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Gmail is changing for some users.<\/span><\/p>\n dpa\/picture alliance via Getty Images<\/small><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Google is offering new Gmail users a free upgrade in some regions \u2014 a 300% uplift in email and photo storage. But there\u2019s a catch. Those users are given just 5GB initially \u2014 not the usual 15GB. To recover the missing 10GB \u201cat no cost,\u201d users need to give Google their phone number. And that has prompted a backlash.<\/p>\n \u201cGoogle\u2019s 15GB free cloud storage may be going away soon,\u201d Android Authority<\/em><\/a> says. While it\u2019s limited for now, \u201cif Google\u2019s tests prove successful, this could possibly become the norm for new sign-ups in more regions.\u201d Thus far, existing users are unaffected by the change, and free storage levels remain the same.<\/p>\n Forbes<\/span>Google\u2019s Android Upgrade\u2014Why You Need A New Phone In 2026<\/span>By Zak Doffman<\/span><\/small><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n In the message to new users, Google says the request for a phone number is \u201cto make sure storage is only added once per person.\u201d That sounds plausible. But in response to Android Authority<\/em>, it had a different explanation: \u201cencouraging users to improve their account security and data recovery.\u201d <\/p>\n The reports first surfaced on Reddit<\/a>, with one poster dismissing the move as \u201cthe \u2018bribery for your data\u2019 stage.\u201d With somewhere around 2 billion accounts and more being added every day, the savings from reducing free data are significant.<\/p>\n