Why this check comes first
The same Google app can look different on two accounts. Features depend on three things:
- Your account type: a personal (consumer) account or a work or school (Workspace) account.
- Your plan or edition: for example free, Google AI Pro, Business Standard or Enterprise Plus.
- Your admin's settings: on a Workspace account, IT can switch whole services off, for everyone or for one department.
In this lesson you will record what your account has, with the date you checked. Google changes plans and AI features often, so a check without a date soon becomes unreliable. Everything below was correct when it was written (2 November 2026). Check it again on Google's own pages.
One name change: in July 2026 Google renamed NotebookLM to Gemini Notebook. You may still see the old name in links and older help pages. This course uses "Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)".
Task 1: Find your account type
Desktop or web
- Open Gmail or Drive in a browser.
- Click your profile picture (top right) and read the email address.
- Choose Manage your Google Account. If you see a label saying the account is managed by your organisation, it is a Workspace account.
Mobile (Gmail or Google app, Android and iOS)
- Tap your profile picture.
- Read the address, then tap Manage your Google Account and look for the same "managed" label.
How to read the result
- @gmail.com = consumer account. No admin controls it. Any extra features come from a Google AI plan you pay for yourself.
- Your own domain (e.g. name@startup.io) = Workspace account. An admin manages it.
Do now: write down the account type and today's date.
Task 2: Find your plan or edition
Consumer accounts
- Go to one.google.com (or open the Google One app on mobile).
- Note your plan: none (free), Google AI Plus, Google AI Pro or Google AI Ultra.
Workspace accounts
- Only an admin can see the edition, under Admin console > Billing > Subscriptions. If you run a small business and are the admin yourself, look there.
- If you are not the admin, ask IT for the exact edition name, such as "Business Standard" or "Enterprise Plus". Don't guess from what you can see on screen, because missing features may be switched off rather than left out of your plan.
Do now: write down the plan or edition and where the answer came from.
Task 3: Fill in your dated feature audit
Copy this table into a Doc or Sheet. Give each feature one of four statuses:
- Available: you can open it and use it today.
- Preview: Google labels it as preview, beta, "coming soon" or still rolling out.
- Unconfirmed: you can't see it, and you don't yet know why.
- Switched off by admin: your plan includes it, but your organisation has turned it off.
| Feature | Status | Date checked | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Tasks | |||
| Google Keep | |||
| Gemini Notebook | Note your tier's limits | ||
| Gemini app / Gemini in Gmail, Docs | |||
| Workspace Studio |
What to expect (checked 2 November 2026)
- Tasks and Keep: free on consumer accounts. On Workspace they are services an admin can turn off.
- Gemini Notebook: free with a personal Google account. Google AI Plus, Pro and Ultra raise the limits. In Workspace it is a core service on Business and Enterprise editions, and admins can turn it on or off for groups or departments. Some features roll out to higher tiers first.
- Gemini in Gmail and Docs: on consumer accounts this depends on the AI plan. Google AI Pro lists Gemini in Gmail, Docs and Sheets, and Google AI Plus lists Gemini in Gmail for proofreading. Business Standard and Business Plus include the Gemini side panel in Docs, Sheets and Drive.
- Workspace Studio: this is Google's no-code tool for building AI "agents" that automate work. It is available on eligible Business, Enterprise and Education editions, not on free @gmail.com accounts. Admins can turn it on or off by department or group. If you can't find it, mark it unconfirmed and ask.
Example: Priya works at a 40-person start-up on Business Standard. Tasks, Keep and Gemini Notebook all open, so she marks them available. Workspace Studio is missing from her app launcher, so she marks it unconfirmed and moves on to Task 4.
Task 4: Ask IT a specific question
IT can answer a short question that names the feature quickly. "Why can't I use AI?" is too vague to act on. Include:
- The exact feature name.
- What you see, or don't see, and where.
- Your edition, if you know it.
- What you would use it for.
Template:
"Hi IT, on [date] I couldn't find Workspace Studio in my account ([email]). We're on [edition]. Is it switched off for my team, and if so, could it be enabled? I'd use it to turn flagged emails into tasks. Are there any rules I should follow?"
Once IT replies, change the feature's status from unconfirmed to available or switched off by admin.
Do now: draft one question like this for a feature on your audit.
Key takeaways
- Your features depend on three things: account type, plan or edition, and admin settings.
- @gmail.com means a consumer account. A company domain means Workspace, managed by an admin.
- Non-admins can't see the Workspace edition. Ask IT rather than guess.
- Date every check and mark each feature as available, preview, unconfirmed or switched off by admin.
- NotebookLM is now called Gemini Notebook. Workspace Studio needs an eligible Workspace edition.
- A good question to IT names the feature, what you see, your edition and what you'd use it for.