The short answer: Google is replacing Gems with skills in the Gemini app. On personal Google accounts (18 and over), Gems become read-only on November 17, 2026: you can still open them, but you can't use or edit them or create new ones. On December 17, 2026 they're removed entirely (Google).
Google will convert your Gems to skills automatically, but not everything comes across. If you've built Gems you rely on, take ten minutes before November 17 to save their instructions and files.
The dates, by account type
| Account | What happens | When |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Google account, 18 and over | Gems become read-only and transition to skills | November 17, 2026 |
| Personal Google account, 18 and over | Gems and their files are removed | December 17, 2026 |
| Personal Google account, under 18 | Gems transition to skills | Later; Google hasn't given a date |
| Workspace business, enterprise and non-profit | Gems transition to skills | March 2027 |
| Workspace education | Gems transition to skills | June 2027 |
Google says Opal, its experiment for building mini apps, and Gems by Google Labs go away in November too.
What skills are, and how they differ from Gems
Google describes skills as "reusable custom instructions that can help you automate tasks and save time in Gemini." The big differences from Gems:
- You use them inside any chat. Type / and the skill's name (Google says this will change to @ soon), instead of opening a separate Gem.
- Gemini can apply them on its own when a skill fits what you asked.
- You can stack them: use several skills in the same chat.
- Limits: you can create as many as you like, but only 100 can be active at once, and each skill can hold 100 MB of files.
Some things don't work yet. Skills don't work with Canvas or Deep Research, and most of the tools a Gem could use (creating video or music, Canvas, Deep Research, Guided Learning) aren't available in skills for now. Unlike Gems, a skill doesn't have its own page listing the chats you used it in; those chats just appear in the side panel. Google says sharing skills and adding files from Google Drive are coming "in the coming weeks."
What won't carry over automatically
When Google converts a Gem, it brings the instructions and any supported files. Two things can be lost:
- Files over the 100 MB limit. If a Gem's files add up to more than 100 MB, Google removes the largest files first until it fits.
- Unsupported file types: audio and video files, GitHub files, older Microsoft Office formats (.doc, .xls, .ppt) and compressed files (.zip, .rar, .7z and similar).
After December 17, anything that didn't transfer is gone. If a Gem uses any of these, download the files now.
How to move a Gem to a skill yourself
You can wait for the automatic switch, or recreate a Gem as a skill now and check it works. Google's steps, condensed:
- Save the Gem's files. At gemini.google.com, open the sidebar, go to Gems, and click Edit next to the Gem. Download each file under "Knowledge" into a new folder named like the skill, in lowercase with hyphens (for example,
weekly-report). - Create the skill. In a new tab, go to Customize → Skills → Create → Create manually. Copy the Gem's name, description and instructions into the skill and click Create.
- Add the files, if any. On the Skills page, download the skill (you get a .zip with a SKILL.md file), move SKILL.md into your folder with the Gem's files, then choose Replace skill and upload the whole folder. The folder name has to match the skill's name.
Uploading files to a skill currently works only in the Gemini web app and the Gemini app for Mac.
Before November 17: a quick checklist
- List the Gems you actually use. Delete the ones you don't.
- Copy each Gem's instructions into your own document, so you have a copy that no app change can take away.
- Download any knowledge files, especially audio, video, old Office files and anything large.
- Recreate your most important Gem as a skill now and test it with a prompt you know well.
- Note which tools each Gem used. If it relied on Canvas or Deep Research, plan a workaround.
Make the move worth it: tighten the instructions
A conversion is a good moment to clean up. Google's own advice for writing skills is to say when the skill should be used, keep the instructions "concise" and focused on what's unique to the task, and include concrete examples of the output you expect.
Many Gems were written once and never revisited, so they carry repetition and instructions that no longer matter. Paste a Gem's instructions into PromptSaver's optimizer to get a clearer, shorter version before you save it as a skill. For other ways to keep your prompts safe from the next platform change, see how to save and reuse AI prompts.
Frequently asked questions
When are Gemini Gems going away?
On personal Google accounts for people 18 and over, Gems become read-only on November 17, 2026 and are removed on December 17, 2026. Workspace business, enterprise and non-profit accounts follow in March 2027 and education accounts in June 2027.
Will my Gems turn into skills automatically?
Yes. Google says it will automatically convert your Gems, along with supported files, to skills when Gems go away. You can also recreate them by hand earlier.
What happens to my Gem's knowledge files?
Supported files move to the skill. Audio, video, GitHub files, old .doc, .xls and .ppt files and compressed archives don't, and if the total is over 100 MB, the largest files are dropped first. Download anything you need before December 17, 2026.
Can I still use a Gem after November 17?
You can open it and read it, but you can't use or edit it, or create new Gems. Use the skill that replaces it instead.
How do I use a skill in Gemini?
Type / followed by the skill's name in any chat (Google says this will change to @). Gemini can also apply a skill automatically when it's relevant, and you can combine several in one chat.
How many skills can I have?
As many as you like, but only 100 can be active at a time. Each skill can include up to 100 MB of files.
How we checked this
Every date, limit and step above comes from Google's help page on the transition from Gems to skills, read on October 30, 2026. Google is still adding features to skills, so details may change; we'll update this page if they do.