How to Turn Off Gemini (2026): Android, Chrome, Gmail, iPhone
There is no single switch that turns off Gemini everywhere; you turn it off in each place it appears. On Android, open the Gemini app, tap your profile picture, then Switch to Google Assistant. In Gmail, Docs, and Drive, turn off "Smart features in Google Workspace" in Gmail's settings. In Chrome, hide Gemini under Settings, AI innovations. To stop Google saving your chats, turn off Keep Activity in Gemini Apps Activity (Google Help Center, 2026). AI Overviews in Google Search are the exception: Google says they cannot be turned off.
Below are the steps for every surface Google documents as of September 2026, taken from Google's help pages linked in the sources. Menus vary by device maker, app version, account type, and country.
By Adi Leviim, Co-Founder at Infi Developments. 7+ years building AI productivity tools. Last reviewed September 15, 2026.
Can You Turn Off Gemini Completely?
No. Google has no single setting that removes Gemini from every product, so you switch it off surface by surface. Turning Gemini off in one place does not affect the others: deleting the app leaves Gmail's smart features on, and turning off smart features does not delete chats already saved in your Google Account.
Where Gemini appears
What you can turn off
Where the setting is
Android assistant
Switch to Google Assistant, power button, "Hey Google", or no assistant
Gemini app menu, or Settings, Apps, Default apps
Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, Meet, Chat
Gemini features, via Smart features in Google Workspace
Gmail Settings, See all settings, General
Workspace organization
The Gemini app and Gemini in each Workspace service
Google Admin console, Generative AI
Chrome on a computer
Gemini button, menu bar or tray entry, permissions
Settings, AI innovations, Gemini in Chrome
iPhone and iPad
The Gemini app
Delete the app
Google Messages
The Gemini button
Messages settings, Gemini in Messages
Google Search
AI Overviews cannot be turned off
Web filter hides them
Saved Gemini chats
Keep Activity, auto-delete, history
Gemini Apps Activity
How to Turn Off Gemini on Android
To turn off Gemini as your Android assistant, switch back to Google Assistant from the Gemini app. Afterwards, "Hey Google" and holding the power button open Google Assistant instead.
Open the Gemini app.
At the left, tap Menu, then your profile picture or initial.
Tap Switch to Google Assistant, then Google Assistant.
In the "Switch to Google Assistant?" dialog, tap Switch.
Google notes that switching does not delete data already saved in Gemini Apps Activity; delete it separately, as shown below.
Other ways to stop Gemini on Android
Power button: Settings, System, Gestures, Press & hold power button, then choose another action. Steps vary by device; search Settings for "power," "side button," or "gesture."
"Hey Google": Gemini app, Menu, profile picture, Settings, Talk to Gemini hands-free, turn off "Hey Google."
Lock screen: Gemini app, Menu, profile picture, Settings, Gemini on lock screen, turn off Use Gemini without unlocking.
No assistant at all: Settings, Apps, Default apps, Digital assistant app, Default digital assistant app, then None.
Delete the app: uninstall it normally. Google warns that deleting the app does not automatically remove Gemini as your default assistant, so change that setting too.
How to Turn Off Gemini in Gmail, Docs, and Drive
On a personal Google Account, Gemini in Gmail, Docs, Drive, and other Workspace apps is controlled by the "Smart features in Google Workspace" setting.
On a computer, open Gmail, click Settings, then See all settings.
On the General tab, find Google Workspace smart features and click Manage Workspace smart feature settings.
Turn off Smart features in Google Workspace (and optionally Smart features in other Google products).
Click Save.
The same panel opens from Calendar, Chat, Drive, and Meet settings, and from the Gmail mobile app. It also powers flight events in Calendar and personalized Drive search. In the European Economic Area, Japan, Switzerland, and the UK, Google says these settings are off by default. For what the features do when on, see how to use Gemini in Google Workspace.
For Google Workspace administrators
Gemini app (web, mobile apps, Gemini in Chrome, Gemini on Mac): Admin console, Menu, Generative AI, Gemini app, Service status, Off for everyone or for an organizational unit, Save.
Gemini in Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Meet, and Chat: Admin console, Generative AI, Gemini for Workspace, Feature access, Edit next to the service, Off, Save. Google lists this for Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, and some Education editions.
Google's caveat: with Gemini off for one app, users can still reach its data from Gemini in another app, such as asking about a Drive file from Gmail.
How to Turn Off Gemini in Chrome
Chrome lets you hide Gemini and switch off its permissions, and Gemini in Chrome requires you to opt in the first time you use it.
On your computer, open Chrome, click More, then Settings.
Click AI innovations, then Gemini in Chrome.
Under Preferences, turn off Show Gemini at the top of the browser and the Mac menu bar or Windows system tray option.
Under Permissions, turn off Share current tab by default, Let Gemini browse for you, Microphone, and Precise location.
You can also right-click the top of the browser and choose Unpin Gemini. Google's help article describes no single consumer switch that removes Gemini in Chrome. For managed browsers, the Chrome Enterprise GeminiSettings policy value 1 means "Do not allow Gemini integrations."
How to Turn Off Gemini on iPhone
On iPhone and iPad, Google lists the Gemini app as the way to use Gemini, so deleting that app removes it.
Touch and hold the Gemini app on the Home Screen or in App Library.
Tap Remove App, then Delete App, then Delete.
Deleting the app does not touch chats saved to your Google Account. First open the app, tap Menu, your profile picture, Gemini Apps Activity, then On and Turn off and delete activity.
How to Turn Off Gemini in Google Messages
In Google Messages on Android, tap your profile picture, then Messages settings, then Gemini in Messages, and turn off Show Gemini button. To delete the Gemini chat, open it and tap More, then Delete conversation; Google says that also removes it from Gemini Apps Activity, while deleting only in Gemini Apps Activity leaves it in Messages. Google notes these chats are not end-to-end encrypted.
Can You Turn Off AI Overviews and AI Mode in Google Search?
No. Google states that "AI Overviews are a core Google Search feature, like knowledge panels. Features cannot be turned off." After a search, select the Web filter (it may be under More) to see only text-based links. Turning off "AI in Search" in Labs only opts you out of experiments. AI Mode is a separate experience you open yourself; you can clear it with Delete all in AI Mode history, but that does not remove the searches from your Search history, so delete them there too.
How to Turn Off Gemini Apps Activity and Delete Gemini Data
Turning off Keep Activity stops Google saving new Gemini chats to your account, and deleting activity removes chats already saved. On gemini.google.com, click Settings & help, then Activity.
Turn off Keep Activity: click On, then Turn off or Turn off and delete activity. It is on by default for users 18 and over.
Delete history: click Delete and pick Last hour, Last day, All time, or Custom range.
One chat: in the side panel, hover over it and click More, then Delete; Google says this also removes it from Gemini Apps Activity.
Auto-delete: the default is 18 months; choose 3 or 36 months or turn it off.
Google documents three limits. Even with Keep Activity off, chats are kept with your account for up to 72 hours. Chats reviewed by human reviewers "are not deleted when you delete your activity" and are kept, disconnected from your account, for up to three years. Deleting a chat does not delete a Gem or a public link shared from it. On work or school accounts, the administrator controls activity and Google says you cannot delete chats yourself.
Keeping Gemini, but want control over your history? AI Toolbox (formerly Gemini Toolbox) adds full-text search, folders, export, and bulk delete to gemini.google.com, so you can save the chats that matter before clearing the rest. 40,000+ users, 4.7/5 on the Chrome Web Store. Install AI Toolbox free ->
Keep Gemini but Clean Up Your History Instead
If the problem is years of old chats rather than Gemini itself, exporting what you want and deleting the rest can beat turning Gemini off. Gemini Apps Activity deletes by time range or item and cannot save a chat as a file first. AI Toolbox's Gemini module works inside gemini.google.com: the free plan exports any single chat as TXT, and Premium adds Markdown, JSON, and PDF plus Manage Chats, where you tick several conversations and export or delete them together.
A bulk delete sends the same two requests Gemini's own delete button sends, removing the conversation and its activity record, so the result matches deleting each chat by hand. Deletion is permanent; see recovering deleted Gemini conversations for how little comes back.
Privacy-minded users usually just need Keep Activity off plus a delete of all time. Android users who miss Google Assistant need the one-minute switch. IT admins need the Admin console, because a user's smart feature setting only changes that user's account.
Limitations and What Google's Controls Do Well
Google's own settings are the only way to turn Gemini off, and on Android, Gmail, Messages, and Gemini Apps Activity they are quick and clear. Nothing in AI Toolbox disables Gemini, hides AI Overviews, or changes what Google retains. The gaps are Google's: no account-wide off switch, AI Overviews that cannot be disabled, reviewed chats kept for up to three years, and no documented single off switch for Gemini in Chrome. If a menu here does not match your screen, search your Settings app or check Google's Gemini help page.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I turn off Gemini on my phone?
On Android, open the Gemini app, tap Menu, your profile picture, then Switch to Google Assistant, Google Assistant, and Switch. To remove any assistant, open Settings, Apps, Default apps, Digital assistant app, and choose None. On iPhone, touch and hold the Gemini app, tap Remove App, then Delete App.
Can I remove Gemini from Android completely?
You can uninstall the Gemini app and set the default digital assistant app to None, but Google notes that deleting the app does not remove Gemini as your default assistant, so change both. Gemini in Gmail, Chrome, and Messages has separate settings, and chats in Gemini Apps Activity stay until you delete them.
How do I turn off Gemini in Gmail?
On a computer, open Gmail, click Settings, then See all settings. On the General tab, click Manage Workspace smart feature settings, turn off Smart features in Google Workspace, and click Save. This also turns off Gemini in Docs and Drive. On a work account, your administrator may control it.
How do I turn off Gemini in Chrome?
In Chrome on a computer, open Settings, AI innovations, Gemini in Chrome. Turn off Show Gemini at the top of the browser and the menu bar or system tray option, and turn off permissions such as Share current tab by default. Organizations can block it with the GeminiSettings policy.
Can you turn off AI Overviews in Google Search?
No. Google says AI Overviews are a core Search feature and cannot be turned off. After searching, select the Web filter to see only text-based links. Turning off "AI in Search" in Labs only removes experiments, and AI Mode is a separate experience you choose to open.
Does turning off Gemini delete my conversations?
No. Switching assistants, turning off smart features, or deleting the app does not delete saved chats. Delete them in Gemini Apps Activity. Even then, chats reviewed by human reviewers are kept, disconnected from your account, for up to three years, and chats are held for up to 72 hours with Keep Activity off.
How do I stop Gemini from saving my chats?
On gemini.google.com, open Settings & help, then Activity, click On, and choose Turn off or Turn off and delete activity. New chats are no longer saved to Gemini Apps Activity, though Google keeps them for up to 72 hours. You can instead set auto-delete to 3, 18, or 36 months.
Can I keep Gemini but bulk delete old chats?
Gemini Apps Activity deletes by time range or one item at a time. AI Toolbox, a Chrome extension, adds Manage Chats on Premium, where you select several Gemini conversations and export or delete them together. The free plan exports a single chat as TXT, so you can save a copy first.
Bottom Line
Turning off Gemini is a checklist, not a switch: Android's assistant, Workspace smart features, Chrome's AI innovations, the iPhone app, the Messages button, and Keep Activity. AI Overviews stay. If you would rather keep Gemini, export what matters and clear the rest.
A Full Stack Developer with 7+ years of experience building AI productivity tools. Leads product development and frontend architecture for AI Toolbox, the Chrome extension suite (ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, and Claude modules) that helps users search, organize, and export their AI conversations.
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