GOOG vs GOOGL: Key differences between Alphabet’s share classes (2026)

GOOGL and GOOG are two listed share classes of the same company, Alphabet. They own exactly the same business, receive the same dividend and track each other closely. The only real difference is voting: GOOGL (Class A) gives you one vote per share, while GOOG (Class C) gives you none.

Because of that vote, GOOGL usually trades slightly above GOOG. At the close on 6 November 2026, GOOGL was at $284.78 and GOOG at $283.93, a gap of about 0.30%.

In this comparison we look at voting control, the price gap, returns since 2014, dividends, index weights and how to buy either share in the US and Europe. All figures come from Alphabet’s filings and market data checked in November 2026.

GOOG vs GOOGL: quick answer

1. GOOG (Class C): best if you will never vote at Alphabet’s annual meeting. It gives you the same economic exposure and usually costs slightly less.
2. GOOGL (Class A): best if you want to vote, even symbolically, as long as your broker passes on voting rights. It is also the more traded class.

The vote of a retail investor has no practical weight in either case, because Alphabet’s two co-founders control about 52.7% of all votes through a third, unlisted share class.

Comparison table

Alphabet’s three share classes

Alphabet has three classes of common stock. Two are listed on Nasdaq and one is held privately.

According to Alphabet’s annual report, Class C has no voting rights “except as required by applicable law”. The latest quarterly report states that the rights of the three classes, “including the liquidation and dividend rights”, are identical except for voting. In other words, one GOOG share and one GOOGL share have the same claim on Alphabet’s profits, assets and dividends.

Class B shares can be converted into Class A at any time and convert automatically into Class A when they are sold or transferred. They can never be bought on the stock market.

Who controls Alphabet?

The 827 million Class B shares are less than 7% of all shares, but with 10 votes each they carry about 58% of all votes. Co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin owned about 89.3% of the Class B shares at the end of 2025, which gave them approximately 52.7% of Alphabet’s voting power, according to the 10-K. The 2026 proxy statement puts Larry Page at 27.4% and Sergey Brin at 25.3% of total voting power (Alphabet proxy statement 2026).

So as long as the founders vote together, they decide the outcome of every shareholder vote. Owning GOOGL gives you the right to vote, but even a large position has very little influence in practice.

A short history of GOOG and GOOGL

• 2004: Google goes public with Class A shares (1 vote) and keeps Class B shares (10 votes) for the founders and early insiders.
• April 2014: Google creates the non-voting Class C by distributing one Class C share for every Class A and Class B share (record date 27 March, distribution 2 April). From 3 April 2014 the old Class A moves to the ticker GOOGL and the new Class C takes the ticker GOOG (Nasdaq).
• May 2015: as part of the settlement of a shareholder lawsuit, Google compensates Class C holders because GOOG traded at a discount to GOOGL during the first year. The adjustment payment totals $522 million and is paid mostly in new Class C shares, about 0.0027 extra shares for every GOOG share held (Google Q1 2015 results, DTCC).
• October 2015: Google reorganises under the holding company Alphabet. Each Google share converts into an equivalent Alphabet share and the tickers stay the same (SEC filing).
• July 2022: Alphabet carries out a 20-for-1 stock split on all three classes, executed on 15 July 2022 (Alphabet).
• 2024: Alphabet pays its first ever dividend, the same amount on all three classes.
• June 2026: Alphabet announces an equity capital raise and starts selling new Class A and Class C shares (Alphabet press release).

Creating a share class with no votes let the company issue stock for employee pay, acquisitions or capital raises without diluting the founders’ control.

Why is GOOGL more expensive than GOOG?

The price difference comes from the vote. Some investors, mainly large funds, are willing to pay a little more for a share that can vote. The gap is small and moves over time.

Three other factors move the gap:

Buybacks: Alphabet has historically bought back far more Class C than Class A shares. In 2025 it repurchased $38.9 billion of Class C and $6.5 billion of Class A, which supports the GOOG price. In the first nine months of 2026 it made no buybacks at all, with $69.5 billion still authorised for Class A and Class C repurchases.

New share sales: since June 2026 Alphabet has been selling new Class A and Class C shares. By 30 September 2026 it had sold 12 million Class A shares ($4.3 billion) and 24 million Class C shares ($8.1 billion) through its at-the-market programme.

Liquidity: GOOGL trades about 1.5 times the volume of GOOG (38.9 million vs 25.9 million shares a day over the 20 trading days to 6 November 2026). Both are very liquid, so the bid-ask spread is tiny for retail orders.

For a retail investor the gap rarely matters. With $10,000 you would get about 35.11 GOOGL shares or 35.22 GOOG shares at the 6 November prices, a difference of roughly $30. Brokerage fees, the spread and currency conversion can easily cost more than that.

Have GOOG and GOOGL performed differently?

Very little. From the first day of separate trading (3 April 2014) to 6 November 2026, GOOGL returned about +896% and GOOG about +899% in price terms, both close to 20% a year. GOOG’s small lead comes mostly from the 2015 adjustment payment to Class C holders. Over shorter periods either class can come out slightly ahead, depending on how the premium moves.

Dividends: exactly the same for both

The latest dividend of $0.22 per share was declared with the Q3 2026 results, for holders of record on 7 December 2026, payable on 14 December 2026. It is paid in the same amount on Class A, Class B and Class C shares. At the 6 November prices the yield is about 0.31% for both GOOGL and GOOG (four quarterly payments of $0.22 divided by the share price).

If you live in Europe, US withholding tax applies in the same way to both classes. With a W-8BEN form on file with your broker, residents of countries with a tax treaty with the US usually have 15% withheld at source. How the dividend is taxed afterwards depends on your country of residence.

Are GOOG and GOOGL both in the S&P 500?

Yes. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq-100 hold both share classes as separate lines. In the SPY ETF on 6 November 2026, GOOGL weighed 2.63% and GOOG 2.12%, so Alphabet as a whole was 4.75% of the fund. In the Nasdaq-100 ETF QQQ the two classes added up to 5.78% on 26 October 2026 (GOOGL 2.99%, GOOG 2.79%), before Alphabet’s share price fell about 12% on 29 October.

If you already own an S&P 500 or Nasdaq-100 ETF, you already hold both GOOG and GOOGL. Buying either class on top of it increases your exposure to Alphabet. Our guide on how to invest in the S&P 500 from Europe explains the ETFs available to European investors.

Other Alphabet securities you may see

Since June 2026 two further Alphabet tickers trade on Nasdaq: GOOGM and GOOGN. They are depositary shares of 6.25% mandatory convertible preferred stock, which convert into Class A (GOOGM) or Class C (GOOGN) shares around May 2029. They pay a fixed dividend and behave differently from the common shares, so do not confuse them with GOOGL and GOOG.

GOOG or GOOGL: which one fits you?

Both shares give you the same claim on Alphabet’s profits, so the decision comes down to voting and price.

GOOGL may suit you if:

• You want to vote at Alphabet’s annual meeting and your broker lets you vote.
• You prefer the more traded class, which is also the one most news sites and screeners show first.

GOOG may suit you if:

• You do not plan to vote and want the slightly cheaper share.
• You are investing small amounts and want every dollar to go into the same economic exposure.

Splitting a position between the two brings no diversification, since both represent the same company and pay the same dividend.

Risks that apply to both

The choice of class does not change the risk of the investment. Both shares depend on the same business, so they rise and fall together. For investors in Europe, both are priced in US dollars, so changes in the EUR/USD or GBP/USD rate affect your return. A single stock is also far less diversified than an index fund. Alphabet also already makes up a large part of the main US indices.

Where to buy GOOG and GOOGL

Both classes trade on Nasdaq, so any broker with access to US stocks offers them. In the US, every major broker lists GOOGL and GOOG, including Interactive Brokers, Public and Webull. Outside the US, check that the broker gives you the shares themselves and not CFDs.

In Europe

Unlike US-domiciled ETFs, which most European retail investors cannot buy, individual US shares such as GOOG and GOOGL are available at most European brokers. These are the brokers we have reviewed that offer both classes as real shares:

1. Interactive Brokers: direct access to Nasdaq and low-cost currency conversion. For US companies such as Alphabet, IBKR sends shareholder meeting materials by email with a link to vote online (IBKR). Read our Interactive Brokers review.
2. Trading 212: lists both Alphabet (Class A) GOOGL and Alphabet (Class C) GOOG as Nasdaq shares in its Invest account, with fractional shares if you want to invest smaller amounts. Read our Trading 212 review.
3. XTB: offers both classes as shares, listed as GOOGL.US (Class A) and GOOGC.US (Class C). XTB charges 0% commission on shares up to €100,000 of monthly turnover (0.2% above, minimum €10) and 0.5% on currency conversion (XTB). Read our XTB review.
4. Trade Republic: lists Alphabet (A) and Alphabet (C) in its instrument list, with a flat €1 fee per trade (Trade Republic). Read our Trade Republic review.
5. Lightyear: offers GOOGL and GOOG on Nasdaq, with a commission of 0.10% per order (minimum $0.10, maximum $1) and 0.35% on currency conversion (Lightyear). Read our Lightyear review.
6. Freedom24: gives access to US exchanges, including both Alphabet share classes on Nasdaq. Read our Freedom24 review.

Sponsored link. New Trading 212 customers can get a free fractional share worth up to €100 or £100 with our Trading 212 promo code “IITW”. Terms apply.

New Lightyear customers in the EU can use our Lightyear promo code “INVESTINGINTHEWEB”. Deposit at least €100 within 15 days and keep it for 6 months to get a free fractional share worth up to €100 (most users get €10 to €15). T&Cs apply.

When you search for Alphabet in a broker app, check that you are buying the share itself (listed on Nasdaq) and not a CFD, a leveraged product or an options-income ETP with a similar name. Before you buy, also check whether the broker lets you vote (if that is why you chose GOOGL), how much it charges to convert euros or pounds into dollars and whether it handles the W-8BEN form for the dividend.

For a wider comparison, see our list of the best trading platforms in Europe.

GOOG vs GOOGL: final verdict

Do you want to vote at Alphabet’s annual meeting? Then GOOGL is the share for you, as long as your broker passes on voting rights. You pay a small premium, about 0.30% on 6 November 2026. In return you get the more traded class.

Do you only care about owning Alphabet’s business? Then GOOG gives you the same slice of the company and the same $0.22 quarterly dividend at a slightly lower price. Since 2014 its returns have been almost identical to GOOGL’s.

Either way, control stays with Larry Page and Sergey Brin, who hold about 52.7% of the votes through Class B shares. For most retail investors the choice has little financial impact.

FAQs

What is the difference between GOOG and GOOGL?

GOOGL is Alphabet’s Class A share and carries one vote per share. GOOG is the Class C share and has no voting rights. Both represent the same company, receive the same dividend and trade on Nasdaq.

Is GOOG or GOOGL better for long-term investors?

Economically they are the same investment. From April 2014 to November 2026 their price returns differed by about 3 percentage points in total (+899% for GOOG and +896% for GOOGL), mostly because of the 2015 payment to Class C holders. The main reason to choose one over the other is whether you value the vote.

Do GOOG and GOOGL pay the same dividend?

Yes. Alphabet pays the same dividend per share on Class A, Class B and Class C. The latest quarterly dividend is $0.22, payable on 14 December 2026.

Why is GOOG cheaper than GOOGL?

Because GOOG has no voting rights. Investors usually pay a small premium for the voting Class A share. On 6 November 2026 the premium was about 0.30%. In the 2026 data points shown above it ranged from 0.30% to 1.15%.

Is the market cap of GOOGL different from GOOG?

No. Alphabet has one market capitalisation, about $3.5 trillion at the 6 November 2026 prices, which includes all three share classes. Some websites show a different “market cap” next to each ticker because they multiply all shares by that ticker’s price, so the two figures differ only by the price gap.

Can I convert GOOG into GOOGL?

No. Class C shares cannot be converted into Class A. To switch, you would have to sell one and buy the other, which may trigger fees and tax on any gain. Only Class B shares can be converted, into Class A.

Can I vote with GOOGL shares bought through an app?

It depends on the broker. Your shares are usually held in the broker’s name and the broker decides whether to pass on voting rights. Interactive Brokers, for example, emails proxy materials for US companies with a link to vote online, while some app-based brokers do not offer voting. Check before you buy if the vote matters to you.

What happened to the old Google ticker?

Until April 2014, GOOG was the ticker of Google’s Class A share. When the non-voting Class C was created, Class A moved to GOOGL and the new Class C took over GOOG.

Should I buy GOOG or GOOGL if I already own an S&P 500 ETF?

An S&P 500 ETF already holds both classes, with Alphabet at 4.75% of SPY on 6 November 2026. Buying either share on top of it adds to the same company, so think about how much of your portfolio you want in Alphabet before choosing a class.