Google Workspace Business Starter costs £5.90 per user per month on an annual plan or £7 on the flexible plan, both before VAT, according to Google's UK billing table. For ten staff that is £59 or £70 a month. Cheaper mailboxes exist, but they buy less than a full suite, so the right comparison depends on what your team actually uses.
How much does Google Workspace cost per user per month in the UK?
Google publishes three Business editions in pounds. All figures below exclude VAT, and the monthly price falls when you accept a one year contract.
| Edition | Annual plan, per user per month | Flexible plan, per user per month |
|---|---|---|
| Business Starter | £5.90 | £7.00 |
| Business Standard | £11.80 | £14.00 |
| Business Plus | £18.40 | £22.00 |
Source: Google Workspace billing comparison, checked on 5 November 2026. Google also notes that it occasionally offers country-based discounts to new customers, so the checkout price can differ from the standard rate.
Business email price per user per month in pounds, excluding VAT
Published annual-billing price per user per month for each product, checked on 5 November 2026.
View the data
| Category | £ per user per month |
|---|---|
| Zoho Mail Lite 5 GB | £0.80 |
| Zoho Mail Lite 10 GB | £1.00 |
| Exchange Online Plan 1 | £3.10 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | £5.40 |
| Google Workspace Starter | £5.90 |
What does Google business email cost for a team of 5 to 10?
Business email is not a separate line item. A custom domain mailbox comes with the Starter licence, so the cost of "Google business email" is the cost of Starter.
For ten licensed users, Starter on the annual plan costs £59 a month, or £708 over twelve months. On the flexible plan the same ten users cost £70 a month, or £840 over twelve months. The flexible plan therefore costs £11 a month more, which is £132 a year, for the freedom to change headcount or leave without waiting for a renewal date.
VAT is extra for most UK businesses. The UK standard rate is 20%, so the £59 annual figure becomes £70.80 a month including VAT. If you are VAT registered you can normally reclaim it, so check with your accountant before treating the gross figure as your real cost.
What are the cheaper options for business email?
The lowest prices come from email-only products. They cost less because they do not include a document and meeting suite, so compare email with email and suites with suites.
| Option | Published price per user per month, excluding VAT unless stated | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Zoho Mail Lite 5 GB | £0.80, billed annually | Email hosting, yearly subscription only |
| Zoho Mail Lite 10 GB | £1.00, billed annually | Email hosting, yearly subscription only |
| Exchange Online Plan 1 | £3.10, paid yearly | Microsoft-hosted business email |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | £5.40 paid yearly, or £6.48 monthly | Business email plus Microsoft's online apps |
| Google Workspace Business Starter | £5.90 annual plan, or £7 flexible | Gmail on your domain plus Google's collaboration tools |
Sources: Zoho Mail pricing, Microsoft Exchange Online plans and Microsoft 365 Business Basic, all checked on 5 November 2026. Zoho shows its pounds sterling table to customers in Great Britain and does not state VAT treatment there, so confirm at checkout.
Over twelve months, ten users cost about £96 on Zoho Mail Lite 5 GB, £372 on Exchange Online Plan 1, £648 on Business Basic paid yearly and £708 on Starter's annual plan. Those are our calculations from the published rates, not vendor quotes, and they assume steady headcount.
Is the free Zoho Mail plan worth it for a small firm?
Zoho's free plan covers one domain for up to five users, with 5 GB of mail storage each. It does not include IMAP, POP or ActiveSync, which means staff cannot connect Outlook or most phone mail apps in the usual way.
The catch is growth. Zoho states that once you move to a paid plan every user is billed at the paid per-user rate, so the free users do not stay free. Treat the free plan as a way to test the service, and work out the paid cost for your full headcount before you move your domain across.
What about IONOS email hosting?
IONOS lists a Mail Basic 5 bundle at £1 a month for the first 12 months, with a displayed price of £2.50 shown alongside it, excluding VAT. It covers five email accounts with 2 GB each.
That is a bundle price, not a price per mailbox you can multiply by headcount. The page does not state what happens after the first year beyond the displayed £2.50, so ask IONOS for the ongoing price in writing before you rely on the headline.
Does annual billing lock you in?
Yes, and the terms are worth reading. Google's annual plan guidance says you can add and remove user accounts at any time, but if you cancel before the contract ends you are still responsible for the full value of the commitment.
In practice, losing a team member does not cancel their seat's annual cost until renewal. That is why the £132 a year flexible premium can be good value for a firm that expects to hire, lose people or change suppliers within twelve months.
How should a small firm choose?
Start with the tools your team already uses every day. A team that lives in Gmail and shared Google documents will usually be happiest on Starter, and a team that works in Outlook and Word will usually be happiest on a Microsoft plan.
If you only need a professional address on your own domain and nothing else, an email-only product can save real money. Check that it works with the phones and mail apps your staff use, and ask what a move to a bigger plan will cost you later.
Pick the plan for the next twelve months, not the next five years. Choose the flexible plan while headcount is uncertain, move to annual billing once the seats are settled, and put the renewal date in the diary so the contract never rolls over unnoticed.
