How to Add Multiple Users to Your Google Home Device
If you live in a home with multiple family members or roommates, that means you can ask Google Home for your specific workout playlist, instead of your brother’s (or your dad’s). How can you set up this magical function? Let’s break things down.
Step 1: Open the Google Home app
If you haven’t done this already, download the Google Home app and open it. If this is your first time using the app, you will need to sign in and set up compatible devices. It’s important to do this first so Google Home is ready to provide device features for each user you will be adding.
Step 2: Teach Google your voice
Before you begin, it’s a good idea to teach Google Assistant your own voice. This feature, called Voice Match, is what lets you share your Google Home device with other members of the household, but still get a personalized Google Assistant experience. Here’s how to set up Voice Match:
- Open the Google Home app.
- Tap your profile icon in the top right corner and tap Assistant Settings.
- Tap the Assistant tab and tap Voice Match from the list of features.
- Tap Add a Device, and add the compatible Google smart device(s) in your home.
It’s a pretty straightforward process that involves you saying the phrases, “Hey, Google” and “OK, Google” out loud to help Google learn the sound of your voice. We walk you through a step-by-step guide on how to set up Voice Match.
Step 3: Invite others to create accounts
Once you’ve completed the voice training, you’ll have the option to tap Invite, which will send notifications to people you choose, inviting them to set up their own personalized accounts and voices on Google Home. New users will have to download the Google Home app on their devices to connect their music accounts and customize their preferences. Using the app, they can tweak their preferred news sources, calendar updates, and more.
If you don’t want to invite people while you are setting up Voice Match, you can do it at any other time. If you’ve never invited anyone before, you’ll want to select the Invite Home Member tab on the Google Home screen. This step immediately opens your Google/Gmail contact list, allowing you to search for names or emails and send invites.
The person to whom you send the email will need to follow the instructions to properly connect, but this is all you need to do on your end.
Step 4: Accepting a Google Home invite
For those receiving a Google Home multi-user invite, the first thing you’ll want to do is open the invite email and accept the actual invite. Once confirmed, the invitee should download the Google Home app on their preferred mobile device.
Next, tap the Home View tab (button with the house icon) and tap 1 Pending Invitation. A message will appear that will inform the user of the many things they’ll be able to do under a shared Google Home network. Tap More, then scroll down and tap Accept. You’ll then be prompted to create a nickname for your Home account. After doing so, tap Next to begin setting up your Voice Match profile. Follow the series of prompts to complete your account setup.
Step 5: Manage accounts
At this time, Google Home devices support up to six accounts, so everyone from your spouse to your children to frequent house guests can create accounts. You can view all active accounts on a Google Home device at any time by tapping your connected device, then tap Settings, and then tap Linked accounts.
Need to remove an account? Maybe your roommate moved out, or one of your children lost interest in the device. You can easily remove accounts using the app. Simply tap Account (the icon with the circled person), tap Settings, and tap Home Members. Find the account that’s no longer needed, and tap Remove.
Chances are if you have children running around at home, you probably want to control your Google Home settings. You can successfully restrict selected content by setting up parental controls, which allows you to protect your kids from inappropriate content from YouTube, Google Play Music, and other platforms. With content in your control, you can rest assured that your children will be safe, even if they are home alone with the device.
Step 6: Enjoy multi-user support
Once everyone who will be using Google Home has a personal account, switching between them is easy. The Google Assistant will recognize a speaker’s voice and switch to the appropriate account with no hesitation. For example, if you inquire, “Hey Google, tell me about my day,” your device will tell you what traffic is like on your route and will inform you of what’s on your calendar. If you ask Google Home about music, it will access and begin playing your saved playlists on Spotify and Google Play Music platforms.
It’s worth noting that it’s possible to accidentally open someone else’s account if your voices are similar in tone. If this happens, all you need to do is say, “Stop,” and restart the process to avoid accessing their private information.
We have a handy eight-step guide that can teach you more about Google Home, including how to link music accounts and adjust individual settings, like the “wake word.”
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