r/googleworkspace • u/BeeBee_uwu • 5d ago
Help explaining small charges from Google Workspace
Hi all, could really use some help. So I signed up for a domain email through my personal website on Weebly/Squarespace, which funneled me to the trial with Google Workspace. The interface was just too confusing for me so I decided to cancel it. I thought I canceled firmly within the trial window (Sept 30), but maybe I missed something (again I was confused by the interface).
I removed the auto-renewal on my credit card directly on the reseller site (Weebly) since Google Workspace instructions seemed to suggest that all billing was handled through them if your domain is hosted by a third party. On 10/2 I got a small charge of $3.92. I thought maybe I didn't cancel fully, and checked on Weebly again (that showed no autorenewal) and I went to Google Workspace Admin and saw there was a user (my website domain email) still on - I thought that might have accidentally triggered the small fee, so I deleted it and canceled everything I saw on Google Workspace directly (it's been a while, but I think I deleted any billing info). I thought everything was ok, but then I received another odd small charge of $0.54 from Google Workspace on 10/9.
Does anyone know where these phantom charges maybe coming from? It's starting to worry me that maybe there's something active that I don't know about, and now that I've been fully kicked out of Google Workspace Admin, I can't go in and see any activity. I've contacted Weebly but haven't gotten a response. Any help would be great. Thank you!
Update: Ok, so I did remember I got invoices sent to me as PDFs from [payments-noreply@google.com](mailto:payments-noreply@google.com) (mailed-by: scoutcamp.bounces.google.com). I clicked "Make payment" on the email and it leads to Google payment center, but doesn't show any bills or documents? Have I been scammed?
1
u/MarkGossageUK 5d ago
I can understand why you're concerned, especially when you've already tried cancelling everything and small charges keep appearing.
One thing worth checking is whether you've actually cancelled the subscription or just switched off automatic renewal.
They're not always the same thing.
Something else I discovered in Squarespace's documentation is that cancelling Google Workspace through the website provider can transfer the account's billing arrangements directly to Google.
That might explain why you're seeing charges from Google rather than your original website provider.
There's also the possibility that these are final charges for the days the service was active. Google can bill for usage after cancellation, so a small charge doesn't automatically mean the subscription is still running.
I'd start by checking the dates and billing periods shown on those PDF invoices.
Then I'd ask your original website provider to confirm three things:
- The exact date your subscription was cancelled.
- Whether billing was transferred directly to Google.
- Whether any active subscription remains associated with your domain.
Since you've lost access to the administration dashboard, I'd also ask how you're supposed to verify the cancellation.
I'd avoid clicking payment links in emails while you're uncertain about their authenticity. It's safer to access the billing service independently.
One question: when you cancelled through your website provider, did you receive an actual cancellation confirmation, or did it simply show that automatic renewal was disabled?
That distinction might help explain what's happened.
1
u/BeeBee_uwu 4d ago
This is such helpful advice. I received emails from both Weebly and Google that the service was ending, but it didn't say "canceled" - I can't remember fully, but I believe I just removed my payment/canceled auto-renew on Weebly. I think I must not have canceled fully on Google Workspace, or something, so got the first charge. I went back into the Admin console when I still had access and canceled everything from there at that time. I'm hoping the second $.54 charge is just because I didn't catch it by a day or something... I reached out to Weebly's customer service and spoke to someone on the phone. They weren't much help, but essentially told me since I did not renew the service it's been punted over to Google so any remaining charges would be from something that hadn't been fully canceled with them. I'll hold on until November to see if any charges come through. Thanks for the help!
1
u/MarkGossageUK 4d ago
Thanks for the update. That does help explain what's happened.
If Weebly has confirmed the account was transferred to Google, and you've since cancelled everything through Google Admin, hopefully those small amounts are just the final charges for the time the service was active.
I'd hang on to the cancellation emails and invoices, just in case you need them later.
One small suggestion: rather than relying entirely on whether another payment appears in November, it would be worth getting written confirmation from Google that the subscription is fully cancelled, if you can.
Hopefully that's the end of it and you won't have to spend any more time chasing it.
Glad I could help!
1
u/LunchLanky2158 3d ago
Those amounts look like normal prorated billing, not a live subscription. On the Flexible plan, Workspace bills after the fact, per user, for the days a license was active. So you get a small charge for the period between the trial ending and your cancellation, then a final one for the few days the user remained active afterward. The $0.54 coming after you deleted the user fits that pattern.
To confirm nothing is still active:
- Go to pay.google.com → Subscriptions and services. If Workspace is gone or shows as canceled, nothing will bill again.
- Open the receipts on the same page. Each one shows the date range it covers. If the last range ends on the day you deleted the user, you're done.
If a charge appears next month for dates after your deletion, contact Google billing support with those receipts.
2
u/mindless_maddie 5d ago
either you got charged for the domain and you're past the free trial period.