Google Photos no longer offers unlimited storage for free, and here's how it affects you.

Image credit: Google Fotos

The new Google Photos policy, which puts an end to unlimited free storage, went into effect on June 1, 2021, as announced months ago. Many users are perplexed by the situation, so we've put together this guide to explain how the change will affect you, what will happen, and what you can do about it.

Simply put, Google Photos is a cloud-based photo and video storage service. This allows you to create an automatic backup of all the files on your computer, which you can access from any device using the app or website. It's especially useful when switching smartphones, tablets, or laptops because your photos and videos aren't lost.

Prior to this update, Google Photos allowed users to save free content in 'high quality' (up to 16 megapixels). It also offered full-resolution storage, but it did so with Google's 15GB of free storage, which is shared with Gmail and Drive.

What this means is that users will be limited to filling the included 15 GB with images, videos, files from Google Drive, and emails from Gmail. The good news is that any content you uploaded to the platform before June 1 will remain intact and will not count against your free storage space.

Is Google Photos going to be compensated?

That isn't the case. The platform will remain free, but storage will be limited to 15 GB. Only if you go over that limit will you need to purchase additional storage or switch to another cloud storage service.

That is, if a user backs up their gallery frequently or if the content is large, the space will quickly run out. On the other hand, if you have a small number of images and clips, or if you frequently delete folders, those 15 GB could go a long way.

Image: Google.

What is the best way to figure out how much space I have left in Google Photos?

Google Photos has enabled two very useful tools to help you better manage your space:

Manager of storage. This function estimates how long the free 15GB will last based on the frequency and volume of your backups.

Reread and rewrite. This tool analyzes all of your files automatically and recommends what you should delete, such as very large files, screenshots, memes, or blurry photos.

As previously stated, the 15 GB of free storage is for all of your photos, videos, and emails in Photos, Drive, and Gmail. As a result, it's critical to clean all three to get the most out of the space.

How much will the additional storage in Google Photos cost?

When your free gigabytes run out, you can upgrade to a Google One subscription to increase your cloud storage capacity. This plan gives you more storage space for data from all Google platforms, as well as access to the Google Photos editor's advanced features.

These are the Google One prices for Mexico:

• 100 GB - 34 pesos per month or 340 pesos per year
• 200 GB - 49 pesos per month or 490 pesos per year
• 2 TB - 169 pesos per month or 1,699 pesos per year

As you can see, making an annual payment is more convenient because they 'give you two months of subscription. You can also pay with your Google Opinion Rewards balance, which pays you to take Google surveys. That is, if you play your cards right, you can get the extra storage for free.

Finally, you can keep your free storage for as long as you want, but it all depends on how you manage your space and your digital hygiene practices.