Want to Delete Gmail Account? Here’s the Right Way to Permanently Delete Gmail

Want to delete a Gmail account that is bombarded with spam emails and promotions? Or are you planning to switch to a new email service other than Gmail? Worry not, as in either case, deleting a Gmail account is a pretty easy and straightforward process.

However, once the Gmail account is deleted, you will lose access to all emails and attachments in that account.

With that out of the way, let us look at the steps to delete your Gmail account.

Steps to delete Gmail account from PC

1. Open Browser and visit Google.com
2. Now, sign in with the Gmail account you want to delete. If you are already logged in, you can skip this step.
3. Once you are logged in, click on your profile in the screen’s upper-right corner.
   
4. Select ” Manage your Google Account. ”
   
5. Here, hit Data and Privacy from the drop-down list towards the left of the screen.
   
6. Once done, keep scrolling down until you see the Download or delete your data tab.
   
7. Choose Delete a Google service. Here it will prompt you to input your Google Account password for security reasons. Moreover, you may also require a verification code based on your Google security settings.
8. After logging in, you will see different Google services under one roof.
9. But before you make your Google account extinct, you have the option to download and save all your data to prevent data loss even after deleting your Gmail account.
10. That said, it is not mandatory to download data before deleting it, so it is a matter of complete personal preference.
11. Coming back to deleting Gmail account. Hit the trash icon next to the Gmail logo.
    
12. Once done, a new pop-up window will appear, prompting you to input an alternative email address.
    
13. Many users might want to delete only their Gmail account and continue to use other Google services like Docs or Google Drive, for instance. In such cases, you need to have an alternate email address since, technically, you are about to delete the Gmail linked to these services.
14. Entering an alternate email address is mandatory as Google sends the link to delete the Gmail account on that email ID.
15. Log in with the alternate account, and you should receive a mail from Google consisting of a link to delete the Google account.
16. Simply open the link and confirm the prompt stating Yes, I want to delete my Gmail account.
17. It should now successfully delete the Gmail account from your device (and life) forever.

Related Read: How to Delete Instagram Account Permanently or Temporarily

Steps to delete Gmail account from your Android Smartphone

Users can also delete their Gmail account directly from their Android smartphones. The email deletion process stays more or less similar to that on a PC but with a few tweaks, so let us have a look.

1. Launch the Google app on your smartphone and click on your profile.
   
2. Select Manage your Google account.
3. Swipe to the right, and click on the data and privacy tab.
   
4. Scroll down until you see the Download or delete data tab. Select Delete a Google Service.
   
5. Here, you will have the option to download all of your Gmail before you go ahead and pull the trigger for deleting your Gmail account.
6. Once done, click on the trash icon next to Gmail and enter an alternative email ID.
   
7. Google needs an alternate mail ID to keep other Google services like Docs active and sends the link to delete the Gmail account on the alternate account.
8. Log in with your alternate mail ID, and you should see a verification email from Google.
9. Open the link in the mail and confirm the message saying Yes, I want to delete my Gmail account.
10. After confirming the prompt, your Gmail account should now get deleted.

Related Read: 10 Best Gmail Alternatives

How to delete a Gmail account on iPhone

Deleting your Gmail account on an iOS device is similar to that on a desktop computer. Therefore, we will cover only the main steps. You can either do this from the Gmail app or the web browser. Following the deletion, the last steps are the same as the desktop guide.

• Press the hamburger menu at the top-left of the Gmail app and scroll down to Settings. Find the account you want to delete and tap it.
  
• Tap “Manage your Google Account.”
• After selecting “Data & Privacy,” choose “Delete a Google Service,” and then click “Delete a service.”
  
• Select Gmail from your list of Google services and tap the trash can icon. Remove your Gmail account by following the instructions. You can also find these instructions in our desktop section above.

Things to consider before deleting a Gmail account

As you might have seen from the guide above, deleting a Google Suite account (or Gmail account) isn’t arduous. But there are a few things you should consider before you actually go ahead.

1. Deleting a Gmail account is full and final (unless you change your mind soon enough, more on that in the FAQ section below). All your email and account information are erased permanently, and you won’t be able to send or receive any email from that Gmail address.
2. Once you delete a Gmail account, you or anyone else won’t be able to choose the same username ever again.
3. If you followed our steps and deleted just the Gmail account, your Google account will stay intact. That includes other things like YouTube, Google One, etc.
4. Try to remember if you have used/linked this Gmail address with any other accounts. If you have, you won’t be able to retrieve the password or prove your ownership once your Gmail account is deleted.
5. Once you are 100% certain that you don’t want to retain your Gmail account, you can go ahead and download all your emails using Google Takeout.

Also Read: How to Delete Apps on iPhone

Delete your Gmail Account with ease

Using the steps we shared above, you can quickly delete your Gmail account. But as we mentioned earlier, deleting the Gmail account will result in losing the entire data saved on Gmail, including attachments.

Let us know in the comments below if you can successfully delete your Gmail account.

Frequently Asked Questions