Google has reportedly started changing its free cloud storage policy for new users, making it harder to access the full 15GB free storage without phone number verification.

For years, every new Google account automatically received 15GB of free cloud storage shared across Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. However, reports now suggest that some new users are initially receiving only 5GB of storage.

New Users Seeing a Different Message

Several users on online forums and social media platforms have claimed that while creating a new Google account, they were shown a message stating that only 5GB storage was included by default.

According to screenshots shared online, users are reportedly being offered two choices:

• Add a phone number to unlock the full 15GB storage for free
• Continue with only 5GB storage

This change mainly appears to affect newly created Google accounts.

Why Google Is Making This Change

Reports suggest that Google wants to reduce misuse of free cloud storage by fake accounts, bots, and users repeatedly creating multiple accounts to gain extra storage space.

The company reportedly uses phone number verification to confirm that the additional storage benefit is given only once per person. This step is also expected to improve account authenticity and platform security.

Quiet Change on Support Pages

Another major detail noticed by users is that Google has quietly updated wording on some of its support pages.

Earlier, support pages clearly mentioned that every Google account receives “15GB free storage.” Now, the wording reportedly says users can get “up to 15GB” of storage instead.

This small language change suggests that the amount of free storage may now vary depending on account verification status.

Existing Users Likely Unaffected

At present, the reported change appears to be focused mainly on newly created accounts. Existing users who already have 15GB free storage are not expected to lose their current storage allocation.

Google has already required phone verification in many situations during account creation, especially on desktop and mobile devices. However, some users can still create accounts without a phone number in limited cases, such as setting up a new Android device without a SIM card.

The move signals a broader effort by Google to tighten security controls while limiting abuse of its free cloud storage ecosystem.