Google Home Factory Reset Procedure

Google Home Mini and Original smart speakers together, side by side, front view.

You can reset all of the smart speakers in the Google Home family. These include the original Google Home, the Mini, and the Max. Thus, reset any of these to restore proper operation. This readies the speakers for transfer to another person. Here, we show how to factory reset google home original speaker in the routine given next.

Google Home Factory Reset: Step by Step

1. Connect the Original Google Home Speaker to AC Power

First, wait for speaker to boot. After it does, then move on to the next step.

2. Press and Hold the Mic Mute Button

Once the light ring finishes spinning and flashing, it then goes completely dark after booting. Then press and hold the Microphone Mute button. Find this button on the back near the top. Hold it in for approximately five seconds.

While holding in the mute button, notice that the ring of lights on the top begin glowing orange. In varying brightness levels and patterns, these give a visual indication of a countdown to factory reset.

The Google Home about to reboot. Showing the orange light ring, meaning that a reboot is about to occur.

3. Confirm Reboot by Continuing to Hold the Mic Mute Button In

Then, after about five seconds, the speaker says, “You’re about to completely reset Google Home. To cancel, release the button.” Now is the time to release the Microphone Mute button, if you decide not to erase all speaker settings.

4. Keep the Mic Mute Button Depressed to Continue with Google Home Factory Reset

So this continues with the factory default reset. After a little while, the orange ring goes out. Then, the top turns white in a spinning pattern. At this time, the speaker restores factory defaults, as shown next.

The speaker with factory reset in progress, displaying white spinning light ring pattern.

5. Reboot Begins

Then after about ten seconds, the speaker top goes dark. Then a system reboot begins, with a multi-colored pattern lighting up, as shown next.

The multi colored light ring, that displays during reboot.

6. Reboot Finishes

Then, you hear the startup complete music and then the speaker speaks, “Welcome to Google Home. To start then, download the Google Home app on a phone or tablet.”

7. Speaker Enters Setup Mode

Then, the unit goes into setup mode. This means that the Google Home is now ready to accept setup directives from the Home App. It indicates this by displaying the four white blips in the light ring. This pattern flows in a gradually dimming and then brightening display.

The speaker in setup mode. It is showing four white dots that mean setup.

8. Google Home Factory Reset is Complete !

Feel free now, to give your Google smart speaker to another person now. Don’t worry that they’ll have access to the settings or other personal information on your Google account. Or, you can then set it up again on your account, perhaps with a new Wi-Fi network or device name.

Then, the light ring turns white with the four dots glowing. This means that setup mode is now in effect. The unit then stays in setup until you run the setup routine. Note that the speaker will not work until you link it to a Google account.