How to Migrate from Google Workspace to Microsoft 365

Migrating from Google Workspace to Microsoft 365 touches email, files, calendars, and contacts, plus the DNS records that control where mail is delivered. Done in the wrong order, you risk lost messages and downtime. This guide lays out a safe, staged migration.

Step 1: Plan and inventory

List every user, shared mailbox, group, and shared drive. Note the total data volume, since that drives how long the migration takes. Decide on a cutover date and communicate it clearly to staff well in advance.

Step 2: Prepare the Microsoft 365 tenant

Create user accounts and assign licenses in Microsoft 365 before migrating any data. Verify your domain in the admin center but do not change MX records yet — mail should keep flowing to Google until the migration is complete.

Step 3: Migrate email with the Google Workspace connector

Microsoft 365 includes a Google Workspace migration tool in the Exchange admin center. It uses a service account with domain-wide delegation to copy mail, calendars, and contacts. Run a pilot migration for a few accounts first to validate the process and timing.

Step 4: Migrate Drive content

Move files from Google Drive to OneDrive and SharePoint. For small volumes, users can download and re-upload, but for company-wide moves use a dedicated migration tool that preserves folder structure and sharing permissions. Map shared drives to SharePoint document libraries.

Step 5: Cut over DNS

Once mailboxes are populated, change your MX records to point at Microsoft 365 and update SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to reflect the new sender. Allow for DNS propagation, and run a final delta sync afterward to capture any mail that arrived at Google during the switch.

Step 6: Decommission and verify

After confirming all data has moved and mail flows correctly for a week, decommission the Google Workspace subscription. Verify calendars, contacts, and shared files are intact, and provide users with a short guide to the new tools.

The secret to a painless migration is sequencing: provision first, migrate data while mail still flows to Google, then cut over DNS last. Pilot everything before the big move.