Your Google account used to come with 15GB of storage, no questions asked. Now Google is testing a policy that cuts new account storage from 15GB to just 5GB unless you hand over your phone number. The company frames this as improving “service quality” and encouraging better “account security and data recovery,” according to Android Authority.
The experiment runs in select regions, with early reports clustering around African countries. During signup, affected users see a stark choice: “Keep 5GB storage” or “Unlock 15GB storage at no cost by using your phone number.” Google’s support pages quietly shifted from promising “15GB of cloud storage” to “up to 15GB” back in March, laying groundwork for this change.
Privacy Meets Reality in the Cloud
Trading phone numbers for storage reflects a broader industry trend toward conditional “free” services.
This shift represents more than email quotas—it’s about the gradual erosion of anonymous internet use. Your phone number becomes a golden key that unlocks not just storage but Google’s ability to link your account across devices, locations, and services. For privacy-conscious users already skeptical of Google’s data collection, this creates an uncomfortable trade-off.
The timing isn’t coincidental. Cloud storage costs have risen while “de-Googling” movements gain momentum. Services like Proton Mail suddenly look more attractive when Google starts gating features behind personal data. Even universities now face storage caps after Google ended their unlimited allocation.
What Five Gigs Actually Gets You
Shared across Gmail, Drive, and Photos, the reduced allowance disappears faster than you’d expect.
Five gigabytes sounds reasonable until you remember it’s split three ways across Gmail, Drive, and Photos. A few family photos from your last vacation consume half your allocation. Work documents in Drive claim another chunk. Gmail attachments from just one project can easily push you over the edge, triggering storage warnings that block incoming mail.
Your options remain clear: verify your phone, accept the squeeze, or migrate elsewhere. Google’s betting most people will simply comply rather than research alternatives. For existing users, nothing changes yet—but this test suggests the 15GB era might be ending.
The company’s “once per person” language reveals the real target: users creating multiple accounts for extra storage. Still, requiring phone numbers to prevent this specific abuse feels disproportionate to the problem it aims to solve.
