Google Nest Mini on purple table

So you just got your new Google Home or Google Assistant device. Now you’re probably wondering what to do with it. From controlling your connected lights to getting information about your favorite actor, Google Assistant can do a lot.

While there are thousands of different things you can ask your new smart speaker or phone, we’ll do our best to round up the ones you need to know. Here’s a look at some of the most important Google Home and Google Assistant commands.


First thing’s first: If you want to get your Google Assistant device’s attention just say “OK Google” or “Hey Google.”

Oh, and even if both your Android phone and Google Home hear you, only one of your devices will be triggered. This is a really good move on Google’s part.

Google Home commands for controlling the device

  • To turn up the volume on your Google Home, you can say: “Hey Google, increase volume”, “Hey Google, turn it up” or “Hey Google, increase volume to maximum.”
  • To turn the volume down, say: “Hey Google, decrease volume”, “Hey Google, turn it down” or “Hey Google, decrease volume to minimum.”
  • If you need Google Home to pause, resume or stop, just say: “Hey Google, pause”, “Hey Google, resume” or “Hey Google, stop.”
  • Want to know some examples of things Google Home can do? Just say: “Hey Google, help.”

Google Assistant commands for productivity

  • Set an alarm: “Hey Google, set an alarm for 7 AM”, “Hey Google, set an alarm for every Friday morning at 7 AM”, “Hey Google, set an alarm in 25 minutes” or “Hey Google, wake me up at 7 AM every day.”
  • Set a kids-themed alarm: “Ok Google, set a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle alarm for 8 PM.”
  • Check your alarms: “Hey Google, when is my next alarm?”
  • Snooze an alarm: “Hey Google, snooze alarm.”
  • Cancel an alarm: “Hey Google, cancel alarm for [time].”
  • Set a timer: “Hey Google, set a timer for [time].”
  • Check timer: “Hey Google, how much time is left on my timer?”
  • Check the time: “Hey Google, what time is it?”
  • International time: “Hey Google, what time is it in [location]?”
  • Convert currency: “Hey Google, how much is $5 in euros?”
  • Check your location: “Hey Google, where am I?”
  • Translate something: “Hey Google, how do you say ‘hello’ in Spanish?”
  • Roll a die: “Hey Google, roll a die.”
  • Flip a coin: “Hey Google, flip a coin.”
  • Add to your shopping list: “Hey Google, add [item] to my shopping list.”
  • Check your shopping list: “Hey Google, what’s on my shopping list?”
  • Find out a recipe: “Hey Google, how do you make chicken soup?”
  • Math: “Hey Google, what is 14 x 5?”
  • Count: “Count: “OK, Google, count to 20.”
  • Random number: “OK, Google, give me a random number between 5 and 50.”
  • Measurements: “Hey Google, how many centimeters are in an inch?”
  • Remember things: “OK, Google, remember that I put my passport in the filing cabinet,” or, “Remember that my password is ‘money’.”
  • Recall things: “OK, Google, where is my passport?” or, “What is my password?”
  • Get a recipe: “OK, Google, how do I make [dish]?”

Google Assistant privacy commands

google pixel 4 xl revisited assistant

Credit: Eric Zeman/ Android Authority
  • Access Google’s privacy portal: “OK, Google, how are you keeping my data safe?”
  • Delete your most recent voice command: “OK, Google, delete what I just said.”
  • To delete commands from a past time frame: “OK, Google, delete everything I said today/this week/this month/this year.”

Google Assistant commands for broadcasting over more than one speaker

If you own more than one Google Assistant-based smart speaker, you can make commands that will broadcast across all of the speakers in your home:

  • Wake up: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘wake everyone up,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s time to wake up.’”
  • Breakfast: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘breakfast is ready,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘breakfast is served,’” or’ “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s time for breakfast.’”
  • Lunch: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘lunch is ready,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s lunch time.’”
  • Dinner: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘dinner is ready/served,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘ring the dinner bell’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s dinner time.’”
  • Time to leave: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘time to leave,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘time to get out.’”
  • Arrived home: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘I’m home,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘I’m here.’”
  • On the way: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘I’m on the way,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘I’ll be home soon.’”
  • Movie time: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s movie time,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘the movie is about to start,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘let’s go to the movie.’”
  • TV time: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘the show is about to start,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s time to watch TV,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘TV time.’”
  • Bedtime: “OK, Google, broadcast ‘time for bed,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘it’s time to go to bed,’” or, “OK, Google, broadcast ‘sleep time.’”
  • Custom: “OK, Google, broadcast/shout/announce/tell everyone [custom message].”

Google Assistant commands for searching the web

Google Home commands

  • Check the weather: “Hey Google, what’s the weather like today?”, “Hey Google, do I need an umbrella today?”, “Hey Google, what’s the weather going to be like in [location] on [day/time]?”, “Hey Google, what’s the temperature outside?”, “Hey Google, is there a chance of rain on [day]?”
  • Check traffic: “Hey Google, what’s the traffic like on the way to work?”
  • Check stocks: “Hey Google, what’s the Alphabet stock price?” or “Hey Google, what’s Samsung trading at?”
  • Get a definition: “Hey Google, define [word].”, “Hey Google, what’s the definition of [word]?” or “Hey Google, what’s the meaning of [word]?”
  • Spelling: “Hey Google, how do you spell [word]?”
  • Holidays and events: “Hey Google, when is Thanksgiving this year?”
  • People and relationships: “Hey Google, who is [person]?”, “Hey Google, how old is [he/she]?”, “Hey Google, who is [person] married to?”, “Hey Google, who is [person]’s brother/sister/mother/father?”,
  • Places: “Hey Google, what country is [location] in?”
  • Things: “Hey Google, what is [thing]?”
  • Facts: “Hey Google, how tall is [person]?”
  • Distance: “Hey Google, how far is [location] from [location]?”, “Hey Google, how far is [location] from here?”
  • Businesses and information: “Hey Google, how far is [business] from here?”, “Hey Google, are there any [business type] around here?”, “Hey Google, how late is [business] open?”
  • Quotes: “Hey Google, give me a quote.”
  • Poems: “Hey Google, tell me a poem.”
  • Medical information: “Hey Google, what is a heart attack?”
  • Calories: “Hey Google, how many calories are in [food]?”
  • Animal sounds: “Hey Google, what sound does an [animal] make?”
  • Today’s news: “Hey Google, what’s today’s news?”
  • Daily briefing (includes weather, traffic and news): “Hey Google, good morning.”
  • Sports updates, scores and information: “Hey Google, when are the [sports team] playing next?”, “Hey Google, did the [sports team] win?”, “Hey Google, what was the score for the last [sports team] game?”, “Hey Google, tell me about [sports team].”
  • Actors, movies and shows: “Hey Google, what actors are in [movie]?”, “Hey Google, what movies came out last week?”
  • Recommendations: “Hey Google. what are the best restaurants in [target location}?” “Hey, Google what restaurants are nearby?”
  • Find out how long it will take to go to work: “Hey Google, How long is my commute?”, “Hey Google, How long will it take to walk/bike/take a bus to [target location]?” Hey Google, how long will it take to get to [target location]?”, “Hey Google, How long with it take to get from work to [target location]?”.

Google Assistant commands for scheduling and travel

  • Check the daily schedule: “Hey Google, what does my day look like?”, “Hey Google, list all events for [specific date].” “Hey Google, what’s on my calendar for [day of the week]?”
  • Create a new calendar event: “OK, Google new calendar event” or, “OK, Google, add [event] to my calendar,” or, “OK, Google, schedule [event] for me on Saturday at 8 PM.”
  • List next calendar event: “OK, Google, what’s next on my calendar?” or, “What/where/when is my next meeting?”
  • List calendar events for a day: “OK, Google, list all events for Jan. 1,” “OK, Google, what’s on my agenda for today?” or “OK, Google, what’s on my calendar for Friday?”
  • Check when your next event is: “Hey Google, What/when/where is my next event?”, “Hey Google, What/when/where is my first event?”
  • Check reminders: “OK, Google, what are my reminders?” or, “OK, Google, what are my reminders tomorrow?” or “OK, what is my reminder for [title}?”
  • Delete reminders: “OK, Google, delete my reminders for tomorrow,” or, “OK, Google, delete my reminder to [title],” or, “OK, Google, delete all of my reminders.”
  • Check notifications: “OK, Google, what’s up?” or, “OK, Google, what are my notifications?”
  • Check prices for an airline flight: “OK, Google, how much is a round-trip flight to New York?”
  • Find flights with a specific airline: “OK, Google, find me flights with Jet Blue.”
  • Check on your booked flights: “OK, Google, when is my next flight?” or, “OK, Google, my flights in [month].”
  • Book a hotel room: “OK, Google, find a hotel in San Francisco.” After that, say, “Book a room at Quality Inn.”
  • Discover places to visit in your travel city: “OK, Google, what is there to see in Paris?”
  • Find restaurants to try in your travel city: “OK, Google, what’s the best restaurant in Berlin?

Google Assistant commands for playing music and media

  • Play some music: “Hey Google, play some music.”, “Hey Google, play some [genre] music.”, “Hey Google, play some music on [music service].”
  • Adjust the volume: “Hey Google, turn up the volume.” “Hey Google, turn down the volume.”
  • Play an artist, song, album or genre: “Hey Google, play [artist].”, “Hey Google, play [song].”, “Hey Google, play the album [album].”, “Hey Google, play [artist/song/album] on [music service].”, “Hey Google, play some [genre] music.”</