How to Use Google Takeout – Download Google Data Steps

What is Google Takeout?

Google Takeout is a free data export service provided by Google at takeout.google.com. It was launched in 2011 as part of Google's Data Liberation Front initiative — a team dedicated to making it easy for users to move their data in and out of Google products. Using Google Takeout, you can download a complete copy of all your Google account data in standard, portable file formats.

What Data Can You Download with Google Takeout?

Google Takeout covers data from 50+ Google services. Here are the most commonly exported:

How to Download Google Takeout — Step-by-Step Guide

Follow these steps to use Google Takeout and download your Google data. The entire process takes about 5 minutes to set up. The actual export may take longer depending on your account size.

Step 1 — Go to Google Takeout

• Open your browser and go to takeout.google.com
• Sign in with the Google account whose data you want to download
• Complete the 2-step verification if it is enabled on your account
• You will land on the main Google Takeout page showing all Google services

Step 2 — Select Which Data to Include

• By default, all services are selected — this would export everything from your account
• Click Deselect all (top right of the products section) to uncheck everything first
• Now scroll through the list and check only the services you need — e.g. Gmail, Drive, Photos
• For each selected service, click the service name button to customise what is included:
  • Gmail: Click All Mail data included to choose specific labels/folders
  • Drive: Click All Drive data included to select specific folders
  • Photos: Click All photo albums included to choose specific albums
• Tip for beginners: Start with just one service (like Gmail or Photos) for your first export — less data means faster processing and easier file management

Step 3 — Click Next Step

• Scroll to the bottom of the product list
• Click the blue Next step button to go to the export settings page

Step 4 — Choose Your Export Settings

This is where you configure how your Google Takeout download is delivered and formatted:

Step 5 — Click Create Export

• Click the Create export button
• Google will display a confirmation screen showing your choices and the expected start date
• Do NOT resubmit the same request while waiting — it creates duplicate data
• You can immediately submit a separate Takeout request for other services while the first one processes

Step 6 — Download Your Google Takeout Archive

• Wait for the email from noreply@google.com with subject "Your Google data archive is ready"
• Click Download archive in the email
• Save the .zip file to your computer or external hard drive
• Critical: The download link expires after 7 days — download immediately
• If you have multiple archive files (for large accounts), download all of them
• To manage previous exports: go to takeout.google.com and click Manage exports

Note: Get back your lost videos using the best video recovery software.

How to Download Specific Google Services — Per Service Guide

How to Download Gmail Using Google Takeout

• Go to takeout.google.com > click Deselect all
• Check the Mail checkbox
• Click All Mail data included to choose specific labels (Inbox, Sent, Drafts, or all)
• Format is automatically set to MBOX — importable into Thunderbird, Apple Mail, and Outlook
• Click Next step, set delivery to email, click Create export
• For very large Gmail accounts (over 20GB), use 2GB file size setting to split into manageable parts

Note: Improve your system’s health with the best system utility software.

How to Download Google Drive Using Google Takeout

• Check the Drive checkbox
• Click Advanced settings — check boxes for additional file types
• Click All Drive data included to select specific folders or keep all
• Google Docs, Sheets, Slides export as DOCX, XLSX, PPTX by default
• Note: Only files in My Drive are exported — Shared Drives and files shared with you are NOT included

Fix corrupted SQL databases using top-rated SQL recovery tools.

How to Download Google Photos Using Google Takeout

• Check the Google Photos checkbox
• Click All photo albums included to choose specific albums or download everything
• Photos export in original quality (JPG, PNG, RAW) with a .json metadata file per photo
• For large photo libraries, use 50 GB file size to reduce the number of archive parts

Find out which basic software is required for PC to enhance its functionality.

How to Download Google Calendar and Contacts

• Calendar: Check Calendar > All calendars included > select which calendars > exports as ICS (importable into Apple Calendar, Outlook, Zoom)
• Contacts: Check Contacts > exports as vCard (.vcf) format — importable into iPhone, Android, Outlook

Get your Google data in a few clicks using Google Takeout.

Google Takeout Delivery Methods — Which to Choose?

How to Open Google Takeout Files

After downloading your Google Takeout archive, you will have a .zip file containing folders for each service. Here is how to open each file type:

Step 1 — Extract the ZIP File

• Windows: Right-click the .zip file > Extract All > choose destination folder
• Mac: Double-click the .zip file — macOS extracts automatically
• Large archives: Use 7-Zip (Windows, free) or The Unarchiver (Mac, free) for better handling of large .zip and .tgz files

Step 2 — Open Files by Type

Google Takeout Tips & Best Practices

• Start small: For your first export, select just one service (Gmail or Photos) to understand the process before exporting everything
• Check storage space first: Ensure your computer or external drive has at least 25-30% more space than your total Google storage usage before downloading
• Do not retry while waiting: If the export is taking a long time, do not resubmit — it creates duplicate archives and wastes Google's processing time
• Download immediately: The email link expires after 7 days — do not wait to download the archive
• Use 2 GB file size: Splitting into 2 GB files makes downloads more reliable and easier to manage than one giant 50 GB file
• Schedule recurring exports: Use Export every 2 months for 1 year for ongoing automated backups — ideal before deleting an account or for GDPR compliance
• Shared files are excluded: Google Takeout only exports files you own in My Drive — shared files must be manually downloaded separately
• Use mobile data carefully: If downloading on mobile, ensure you are on WiFi — Google Takeout archives are typically several gigabytes

Find the best photo recovery software to recover your lost pictures.

Google Takeout Not Working — Common Issues & Fixes

Frequently Asked Questions — Google Takeout