What happens to a Google account when someone dies?
A Google account stays as it is unless the owner set up Inactive Account Manager or someone contacts Google. Without a plan, Google may delete an account that has been inactive for at least two years. Immediate family and representatives can ask Google to close the account, request funds from it, or in some cases get its data. Google never gives out passwords.
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Quick facts
- Google may delete an account that has been inactive for at least two years (Google, as of 2026).
- Inactive Account Manager lets an owner name up to 10 people to notify when the account goes quiet (Google, as of 2026).
- Google doesn't give out passwords or other login details for a deceased person's account (Google, as of 2026).
- Once Google closes an account, it can't process a request for the account's contents (Google, as of 2026).
How do you close a Gmail account of a deceased person?
- Decide first whether you want anything from the account. Once Google closes it, you can't ask for its contents later.
- Go to Google's page for requests about a deceased user's account.
- Choose "Close the account of a deceased user" and fill in the form. Google works with immediate family members and representatives.
- If you already asked for the account's data, wait until that request is finished before you ask Google to close it.
Can you get emails or photos from a dead person's Google account?
Sometimes. Google says that in certain circumstances it may provide content from a deceased user's account, after a careful review. It won't give out passwords or other login details.
Use the "Obtain data from a deceased user's account" option on Google's page for deceased users. The same page has a separate option to request funds held in the account.
What is Google Inactive Account Manager?
It is a setting the owner can turn on while alive. They choose how long Google should wait after the account goes quiet, and name up to 10 people to notify. They can share all their data, or only some types, with each person.
When the account has been inactive for the chosen time, Google emails those people. If data was shared, the email has a download link that only that person can use, because Google verifies them by phone. The owner can also choose to have the account deleted.
If there is no plan and nobody contacts Google, the account stays as it is at first. Google may delete an account that has been inactive across its services for at least two years. Deletion covers every Google product linked to the account, and the Gmail address can't be used again.
Questions people ask
- Can Google give me my dad's Gmail password?
- No. Google doesn't provide passwords or other login details for a deceased person's account.
- Should I close a dead person's Google account or ask for the data first?
- Ask for the data first. After Google closes an account, it can't process a request for its contents.
- Does Google delete inactive accounts automatically?
- Yes, it may. Google can delete an account that has been inactive for at least two years.
More questions
- Can I get money left in a deceased person's Google account?
- You can ask. Google's page for deceased users has an option to submit a request for funds.