Google Online Whiteboard Options for Collaborative Meetings

Is there still a Google online whiteboard?

Google no longer offers its own dedicated whiteboard app. Jamboard, its former whiteboard product, was retired at the end of 2024. Inside Google Meet, whiteboarding now runs through partner apps such as FigJam, Lucidspark and Miro, which open as Meet add-ons. If you only need a simple shared canvas, Google Drawings or Google Slides can work as a lightweight board that everyone edits at the same time. A third option is to point a webcam at a physical whiteboard and share that view in the call.

Which of these you can use depends on your account type, your organization's admin settings and the current Meet version. Check what appears in your own meeting before planning a session around a specific tool.

How whiteboarding works in Google tools

The options fall into three groups that behave quite differently:

• Partner whiteboards in Meet: a third-party app runs alongside the call. Participants draw, add sticky notes and move objects on a shared board. The board is stored in the partner's service, not in Google Drive, and it may require a separate account or sign-in.
• Google Drawings and Slides: these are regular Drive files with real-time co-editing. They support shapes, text boxes, connectors, images and a freehand line tool. They are built for structured diagrams, not fast sketching.
• Camera-based whiteboard: a physical board is captured by a webcam, document camera or phone and shown in the call. Only the person in the room can write, and the result is video, not an editable file.

Feature names, menus and add-on availability change between versions, and admins can block or allow specific add-ons. Treat any step-by-step guide, including this one, as a starting point to confirm against your current interface.

Choosing an option for your meeting

Match the tool to what the meeting needs to produce:

• Brainstorming with many participants: a partner whiteboard in Meet is usually the best fit, since sticky notes, voting and templates are what these apps are designed for.
• A diagram or plan that must stay in Drive: use Google Drawings for a single canvas or Slides when you want several pages, one per topic or team.
• Teaching or explaining math, sketches or handwriting: share a tablet screen running a drawing app, or use a camera pointed at paper or a physical board.
• A quick sketch in an existing call: a shared Drawings file is often faster than setting up a new app for everyone.

If you use Drawings or Slides as a board, create the file before the meeting, set sharing so attendees can edit, and paste the link into the meeting chat. Preparing a few labeled boxes or columns helps people start contributing without asking where to write.

Sharing a physical whiteboard on camera

A real whiteboard can be clearer than a digital one for handwriting, but the camera setup matters:

• Position the camera straight on to the board to reduce distortion; an angled view makes text harder to read.
• Avoid glare: overhead lights and windows reflect strongly on glossy boards. Move the camera slightly or change the lighting until the reflection is gone.
• Use dark, fresh markers. Faded markers often disappear in compressed video.
• If your preview looks mirrored, remember that many apps mirror only your own self-view. Check how others see the board before writing anything.
• A second webcam or a phone used as a webcam lets you show your face and the board separately; choose which camera is active in the call's video settings.

Before the meeting, test the board camera in a camera test or a private call so you can check focus, exposure and readability at the resolution the call actually sends.

Limits and related questions

Partner apps have their own plans and limits. Free tiers may cap the number of boards, editors or features, and some capabilities may need a paid subscription from the partner rather than from Google. Check the current terms of the specific app before relying on it for recurring meetings.

Privacy and file handling also differ. Content on a partner whiteboard is stored and processed by that partner under its own policies, while Drawings and Slides files follow your Google account or Workspace settings. If your meetings involve confidential material, confirm with your administrator where board content is stored, who can access it after the meeting and how it can be exported or deleted.

People searching for an online whiteboard from Google often have old Jamboard files. Google's retirement plan gave users time to export boards or move them to partner tools. Whether any remaining files are still accessible depends on that timeline and your organization's actions, so check your Drive and ask your admin rather than assuming the files still exist.

Finally, a whiteboard only works if everyone can see and use it. Large boards on small laptop screens can be hard to follow. Zoom in on the area being discussed and summarize key points in the meeting chat or a shared document for anyone who could not read the board in real time.