How to Copy a Whole Google Drive Into Another Account or Folder

Moving or duplicating an entire Google Drive — whether you're switching accounts, handing off a project, or creating a full backup — sounds straightforward until you actually try it. Google doesn't offer a single "copy everything" button, and the options available to you depend heavily on how much data you have, what account type you're using, and how much manual work you're willing to do.

Here's what actually works, and what to watch out for.

Why There's No One-Click Solution

Google Drive is built around individual file and folder ownership, sharing permissions, and account-level storage quotas. When you "copy" a Drive, you're not duplicating a disk image — you're recreating file structures, re-uploading content, and potentially transferring ownership of documents that may be shared with others.

Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) accounts have different tools available than standard personal Gmail accounts. The method that works for one won't necessarily work for the other, and the scale of your Drive — a few gigabytes versus hundreds — changes what's practical.

Method 1: Google Takeout (Download and Re-Upload)

Google Takeout is Google's official data export tool. It packages your entire Drive into a downloadable archive (.zip or .tgz), which you can then upload to another Drive account.

How it works:

1. Go to takeout.google.com while signed into the source account
2. Select Google Drive from the list of services
3. Choose your file format and delivery method (download link, or export directly to another cloud service like OneDrive or Dropbox)
4. Download the archive and upload the contents to the destination Drive

What to know before you use it:

• Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides are exported as Microsoft Office formats (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx) by default — they won't automatically re-open as native Google files unless you convert them again on import
• Shared files you don't own are not included — only files owned by that account
• Large exports are split into multiple archives (typically 2GB chunks), so a 50GB Drive becomes many files to manage
• Re-uploading doesn't preserve original creation dates or sharing permissions

This method works best for personal accounts and smaller Drives where format conversion isn't a deal-breaker.

Method 2: Shared Drive Transfer (Google Workspace Only)

If you're on a Google Workspace account, admins have access to the Admin Console, which includes tools for transferring Drive ownership between users within the same organization.

Through Admin Console → Data Migration or the Drive and Docs settings, admins can:

• Migrate files between user accounts
• Preserve folder structure during the transfer
• Move content without downloading and re-uploading

This is the cleanest method for business or school account migrations, but it requires admin-level access and only works within the same Google Workspace organization. You can't use Admin Console tools to move files to a personal Gmail account or to a different organization.

Method 3: Manual Copy Within Google Drive

For smaller Drives or specific folders, you can copy content directly within the Drive interface:

1. Open Google Drive in a browser
2. Select all files/folders in a directory (Ctrl+A or Cmd+A)
3. Right-click → Make a copy — this creates copies in the same Drive
4. Move those copies to a shared folder accessible by the destination account

The limitation: "Make a copy" doesn't work recursively on nested folders. Subfolders don't get duplicated — only the top-level items do. For complex folder hierarchies, this requires significant manual work folder by folder.

Method 4: Third-Party Migration Tools

Several third-party services are designed specifically to copy or sync Google Drive content between accounts. Tools in this category generally:

• Preserve folder structure more reliably than manual methods
• Handle Google Docs-to-Google Docs transfers (keeping native formats)
• Work across accounts, including personal-to-personal or personal-to-Workspace transfers
• Offer scheduling and incremental sync options

⚠️ These tools require you to grant broad access to both Google accounts. Review the permissions carefully and stick to established services with clear data privacy policies. The trade-off between convenience and account access is a real one.

Key Variables That Affect Which Method Works for You

What Never Transfers Automatically

Regardless of method, a few things consistently don't survive a Drive-to-Drive copy:

• File sharing permissions — these are tied to the original account and must be re-set manually
• Version history — copied files start fresh with no edit history
• Comments and suggestions on Google Docs
• Files shared with you but owned by others — these live in the source account's "Shared with me," not in your owned storage

🗂️ If any of these matter to your use case — collaborative documents, audit trails, or externally shared files — factor that into your approach before you start.

The Part That Depends on Your Setup

The right method comes down to factors no general guide can resolve for you: how large your Drive is, whether you have Workspace admin access, how critical it is to preserve native Google file formats, and how much tolerance you have for manual cleanup afterward.

A 5GB personal Drive with mostly photos and PDFs is a completely different problem than a 200GB Workspace account filled with nested Google Docs folders that dozens of collaborators can access. The mechanics of copying are the same — but what "good enough" looks like, and what trade-offs are acceptable, depends entirely on your situation.