AI tool privacy · Comparison
Claude vs Gemini: how each handles your data
By David Michaelson, MS Last checked October 23, 2026
The short answer
Claude
Claude Team and Enterprise do not train on your chats by default; on Free, Pro, and Max, Anthropic uses your chats to improve Claude only if you allow it, and keeps them up to 5 years if you do.
Gemini
In a Google Workspace business account, Gemini does not use your content to train models outside your organization without permission; on a personal Google Account, Google uses your chats to improve its AI, with help from human reviewers, while Keep Activity is on.
For a team: compare the plan you would actually buy, not just the brand. The tables below show each plan’s answers, with sources.
Side by side
Every answer links to the vendor’s own page and shows the date we read it. Where we could not confirm an answer, the cell says so in plain words and links to the page we checked.
| Question | ClaudeFree, Pro, and Max | GeminiPersonal Google Account |
|---|---|---|
| Trains on your data by default? | Only if you allow it. Anthropic says it uses your chats to improve its models if you choose to allow it, if a chat is flagged for safety review, or if you opt in another way. The setting is under Settings > Privacy, “Help Improve our AI models.” Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.claude.com | Yes, while Keep Activity is on. Google says it uses your activity to provide, develop, and improve its services, including training generative AI models. With Keep Activity off, future chats are not used to train its AI models unless you send feedback. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| How long your data is kept | Deleted chats leave your history at once and are deleted from back-end storage within 30 days. If you allow model improvement, Anthropic may keep de-identified data for up to 5 years. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.claude.com | With Keep Activity on, activity is deleted after 18 months by default. You can choose 3 or 36 months, or not to auto-delete. With it off, chats are kept for 72 hours. Chats read by human reviewers are kept up to 3 years, even after you delete your activity. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| Who can see it | Not described on the pages we read. Page checked: privacy.claude.com, October 23, 2026 | The privacy hub does not describe company access to a personal account. It says human reviewers, including trained reviewers from Google’s service providers, read some chats, and asks you not to enter confidential information you would not want a reviewer to see. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| Where data is stored | Anthropic says your personal data is transferred to its servers in the US, or to other countries outside the EEA and the UK. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: anthropic.com | Not stated on the privacy hub we read. Page checked: support.google.com, October 23, 2026 |
| How to delete | Open the chat, click its name at the top of the screen, and select Delete. To delete several, open Recents, check the chats, and click “Delete Selected.” Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.anthropic.com | Review and delete chats in Gemini Apps Activity at myactivity.google.com/product/gemini. Chats a reviewer has already read are not deleted and are kept up to 3 years. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| Question | ClaudeTeam and Enterprise | GeminiGoogle Workspace (business accounts) |
|---|---|---|
| Trains on your data by default? | No, not by default. Anthropic says it does not train on inputs or outputs from its commercial products. If someone sends thumbs up or down feedback, that conversation may be used. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.claude.com | No, not without your permission. Google says your content is not reviewed by humans or used to train generative AI models outside your organization without permission. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| How long your data is kept | Chats are kept in the product so people can continue them. Deleted chats leave the history at once and are deleted from back-end storage within 30 days. Chats flagged for a policy violation may be kept up to 2 years. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.claude.com | Set by your admin. In the Gemini app, up to 36 months. In Gmail, Docs, and other Workspace apps, 90 days to indefinite. With conversation history off, new chats are kept for up to 72 hours. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| Who can see it | Your organization’s Primary Owner manages the work account and its data, and can export data that may include members’ conversations and uploaded files. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.claude.com | Admins get audit logs that track user activity and interactions with Gemini, and they control whether conversations are saved and for how long. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
| Where data is stored | Not stated for Team or Enterprise on the pages we read. Anthropic points to its Trust Center, which we have not checked. Page checked: privacy.claude.com, October 23, 2026 | Not stated for Gemini chats on the page we read. Page checked: support.google.com, October 23, 2026 |
| How to delete | Same steps as the personal plans: open the chat, click its name, and select Delete. Deleted chats are removed from back-end storage within 30 days. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: privacy.claude.com | Users can delete conversations themselves unless an admin turns that off. Read on October 23, 2026 Source: support.google.com |
Building your own approved tools list? The SafeStart Handbook includes one, with company accounts and safer privacy settings.