Google's $5 Plan Loses Pro Models on November 13
Google has emailed AI Plus subscribers to confirm that starting November 13, 2026, manual selection of Pro models in both the Gemini app and AI Mode in Google Search will be reserved for AI Pro subscribers and above. After that date, AI Plus users keep access to the Flash and Flash-Lite model families but can no longer pick Pro models themselves. The change affects model choice only; Google has not announced a price cut or compensation for Plus.
According to the subscriber email quoted by multiple outlets, existing conversations that used a Pro model will not be deleted. Users can keep them, but follow-up replies will be handled by a different model instead of Pro. Google's support and subscription pages now list Plus with Flash-Lite and Flash only, with Pro-model access marked unavailable. Reporting so far finds no sign of a lower Plus price to offset the loss.
The backlash is about removal rather than tiering. Android Police argues that giving premium subscribers higher limits and exclusive features is fair, but stripping an existing benefit from a paid plan is different. Many people chose the $4.99 Plus tier precisely because they could jump to Pro when needed, for harder reasoning, longer writing, coding help, or research questions. That flexibility is what disappears on November 13.
Anyone who relied on Pro for complex tasks now has two options: make do with Flash or pay for AI Pro at $19.99 a month in the US, about $15 more per month and about $180 more per year than Plus. That is roughly four times the Plus price. For light everyday questions and Gemini inside Gmail, Flash is generally enough, so casual users feel less pain. For heavy reasoning and research, the gap matters.
This is the second squeeze in a month. On October 9, free Gemini accounts were limited to Flash-Lite, losing access to Flash and Pro model selection. Plus kept Flash at the time; now it loses Pro selection too. Some subscribers told Android Authority they already canceled Plus after getting the email while continuing to use free Gemini for basic needs. What to watch next is whether the November 13 switch happens on schedule, and whether complaints push Google to sweeten Plus or rethink its pricing.