Five areas set Google Apps apart, which is why research firm Radicati named Google Apps for Work the leader in cloud business email. A summary of the report can be found in the related resources.

A cloud pioneer. Google is recognized as a trusted name and an industry leader in reliable cloud infrastructure.

Built for the cloud. Google Apps was designed as an entirely cloud-based service from the ground up, so IT departments don’t need to spend time and money maintaining any desktop components.

A complete package. The suite includes file storage and sharing with Google Drive, real-time collaboration with Google Docs, video meetings with Hangouts and professional email with Gmail, all for one single price.

Consistency and comfort. Google Apps users enjoy the same experience across different devices, operating systems and browsers, and many employees already use Google products at home.

Offline support. Gmail, Calendar and Google Docs let users view, edit and create content when they’re not on the Internet, syncing automatically when they reconnect.

With Google Apps for Work, you'll receive a number of additional business-grade services not included in the free consumer product, including: professional email at your domain, additional storage across Gmail and Drive, 24/7 phone and email support, 99.9% guaranteed uptime, interoperability with Microsoft Outlook, enhanced security features, and full administration of all user accounts.

When you sign up for Google Apps for Work, you will automatically be granted a free 30-day trial, for up to 10 users. It is important to set up a billing and payment plan before the end of your trial period to ensure uninterrupted service. For companies of all sizes, Google Apps is $5/user/month or $50/user/year. Google Apps with unlimited storage and Vault is an additional $5/user/month. You have two choices for your billing plan. With the Flexible Plan, you have the flexibility to add and delete user accounts at anytime. You will only pay for the service that you use during the month. You will be billed monthly. With the Annual Plan, you are committing to Google Apps for a full year and get a discounted rate. You can add additional users at any time. You will be billed monthly for a portion of the annual commitment.

Yes. Google Apps is designed as an all-in-one solution with integrated tools that work seamlessly together. For instance, you can receive a message in Gmail and instantly convert it into a Calendar event. When you make a comment in Docs, Sheets or Slides, collaborators automatically receive email alerts. With a single click, you can launch a Hangouts video meeting from your inbox or calendar. Using these tools as a complete package improves productivity while giving your business the most value. However, you are welcome to purchase the suite and only use the services of your choice.

In addition to accessing Google Apps mail from the Gmail web interface, you can send and receive mail from your favorite desktop client. Depending on the client, you can use either the IMAP or POP mail protocol. If you’re switching to Google Apps from Microsoft Exchange or some other Outlook service, you can use Google Apps Sync. This is a plug-in for Outlook 2003, 2007, 2010 or 2013 that lets you use Outlook to manage your Google Apps mail, calendar and contacts—along with your Outlook notes, tasks and journal entries.

We’ve found that many of our customers are able to eliminate their existing productivity suites and rely exclusively on Google Docs, Sheets and Slides. Docs, Sheets and Slides are productivity tools that let you create different kinds of files, including text documents, spreadsheets and presentations. You can work on them in real time with other people and store them online in Google Drive. They’re included with Google Apps and work on any device. Unlike with traditional desktop applications, there’s no software to install. They’re compatible with files made in other programs, such as Microsoft Office.

Yes. When you sign up for Google Apps for Work, you can purchase a new domain with one of our domain host partners. Once the domain is purchased, we automatically set up Gmail for your domain and give you full control over your domain's settings.

Google Apps doesn’t host websites, but we partnered with companies who offer hosting and other site services that easily integrate with Google Apps.