How to check your voicemail

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

Important: Some of these steps only work on Android 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 .
Call your voicemail

You can call your voicemail service to check your messages.

  1. Open the Phone app .
  2. At the bottom, tap Dialpad .
  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
    • Tip: Make sure your data plan includes access to visual voicemail. You can call AT&T customer service to ask, or you can check which data plan you have.
  • 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 .
  2. At the top right, tap More options More.
  3. Tap Settings and then 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 .
  2. At the top right, tap More options .
  3. Tap Settings and then Voicemail.
  4. Tap a SIM.
  5. Turn on Visual voicemail.
  6. At the top left, tap Back .
  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 .
  2. On the bottom, tap Voicemail . If you can't find "Voicemail," call your voicemail instead.
Tip: To share the voicemail audio recording, expand the voicemail. Then tap Send to Send and then 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 .
  2. Tap More options More and then Settingsand then 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 and then 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 .
  2. Tap More options Moreand then Settings.
  3. Turn on Voicemail transcription analysis.

Change your voicemail settings

  1. Open the Phone app .
  2. At the top right, tap More options More.
  3. Tap Settings and then Voicemail.
  4. You can:
    • Change which carrier handles your voicemails: Tap Advanced Settings and then Service.
    • Set up your voice mailbox: Tap Advanced Settings and then Setup.
    • Change your notification settings: Tap Notifications.
    • Turn on vibrate: Tap Notifications and then Advanced and then 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 .
  2. At the top right, tap More options More.
  3. Tap Settings and then Voicemail and then Advanced Settings.
  4. Tap Service and make sure "Your carrier" is selected.

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