2025 Example Licensing Scenario

With the new AI-powered tools announced at ISTE 2025, like the deeply integrated Gemini in Google Classroom, responsible and helpful AI is at the forefront of the educational experience. To support this, a more flexible and manageable licensing model is essential.

Take this example scenario. A domain has 4,250 users (active and suspended). When the transition to the new licensing model occurs for this organization, they will have an inventory of 4,250 Fundamentals licenses, plus a buffer of additional licenses. Google will automatically assign these 4,250 Fundamentals licenses to all the domain's existing users (active and suspended). The organization will also receive 4,250 Gmail Only licenses, and 4,250 Archived user licenses, which allows admins to archive inactive users for long-term retention.

This new licensing model is designed to give you granular control, ensuring that every user who needs full access to the AI tools and services in Google Workspace for Education has a Fundamentals license. Meanwhile, you can retain data for users like alumni with a free Gmail Only or Archive User license, freeing up your Fundamentals licenses for active students and staff.

Managing Your Licenses

Moving forward, the organization's admins are responsible for assigning and unassigning these licenses manually or through automation. If there is a dedicated OU for suspended users, which is best practice, admins could change their status from Suspended to Archived, which will return their Fundamentals licenses to the inventory for assignment to active users. 

All editions of Google Workspace for Education can access premium AI-powered features by purchasing the Google AI Pro for Education add-on, which offers advanced capabilities like AI in Forms and automated video creation with Veo 3 in Google Vids.