Why is Gboard voice typing not working?

Gboard voice typing can stop for four reasons. Voice typing is switched off in Gboard's settings, the microphone is blocked for Gboard or for the whole phone, battery saving is restricting the keyboard, or the speech files for your language are missing or still downloading. The sources we read do not rank these by how often they happen, so start with the quickest checks: the switch and the two microphone permissions. Each one can be tested without reinstalling anything.

If you use Gboard on a Galaxy phone, check which keyboard you are typing with before you start. Samsung's own keyboard has a separate voice input that works only with the Samsung Keyboard ¹. The overview of Android voice typing fixes covers both keyboards in one table.

Check the Gboard switch and both microphone permissions first

Gboard cannot give you voice typing while the feature is off. Guiding Tech says that if voice typing is disabled in Gboard, you cannot use its voice-to-text feature ². To switch it on, open Settings from the Gboard toolbar, tap Voice typing, and turn on Use voice typing. The microphone key then appears on the Gboard keyboard.

Microphone access has two layers, and both must allow the microphone. The first is Gboard's own permission. The second is a phone-wide switch. Guiding Tech says a device privacy setting can limit microphone access even when Gboard's app permission is on, and that you may still see the "can't enable voice typing" error ³. A denied app permission has a direct effect: Guiding Tech says that an app whose microphone permission is denied cannot detect your voice ⁴.

For Gboard's own permission, choose Allow only while using the app ⁵. If you see the exact message "No Permission to Enable Voice Typing," the question on that error walks through the same two switches in more detail.

Battery saving can restrict voice typing on some phones

Make Tech Easier says battery-saving modes on a phone can restrict Gboard's voice typing feature ⁶. To test it, open Settings, tap Battery, and turn off Power saving mode or Battery saving. Then try voice typing in a notes app. We found no source that shows the same effect on every phone, so treat this as a test rather than a confirmed cause.

Speech files that are missing or still downloading can stop typing

Gboard uses speech recognition languages that can be downloaded to the phone. Guiding Tech says that downloading them can improve voice typing and fix voice-to-text problems in areas with a weak network signal ⁷. To add a language, open Settings, then System, then Languages, tap the gear beside Voice input, and then Add a language.

Advanced voice typing, the colorful-microphone feature that Google describes separately, has a different wait. Google says that in some cases it can take a few hours for your phone to download the updates it needs before advanced voice typing works ⁸. Google's steps for when it still does not work are to connect to Wi-Fi, restart the phone and charge it overnight.

It depends on the keyboard and the feature you use

The answer changes with three things.

Which keyboard is active. Galaxy phones have two built-in voice-to-text apps, and Samsung voice input works only with the Samsung Keyboard ⁹. If you are typing with Samsung's keyboard, fix its settings instead. A third-party keyboard has its own switches, so check that keyboard's menus.

Basic or advanced voice typing. The key at the top of Gboard is the basic feature. Google's advanced voice typing needs your primary Gboard language and your device language to match: "To use advanced voice typing, your primary Gboard & device languages must be the same" ¹⁰. The article attaches this condition to advanced voice typing, so it is less likely to explain a missing basic key. If the advanced features are missing but the basic key works, check the languages first.

Your error message. The message tells you which layer failed. "No Permission to Enable Voice Typing" points to the permissions. "Unfortunately, Gboard has stopped" is a crash message, not a permission message, so the permission steps above do not apply to it. The question on the missing microphone key covers the case where the key itself has gone.

What to do, in order

1. Turn on Use voice typing in Gboard's Voice typing settings.
2. Set Gboard's Microphone permission to Allow only while using the app.
3. Turn on the phone-wide Microphone access switch.
4. Turn off battery saving for a test, and try again.
5. Download the speech language for your language, and for advanced voice typing, connect to Wi-Fi, restart and wait for the update.
6. Update Gboard from the Google Play Store, then test again.
7. Only if the problem continues, reinstall Gboard as the last step, since uninstalling it deletes its settings ¹¹. The guide to fixing Android voice typing gives the menus for each step.

After each change, close the app you were typing in, open it again, and dictate a full sentence into a plain notes app. Change one thing at a time, so you know which change worked. If Gboard still fails after these checks, a separate dictation app can be an alternative. Yap, which we make, is one such app. The guide to the best dictation apps for iPhone and Android compares the options.

For a complete explanation of the causes that apply to all Android phones, read the guide to Android voice typing that is not working. For the Galaxy version, see the question on Samsung talk to text.