account.

    After you sign up, we'll take you to your Google Admin console where you can verify domain ownership (if you signed up an existing domain) and continue setting up services for your users.

Step 2: Verify that your domain belongs to you

If you purchased your domain when you signed up for Google Workspace or you already verified your domain with Google, you can skip this step.

If you're signing up for Google Workspace for Education using a domain that you already own, you need to verify your domain before we can review your application. This verification process ensures that no one else is using your domain for Google services without your permission or sending email that appears to come from your school.

  1. Verify that you own your domain. For details, go to Verify your domain for Google Workspace.
  2. Gather documentation for the next part of your approval process. To confirm your eligibility, provide the following information:
    • Scanned copy of institution's official accreditation document stating educational status.
    • Your name, contact email (not related to Google Workspace account) and title, role, or affiliation with your educational institution.
    • Official website of the educational institution (optional).

Note: While your Workspace for Education approval request is under review, your ability to use email and other services outside of your domain is restricted.

After approval: Add users and set up your organization

After you get approval for Google Workspace for Education, you can add users to your domain, set up apps, and access advanced features, such as mail migration.

When a customer is approved for a Google Workspace for Education domain, they are approved for a single tenant. Admins can use this tenant at the level they choose, but it should only govern a single group. No user should be part of multiple tenants.

Once a customer is on a Google Workspace for Education edition, they cannot also have any other Google Workspace editions, including Google Workspace for Non Profits.