What Is Google Social Circle?

What Is Google Social Circle?
Page content

What is Google Social Circle?

Google Social Circle is simply a listing that displays your extended network of online contacts and shows how you are connected to each person. You can see who is in your Google Social Circle by clicking here. If you are not already signed in, log into your Google account to see and manage who is currently in your Google Social Circle. The Social Content link will show you the content you are currently sharing with the people in your Google Social Circle, if any.

Creating a Google Social Circle

If you have a new Google account, you might not yet have anyone listed in your Google Social Circle. To add contacts to your Social Circle network, click the Google Contacts link and begin adding contacts. Read How to Add, Edit and Delete Contacts in Gmail and How to Import Contacts from Other E-mail Accounts into Gmail to learn more.

Click the Create a Google Profile link to make a profile that will help friends, family members and other contacts locate you and expand your Google Social Circle. Read Why Use Your Google Profile? to find out more about creating your Google profile.

Others in your Google Social Circle include people in your Gmail or Google Talk chat list, people with whom you are connected via social networking services that you have listed in your Google profile and contacts of your immediate contacts.

Managing Google Social Circle

You can make changes to your Google Social Circle. For example, you can add or remove contacts from the social networks linked to your Google profile, add or remove links in your Google profile, add or block someone as a Gmail Chat contact or add or remove them from your Google Contacts list.

You may be surprised to find people you do not know listed in your Google Social Circle. These are contacts of your immediate contacts. Google includes this aspect to expand your Social Circle and allow you to find content that is likely to be relevant or enjoyable to you, such as websites, web content, images and articles.

If you want to remove a secondary contact from your Google Social Circle, you must remove the direct contact through whom they are linked as Google does not currently provide a method to block or remove secondary contacts.

Google Social Search

Another feature of Google Social Circle is Social Search. When you perform a search on Google, you can select Show Options in the search results to open the search options pane on the left side of the window. Select Social under All Results to see if anyone in your Google Social Circle has posted content that relates to the topic on which you are searching. This is a great way to learn about restaurants or locations you want to visit or products you might wish to buy. It is the online equivalent of asking your neighbor if he or any of his contacts have tried the new place down the street.

If you do not want to display Social Search, simply log out of your Google account.