What To Do Before Google+ Shuts Down On April 2

Google+ is going away on April 2, which means all of your Google+ content — including pages, photos, and videos — will disappear with it.

Google announced the shutdown last year in part because people weren’t really using the platform. In December, the company pushed the closure date up from August to April and is asking users to download their Google+ data before it gets deleted.

Here’s what you need to do:

  1. Go to Google’s “Download your data” page. If you’re signed in and you have a Google+ account, all Google+ options will be preselected. You may need to sign in or switch accounts.

  2. If you only want to save specific data, you can click Select None and choose only the products you’re interested in. You can also toggle products on and off.

  3. Hit Next.

  4. Choose your file type and delivery method (email link, Drive, Dropbox, etc.).

  5. Click Create Archive.

Exporting your data doesn’t delete your Google+ profile, so if you want to do that before the official shutdown, you can go to the downgrade page and follow the instructions.

According to Google, the shutdown will take time, which means your content may not be deleted on April 2. However, if you there’s anything you care about in your account, go ahead and save it now. Photos and videos backed up in Google Photos won’t be deleted when Google+ shuts down.


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