Access Google Assistant with your voice

Important: To access this feature on some devices, you must have Voice Match.
When you say “Hey Google,” this allows you to get hands-free help as it voice-activates your Assistant-enabled devices.

You can use a speaker or Smart Display with built-in Google Assistant.

Turn on Google Assistant

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, open the Google Assistant app Assistant.
  2. At the bottom, tap Turn on.
    • If Google Assistant is off, you’ll get the option to turn it on.

Learn how to set up Google Assistant on your phone or tablet.

Turn off Google Assistant

  1. On most Assistant-enabled devices, say “Hey Google, open Assistant settings.”
    • Alternatively, open the Google Assistant app Assistant and say, “Assistant settings.”
  2. Under "All settings," tap General.
    • If you don’t find “General,” tap View all settings or See all Assistant Settings.
  3. Turn off Google Assistant.

Turn on “Hey Google” & teach Google Assistant how to recognize your voice

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, open the Google Assistant app Assistant.
  2. Say “Assistant settings.”
  3. Under “Popular settings,” tap Hey Google and Voice Match.
  4. Turn on Hey Google.
    • If you don't find “Hey Google,” turn on Google Assistant.
    • Tip: If you're signed in to a Google Workspace for Education account on your device and can't turn on “Hey Google,” the admin might disabled this setting. Contact your admin for more details.
  5. To set up a Voice Match, follow the prompts for Google Assistant to recognize you when you say “Hey Google.”

Tip: If you want to get hands-free help from Google Assistant while your Android phone or tablet is locked, make sure that your "Assistant on lock screen setting" is turned on.

Retrain Google Assistant to recognize your voice

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, open the Google Assistant app Assistant and say, “Assistant settings.”
  2. Under "Popular settings," tap Hey Google and Voice Match.
    • Make sure Hey Google is on.
      • If you don't find "Hey Google," turn on Google Assistant.
      • Tip: If you're signed in to a Google Workspace for Education account on your device and can't turn on “Hey Google,” the admin might have turned off settings that are needed for “Hey Google” to work. Contact your admin for more details.
  3. Tap Voice model and then Retrain voice model.
  4. Follow the steps to record your voice.

Use your voice to open Google Assistant

Phone or tablet

On Android phones that run Android 5.0 and up, you can use your voice to talk to Google Assistant even when your phone is locked. Learn how to control what info you see and hear.

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, open the Google Assistant app Assistant.
  2. Say “Assistant settings.”
  3. Under “Popular settings,” tap Hey Google and Voice Match.
  4. Turn on Hey Google.
    • If you don't find “Hey Google,” turn on Google Assistant.
    • Tip: If you're signed in to a Google Workspace for Education account on your device and can't turn on “Hey Google,” the admin might disabled this setting. Contact your admin for more details.
  5. To set up Voice Match, follow the prompts for Google Assistant to recognize when you say “Hey Google.”

Tips:

  • You can set up Voice Match on an undocked Pixel tablet. When the tablet is redocked, tap Agree to Voice Match for Hub Mode and complete the setup.
  • If you turn off “Hey Google,” you can talk with Google Assistant when you touch and hold Home on your phone.
  • On Pixel 4, Pixel 3, Pixel 3a, and Pixel 2 phones, you can squeeze your phone to talk to Google Assistant.
Watch
  1. If your watch screen is dim, tap the screen to wake it up.
  2. On the watch screen, swipe down from the top.
  3. Tap Settings Settings and then Personalization.
  4. Turn on Hey Google detection.

Related resources

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