A shared Gmail mailbox and a Google Group collaborative inbox solve different team-mail problems. Choose according to how incoming work is handled, rather than giving several people one password.
Use a delegated mailbox for shared Gmail handling
A delegated account lets authorized people read, send, and delete mail in one Gmail mailbox using their own identities. It suits teams that need a common correspondence history and normal Gmail organization.
Google also documents an administrator-created shared-inbox setup for Business Starter, Standard, and Plus. It is being released in phases; organizations without the control can use delegated Gmail accounts. Do not assume that every Admin console already has the new setup flow or that an alias is a separate shared mailbox.
Use a collaborative inbox for a group queue
A Google Group collaborative inbox adds conversation assignment, ownership, and resolution states for members with the right permissions. It requires Groups for Business availability for managed accounts and conversation history for the collaborative features.
Members work with group conversations and permissions. Receiving group copies in personal Gmail is not the same as operating one delegated Gmail mailbox. Check external posting, moderation, and member access before using it for customer requests.
Plan identity, retention, and handover
Decide who may read historical mail, who may send as the team, and who removes access when someone leaves. Review sender attribution and the organization’s retention requirements. Test a small set of internal and external messages before switching an established address.
Do not convert or replace a working mailbox without preserving its history and checking how current routing, aliases, and integrations depend on it. A Contacts label only expands recipients and does not provide either shared-inbox model. Document the selected design and access owners so the team can distinguish a mailbox permission problem from a group membership or moderation problem.
Browse Gmail & Google Account help
References
- Create a shared inbox | User management | Google Workspace Help
- Delegate a user’s email address | User management | Google Workspace Help
- Make a group a Collaborative Inbox
Reviewed against the linked product guidance, standards, and identified vendor or public-authority guidance on October 29, 2026. Available options and screen labels can vary by account, device, region, and organization policy.