How to check your voicemail (2024)

You can play your voicemail by calling your voicemail service. With some devices and carriers, you can view a list of yourvoicemails in your Phone app.

Important:Some of these steps only work onAndroid 6.0 and up. Learn how to check your Android version.

How to check your voicemail

Tap a message notification

When you get a voicemail, you can check your message from the notification on your phone.

  1. Swipe down from the top of the screen.
  2. Tap Voicemail How to check your voicemail (1).

Call your voicemail

You can call your voicemail service to check your messages.

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (2).
  2. At the bottom, tap Dialpad How to check your voicemail (3).
  3. Touch and hold 1.

View voicemails as a list in your Phone app

Important: Not all carriers or countries/regions offer this feature. Visual voicemail is available for:

  • AT&T
  • Cellcom
  • Coriolis
  • Google Fi
  • O2
  • Orange
  • T-Mobile

When you use your mobile carrier’s voicemail app, the visual voicemail feature on the Phone app turns off to avoid potential conflict.

Turn on visual voicemail

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (4).
  2. At the top right, tap More options How to check your voicemail (5).
  3. Tap Settings How to check your voicemail (6) Voicemail.
  4. Turn on Visual voicemail.

Tips:

  • With some devices and carriers, you can also get transcripts of your voicemails.
  • Turning off visual voicemail deletes the recordings from your Phone app, but your carrier might keep a copy of the recordings.

Use visual voicemail on multiple SIMs

Important: Using visual voicemail on multiple SIMs may not be supported by your device or carrier.

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (7).
  2. At the top right, tap More options How to check your voicemail (8).
  3. Tap Settings How to check your voicemail (9)Voicemail.
  4. Tap a SIM.
  5. Turn on Visual voicemail.
  6. At the top left, tap Back How to check your voicemail (10).
  7. Tap another SIM.
  8. Turn on Visual voicemail.

Tips:

  • Visual voicemail on different SIMs is displayed in separate tabs.
  • If you change your data SIM, you may have to re-enable visual voicemail.
  • If you remove a SIM, cached data is kept but you can’t switch tabs between SIMs. If you turn off a SIM, the cached data for that SIM is deleted and you can’t switch tabs between SIMs.

View a list of your voicemails

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (11).
  2. On the bottom, tap Voicemail How to check your voicemail (12). If you can't find "Voicemail," call your voicemail instead.

Tip: To share the voicemail audio recording, expand the voicemail. Thentap Send to How to check your voicemail (13) How to check your voicemail (14) Tap the app you want to use.

View a transcript of your voicemails

If you use certain mobile service providers or devices, you can view a transcript of your voicemails. Voicemail transcripts are available for:

  • Charter—Verizon
  • Comcast—Xfinity
  • Freedom
  • O2
  • T-Mobile—Pixel
  • Tracfone—T-Mobile and Verizon
  • Visible—Verizon

Tip: Availability may vary by country/region. Transcription is only available in English and Spanish on Android 8.0 and up. Learn how to check your Android version.

Turn on voicemail transcription

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (15).
  2. Tap More options How to check your voicemail (16) How to check your voicemail (17) SettingsHow to check your voicemail (18) Voicemail.
  3. Turn on Voicemail transcription.

Tips:

  • If you don't have the "Voicemail transcription" option and use a supported carrier or device, make sure you turn on visual voicemail.
  • If you want to send a transcript to someone else, tap Share How to check your voicemail (19)tap the app you want to use.

Notes:

  • When you turn on voicemail transcription, Google transcribes new and old voicemails.
  • Google uses computers to transcribe voicemails and doesn't associate them with your Google Account. The voicemails aren't permanently stored by Google and are stored on your phone.
  • If you turn off voicemail transcription, the recordings and transcriptions from your Phone app are deleted.
  • You can donate your voicemail transcripts and recordings to help Google improve transcription technology. Donated voicemails may be reviewed by humans but won’t be associated with your phone number or Google Account.

Turn on voicemail transcription donation

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (20).
  2. Tap More options How to check your voicemail (21)How to check your voicemail (22) Settings.
  3. Turn onVoicemail transcription analysis.

Change your voicemail settings

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (23).
  2. At the top right, tap More options How to check your voicemail (24).
  3. Tap Settings How to check your voicemail (25) Voicemail.
  4. You can:
    • Change which carrier handles your voicemails: Tap Advanced Settings How to check your voicemail (26) Service.
    • Set up your voice mailbox: Tap Advanced Settings How to check your voicemail (27) Setup.
    • Change your notification settings: Tap Notifications.
    • Turn on vibrate: Tap Notifications How to check your voicemail (28) Advanced How to check your voicemail (29) Vibration.

Voicemail notifications don't work

If you switched from a phone that lists voicemail in the Phone app to one that doesn't, you may not get voicemail notifications, or you may get unreadable text messages from your carrier.

If your phone doesn't list voicemail in the Phone app:

Step 1: Contact your mobile service provider

Ask your mobile service provider to downgrade to a basic voicemail service.

Step 2: Check your voicemail settings

  1. Open the Phone app How to check your voicemail (30).
  2. At the top right, tap More options How to check your voicemail (31).
  3. Tap Settings How to check your voicemail (32) Voicemail How to check your voicemail (33) Advanced Settings.
  4. Tap Service and make sure "Your carrier" is selected.

Related resources

  • Add or import contacts

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How to check your voicemail (2024)

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