How to Transfer Ownership of Google Drive Files and Folders From One User to Another

Quick and easy-to-follow guide for Google Workspace administrators

What files will not be included in the ownership transfer

You can transfer ownership of all files a user owns from one user to another. You will not transfer the following files:

Files shared by others, which the user does not own
Files and folders in the user’s Trash
Unorganized files. They can be found by typing “is:unorganized owner:me” in the search bar in the owner’s Drive. Make sure to add them to My Drive to transfer ownership.

After you transfer Drive data ownership

The original owner retains edit access to the files after ownership has been transferred.

How to transfer Google Drive data ownership as an admin step-by-step with images

Step 1

In the Admin console at https://admin.google.com, click the Apps icon.

Step 2

Select Google Workspace.

Step 3

Click Drive and Docs. Make sure not to check the box to the left; just click the name.

Step 4

Select Transfer ownership.

Step 5

Enter the From and To users and click TRANSFER FILES. You’ll get a confirmation that the transfer has started.

All files will appear in a new folder named after the From user’s email address – other than that, the folder structure remains the same.

Once the transfer finishes, an email notification will be delivered to you, the old owner, and the new owner.

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