Whatever your reason, here's how to connect a phone, tablet or even a laptop or desktop computer to your Nest smart speaker with Bluetooth.
First, pair your phone or device to the Google Nest with Bluetooth
If you've never connected your phone, tablet or computer with your Nest speaker using Bluetooth before, the first time is a little more complicated. Once they've been paired, they'll remember each other, and connecting and disconnecting will be much easier. Here's how to pair with Bluetooth the first time:
1. Say "OK, Google, enter pairing mode." You can also say "pair Bluetooth" or "turn on Bluetooth."
2. Google Assistant will respond, "To connect, open Bluetooth settings and look for the device called [the name you gave your device]."
3. Open the settings app on your mobile device or computer, go to Bluetooth settings and look for the name of your Nest device and click or tap either the name of the device or the word or button for Connect.
4. Your Nest speaker will play a sound to indicate your devices are now connected. Now any audio you play on your phone, tablet or computer will play through your smart speaker.
5. To disconnect, say, "Hey, Google, disconnect Bluetooth." Google Assistant will say "Bluetooth is disconnected" to confirm.
Once you've paired your device with Google Home, connecting and disconnecting can be done with just voice commands.
Josh Miller/CNETHow to connect your phone to the Google Nest after you've paired them
From there on out, it's pretty simple. When you want to connect, start with "Okay, Google" or "Hey, Google," then say any of the following:
- "Connect to my phone."
- "Connect to my device."
- "Connect Bluetooth."
Google Assistant will respond, "Looking for paired devices," then play a sound when you're connected. Say, "Hey, Google, disconnect Bluetooth" when you're done.
Be careful -- if Google Assistant asks if you want to "clear" Bluetooth devices, say no and try your command again, or it'll unpair with everything.
Chris Monroe/CNETWatch out for this Google Assistant glitch, though
When I was testing this process out on a number of different Google Nest devices -- both speakers and displays -- occasionally I would try to disconnect my phone and Google would ask, "You want to clear your list of paired Bluetooth devices, right?"
If your Google Assistant asks this, the definitive answer is "No."
"Clearing" your list of paired devices will make Google Assistant forget the device you just paired (and any other devices you've ever paired, too). Not only will you have to go back and redo the first pairing steps as detailed above, you'll probably have to go into your mobile device or computer's Bluetooth settings and "forget" the Nest device from there, too. Otherwise you might get the same error message as me, that your device cannot connect to your Nest speaker all of a sudden.
Readers like you help support MUO. When you make a purchase using links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Read More.Like any other Google Home or Google Nest user, you probably see the smart speaker as your personal assistant who readily helps manage your household and answers the silliest questions. But did you know it can also serve as a basic external speaker?
This is thanks to its Bluetooth capability, allowing you to crank out basically any audio from your phone or laptop. If you’d like to turn your Google Home or Google Nest from a smart speaker to a plain Bluetooth speaker, here’s how to do it.
How to Connect Google Home to Phone via Bluetooth
To use your Google Home as a Bluetooth speaker, the first step you need to do is to put it into pairing mode to make it discoverable. This can be done in two different ways.
You can simply ask Google Assistant, "Hey Google, Bluetooth pairing." The assistant will respond, advising you that the speaker can be found under the name you initially gave it.
The second approach is via the Google Home app on your Android or iOS device.
- Launch the Google Home app.
- Select the speaker you want to use.
- Tap the gear icon on the top-right corner.
- Navigate to Audio > Paired Bluetooth devices and then tap on Enable Pairing Mode at the bottom of the screen.
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After enabling the pairing mode using either of these methods, you can then connect the speaker to your smartphone just as you would with any other Bluetooth device. Simply look for the speaker in your device’s Bluetooth settings and pair it.
How to Connect Google Home to a Laptop via Bluetooth
Pairing your device to your Mac or Windows laptop via Bluetooth is similar to how you connected the speaker to your phone.
Related: How to Turn On Bluetooth on Your Mac and Pair New Devices
First, make sure to turn on the speaker’s pairing mode using either voice commands or your phone’s Google Home app.
Once you see your speaker light up, head to your laptop’s Bluetooth settings. Then, add the name of the speaker you’d like to pair it with.
Play Anything With Google Home’s Bluetooth Feature
Once your device is paired up with your Google Home, you can start using it just like any ordinary Bluetooth speaker.
You can listen to audio files you've saved locally or from apps that Google Home isn't supporting. You can even stream movies on your phone or laptop and use the speaker for the audio to get that multimedia room feel.