Want to use Google Docs? Let us learn how to use Google Docs without Gmail or a Google account. Luckily, Google Docs is not just limited to Google users. Let’s explore how one can achieve this briefly in this article.
Table Of Contents
How to access Google Docs with just a Google account and not using Gmail?
You can Access Google Docs with your Google Account. If you don’t have one, let’s create one.
- Creating Google account
Mailing clients can be different for different users. Users with Mac operating systems might use their email client.
Similarly, Linux users might love to use their email clients. Additionally, businesses might adapt to different professional mailing clients to support their support systems better. Thus, in such cases, instead of demanding users create a new Gmail account to use Google Docs, Google allows one to access it with just a new Google account.
One can easily create a Google account with whatever email you are using. When setting up a Google account, navigate to the new account page and enter your existing email address, password, and other personal information.
This allows you to access any of Google’s free products, such as Docs, Adsense, and Webmaster Tools.
- Accessing Google Docs
Google Docs provides various accessibility settings. After creating a document on Google Docs, you can let other people access it.
When you go to the “Share This Document” section of Google Docs, you can enter the recipient’s email addresses to whom you are up to share.
Once you submit the email addresses, it sends an email to that person. Once the particular user clicks on the link in the email, the user is taken to a login screen. As said above, ensure you have a Google account to gain access to the document.
- Granting instant access
This type of basic account setup could allow users to access the documents instantly without any further configuration.
In such a case, anything shared in the document is visible to that person. When the new user changes the document, it will appear on your screen while you view it.
This allows one to work on a document simultaneously with another person without duplicating work. This is how to access Google Docs without a Gmail account.
How to access Google Docs by publishing to the web?
When you share a link to a Google Doc with someone, it is likely in editing mode. The viewer will see the WYSIWYG toolbar, the margins, and other things that give the impression that you are looking at a particular document. This includes all of the Google documents: text, spreadsheet, presentation, and drawing.
However, it’s super simple to publish those documents as web pages to prevent users from editing them. Thus, you simply give the Web address to others who you want to see it. When you do this, the other users cannot edit the document.
This option creates a website for your readers to check out your documents. It does not require access to Gmail or even a Google account.
Steps to publish Google Docs to the web:
1. Open Google Docs on your browser
2. Under the File menu, choose “Publish to the Web.”
3. Make sure to activate “Start publishing.”
4. A new confirmation dialog will be displayed. And for good measure, you will need to confirm your choice.
Note: The document’s viewing options will NOT be overridden. If the document is private, then the published link will NOT be viewable by those not shared on the document.
Document link viewing:
The Document link can be shared with users so they can view the page as if it were a webpage and not a document.
Embed link:
You can use the embed link to embed your doc on external sites like Shopify, WordPress, or any builder.
Emailing the file to the user as an attachment
The other super simple trick would be sharing documents via Gmail client.
1. Open Google Docs on your browser
2. Choose File -> Email -> Email as attachment
3. A new dialog box will be opened. You choose a file format there and type in the recipient’s email address. Your file will be emailed as an attachment in the format you choose.
You can send the file in HTML, PDF, Rich Text, or Microsoft Word format.
Advantage:
The main advantage of this method is that it’s fast and easy to get your content to the people who need to see it.
Disadvantage:
This method’s downside is that it creates two distinct versions of your document and prevents you from collaborating with the recipient online.
PIN way:
Google recently announced a PIN method for using documents without Google accounts. The email would contain a link to the shared document. Non-Google users will be able to access the link and request a PIN, which will be delivered via a second email. Once they enter the PIN code, users can view or edit the shared file based on the assigned permissions.
The beauty is that file owners can view a detailed activity log for each file and PIN and revoke a PIN’s access whenever they wish or see irregular activity. But this is in the beta program, which is currently closed and seems no longer active.
FAQs
Yes, you can share a Google Doc with someone who doesn’t have a Google account. To do so, follow the below steps.
- Login to https://docstips.com/
- Select the file you want to share with and then click on the share option.
- Now, you can see the “Share with people and groups” option, and you can enter a non-Gmail address.
- You can select the Viewer, Commenter, or Editor from the dropdown menu next to the email address.
- You can select the checkbox to notify people, and this is optional.
- Finally, click on the Send button as highlighted below.
Yes, you can share a Google Drive folder with a non-Google user using the below steps.
- Login to the https://drive.google.com/
- Select the file you want to share, right-click on it, and select the Share option.
- Now, click on the Get link option.
- The next step is to select Anyone using the link option.
- You can also choose Viewer, Commenter, or Editor from the dropdown menu.
- Click on the copy link button to copy the link and share it with the user with whom you want to share it by email. That user needs to click on the received link to access the file.
How to Create Google Account Without Gmail
Yes, you can create a Google Account without Gmail. You need to use your current email address.
How Create a Google Drive Account Without Gmail
Once you follow the below steps, you can create a Google account without your Gmail address. With that account, you can access all the Google apps, including Google Drive. Let’s follow the below steps to create a Google account without a Gmail address.
- Navigate to the Google Account Sign-in Page.
- The next step is to click on the Create Account button.
- Provide the First name and Last name and then click on the Use my current email address instead link.
4. Now, you can provide the other email address you are currently using, the password, confirm the password, and click on the Next button.
5. The next step is to verify the Email address you provided above. Enter the code you received in the email, then click on the Verify button as shown below. Congratulations! You are done!!!
You may like the following Google Docs tutorials:
I hope we’ve covered most of the interesting document tricks, and thus, now you will be super-efficient in dealing with documents. No additional accounts, no additional worries maintaining software, compatibility, and so on. Try these simple hacks, and you’ll be surprised.
I am Rajkishore, and I have over 14 years of experience in the Software Industry. For a long time, I have been using Google Docs, Google Drive, and Google Sheets for my document usage, and I am sharing all the tips and tricks, the challenges I have come across, and their solutions to use Google Docs for your day-to-day use. I hope you will learn from these practical Google Docs tutorials. Read more.