How to Move Google Home to a New Phone (2026 Guide)
The good news first: your Google Home setup doesn't actually live on your old phone. Your homes, rooms, devices, and routines are tied to your Google account, not the handset. So "moving Google Home to a new phone" really means installing the Google Home app on the new device and signing in with the same Google account you used before. Do that, and everything you configured should reappear within a minute or two. The places people get tripped up are using the wrong account, missing permissions the app needs, or assuming they have to factory-reset speakers and cameras (you don't).
Before you start: what actually transfers
It helps to know which parts of your setup are account-level (they follow you automatically) and which are device-level (they may need a quick re-do on the new phone). This distinction explains almost every "why didn't X come over?" question.
| Setting | Tied to | Comes over automatically? |
|---|---|---|
| Homes, rooms, device list | Google account | Yes |
| Routines & automations | Google account | Yes |
| Linked services (smart-home brands you connected) | Google account | Yes |
| Voice Match (your voice profile) | Phone + account | Re-enroll if prompted |
| App notifications & permissions | Phone | Grant again on new phone |
| Cast/Bluetooth pairings from the old phone | Phone | Reconnect as needed |
Step-by-step: add Google Home to a new phone
- 1Install the Google Home app from the Play Store or App Store
- 2Open it and sign in with the same Google account as before
- 3Confirm your home and devices appear, then grant permissions
- 4Re-enroll Voice Match and check routines
- Install the app. Download the Google Home app from the Google Play Store (Android) or the Apple App Store (iPhone/iPad). Google Home works on both platforms, so switching from Android to iPhone — or the reverse — doesn't lose your setup.
- Sign in with the right account. This is the single most important step. Open the app and choose the same Google account that owns your home. If you have multiple Google accounts on the phone, double-check which one the app picked; signing in with a personal account when your devices live under a different one is the number-one reason a new phone shows an empty home.
- Let it sync. Once you're signed in, your homes, rooms, and devices should populate on their own. Give it a minute on the first launch. If you manage more than one home, use the home switcher in the app to confirm each one is present.
- Grant permissions. The app will ask for things like local network access, Bluetooth, notifications, and (on some setups) location. These are per-phone, so the new device starts from scratch. Local network and Bluetooth permissions matter for discovering and controlling devices on your Wi-Fi, so don't skip them.
- Re-enroll Voice Match if asked. Your voice profile is partly device-specific. If you want Assistant to recognize you and give personalized results from this phone, walk through Voice Match again in the app's settings.
- Spot-check routines and a few devices. Open your routines and automations and trigger one device to confirm control works. If everything responds, you're done.
If your devices don't show up
Nearly every "missing devices" case traces back to one of a handful of causes. Work through them in order:
- Wrong account. Tap your profile in the app and verify the email matches the account that set up your home. Switch accounts if needed.
- Not a member of the home. If someone else originally created the home and you were never invited, you won't see those devices. Ask the home's manager to send you an invite, or sign in as the account that owns it.
- Phone on the wrong Wi-Fi. For local discovery and control, your phone generally needs to be on the same network as your devices. If you've got a guest network or a separate band, that can interfere — our notes on a stable smart-home Wi-Fi setup explain why.
- A speaker or display shows offline. That's a device-connectivity issue, not a phone-migration one. See Google Home says "Device is offline" for fixes.
- A linked brand lost authorization. Occasionally a third-party service (lights, locks, etc.) needs re-linking. You'd re-add it the same way you would when adding a device to Google Home.
What about the old phone?
You don't have to do anything to the old phone for the new one to work. But if you're selling, recycling, or handing it down, sign out of the Google account and remove it from the device to make sure no one keeps controlling your home from it. Removing the app alone doesn't sign you out of the account.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to factory-reset my speakers or cameras?
No. Resetting devices erases their setup and is almost never necessary just because you changed phones. Your speakers, displays, and cameras stay linked to your account — the new phone simply connects to that same account.
Will my routines and automations carry over?
Yes. Routines are stored on your Google account, so they appear on the new phone automatically. It's still worth opening one to confirm, since any routine that depends on a re-authorized service may need that service relinked first.
What if I want both phones to control the home?
That works fine. Sign in to the Google Home app on each phone with the same account, and both can control the home. To give a family member access from their account, invite them as a member of the home rather than sharing your password.
I changed phones and accounts at the same time — now what?
If you moved everything to a brand-new Google account, your old home won't follow you, because it lives under the old account. Either sign in to Google Home with the original account, or have that account's home manager invite your new account as a member.
