How to Change Your Gmail Phone Number (and Your Recovery Phone)

Here's the catch. A Gmail account can have two kinds of phone number, and changing one doesn't change the other. The number in Personal info is used across some Google services and for people to contact you. The recovery phone is the one Google texts when you're locked out. If you've got a new phone number, you'll usually want to update both, and expect a wait of up to 7 days before Google fully trusts the new recovery number.

Account phone or recovery phone: which one are you changing

	Phone in Personal info	Recovery phone in Security and sign-in
Used for	Signing in in certain places, people getting in touch, Calendar notifications and some Google services	A code when you're locked out, blocking someone using your account, proving the account is yours, suspicious activity alerts
How many	You can add more than one	Only one
After a change	May take a week before it can verify it's you for sensitive actions	May take up to 7 days for the change to take effect
If you delete it	Only affects some Google services	It may still be used for other Google services

The two can be the same number. Google notes that if your recovery phone matches another number on your account, it might be used for other purposes as well, as of October 2026.

Update your Google Account phone number on a computer

1. Go to your Google Account.
2. Click Personal info.
3. Click Phone, then your phone number.
4. Next to your number, select Edit, then Update number. To remove it instead, select Delete, then Remove number.
5. In the box that appears, follow the instructions.

If there's no number there yet, next to Phone select Add a recovery phone, pick the country for your number from the drop-down menu and enter it.

Update your Google Account phone number on Android

1. Open your device's Settings app.
2. Tap your name, then Manage your Google Account. You can also visit myaccount.google.com.
3. At the top, tap Personal info.
4. Tap Phone, then your phone number.
5. Next to your number, tap Edit, then Update number.
6. Follow the steps on the screen.

Android has one extra rule worth knowing: any verified phone number for an Android device can be added to any Google Account that's signed into that device. If you share a tablet with family, that's worth bearing in mind. Google also says it'll try to re-verify your number from time to time to make sure it's still yours.

Change your recovery phone on computer, iPhone and Android

The recovery phone lives in the security part of your account, not Personal info. On a computer:

1. Go to your Google Account.
2. Click Security & sign-in.
3. Under How you sign in to Google, click Recovery phone. You might need to sign in.
4. Next to your number, click Edit to change it, or Delete to remove it.
5. Follow the steps on the screen.

On an iPhone or iPad, open the Gmail app, tap your profile picture or initial at the top right and tap Manage your Google Account. If you don't use Gmail, go to myaccount.google.com. Then tap Security & sign-in, tap Recovery phone under How you sign into Google, and tap Edit next to your number.

On Android, open your Google Account from the Settings app as above, tap Security at the top, and under How you sign into Google tap Recovery phone. Follow the steps on the screen.

Why Google makes you wait up to a week

The delay is a security feature, not a fault. Google says that when you add or change your recovery phone, it may take up to 7 days for the change to take effect, so that if someone else is trying to use your account without permission, you've got time to secure it. For the same reason, if you change your recovery info or other ways you sign in, Google may send codes to your previous info for 7 days.

There's one way to speed it up. If you have a trusted passkey or security key, Google says you may be able to speed up how quickly it trusts your new recovery phone number. If you haven't got one, the practical advice is simple: change your number while you still have the old phone, not after you've lost it.

Choosing a number that won't lock you out

Google's guidance on which number to use is short and worth following. Use a mobile phone that gets text messages, belongs only to you, and that you use regularly and keep with you.

The trap is Google Voice. Google says not to use a Google Voice number as a recovery phone, because you could lock yourself out. If you can't sign in, you might need a verification code to get back in, and that code would go to Google Voice, which you can't reach without signing in. You can also only add one recovery phone, so it has to be the right one.

Not every option is available everywhere. Google says not all recovery options are available for all regions, accounts or devices, and if your account comes through work, school or another group, these steps may not work and your administrator is the person to ask.

Google services that keep their own copy of your number

Changing the number in your Google Account only affects some Google services. Google lists others that may hold your number in their own settings, where you change it separately:

• 2-Step Verification
• Calendar
• Chrome
• Google Pay
• Google My Business

To see which services use your number, open the Phone section of your Google Account and look next to Usage. If Across Google appears there, the number can be used across Google services, and that's controlled by the Better ads and Google services preference under Preferences on that number. Turn it off if you don't want your number used to show you more relevant ads.

You can also control who sees your number. On Android, go to People & sharing, tap Go to About me under Choose what others see, and change your sharing preference under Contact info. Google also says it doesn't sell your personal information, including your phone number, to anyone.

When Google won't let you change your number

• If something's different about how you're signing in, you might not get the option to change recovery info. Google suggests trying again from a device you normally use, from a location where you normally sign in, or the following week from the device you're on now.
• You can't add recovery info while you're locked out or in the middle of account recovery. In that case, go to the account recovery page and answer the questions as best you can.
• If Google detects a suspicious sign-in method, it disables it and notifies you. You have 30 days from that warning to confirm you added it, or it's deleted from your account.

Once your number's sorted, it's a good moment to change your Gmail password too, especially if you're changing numbers because a phone was lost or stolen. Just remember the new number may not be able to verify that change for up to a week.

My verdict on changing your Gmail number

I'd update both numbers the same day you get a new phone, while the old one still works, because the 7-day wait is far easier to sit out when you're not locked out. I'd skip Google Voice and any shared number for recovery every time. And if you're changing numbers because you're leaving Google altogether, you don't need any of this: here's how to delete a Gmail account instead.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to change my Gmail phone number?

Google says it may take a week before you can use your new phone number to verify it's you for sensitive actions like changing your password. Recovery phone changes may take up to 7 days to take effect.

Is my Gmail phone number the same as my recovery phone?

Not always. The phone number in Personal info and the recovery phone in Security and sign-in are separate settings, so changing one doesn't change the other.

Can I add more than one recovery phone to Gmail?

No. You can only add one recovery phone number to your account, but you can add more phone numbers to let people contact you and get Calendar notifications.

Can I use a Google Voice number as my Gmail recovery phone?

Google says not to. If you can't sign in, the verification code would go to your Google Voice number, which you can't reach while you're locked out.

Why can't I change my Gmail recovery phone?

If something's different about how you're signing in, Google may not offer the option. Try again from a device and location you normally use, or the following week from the device you're on now.