Google+ Will Now Let Users Identify Their Gender Using Their Own Words

Today’s been a busy one for Google — with updates to Hangouts, Android Wear, Cardboard VR, the Cultural Institute, and more — but the company is also making an important change to Google+ that provides more gender identity options for LGBT users.

The company said it will begin supporting “an infinite number of ways to express gender identity” on the social network with a new ‘custom’ option that will roll out to users in the coming few days, as 9to5Google first reported.

Unlike the recently introduced gender identification options on Facebook, which offer more than 50 set options for users, those on Google+ will be able to choose whatever pronouns they like. That also includes ‘decline to state’, while users can already chose to not publicly disclose their gender if they so wish.



Google revealed it had worked with “people and groups who gave us advice” on gender identity but it didn’t explicitly state who it referred to.

The company has always been a huge proponent of gay rights, it was one of the many U.S. tech firms that took part in the Gay PRIDE celebration this summer, while YouTube also has a prominent voice and position in the LGBT community.

Google+ added pinned posts last week and today’s update shows that it is business as usual for the team despite recent criticism from a founding member.