Picture of the Xtreme JBL Bluetooth speaker and its carrying strap, along with the Mini Google Home smart speaker.

Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker

We offer here Google Home connect to Bluetooth speaker instructions using a typical Bluetooth speaker. These directions work for the Google Home original, Mini, and Max speaker versions. Indeed, they all support connecting with wireless speakers via Bluetooth.   Thus, this allows you to direct sound that would normally play on the Google Home, to the Bluetooth speaker!  Since this connecting happens directly between the Bluetooth speaker and the Home Google speakers, there’s no need to turn Bluetooth on in the mobile device you’re using to form this Bluetooth connection.

Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker Instructions

In this demo, our speaker of choice is the JBL Xtreme portable Bluetooth speaker.  Why?  Because it’s easy to connect with, and it sounds terrific.  Furthermore, we’re connect the Xtreme with the Mini Home Google small speaker, which provides a clear  sound improvement over the speaker built into the Mini.  Thus we’ll run though these directions, showing how to do this with these two devices.

Now with your Bluetooth speaker powered down, run through these step-by-step instructions to connect it to your Google speaker.

We borrowed an iPad Air tablet to configure this Bluetooth connection.

Now, to the instructions, step-by-step.

1. Find the Google Home App on your Mobile Device

We located the Home app on our iPad Air iOS tablet as shown in the next picture. For us, this app is on the third Home screen page. It’s pointed at by the purple arrow.

Picture of the Google Home App entry, as shown on the iOS home screen.
Google Home App entry, as shown on the iOS home screen.

2. Run the Google Home App

The Home app displays its  Home  screen as seen in the next screenshot.

Screenshot of the Google Home app on iOS, showing its Home page.
Home app on iOS, showing its Home screen.

3. Swipe UP to Scroll Down to Find the Speaker Group and Speaker to Connect that you Want

If you don’t spot the speaker group in which the Google Home speaker you wish to connect to Bluetooth belongs, then swipe up on the Home screen until it comes into view.  Swiping up scrolls you down the Home page that contains all your Google speaker devices and groups set up right now in your Google account.

Now in this exercise, we’re Bluetooth connecting a Mini Google Home speaker, as mentioned above. This speaker belongs our  Office  group.  So we scrolled down the page until we saw that group and speaker, as shown in the next photo, encircled in green.

Screenshot of the Google Home app, iOS version, showing its -Home- page, with the -Office- group circled.
Home app showing its -Home- page, with the -Office- group circled.




4. Tap the Google Speaker Device you Desire to Connect Wirelessly with your Bluetooth Speaker

Here,  we connect our portable speaker with our Google Mini, named  Office Speaker.   So we tap the picture of the Mini Home, appearing inside the green circle above.

This brings up the main page for the selected Home Google speaker, as seen next.

Screenshot of the Google Home app on iOS, showing the main screen for Office Speaker, with the -Settings- button highlighted.
Google app showing the main screen for Office Speaker, with the -Settings- button highlighted.

5. Tap the Device Settings  Icon on the Speaker’s Main Control Screen to Continue with Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker

We call out the Device Settings option with the green arrow in the last screenshot.

Tapping the gear-shaped Device Settings button brings up the Device Settings screen for your chosen Home Google speaker, as shown in the next screenshot.

Screenshot of the Home app, showing its -Device Settings- screen, top of that page.
The Home app showing its -Device Settings- screen, top of that page.

6. Scroll Down to the Default Speaker  Setting

Scroll down the Device Settings screen, until you see the Default Speaker item. We’ve pointed this out with a purple arrow in the next screen shot.

Screenshot of the Home Google, showing its -Device Settings- screen, with the -Default Speaker- item highlighted.
Home app on iOS, showing its -Device Settings- screen, with the -Default Speaker- item highlighted.

7. Tap the Default Speaker Item

This brings up the  Choose a Default Speaker for Music and Audio  screen, as shown next.

Picture of the Google Home app on iOS, showing its -Choose Default Speaker- screen, with the -Pair Bluetooth Speaker- item highlighted.
Home app on iOS, showing its -Choose Default Speaker- screen, with the -Pair Bluetooth Speaker- item highlighted.

At this point, you’re ready to start your Home Google speaker scanning for nearby Bluetooth units that themselves are in Bluetooth discovery mode. You’ve selected the Home speaker to connect with in step 4 above. So, that Home Google speaker is the one that scans for Bluetooth devices like our Xtreme speaker.

But  WAIT JUST A MINUTE!  don’t press that Pair Bluetooth Speaker item button just yet. We must first power up your speaker and put it into discovery  mode.





8. Switch On your Bluetooth Speaker

Put down your mobile device for a bit, and power up your BT speaker by quickly pressing and releasing its Power button. We note the Power button with the green arrow in the next picture on our Xtreme.

Picture of a common Bluetooth speaker powered OFF, showing its dark Power button highlighted.
A common Bluetooth speaker powered OFF, showing its dark Power button highlighted.

Your speaker then turns on.

But since our Google Mini has never connected with our Xtreme speaker before, it has no connection information for it in its connected-previously Bluetooth devices list.  So,  the speaker will not yet connect with this Mini Home without some human help. Therefore, in our case, the light that illuminates in the Power switch informs of this non-connected state by lighting up either solid white or flashing blue, similar to as seen next.  Your Bluetooth speaker probably displays connection status differently.  But the idea is the same.

Our average Bluetooth speaker powered on and in pairing mode, with its blue glowing Power button highlighted.
Typical wireless speaker powered on and in discovery mode, with a light blinking that indicates it’s ready to connect.

After a factory default reset, and prior to any device connections, many Bluetooth devices automatically go into discovery mode, as does our Xtreme.  Thus, our Power lamp blinks blue without us having to press the Bluetooth key.  For that scenario, skip the next step and continue on with Step 10.

Now for this demo, ours glows solid white, since we have indeed connected our speaker with devices since its last factory reset.  So, for teaching reasons, we’ll perform the next step, to show how to get our speaker into discovery mode.

9. Put your Speaker into Bluetooth Discovery Mode to Continue with Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker

That is, press and let go of the Bluetooth button on on your portable speaker.  Our Bluetooth button is highlighted in the next photo, called out by the green arrow.

Picture of a wireless speaker top view, with the Bluetooth button highlighted.
Typical wireless speaker top view, with the Bluetooth button highlighted.

When we press the Discovery Bluetooth Mode button, our speaker makes a recurring single note guitar sound four or five times. Yours may output different sounds, or make no noise at all depending on the make and model. So, it helps to know the particulars of how your portable BT speaker signals that it’s ready for connecting. But on ours, the Power button changes from steady white to flashing blue. See this in the last picture above, which depicts the Power button glowing blue after we tapped the Bluetooth button.

10. Pick Up your Tablet / Phone Again

The screen with the blue Pair Bluetooth Speaker option should still be there, as in the next picture.

Picture of the Google Home app on iOS, showing its -Choose Default Speaker- screen, with the -Pair Bluetooth Speaker- item highlighted.
Home app on iOS, showing its -Choose Default Speaker- screen, with the -Pair Bluetooth Speaker- item highlighted.

11. Tap the Pair Bluetooth Speaker Item

This starts your Google speaker scanning for any nearby BT speakers that are themselves in BT discovery mode. Our speaker is now in discovery mode. So Google Home should find it.  If yours does not, then move the speakers nearer together and try again.

The next photo shows the Bluetooth scanning in progress.

Picture of the Google Home app on iOS in 2018, showing its -Pair Your Bluetooth Speaker- screen, while scanning for Bluetooth devices.
Home app on iOS, showing its -Pair Your Bluetooth Speaker- screen, while scanning for Bluetooth devices.

After a short pause, your Google Home should detect your wireless speaker (the Xtreme in our demo here), and list it as pictured next, pointed at by the green arrow. 

Screenshot of the iOS version of the Google Home app, showing its -Pair Bluetooth Devices- page, with the JBL Xtreme speaker discovered and highlighted.
Home app, iOS version, showing its -Pair Bluetooth Devices- page, with our Bluetooth speaker name discovered and highlighted.




12. Tap your Device on the Discovered Bluetooth Devices List to Connect to It

See the screenshot above. If Google found more than one device, then tap the one you want.

A blue check mark then appears beside the speaker you chose, as seen next.

Screenshot of the Home Google app on iOS, displaying its -Pair Bluetooth Devices- page, with a JBL Xtreme speaker selected, and the -Done- button highlighted.
Home Google app on iOS, displaying its -Pair Bluetooth Devices- page, with a speaker selected, and the -Done- button highlighted.

13. Tap the Done Item to Continue with Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker

Touching  Done  nudges our Google speaker to connect with the BT speaker we chose earlier.

The Google Home app then takes us back to its Choose a Default Speaker for Music and Audio screen, as shown next.

Screenshot of the Google Home app on iOS, displaying its -Choose Default Speaker- page for our -Office Speaker-, with a common Bluetooth speaker highlighted.
Home app on iOS, displaying its -Choose Default Speaker- page for our -Office Speaker-, with a typical speaker highlighted.

Just prior to returning us to the Choose Default Speaker screen, connecting to the wireless speaker happens.

When the Bluetooth connection is created, common speakers typically make a sound, and a status lamp many change color to show that a BT connection was established successfully.  The now-connected wireless speaker is pointed at by the bright green arrow in the last screenshot. This means that that speaker is ready now to play content from Google Home.

14. You’re Done with Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker Instructions !

We can now command Google Home to play media on our Office Speaker Google Mini.  Then, this media now plays on our portable speaker, and not that only-so-good sounding one that’s built into our Google Home Mini.

Note though, that only the media you ask for plays through your BT speaker. The Google Assistant voice however, still speaks from the Google smart speaker.

Finally, be sure talk right to your Google speaker, and not to the BT speaker, when making a request.  The Google Home mic still hears your commands, even when paired with a Bluetooth speaker.

Enjoy hearing all that Google Home content on your Bluetooth speaker.

Other Posts About Google Home

    1. How to Use Google Home as Bluetooth Speaker
    2. Google Home Vs Alexa Smart Speaker Features
    3. How to Pair Google Home as Bluetooth Speaker
    4. Does Google Home Speaker have Bluetooth ?
    5. How to Play Music from PC on Google Home

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References for Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker

    1. Google Home Smart Speaker with Google Assistant Product Page, at store.google.com
    2. JBL Xtreme Wireless Bluetooth Speaker Official Product Page, on JBL.com

Revision History

    • 2021-08-09: Shortened the internal links lists.
    • 2020-05-15: Added more tags and optimization.
    • 2019-05-12: Tuned the targeting for ‘Google Home Connect to Bluetooth Speaker’.
    • 2019-02-07: First posted.