Google Assistant Voice Commands and What Gemini Changes

Google Assistant answers voice commands for calls, messages, alarms, timers, smart-home controls, music and voice typing. On Android phones, Google is replacing it with Gemini. Google's own help pages say that when you switch, Gemini becomes your primary assistant ¹, and that some familiar Assistant features may not be supported in Gemini yet ². This guide lists the commands by category, marks which ones change in the move, and gives the setup steps for phones, speakers, cars and watches. We checked the Google pages on October 17, 2026. For the wider picture of spoken input, see our overview of speech to text and AI.

The date that matters most for phones is September 4, 2026. A SamMobile report says Google will start replacing Assistant with Gemini on Galaxy phones, tablets, watches, Buds and Android Auto on September 4, 2026 ³. The Google help pages we read do not give that date, so treat it as reported rather than confirmed. Once Assistant is removed from a device that supports Gemini, you cannot switch back to it ⁴.

The move has taken longer than Google first described. In March 2025 Google's blog post said that later that year the classic Google Assistant would no longer be accessible on most mobile devices ⁵. The reported September 2026 start is about 17.7 months after that announcement ⁶.

Short answers to the first questions people ask are on their own pages: is Gemini replacing Google Assistant?, can you switch back?, how do you turn on Hey Google?, and which Assistant features does Gemini lack?.

Say 'Hey Google' or hold the power button, then speak the command

Turn on Hey Google once, then say the command. The setup lives in a different menu for Google Assistant and for Gemini, so check which assistant your phone uses first.

"Hey Google" is the wake phrase for both assistants when it is turned on. To turn it on for Google Assistant on an Android phone or tablet:

1. Open the Google Assistant app.
2. Say "Assistant settings."
3. Under Popular settings, tap Hey Google and Voice Match ⁷.
4. Turn on Hey Google, then follow the prompts so the phone learns your voice.

If Hey Google does not appear in that list, turn on Google Assistant first. Google's help page adds two conditions: on a Google Workspace for Education account, an admin may have turned the setting off, and hands-free help while the phone is locked needs the Assistant on lock screen setting turned on ( Google's help page on using your voice with Assistant).

On a phone where Gemini is the primary assistant, the steps are in the Gemini app. Open the app, tap Menu, then your profile picture or initial, then Settings, then Talk to Gemini hands-free, and turn on Hey Google. Google's page says to set up Voice Match so the phone recognizes your voice ( Google's Gemini help page).

Hey Google is not available in every language. Google's Gemini page says that Hey Google and quick voice action features are unavailable in 14 languages, including Greek, Hebrew and Ukrainian ⁸. In those languages you can still talk to Gemini by tapping the microphone in the app. If you do not want to use the wake phrase at all, Google's page lists touch methods that vary by device: press and hold the power button, touch and hold Home, or swipe up from the bottom corner of the screen.

Calls, messages and dictation by voice

Google Assistant handles calls and texts with short commands, and Google says Gemini still gets help from Assistant for these quick actions. Voice typing is a separate feature, and Google says what you dictate with it stays on the device.

Google's list of examples for calls and messages is below. The full list is on Google's What you can ask Google Assistant page.

At Gemini's launch on Android, Google listed phone calls, sending messages and reading incoming messages among the Assistant actions Gemini could perform ⁹. Google's 2026 page says the same kind of thing in general terms: on Android, the Gemini app gets help from Google Assistant for some familiar quick voice action features ¹⁰. Those features depend on Assistant staying in place, so they can change when Google changes Assistant.

Voice typing keeps your speech on the device

Assistant voice typing lets you dictate a message, add emojis, make edits and send it. You can say "delete" or "clear" to edit and "send" to send. Google says the text you speak stays on your device and is not sent to Google servers ¹¹. The feature works in six languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish ¹².

Google's page describes voice typing for Assistant only. It does not say whether the dictation in the Gemini app follows the same rules, so check that before you dictate private text. For a comparison of commands and dictation, read our guide to voice assistants vs dictation. For voice typing on Android itself, see voice typing on Android.

If what you want is your own words typed into any app, that is dictation rather than a command. Yap, which we make, is an on-device dictation app for Mac and Windows. The dictation commands guide explains the spoken punctuation and editing words that dictation uses.

Timers, alarms, reminders and calendar by voice

Timers and alarms were on Google's February 2024 list of Assistant actions that Gemini could perform ⁹. Reminders and routines had documented gaps at launch, and Google's pages describe them differently by device.

Google's examples for this group are "Set an alarm for 7 a.m.", "Remind me to do laundry this evening", "Remind me to call Mom every Sunday" and "When's my first meeting today?" ( Google's list).

Reminders were a documented gap. At launch in February 2024, Google said that to set reminders and tasks you had to switch back to Google Assistant ¹³. We did not find a 2026 Google page for phones that says whether that changed. On speakers, the picture is different: Google's Gemini for Home page lists alarms, timers, calendars, notes, lists and reminders among the basic features that cost nothing ¹⁴.

Routines started by voice in 2024, with limits that remain

Routines are one voice command that runs several actions in order. At launch in February 2024, Google said that starting a Routine in Gemini was not supported, and that on Android phones the shortcuts to start a Routine and the Routines attached to alarms in the Clock app stopped working ¹⁵.

In August 2024 Gemini began running Routines on Android ¹⁶. You say "start" and the routine name, and Google Assistant runs it inside Gemini. Typed triggers did not work ¹⁶. Google's 2026 page still says that some starters and actions are not supported when you use a routine with Gemini, and that Gemini tells you when an action is not supported ¹⁷.

Smart-home devices and media by voice

Smart-home control moved to speakers and displays, and it is the part of this move with a price attached. Basic control costs nothing on Gemini for Home ¹⁴. Hotword-free Gemini Live and camera features are part of the paid Google Home Premium plans described below.

Google's examples for speakers and displays include "Dim the living room lights", "Set the heat to 70" and "Lower the temperature 2 degrees" ( Google's list). For media, Google's examples are "Play some Jazz music" and "Play the latest episode from This American Life."

Media is the clearest phone-side gap in the 2024 record. At launch, Google said podcasts, news and radio stations, and third-party music providers were not supported in Gemini ¹⁸. The 2026 Gemini help page we read does not repeat that list, so test the service you use before you rely on it.

Google Home Premium has two paid plans. In its October 2025 announcement, Google priced the Standard plan at $10 a month, or $100 a year in US dollars, and said it includes Gemini Live for hotword-free conversations ¹⁹. The Advanced plan was priced at $20 a month, or $200 a year, and adds camera features ²⁰. The chart compares the monthly prices from that announcement.

The free basic features are the ones Google lists as no cost: smart-home controls, alarms and timers, calendars, notes, lists and reminders ¹⁴.

Gemini replaces Google Assistant on Android phones, and some commands changed

On Android, Gemini becomes the primary assistant when you switch, and Google says Gemini is still evolving ². Google's help page says that when you switch to Gemini, it replaces Google Assistant as the primary assistant on your device ¹. You can switch back until Assistant is removed from your device ⁴. In the Gemini app, tap Menu, then your profile picture or initial, then Switch to Google Assistant, and confirm ( Google's Gemini help page). Google's page says you can switch to Google Assistant as your primary assistant in your settings ²¹.

Gemini can only become the primary assistant when the Google app is your default assist app. To check, open Settings, tap Apps, then Default apps, and look at Digital assistant app. If it does not show the Google app, change it there ( Google's Gemini help page).

Some familiar Assistant features are still missing from Gemini

Google says that some familiar Assistant features may not be supported in Gemini, which is still evolving ². The page does not list the gaps. The best-documented list is Google's from February 2024. It named Routines ¹⁵, reminders ¹³, and podcasts and music services ¹⁸ as features that needed Assistant or were unsupported at launch. We could not confirm from the 2026 Google pages whether those gaps have closed. Test the commands you use, and if Gemini cannot do one, switch to Google Assistant. For the full answer, see which Google Assistant features Gemini does not support.

Routines in Gemini answer with voice and text, not cards

In routines, Google says Gemini responds to actions such as asking for the weather with voice and text only. It no longer displays visual information cards, such as maps or detailed weather graphs ²². If you used those cards in routines, that part does not carry over.

The table below sets the commands against Google's statements. The dates matter: the 2024 entries describe the launch, and the 2026 entries describe Google's current help pages.

Gemini also replaces Assistant on the phone's paired accessories. Google says Gemini will replace Google Assistant on paired devices such as smart watches, headphones and earbuds with Google Assistant built in ²³.

To decide whether a switch is worth it, read the question on whether Gemini is replacing Google Assistant and the question on switching back.

Speakers, displays, cars and watches move on their own schedules

Each device changes on its own schedule. Phones follow the reported September date ³, speakers depend on early access in your country and language, and cars and watches follow the phone or the car's own system.

Speakers and displays switch for the whole home

Gemini for Home replaces Google Assistant on compatible speakers and displays, and the switch applies to the whole home. Google's help page says that once you switch your home, it cannot switch back to Google Assistant ²⁴. Early access is rolling out to selected countries and languages first, and Google says it will reach more homes over time ( Google's Gemini for Home help page).

Cars follow the phone, and Assistant stays in some cars

Google says Gemini is rolling out to Android Auto users who have already upgraded from Google Assistant to Gemini on their phones ²⁵. The rollout started in 45 languages ²⁶. You can start Gemini in the car by saying "Hey Google", pressing the mic button on the car screen, or long pressing the voice control button on the steering wheel ²⁷. Google says to make sure you use the Gemini app on your phone, and a tooltip appears on the car display once Gemini is available to you ²⁸.

Cars with built-in Google Assistant can keep it. Google's help page says Assistant will continue to respond to Hey Google on non-mobile devices, including cars, smart displays, smart speakers and TVs ²⁹, and it gives no end date for those devices. SamMobile lists Android Auto in the September 4 change for Galaxy users ³, so a car that uses your phone may move with the phone.

Watches and earbuds follow the phone

Google says Gemini replaces Google Assistant on paired devices such as smart watches, headphones and earbuds with Google Assistant built in ²³. SamMobile's report lists Galaxy watches and Buds in the same September 4 transition as the phone ³, so check the phone's assistant first.

The table and flow below put the devices together.

For the wider picture of voice assistants, see our guide to home assistant voice and the guide to AI voice agents. For what happens to your voice data in each service, see voice data retention.