"Hey Google" — and silence. Or the Assistant opens but never hears a word. When Google Assistant is not working on your Android phone, the problem is usually a disabled setting, a blocked microphone permission, or a stale Google app rather than a broken phone. This guide walks you through 7 fixes for Google Assistant not working on Android, from the one-minute checks to the deeper resets — so run through them in order until your Assistant answers again.
Quick Answer: Google Assistant not working? Open the Google app → your profile icon → Settings → Google Assistant and make sure Google Assistant is turned on, then go to Voice Match and confirm Hey Google is enabled. Next, check that the Google app has microphone permission (Settings → Apps → Google → Permissions). These two checks — the Assistant toggle and mic permission — resolve the majority of cases where Google Assistant stops responding.
In This Guide:
- Why Google Assistant Stops Working
- Fix 1: Make Sure Google Assistant Is Enabled
- Fix 2: Turn On Hey Google and Retrain Voice Match
- Fix 3: Check the Microphone Permission
- Fix 4: Check Your Internet Connection
- Fix 5: Update the Google App
- Fix 6: Turn Off Battery Saver and Other Assistants
- Fix 7: Clear the Google App Cache
- What If Nothing Works?
Why Google Assistant Stops Working
Google Assistant isn't a standalone app — it's a feature inside the Google app, and it needs four things to work: the Assistant toggle turned on, microphone access, an internet connection, and up-to-date Google software. Break any link and the Assistant goes quiet. The usual culprits:
- Assistant or Hey Google got toggled off → often happens after a software update or a settings reset.
- Microphone permission revoked → the Assistant can't hear anything without it.
- Voice Match model is stale → it no longer recognizes your voice after illness, a new case, or a quiet room.
- No internet → voice recognition runs on Google's servers, so offline means no answers.
- Outdated or corrupted Google app data → updates and glitches break the Assistant's internals.
Work through the fixes in order. Covers Android 10 through 14.
Fix 1: Make Sure Google Assistant Is Enabled
After updates, the Assistant toggle sometimes flips off silently. Confirm it's actually on before troubleshooting anything else:
- Open the Google app and tap your profile picture in the top-right corner.
- Tap Settings → Google Assistant (on some versions, Settings → Assistant).
- Make sure Google Assistant is toggled on.
- Try summoning the Assistant by long-pressing the Home button or swiping up from a corner — if that works but voice doesn't, the problem is voice-specific (see Fix 2).
Brand notes: on Samsung (One UI), you can also set the default assistant at Settings → Apps → Choose default apps → Digital assistant app — make sure it's set to Google, not Bixby. On Xiaomi (HyperOS), long-press shortcuts are configured at Settings → Additional settings → Button shortcuts.
Fix 2: Turn On Hey Google and Retrain Voice Match
If the Assistant works by button but ignores "Hey Google," the voice wake-up is the problem. The Voice Match voice model — which teaches the Assistant what your voice sounds like — can go stale or get disabled:
- Open the Google app → profile icon → Settings → Google Assistant.
- Tap Voice Match (under Popular settings).
- Turn Hey Google on.
- Tap Retrain voice model (or Voice model → Retrain), then read the sample phrases aloud in a quiet room when prompted.
- Test by saying "Hey Google" clearly, about an arm's length from the phone.
If Hey Google still won't trigger, check Settings → Apps → Google → Permissions → Microphone is allowed (Fix 3 covers this fully) — the toggle can't work without mic access.
Fix 3: Check the Microphone Permission
Without microphone permission, Google Assistant can't hear a single word — and the permission can be revoked by updates or by Android's auto-reset of unused permissions:
- Go to Settings → Apps → Google → Permissions.
- Tap Microphone and set it to Allow while using the app (or Allow).
- Also check Settings → Apps → Google Play services → Permissions — the Assistant depends on Play Services too.
- Test the microphone independently: open your phone's voice recorder and record a few seconds. If the recorder hears nothing either, the mic hardware — not the Assistant — is the problem.
Brand paths: Samsung (One UI): Settings → Apps → Google → Permissions; Xiaomi (HyperOS): Settings → Apps → Manage apps → Google → App permissions. Also disable any app currently using the microphone (like a recorder or Zoom call) — only one app can hold the mic at a time.
Fix 4: Check Your Internet Connection
Google Assistant sends your voice to Google's servers for recognition — with no connection, "Hey Google" does nothing. Rule this out early:
- Confirm Wi-Fi or mobile data is on and working: load a page in your browser. If the browser fails, fix the connection first.
- Try switching networks — Wi-Fi to mobile data or vice versa — and test the Assistant again.
- Disconnect any VPN: VPNs can block or reroute the Assistant's traffic. Go to Settings → Network & internet → VPN and disconnect while testing.
A weak connection doesn't always fail cleanly — the Assistant may start listening, then silently give up. If the Assistant "thinks" for a long time and then does nothing, the network is the prime suspect.
Fix 5: Update the Google App
The Assistant lives inside the Google app, so an outdated or half-updated Google app breaks it directly. Updating also refreshes the underlying Assistant components:
- Open the Play Store, tap your profile icon, and go to Manage apps & device.
- Find Google in the list. If an Update button appears, tap it.
- Also update Google Play services and Android System WebView while you're there — the Assistant relies on both.
- After updating, restart the phone, then test "Hey Google" again.
Fix 6: Turn Off Battery Saver and Other Assistants
Two background features can quietly strangle the Assistant: Battery Saver, which kills background listening, and other voice assistants, which fight Google for the microphone:
Battery Saver:
- Go to Settings → Battery → Battery Saver and turn it off (Samsung: Settings → Battery and device care → Battery → Power saving).
- Also turn off Adaptive Battery while testing: Settings → Battery → Adaptive Battery.
Other assistants (Alexa, Bixby, etc.):
- If you use Alexa, open the Alexa app → More → Settings → Device Settings → Alexa on this phone and turn off Enable Alexa Hands Free.
- On Samsung, make sure Bixby Voice wake-up is off (Bixby → Settings → Voice wake-up) so it doesn't fight Google for the mic.
- Test the Assistant again with only Google's assistant active.
You can re-enable power saving and the other assistant after testing — just confirm the Assistant works first so you know what changed.
Fix 7: Clear the Google App Cache
When the Google app's cached data corrupts, the Assistant can fail in odd ways — opening then closing, hearing but not answering, or freezing. Clearing the cache resets its internals without touching your data:
- Go to Settings → Apps → Google → Storage & cache.
- Tap Clear cache (not Clear storage — that wipes your settings and you'll have to re-set up the Assistant).
- Restart the phone.
- Open the Google app and re-run through the Assistant setup prompts, then test "Hey Google."
If clearing cache doesn't help and you want to go one step further, Clear storage is the nuclear option — it resets the Google app completely. You'll need to re-enable the Assistant and retrain Voice Match afterward (Fixes 1–2). Covers Android 10 through 14.
What If Nothing Works?
- Check the Assistant language: open Google app → profile icon → Settings → Google Assistant → Languages. Set it to English while testing.
- Remove and re-add your Google account: Settings → Accounts (Samsung: Settings → Accounts and backup → Manage accounts), remove the Google account, restart, and add it back.
- Test on another network entirely: try a friend's Wi-Fi or a different SIM's data — some corporate or school networks block Assistant traffic.
- Factory reset as a last resort: Settings → System → Reset options → Erase all data (factory reset). This erases everything, so back up first.
In most cases, Fix 1 (the Assistant toggle) or Fix 2 (Hey Google + Voice Match) brings Google Assistant back — those two cover the majority of failures.
Watch: Google Assistant Not Working Fixed Step by Step
Prefer a walkthrough? This video covers the 'Hey Google not responding' problem step by step:
Video by TechSimplify — full credit to the creator.
Related Guides:
Frequently Asked Questions
Why won't my phone respond to "Hey Google" but the Assistant opens manually?
That split means the Assistant is enabled but the voice wake-up isn't — Fix 2 is your answer. Turn Hey Google on under Voice Match and retrain the voice model. Also verify the Google app has microphone permission (Fix 3), since the wake-up can't work without it.
Why does Google Assistant say "Something went wrong"?
"Something went wrong" usually points to a network or server problem. Check your internet connection (Fix 4), disconnect any VPN, and make sure the Google app is updated (Fix 5). If it happens on every network, clear the Google app's cache (Fix 7).
Can Battery Saver stop Google Assistant from working?
Yes. Battery Saver and Adaptive Battery restrict the background processes the Assistant needs for "Hey Google" listening (Fix 6). Turn both off and test again — you can re-enable them afterward if you prefer, but know the wake-up may be less reliable with them on.
By Sameer Zehri | App Fix Guru Editor | Last updated: October 2026
