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site.workspace.google.com pricing: Business Starter at $7, and what it costs a team

Google Workspace's plans as Google's own pages list them, the rules that decide how many seats you pay for, the sending limits, and how it compares with Microsoft 365, Zoho and MarkRelay.

Published by
MarkRelay Research
Updated
Sources
8 primary sources, linked below

Summary

Google Workspace Business Starter is $7 per user a month on an annual plan or $8.40 on the flexible plan, with 30 GB of pooled storage per user; Standard is $14 and Plus $22. Each user can have 30 aliases for free and the account 20 user alias domains at no cost, but every user on a secondary domain is a paid seat. Microsoft 365 Business Basic costs the same, $7 paid yearly. MarkRelay does not charge per seat: $99 a year plus $5 a month for Cloudflare, which comes out cheaper than Business Starter from two users on.

Key findings

  1. 1Per user a month, annual plan: Starter $7, Standard $14, Plus $22. Flexible plan: $8.40, $16.80, $26.40.
  2. 2Free: up to 30 email aliases per user and up to 20 user alias domains. Paid: every user account on one of up to 599 secondary domains.
  3. 3Sending: 2,000 messages a day per user and 10,000 recipients a day; going over blocks sending for up to 24 hours.
  4. 4Business plans top out at 300 users. Starter has 30 GB pooled storage per user and 100-person meetings. Trial: 14 days.
  5. 5A shared inbox that delegates read and send from is rolling out in phases for Starter, Standard and Plus.

Questions this report answers

Asked by real people, quoted as they wrote them.

“Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 for business email?”

r/Entrepreneur, 39 comments

On price they match: Workspace Business Starter and Microsoft 365 Business Basic are both $7 per user a month paid yearly, and both $8.40 month to month.

“[Help] Can I use Gmail Workspace just for custom domain email without paying?”

r/gsuite, 15 comments

No. Workspace has a 14-day trial and no free plan. Free options for a custom domain: Zoho Mail Forever Free (up to 5 users, no IMAP) or Cloudflare Email Routing forwarding to the Gmail account you already have.

“Two-person team sharing info@ email address on Google Workspace - what's the best setup?”

r/gsuite, 14 comments

Three options inside Workspace: make info@ an alias of one user (aliases are free, up to 30 per user), delegate access to it, or use the new shared inbox where your admin console has it. MarkRelay gives info@ its own mailbox that both people open, without a seat for it.

“Best email setup for a new business? Gmail vs Google Workspace (@mydomain.com) for domains, Shopify, Notion, Substack, etc.”

r/smallbusiness, 12 comments

Workspace puts Gmail on your own domain from $7 per user a month. If you only need the address, Cloudflare Email Routing can forward it to a personal Gmail for free, but Gmail stops sending as third-party addresses in January 2027, so replies from the domain need another path, such as MarkRelay on Cloudflare Email Sending.

Google Workspace business plans (USD)

Per user a month, annual plan

Business Starter
$7
Business Standard
$14
Business Plus
$22

Per user a month, flexible plan

Business Starter
$8.40
Business Standard
$16.80
Business Plus
$26.40

Pooled storage per user

Business Starter
30 GB
Business Standard
2 TB
Business Plus
5 TB

Video meeting participants

Business Starter
100
Business Standard
150
Business Plus
500

Maximum users

Business Starter
300
Business Standard
300
Business Plus
300

Source: Workspace pricing, Flexible plan prices.

What counts as a paid seat

Alias such as sales@ on a user

Cost
Free, up to 30 per user

User alias domain (same mailboxes, another domain)

Cost
Free, up to 20

User on a secondary domain

Cost
A paid seat each

Daily sending per user

Cost
2,000 messages, 10,000 recipients

Source: Aliases, Domains, Sending limits, Shared inbox.

What a team pays a year

1

Workspace Starter
$84
Microsoft 365 Basic
$84
Zoho Mail Lite
$12
MarkRelay
$159

5

Workspace Starter
$420
Microsoft 365 Basic
$420
Zoho Mail Lite
$60
MarkRelay
$159

15

Workspace Starter
$1,260
Microsoft 365 Basic
$1,260
Zoho Mail Lite
$180
MarkRelay
$159

Yearly prices for the plan named. MarkRelay is the $99 Annual license plus $5 a month for Cloudflare Workers Paid, the same for any team size, with 3,000 sent emails a month included; receiving is free. Source: Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Zoho Mail pricing.

Where the seat count grows

A Workspace bill follows user accounts, not addresses. Aliases and alias domains are free, but a separate mailbox that someone signs in to, a person on a second brand's domain, or a mailbox for an app or AI agent is a user, and each user is a seat. The newer shared inbox lets delegates read and send from one mailbox; Google is rolling it out in phases.

Where MarkRelay fits

A good fit when

  • Several brands or domains, each with real mailboxes, without a seat per mailbox.
  • Shared inboxes, app and AI agent mailboxes with scoped API keys, and broadcasts, in your own Cloudflare account.

Look elsewhere when

  • Teams that rely on Docs, Drive, Meet and Calendar: keep Workspace.
  • Desktop and phone mail apps over IMAP: MarkRelay is webmail and API only.

Common questions

How much is Google Workspace for email?

Business Starter is $7 per user a month on an annual plan, or $8.40 on the flexible plan.

Do aliases cost extra in Google Workspace?

No. Each user can have up to 30 aliases at no extra cost.

Sources and method

  1. Workspace pricing (workspace.google.com/pricing)
  2. Flexible plan prices (knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/billing/flexible-plan)
  3. Aliases (knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/add-or-delete-an-alternate-email-address-email-alias)
  4. Domains (knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/domains/add-a-user-alias-domain-or-secondary-domain)
  5. Sending limits (knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/gmail/gmail-sending-limits-in-google-workspace)
  6. Shared inbox (knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox)
  7. Microsoft 365 Business Basic (www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/business/microsoft-365-business-basic)
  8. Zoho Mail pricing (www.zoho.com/mail/zohomail-pricing.html)

Facts are taken from each vendor's own pricing pages, documentation or terms as of the updated date above; prices are in US dollars per month unless stated. Cost comparisons apply each vendor's published rates to the same volume. MarkRelay is not affiliated with Google;"site.workspace.google.com" in the title names the site these facts come from. MarkRelay sells a self-hosted email app, which this page mentions where it fits. Spotted something outdated? Tell us.

Revisions

  • : First published; every fact checked on the vendor's own pages.

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