Google Workspace for Nonprofits: eligibility, setup, limits

A registered nonprofit can get Google Workspace without paying: the Google Workspace for Nonprofits edition costs $0 per user per month and gives you addresses on your own domain. In return, Google asks for an application verified by Goodstack, a domain name and a website that genuinely works. And once the addresses exist, one question is still open, and Workspace does not answer it on its own: how several volunteers answer the same messages without tripping over each other.

This guide walks through the process from start to finish, with the waiting times Google gives and the places where applications stall.

What Google actually gives nonprofits

The free edition includes, according to the offer page as observed in September 2026:

• professional email addresses on your organisation’s domain,
• video meetings for up to 150 participants,
• 100 TB of storage shared across all users,
• security and management controls, with standard support.

The edition’s documentation adds shared drives, AppSheet Core and the Gemini app. The ceiling is 2,000 users, with a detail few guides mention: a new account can add up to 300 users, and you have to contact Google Workspace support to go further. For a grassroots organisation, neither number will get in the way.

If you need more, Google sells its paid editions at a discount:

US dollar prices from Google’s offer page as observed in September 2026. Google’s French page lists 3.40 € and 5.91 € for the same two editions on a one-year commitment. For most small organisations the free edition is enough. The first reason to pay is often meeting recording, which the free edition does not include: if you record your annual general meeting on video, check this before you choose.

Is your organisation eligible?

Google sets three general conditions: be registered as a charitable organisation in one of the countries it covers, meet that country’s specific requirement, and accept Google’s additional terms of service for nonprofits.

Each country has its own requirement. In France, for example, Google requires a nonprofit established under the applicable law and “published in the Journal officiel des associations or any other French legal publication”, verified by Goodstack. Check your own country’s line on Google’s eligibility page before you start.

Three categories are excluded:

• governmental entities and organisations,
• hospitals and health care organisations, though their charitable arms or foundations are eligible,
• schools, academic institutions and universities, though their philanthropic arms are eligible.

A parent association registered as an organisation in its own right is not a school, so it is in principle eligible. The school itself is not. The parent association case is covered in more detail in creating a nonprofit email address.

Keep your registration number to hand. Google lists the identifier it expects for each country: in France it is the RNA number (Répertoire National des Associations). If your organisation has only just registered, Google warns that it can take some time before it appears in the official databases Goodstack uses.

Before you apply: a domain and a working website

Google Workspace supplies the addresses, not the domain. You need ourcharity.org or similar, bought from a registrar. Prices vary widely: a .fr domain, for example, costs from under €10 to nearly €30 a year including VAT, depending on the registrar. As observed in September 2026, OVHcloud renews it at €7.79 excluding VAT (€9.35 with VAT) after a €4.99 first year, and Gandi at €28.78 with VAT after registration at €7.20 a year, for 1 to 10 years. Buy it in the organisation’s name, not the treasurer’s: every address you create will hang on it.

The step that sinks applications is the website. To activate Workspace, Google checks that your domain leads to a site that:

• is fully functional, and does not contain mainly placeholder content such as “Coming soon” or “Under construction” pages,
• clearly matches your organisation’s name, recognised acronym or official branding,
• displays details such as your charity ID, a physical address or a clear mission statement.

Plenty of small organisations own a domain with no site, or a parking page left by the registrar. If that is you, build a plain, honest page first: who you are, what you do, your registration number, your address. Google is not asking for a beautiful site. It is asking for proof that the domain is yours.

Step by step, from application to first addresses

1. Choose the Google account that will apply. Avoid the chair’s personal Gmail. Use an account in the organisation’s name, with its credentials and recovery details written down in your own records: the one you already have, if there is one, or a new one. More on that below.
2. Apply on Google for Nonprofits. Click “Get started” and follow the steps, with your registration number. If your organisation already has an account, Google explains how to request access rather than open a second one.
3. Wait for Goodstack verification. Goodstack checks your organisation’s legal status and its programmes. Watch for email from verifications@mail.goodstack.org, including in your spam folder. Google says most requests are reviewed within 2 to 14 business days, and most Goodstack verifications within 3 to 5 business days.
4. Activate Google Workspace. Each Google for Nonprofits product has to be activated separately: being approved does not give you Workspace yet. The same approval also opens Google Ad Grants, the YouTube Nonprofit Program and Google Maps Platform credits, which this guide does not cover.
5. Sign up for the 14-day trial offered at no charge from your Google for Nonprofits account, then verify your domain with your registrar, following Google’s instructions.
6. Wait for the domain review. Google says its review “can take several days”, and it may ask for documents if the link between your organisation and the domain is unclear.
7. Create your function addresses: contact, office, treasurer. Functions, never people. Our guide to creating a nonprofit email address explains why.

Allow roughly one to four weeks between the first application and the first address, plus the time to build a website if you do not have one.

Already running ourcharity@gmail.com?

That is the most common starting point, and you do not need to start from scratch.

That account can apply. Google does not say which account has to request access. If the organisation genuinely controls ourcharity@gmail.com, meaning several board members can get in and the recovery phone and address are not a former chair’s, use it rather than opening yet another account. If not, regain control of it first.

The old mail can come with you. Once contact@ourcharity.org exists, the data import tool in the Google Workspace Admin console can import a personal Gmail account. You have to be signed in as a super administrator. You keep the history of your exchanges with members, the council and your partners.

The old address does not vanish. Members and partners will keep writing to the gmail.com address for months. In that account, turn on automatic forwarding to the new address: Gmail sends a verification link to the destination, then forwards all new messages except spam. Keep the forward running for at least a season.

Tell your contacts. A message to members, the new address on the website, the membership forms and every volunteer’s signature. One template is enough:

Hello everyone,

We are changing our email address. From now on, please write to us at contact@ourcharity.org. The old address, ourcharity@gmail.com, stays active for a while and passes your messages on, but please update your address book.

Thank you, and see you soon.

The limits worth knowing

Storage is pooled. The 100 TB is a total for the whole organisation, not an allowance per person. It is a lot for a nonprofit, but it is one shared pot.

No meeting recording in the free edition. It starts at Business Standard.

Everything rests on the admin account. This is the real risk. The classic story: the chair applies with a personal address in 2026, moves away in 2029, and the new committee discovers nobody can open the admin console. Add at least two administrators, write down who they are, and add them to your board change checklist. Our guide to handing over the mailbox between volunteers walks through the procedure.

A refusal is not final. If your organisation was found ineligible, Google lets you submit a new application once you have fixed what blocked it, most often the website or the organisation’s details.

Microsoft 365 for nonprofits: the other free option

Microsoft has a free plan too. On its nonprofit plans page, as observed in September 2026, Microsoft 365 Business Basic is presented as a grant, free for up to 300 users. It includes web and mobile versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, custom business email on your domain, and 1 TB of cloud storage per user. The paid plans show $3.50 per user per month for Business Standard and $5.50 for Business Premium, paid yearly, with Premium advertised at a 75% discount.

Three conditions change the comparison for a volunteer-run organisation:

• Who may use the free licences. The FAQ on the plans page says granted licences are permitted only for paid employees and unpaid executive staff. Microsoft’s eligibility page defines those executive roles: board of directors, president, officer, executive director and executive program directors. An all-volunteer organisation can therefore equip its board for free. Other volunteers may use only the discounted plans, and members, beneficiaries and donors neither.
• Usage. Microsoft requires nonprofits to keep at least 85% of assigned licences in active use, or risk losing eligibility for future grants.
• Timing. The eligibility decision can take up to seven business days.

Both offers give you addresses on your own domain at no cost. Google is broader about who can have a free address. Microsoft fits better if your board already works in Word and Outlook and the people checking the mailbox are board members.

Addresses are not yet a way to answer together

Workspace gives every volunteer an address of their own. But the contact address is still one mailbox, and the original question comes back: who answers which message?

Google has three answers, and they do different things:

• Gmail delegation. Up to 1,000 delegates on a work account, typically 40 at the same time. Each person opens the mailbox from their own account without sharing the password, but nobody can see who is handling what. See the limits of Gmail delegation.
• The Google Groups collaborative inbox. It adds assigning a conversation, with an email notification to the assignee, and resolution states such as complete, no action needed or duplicate. It needs correctly set moderation permissions.
• The native shared inbox. Google is rolling it out in phases, and the supported editions it lists are Business Starter, Business Standard and Business Plus. The nonprofit edition is not on that list, as observed in September 2026.

None of them shows you that a colleague is drafting a reply to the same message right now, and none lets you leave an internal note attached to the email. We compare these options in detail in Google Workspace shared inbox for a small team.

When several volunteers answer every week

If one person checks the contact address, delegation is enough and you need nothing else.

When two or three volunteers answer members, Trupeo connects to the Workspace address you have just created. Everyone signs in with their own login. Each message can be assigned and carries a status: to assign, to handle, done. You leave internal notes, and you can see when another volunteer is already replying. The address stays at Google: if you stop using Trupeo, it keeps working.

Verified associations and schools get 50% off: €5 per connected mailbox per month excl. VAT for 2 people, €10 from 3 people. See our nonprofit offer and our pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Is Google Workspace really free for nonprofits?

Yes, for eligible organisations: the Google Workspace for Nonprofits edition is $0 per user per month. You still pay for your domain name: a .fr, for example, costs from under €10 to nearly €30 a year including VAT depending on the registrar, as observed in September 2026. The higher editions are paid, at 70% to 75% off depending on the edition.

Who is eligible for Google for Nonprofits?

Organisations registered as charitable in a country Google covers, meeting that country’s requirement and accepting the additional terms. Verification runs through Goodstack. Governmental entities, hospitals and health care organisations, and schools and universities are excluded, with exceptions for their charitable or philanthropic arms.

Do we need a website to get Google Workspace for Nonprofits?

Yes. To activate Workspace, your domain must lead to a working site that matches your organisation’s name and shows details such as your charity ID, address or mission. A “Coming soon” page is not enough.

How long does verification take?

Google says most requests are reviewed within 2 to 14 business days, Goodstack’s check included, and that the domain review when you activate Workspace can take several more days. Allow roughly one to four weeks in total.

How many volunteers can have an address?

Up to 2,000 users, with a maximum of 300 for a new account. Beyond 300, you contact Google Workspace support from the Admin console.

Is Microsoft 365 free for nonprofits?

For the board, yes. As observed in September 2026, Microsoft 365 Business Basic is a grant, free for up to 300 users, with web and mobile apps only. Granted licences are permitted only for paid employees and unpaid executive staff: board members, president, officers. An all-volunteer organisation can therefore equip its board for free. Other volunteers may use only the discounted plans, and members, beneficiaries and donors neither.

Can Google Workspace run a shared inbox?

In part. Gmail delegation gives several people access, the Google Groups collaborative inbox adds assignment and a done state, and the native shared inbox is listed only for the Business editions. None of them tells you that a colleague is already replying. The full comparison: Google Workspace shared inbox for a small team.

Sources:

• Google Workspace for Nonprofits, offer and pricing: observed in September 2026, the $0 edition, 150 participants, 100 TB pooled, Business Standard ($3.50 or $4.20, 75%+ off), Business Plus ($6.16 or $7.40, 72%+ off), 70%+ off Enterprise, and the 2,000-user limit.
• Google Workspace for Nonprofits, French offer page: observed in September 2026, 3.40 € for Business Standard and 5.91 € for Business Plus on a one-year commitment.
• Google Workspace for Nonprofits edition: 100 TB pooled, 2,000 users, the 300-user limit for new accounts, shared drives, AppSheet Core and Gemini.
• Google for Nonprofits eligibility, France: the three general conditions, the French requirement of publication in the Journal officiel des associations or any other French legal publication, verification by Goodstack, and the three excluded categories with their exceptions.
• Registration identifiers by country: the RNA number for France, and the delay before a newly registered organisation appears in the databases Goodstack uses.
• Goodstack verification: what Goodstack checks, the verifications@mail.goodstack.org address and the 3 to 5 business day review.
• Five steps to get started: requesting access to an existing account, the 2 to 14 business day review, activating each product separately, and the four products on offer (Google Workspace for Nonprofits, Google Ad Grants, the YouTube Nonprofit Program, Google Maps Platform credits), as observed in September 2026.
• Activate Google Workspace for Nonprofits: the website requirements, the 14-day trial, domain verification and a review that “can take several days”.
• Submit a new application: an organisation found ineligible can apply again.
• Use a group as a collaborative inbox: assignment, its notification, moderation permissions and the complete, no action needed and duplicate states.
• Create a shared inbox: observed in September 2026, the supported editions (Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus) and the phased rollout.
• Delegate and collaborate on email: up to 1,000 delegates on a work account, typically 40 at once.
• Microsoft 365 nonprofit plans and pricing: observed in September 2026, Business Basic free for up to 300 users with web and mobile apps, Business Standard and Premium prices, grants permitted only for paid employees and unpaid executive staff, discounts usable by staff and volunteers, the exclusion of beneficiaries, members and donors, the 85% usage rule and the seven business day decision.
• Microsoft nonprofit eligibility: observed in September 2026, the unpaid executive roles permitted to use granted licences (board of directors, president, officer, executive director, executive program directors), and discounted offers permitted for all staff and volunteers.
• Microsoft 365 for nonprofits: observed in September 2026, the 75% discount on Microsoft 365 Business Premium.
• OVHcloud: .fr domain: observed in September 2026, €4.99 excluding VAT (€5.99 with VAT) for the first year and renewal at €7.79 excluding VAT (€9.35 with VAT) a year.
• Gandi: .fr domain: observed in September 2026, €7.20 with VAT for the first year and renewal at €28.78 with VAT a year; the €7.20 yearly rate covers a registration of 1 to 10 years, as observed in October 2026.
• Import email with the data import tool: importing from a personal Gmail account through the Admin console, signed in as a super administrator.
• Automatically forward Gmail messages to another account: the verification link sent to the forwarding address, and the forwarding of all new messages except spam.