How to Factory Reset Google Home Mini?

Turn the speaker over, press and hold the circular factory reset button underneath for about 15 seconds, and wait for the confirmation. The lights will flash, a chime will sound, and the assistant will tell you it's resetting.

Which one do you have? The button is in a different place on each generation, and this is where most confusion comes from:

The 1st gen has a fabric top and a micro-USB power port. The 2nd gen has a wall-mount hole on the back and a barrel power connector.

Google Home Mini (1st generation):

1. Leave the speaker plugged in.
2. Turn it upside down.
3. Find the small circular button near the power cord.
4. Press and hold it.
5. After about 5 seconds it starts a countdown; keep holding for around 15 seconds total.
6. Release when you hear the confirmation that it's resetting.
7. Wait a couple of minutes for it to finish and reboot.

Nest Mini (2nd generation):

1. Find the microphone mute switch on the side and slide it to mute (the lights turn orange).
2. Press and hold the centre of the top of the speaker.
3. Keep holding for about 15 seconds — you'll hear it begin the reset.
4. Release after the confirmation.

The touch-sensitive area is the middle of the top surface, not the volume zones at the sides.

Resetting from the Google Home app — useful if the speaker is out of reach, though it only removes the device from your account rather than wiping the speaker itself:

1. Open the Google Home app.
2. Tap the device.
3. Tap the settings gear.
4. Tap the three dots → Remove device → confirm.

For a genuine factory reset, use the physical button.

What the reset erases: the Wi-Fi network, the linked Google account, any voice matches, linked music and smart-home services, and all local settings. The speaker returns to the state it was in out of the box, and you'll need to set it up again from scratch in the Google Home app.

What it doesn't erase: anything stored in your Google account, such as your assistant history, reminders, or smart home device list. Those stay in your account and come back when you sign in again.

When a reset is the right move:

• You're selling or giving away the speaker — always reset first, since it stays linked to your account otherwise.
• You've changed Wi-Fi networks or routers and it won't reconnect.
• It's unresponsive to "Hey Google" and a reboot hasn't helped.
• Setup failed partway and it's stuck in a broken state.
• You're moving it to a different Google account.

Try a simple reboot first — it fixes most problems and keeps your settings. Just unplug the speaker for 30 seconds and plug it back in, or use the Google Home app: tap the device → gear → three dots → Reboot.

Setting it up again afterwards: plug it in, open the Google Home app, tap + → Set up device → New device, and follow the prompts. Have your Wi-Fi password ready. You'll need to redo voice match and relink any music services.

If the reset doesn't work, check that the speaker is actually powered (the lights should respond to a tap), try a different power adapter — underpowered third-party adapters cause odd behaviour — and make sure you're holding the correct spot for long enough. Fifteen seconds feels much longer than it sounds.