A shared drive is a folder that belongs to your team, not to any one person
A shared drive in Google Drive is a workspace where multiple people can store, edit, and organize files together. Unlike a regular folder you share with others, a shared drive persists even if the person who created it leaves your organization. Files in a shared drive are owned by the team, not by an individual, which means access doesn't disappear when someone's employment ends or their account changes.
Shared drives work best for ongoing team projects, departments, or groups that need a permanent home for documents. If you need a quick way to share a single folder with a few colleagues, a regular shared folder may be simpler. But if you're building a workspace that will outlast individual team members, a shared drive is the right structure.
Key Takeaways
- You create a shared drive from the "New" button in Google Drive, and it appears in the left sidebar under "Shared drives" once it's set up.
- Only people with a Google Workspace account (not free Gmail accounts) can create or be added to shared drives, depending on your organization's settings.
- After creating a shared drive, you add team members by clicking the "Share" button and entering their email addresses, then choosing their permission level.
- You can set three permission levels: Manager (can add people and delete files), Content Manager (can edit and organize but not manage access), and Viewer (read-only).
- Files uploaded to a shared drive stay there even if the person who uploaded them leaves, unlike files in a personal Drive.
How to create a new shared drive
Open Google Drive in your web browser. On the left sidebar, look for the "New" button (it has a plus sign). Click it, then select "Shared drive" from the menu that appears.
A dialog box will open asking you to name the shared drive. Type a clear name that describes what the team will use it for — for example, "Marketing Campaign 2024" or "Product Development Files". Click "Create" when you're done. Google Drive will generate the shared drive and take you to its main page.
The new shared drive now appears in your left sidebar under the "Shared drives" section. You can access it anytime by clicking its name. At this point, you're the only person with access, and you have manager permissions.
Adding team members and setting their permission levels
Click the "Share" button near the top right of the shared drive. A panel will open on the right side of your screen. In the text field that says "Add people and groups", type the email address of the first person you want to add.
As you type, Google Drive will suggest matching email addresses from your organization. Click the person's name to select them. If you're adding multiple people, repeat this step for each person. You can also paste a list of email addresses separated by commas, and Google Drive will add them all at once.
Before you click "Share", look at the dropdown menu next to each person's name. This is where you set their permission level. The three options are:
- Manager: Can add or remove people, delete files, and change the shared drive's settings. Use this for team leads or people who need full control.
- Content Manager: Can create, edit, and delete files within the shared drive, but cannot add people or change settings. This is the most common choice for regular team members.
- Viewer: Can open and read files but cannot edit or delete them. Use this for stakeholders who need to see the work but shouldn't change it.
Once you've set the permission level for each person, click "Share". Google Drive will send them an email notification with a link to the shared drive. They'll have access within a few minutes.
Organizing files and folders inside a shared drive
Inside a shared drive, you can create folders and subfolders the same way you would in your personal Drive. Click the "New" button, select "Folder", and give it a name. You can nest folders as deeply as you need — for example, a "2024" folder containing "Q1", "Q2", "Q3", and "Q4" subfolders.
Upload files by clicking "New" and selecting "File upload", or by dragging files directly into the shared drive window. Files uploaded by any team member belong to the shared drive, not to the person who uploaded them. This means if someone leaves your organization, their files stay in the shared drive and remain accessible to everyone else.
You can also move existing files from your personal Drive into the shared drive. Right-click the file, select "Move", and choose the shared drive as the destination. Once moved, the file is no longer in your personal Drive.
Managing access and removing people
To change someone's permission level or remove them from the shared drive, click the "Share" button again. Find the person's name in the list and click the dropdown menu next to it. You can select a new permission level or click "Remove" to take away their access.
When you remove someone, they lose access when ready. Any files they were working on remain in the shared drive and stay accessible to everyone else. If you need to restore someone's access later, you can add them again using the same process.
You can also see who has access to the shared drive at any time by clicking "Share". The panel shows every person's name, email, and permission level. If your organization uses Google Workspace, an admin can also set policies that control who can create shared drives and what happens to them when people leave.
Differences between shared drives and shared folders
A shared folder is a regular folder in your personal Drive that you've shared with other people. It's simpler to set up but has important limitations. If you leave your organization or delete your account, the folder and all its files disappear — even if other people still need them. Shared folders work well for short-term projects or one-off collaborations.
A shared drive, by contrast, is permanent. It belongs to your team or organization, not to any individual. Files stay there indefinitely, and access doesn't depend on any one person's employment status. Shared drives are better for ongoing work, institutional knowledge, and anything your team will need to reference months or years later.
If you're unsure which to use, ask yourself: will this folder need to exist in five years, even if the person who created it is gone? If yes, use a shared drive. If it's a temporary project that will be archived or deleted, a shared folder is fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I create a shared drive if I have a free Gmail account?
No. Shared drives are only available to people with Google Workspace accounts (paid accounts that organizations provide to employees). If you have a personal Gmail account, you can be added to a shared drive by someone with a Workspace account, but you cannot create one yourself. Check with your organization's IT or admin team if you're unsure whether your account qualifies.
What happens to files in a shared drive if someone gets fired or quits?
The files stay in the shared drive. When someone leaves, an admin removes their access, but all files they created or uploaded remain there and stay accessible to everyone else. This is one of the main reasons organizations use shared drives instead of shared folders — it protects institutional knowledge.
Can I convert a regular folder into a shared drive?
No. You cannot convert an existing folder. You have to create a new shared drive and move or copy files into it. If you have a shared folder with important files, you can move those files to a new shared drive, but the original folder structure won't transfer automatically.
How many people can I add to a shared drive?
Google Drive doesn't set a hard limit on the number of people in a shared drive, but performance may slow if you add hundreds of people at once. For most teams, there's no practical limit. If you're managing a very large group, your organization's admin may have set policies that affect how many people can access shared drives.
Can I see who edited a specific file in a shared drive?
Yes. Open the file and click the "Version history" button (usually near the top right). This shows every change made to the file, who made it, and when. You can also click on a specific version to see what the file looked like at that point in time.