Google Drive for Beginners: Store and Share Files
If you've ever emailed a document to yourself just so you can open it on another computer, Google Drive may make your life considerably easier.
Google Drive lets you store files online so you can access them from different devices, organise them into folders and share them with other people.
But there's one word that often causes confusion:
Cloud.
So before we start clicking anything, let's explain what Google Drive actually does.
What Is Google Drive?
Google Drive is Google's cloud storage service.
Normally, a file might exist on your computer's internal drive.
For example:
Documents → Holiday → Booking.pdf
If that file exists only on that computer, you'll normally need that computer to access it.
Google Drive lets you store files online in your Google Account.
You can then access them from compatible devices by signing into your account.
In simple terms:
Your computer → Internet → Google Drive
and later:
Google Drive → Internet → Your other device
What Does “The Cloud” Actually Mean?
“The cloud” sounds much more mysterious than it really is.
Your files aren't floating around in the sky.
Cloud storage simply means the information is stored on remote computer systems operated by the service provider and accessed over a network such as the Internet.
Google Drive is one example.
So when somebody says:
“I've put it in the cloud.”
they generally mean the information has been stored with an online service rather than existing solely on their local device.
How Do I Open Google Drive?
On a computer, you can open your web browser and go to:
drive.google.com
Sign into your Google Account if necessary.
You'll then see your Google Drive.
If you're already signed into another Google service such as Gmail, you can also use Google's app launcher — the grid of dots you'll often see near the top-right of Google's websites — and select Drive.
Google Drive also has applications for supported computers, phones and tablets.
What Can I Store in Google Drive?
Google Drive can store many different types of files.
For example:
PDF documents
photographs
videos
text files
Microsoft Word documents
Excel spreadsheets
ZIP files
presentations
scanned paperwork
Google Docs
Google Sheets
Google Slides
You don't need to use Google-created files exclusively.
Drive can also store files created by many other applications.
Uploading Your First File
Let's upload something.
Open Google Drive.
Select:
New
Then choose:
File upload
Find the file on your computer and select it.
Drive will upload the file to your account.
Once the upload finishes, you'll see it appear in Drive.
Congratulations.
You've just stored a file in Google Drive.
Uploading an Entire Folder
You can also upload folders.
Choose:
New → Folder upload
Then select a folder from your computer.
This can be useful if you've already organised a collection of files locally and want to upload them together.
Be aware that large folders can take a while to upload, particularly if your Internet connection has a slower upload speed.
Create Folders Before Drive Becomes a Mess
Google Drive can quickly become the digital equivalent of that kitchen drawer containing batteries, takeaway menus, screwdrivers and keys nobody recognises.
Create some folders.
For a home user, you might have:
Documents
Household
Finance
Travel
Family
Receipts
Manuals
Photos to Share
You don't need dozens.
Start simple.
How to Create a Folder
Select:
New
then:
New folder
Give it a useful name.
For example:
Household
You could then create folders inside it:
Household
→ Energy
→ Insurance
→ Internet
→ Council
→ Manuals
Now when you need the boiler manual two years from now, you have a reasonable chance of actually finding it.
Give Files Sensible Names
Consider these two filenames:
scan0047.pdf
and:
Home Insurance Policy - 2026.pdf
Which one will make sense next year?
A sensible filename can save a lot of searching.
For important documents, I often like names containing:
what the file is + relevant date/year
For example:
Car Insurance - 2026.pdf
Boiler Service - 2026-09-12.pdf
Holiday Booking - Cornwall - 2027.pdf
There's no single perfect naming system.
Consistency matters more.
Google Drive Search Is Extremely Useful
Just like Gmail, Google Drive has powerful search.
If you have hundreds of files, don't spend ten minutes manually opening folders.
Use the search box.
Search for something memorable from the filename or document.
You can also narrow searches using different criteria.
The better you name your files, the more useful search becomes.
What Is “My Drive”?
You'll frequently see:
My Drive
Think of this as the main storage area belonging to your Google Drive account.
Files and folders you create or upload can be organised here.
You may also see other sections such as:
Shared with me
Recent
Starred
Trash
Each provides a different way of finding your information.
What Does “Shared With Me” Mean?
Google Drive isn't only about storing your own files.
Other people can share files and folders with you.
Those items can appear under:
Shared with me
For example, somebody might share:
holiday plans
meeting notes
a spreadsheet
club documents
photographs
event information
An important point:
A file being shared with you doesn't necessarily mean you own it.
The owner may still control the file and its permissions.
Sharing a File
This is one of Google Drive's best features.
Instead of emailing somebody a large document, you can share access to the file stored in Drive.
Select the file and choose:
Share
You can then specify who should have access.
But pay attention to the permission level.
Viewer, Commenter and Editor
Google Drive supports different access levels for many shared items.
Viewer
The person can view the file.
They generally can't change its contents.
Commenter
For supported file types, the person can view and leave comments without directly editing the main content.
Editor
The person can make changes.
This is powerful, so don't automatically give everyone Editor access.
Ask yourself:
Does this person need to change the document, or only read it?
If they only need to read it, Viewer may be the better choice.
Be Careful With “Anyone With the Link”
Drive can allow link-based sharing.
Depending on the sharing settings, this can make a file accessible to anyone who obtains the link.
That can be convenient.
It can also be inappropriate for private information.
Before sharing something, ask:
What is in this file?
A restaurant menu?
Probably not very sensitive.
A document containing personal or financial information?
Think carefully about who should have access.
Always check the sharing permissions rather than assuming they're private.
Google Docs, Sheets and Slides
Drive becomes even more useful when combined with Google's productivity applications.
Google Docs
Documents and word processing.
Google Sheets
Spreadsheets.
Google Slides
Presentations.
These files can live in Google Drive and be edited directly through your browser.
Changes are generally saved automatically while you're working online.
This means you don't normally have to repeatedly press a Save button while editing a Google Doc.
Working Together on the Same Document
One of the most useful things about Google Drive and Google Docs is collaboration.
Imagine four people planning an event.
The old method might look like this:
Event Plan.docx
then:
Event Plan FINAL.docx
then:
Event Plan FINAL 2.docx
then:
Event Plan FINAL ACTUAL.docx
then inevitably:
Event Plan FINAL ACTUAL USE THIS ONE.docx
We've all been there.
With a shared Google Doc, everyone can potentially work with the same document instead.
That can dramatically reduce version confusion.
What Does “Recent” Do?
The Recent section shows files you've recently worked with or accessed.
This is useful when you know:
“I was working on it yesterday, but I can't remember where I put it.”
Instead of hunting through folders, check Recent.
What Does Starred Mean?
Just like starring an email in Gmail, you can star important items in Drive.
This creates a quick way to find files you use regularly.
You might star:
household budget
important instructions
current project
frequently used spreadsheet
ongoing club document
Don't star everything.
If everything is important, nothing is important.
What Happens When I Delete Something?
Deleting a file normally moves it to:
Trash
In the UK interface you may also see this referred to as the bin in some contexts.
Google states that files in Drive's Trash are automatically permanently deleted after 30 days.
That gives you some time to recover something you've accidentally deleted.
But don't treat Trash as permanent storage.
If something matters, organise it properly.
Does Google Drive Use My Google Storage?
Yes.
For a standard personal Google Account, Google currently provides 15 GB of storage at no charge.
Importantly, that storage is shared across services including:
Google Drive
Gmail
and
Google Photos
So you don't necessarily have 15 GB for each service.
They're sharing the allowance.
Large email attachments, videos and photographs can therefore contribute to your overall storage usage.
What Happens When Google Storage Becomes Full?
Running out of Google storage can cause problems.
For example, you may no longer be able to upload new files to Drive.
Because your storage is shared across Google services, being over your storage limit can also affect Gmail and Google Photos.
Don't wait until everything is completely full before investigating.
We'll cover how to check and clean your Google storage in a future guide.
The Big Question: Is Google Drive a Backup?
This needs a slightly longer answer.
Simply having files in Google Drive gives you another way to store information online.
That's useful.
But cloud storage and a proper backup strategy aren't automatically the same thing.
Why?
Because files can still potentially be:
accidentally deleted
overwritten
changed
removed
lost through account problems
Synchronisation can also reproduce changes between locations.
For example, depending on your setup, deleting a synchronised file on one device may affect its cloud copy.
For genuinely irreplaceable information, don't rely blindly on one storage location or one service.
Important data should ideally have additional independent protection.
Family photographs, financial records and years of personal documents deserve more than:
“I think Google has them somewhere.”
Know where your important data exists and how you'd recover it.
Google Drive for Desktop
Google also provides Google Drive for desktop.
This allows Drive to integrate more closely with Windows and macOS.
Files stored in Google Drive can then appear through your computer's normal file-management system.
Depending on your configuration, Drive for desktop can stream or mirror files.
This deserves its own guide because understanding the difference is important — particularly if you're relying on Drive as part of your storage strategy.
For now, just remember:
The Google Drive website and Google Drive for desktop are different ways of accessing the same broader service.
Can I Access Files Offline?
Google Drive is primarily a cloud service, but Google provides offline options for certain situations and supported file types.
This can be useful if you need to work somewhere without reliable Internet access.
However, don't assume every file in Drive will automatically be available when you're offline.
If you know you'll need something without Internet access, prepare beforehand.
Keep Your Google Drive Secure
Remember what we discussed in our Google Account guide.
Your Google Drive may eventually contain:
personal documents
bills
photographs
financial information
identification documents
work files
Protect your Google Account.
Use:
A strong, unique password
and enable:
2-Step Verification
Also periodically review which files you've shared and who can access them.
Don't Upload Something Just Because You Can
Cloud storage is convenient, but use common sense.
Before uploading highly sensitive information, think about whether it actually needs to be there.
Also consider:
who has access
whether you've shared it
whether your account is properly protected
whether another storage method would be more appropriate
Convenience shouldn't replace sensible security.
A Simple Google Drive Organisation System
If you're starting from scratch, try something like:
My Drive
→ Personal
→ Household
→ Finance
→ Travel
→ Important Documents
→ Projects
→ Manuals
Then create additional folders only when you actually need them.
Avoid creating twenty levels of folders.
You don't want:
Documents → Personal → Household → House → Appliances → Kitchen → Large Appliances → Dishwasher → Manuals → Current
By the time you find the document, you could have washed the dishes yourself.
Keep it sensible.
Google Drive Beginner's Checklist
If you're new to Drive, concentrate on these skills:
✓ Know how to upload a file.
✓ Create a few sensible folders.
✓ Give files meaningful names.
✓ Learn to search Drive.
✓ Understand My Drive and Shared with me.
✓ Know the difference between Viewer and Editor.
✓ Check permissions before sharing files.
✓ Be cautious with “Anyone with the link”.
✓ Remember that Google storage is shared with Gmail and Photos.
✓ Don't assume cloud storage automatically solves every backup problem.
✓ Protect your Google Account with 2-Step Verification.
The Most Important Google Drive Habit
Before sharing a file, stop for five seconds and check:
WHO CAN ACCESS THIS?
It's very easy to concentrate on getting a document to somebody and forget about permissions.
Share deliberately.
If somebody only needs to read something, they probably don't need permission to edit it.
And if a document contains private information, don't make it broadly accessible simply because it's convenient.
Google Drive in One Sentence
If you remember nothing else from this guide:
Google Drive lets you store, organise, access and share files online using your Google Account.
Once you're comfortable with it, Drive becomes the central filing cabinet for many of Google's other services.
And that's where things start getting interesting.
Where Do We Go Next?
So far we've covered:
and now:
Google Drive
Next we're going to tackle something many people rely on without completely understanding:
Google Photos
We'll explain how photo backup works, how to check whether your photographs are actually backed up, how storage works, how to search years of photographs and — importantly — what happens when you delete a photograph.
If your phone contains years of family photographs, that's one guide you won't want to skip.
Tech Ramblings 50
Practical Google and technology guides for everyday users — explained without assuming you're already an IT expert.
Google Beginner Series: Previous: Gmail for Beginners: Organise and Search Your Inbox | Next: Google Photos for Beginners: Back Up Your Photos
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