Google One's 2026 Deal: How Much Storage Value Are You Actually Getting?

Google One is rolling out aggressive discounts for new subscribers throughout 2026, but the real question is whether these plans deliver value when you calculate storage costs per terabyte. Here’s what the math looks like.

The Promotional Pricing Breakdown

Starting this year, Google is offering 50% off its mid-tier and premium annual subscriptions. The Basic 100 GB plan drops to $9.99 for year one (normally $19.99), while the 2 TB Premium tier reaches $49.99 annually versus its regular $99.99 price tag. For those seeking maximum features, the AI Pro plan sits at $99.99 for the first 12 months, slashed from $199.99—effectively cutting the annual cost in half.

These discounted entry rates apply only to new subscribers and remain available through 2026.

Premium Plan: What $49.99 Buys You

At the promotional rate of $49.99 for 2 TB annually, you’re looking at roughly $25 per terabyte—a significant savings compared to standard pricing. Beyond raw storage across Gmail, Google Photos, and Drive, Premium subscribers unlock Google Store credit (10% cashback on purchases) and exclusive Workspace perks. These include extended Google Meet recording capabilities with YouTube streaming options and advanced Calendar features for appointment management.

AI Pro: The Full-Featured Option

The AI Pro plan bundles more than just storage expansion. At $99.99 for the first year, users receive 2 TB of storage alongside Google Home Premium Standard access and discounted YouTube Premium integration.

The real differentiation lies in AI capabilities. Subscribers gain expanded usage limits across Gemini’s daily prompts, higher image generation and editing quotas, limited video generation features, and up to 20 Deep Research reports per day. The plan unlocks access to a 1 million token context window—useful for processing large files like spreadsheets and code.

Within Workspace applications (Gmail, Drive, Docs), Gemini tools become more accessible. Usage caps increase across Google Photos, NotebookLM, Flow, and Whisk. Developers benefit from enhanced access to Gemini Code Assist, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, and Jules for accelerated development workflows.

Storage Costs in Context

When calculating the terabyte cost, the 2 TB Premium plan at $49.99 works out to approximately $25 per TB annually—competitive for cloud infrastructure. The AI Pro tier, despite its $99.99 annual fee, includes productivity tools and AI features that extend beyond pure storage value, making the per-terabyte calculation less straightforward but potentially worthwhile for power users leveraging Gemini and Workspace integrations.

Who Should Take Advantage?

The 2026 promotion targets new subscribers only, running through year-end. Current Google One members should note these discounts don’t apply to existing accounts. Sign-ups are managed through Google’s official One website.

For users regularly managing large files, relying on Google’s ecosystem, or exploring AI-assisted workflows, the first-year pricing represents a meaningful cost reduction before standard rates resume.