How to Use the Google Voice Recorder App on Android

This article explains how to use Google's voice recording app for Android. Only Google Pixel phones (Pixel 2 and newer) can use Recorder, so these steps are relevant only for Android users with a Pixel.

How to Make a New Recording

Download and install Recorder if you don't already have it, and then follow these steps to make a new recording:

1. Tap the record button.

2. Monitor the recording from the Audio tab or tap Transcript to see the voice transcription in real time.

3. Select the pause button to temporarily stop the recording without ending it, or tap Save to stop recording and store the file.

   This is the time when you can fill out a title so that it's easy to recognize the recording later, but it's also possible to do this post-recording.

What Is Google Recorder?

Recorder, the name of Google's voice recording app, is one way to record audio on Android. It features automatic transcriptions so that you can not only read what's being said in real-time, but also search through all the recordings later.

It differentiates between music and speech, works in the background so that you can multitask, can record and transcribe audio coming from your phone, lets you crop the recording by editing the transcript, auto-suggests titles for quick saves, records where you made the transcription, works entirely offline, can back up to your Google account, and can be shared with anyone.

Searching Voice Transcriptions

Transcriptions are the selling point in this app, and searching through them is super easy. You can search the app for any text, be it lyrics from a song, words in a podcast, your own voice, etc.

Since locations are saved along with recordings, you can also search for all transcriptions that were made at a specific location.

There are two ways to do this. You can use the primary search bar at the top of all your recordings to find text in any of them, or you can use the search bar from within a recording to find text within that recording only.

Managing Voice Recordings

To share or delete more than one recording at once, press and hold on one and then tap the other ones you want to include. Use the trash button to erase them, or tap the share button for those options.

There are a few ways to share:

• Send the audio in the M4A format.
• Send the transcript as a TXT file or copy it to Google Docs.
• Make a link to the transcript and audio that anyone can open, or make it private for just you.

There's an automated backup option in the app's settings that lets you store all your recordings in your Google account, accessible through any web browser at recorder.google.com. To set this up, tap your profile image at the top right of the app and go to Recorder settings > Back up & sync.