Tired of hearing your phone's tinny, staccato ringtone? If you're like many people, you probably hear your ringtone multiple times a day. Whether you own a flagship like the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra or one of our favorite budget phones, you have dozens of ringtone options just waiting to be used in the Settings menu. This guide will teach you how to change your ringtone and assign unique ringtones to people on your contact list.

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Changing the ringtone on a phone with stock Android

We've used a Google Pixel for this portion of the tutorial. If you're using a phone with a custom skin, you should still be able to follow along without much problem. Samsung owners will want to skip to the Galaxy ringtone section below.

Most manufacturers pack plenty of ringtones on their phones, so you should have no problem finding a few you like. Here's how to find the various melodies your phone has.

  1. Swipe up from the homescreen to open the app drawer menu.
  2. Open the Settings app.
  3. Scroll to Sound & vibration.
    Screenshot shows the app folder on an Android phone. An arrow points to the settings app icon.
    Screenshot shows the settings page for Android. An arrow points to 'Sound & vibration'.
  4. Select Phone ringtone.
  5. Check the built-in ringtones divided into relevant categories.
    Screenshot shows the Sound & vibration page in android settings. An arrow points to 'Phone ringtone'.
    Screenshot shows the Sounds page for a specific contact on android. The 'My Sounds' option is highlighted.
  6. Select a ringtone to play it. Tap Save in the upper-right corner to set it as the default ringtone.
    save a new ringtone on Android

If you want to import and set a custom ringtone from the phone storage, follow the steps below.

  1. Go to the Phone ringtone menu in Settings (refer to the steps above).
  2. Select My Sounds.
    Screenshot shows the Phone ringtone page in android settings. An arrow points to 'My Sounds'.
  3. Tap the + icon in the lower-right corner.
  4. Pick an audio file from the file manager and set it as the default ringtone.
    Screenshot shows the My Sounds page in android settings. An arrow points to the plus button in the lower right corner.
    pick ringtone from file manager

If you're a fan of Pixel ringtones, alarms, and notification tunes, check our post to download all Pixel tones.

0:53
How to make your favorite song your ringtone on Android video thumbnail
Related
How to make your favorite song your Android ringtone
Might as well make answering your phone a little more fun

Change the ringtone on your Samsung Galaxy phone

Samsung's One UI Android skin uses a different Settings menu. The steps to change the ringtone differ on a Galaxy phone.

  1. Open Settings on your Samsung phone.
  2. Select Sounds and vibration.
    open Settings on Samsung phone
    Screenshot showing 'Sounds and vibration' on Samsung phone
  3. Open the Ringtone menu.
  4. Select one of the built-in ringtones from the following menu.
    Screenshot showing 'Ringtone' under settings on Samsung phone
    change ringtone on samsung phone

Not everyone prefers Samsung's built-in phone ringtones. If you are among them, set a custom tone using the steps below.

  1. Open the Ringtone menu in One UI Settings (check the steps above).
  2. Tap + in the upper-right corner.
    Screenshot showing the plus icon to add a new tune on Samsung phone
  3. It opens the Sound picker menu.
    Screenshot showing the sound picker menu on Samsung
    search for ringtone on Samsung
  4. You can search for the custom ringtone from the top or use the bottom navigation menu to find it from device folders.
  5. You'll find your imported ringtones under Custom in the Ringtone menu. Tap the red – icon beside a tone to remove it.
    remove or add ringtone on Samsung

Assign custom ringtones for people in your Contacts

Assigning custom ringtones to specific contacts can help you differentiate important callers from irrelevant ones. It's helpful when you are on a busy commute route and want to guess the caller based on ringtone.

  1. Open the Contacts app on your Android phone.
  2. Search for the contact and open the info menu.
  3. Tap the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner.
    contacts app on Android
    Screenshot shows a specific contact page on an android phone. An arrow points to the triple-dot menu icon in the top right.
  4. Tap Set ringtone.
  5. It opens the Sounds menu. Pick a custom tone to use with your favorite contact.
    Screenshot shows the triple-dot menu drop down for a specific contact on android. An arrow points to the 'Set ringtone' option.
    Screenshot shows the Sounds page for a specific contact on android. The 'My Sounds' option is highlighted.

Set custom contact ringtones on your Samsung Galaxy phone

Samsung packs a different Contacts app on Galaxy phones. Let's assign a custom ringtone to a contact on Samsung phones.

  1. Launch Contacts on your Samsung phone.
  2. Pick a contact to open the info menu.
  3. Tap the More button at the bottom.
    contacts app on Samsung Galaxy phone
    red rectangle outline on more button under contact on samsung phone
  4. Select Change ringtone/vibration.
  5. Tap the Ringtone option.
    red rectangle outline on change ringtone/vibration on contact
    red rectangle outline over ringtone on contact
  6. Select a custom ringtone from the list. Tapping the back button saves the custom ringtone to the contact.
    list of ringtones on a Galaxy phone

The Galaxy S24 Ultra sitting on two Blu-rays with the S Pen out.
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Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review
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WhatsApp

So far, we've talked about changing the ringtone for your regular calls over the carrier network. With the soaring popularity of third-party IM (instant messaging) apps, many prefer WhatsApp, Messenger, and Google Meet to stay in touch with friends and family. Here's how to change the ringtone for your incoming WhatsApp calls on Android.

  1. Open WhatsApp on your phone.
  2. Tap the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner and open Settings.
  3. Select Notifications.
    open WhatsApp settings
    select WhatsApp notifications
  4. Scroll to Calls and select Ringtone.
  5. Open Sounds and pick a relevant tune for your incoming calls.
    select WhatsApp ringtone
    change WhatsApp ringtone on Android

Google Meet

Follow the steps below to change the ringtone for your 1:1 calls on Google Meet.

  1. Long tap the Google Meet app icon and open the info menu.
  2. Select Notifications.
  3. Go to Receive 1:1 calls.
    Google Meet notifications menu
    Google Meet calls customization
  4. Select Sound and pick a custom ringtone from the following menu.
    change google duo and meet ringtone on Android

Customize your Android experience

Regarding customization, your Android phone isn't limited to changing ringtones. You can change app icons and customize Android's Material You theme. If you frequently receive calls from apps like WhatsApp or Telegram, you must use the respective app's settings menu to change the incoming call ringtone.