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Get a Professional Greeting for Your Google Voice Auto Attendant

In the Google Admin console, open Apps, then Google Workspace, then Google Voice, then Auto attendants, and edit your attendant. Under the welcome message or a menu key's prompt, choose Upload your own audio. Auto attendants need a Voice Standard or Premier license; Google does not publish accepted formats or size limits, so test your file before publishing.

Updated September 27, 2026

What Google Voice accepts

Accepts
Not stated in Google's setup guide ("Upload your own audio" is offered for the welcome message and every menu prompt)
Limits
Not stated; Google does not publish a file size or duration limit for uploaded audio
Your download
MP3 (128 kbps), loudness-normalized

Google Voice doesn't publish exact file limits, so we send the safest format.

Before you start

  • The Google Voice Admin role (or the Google Voice Admin privilege) in your Google Workspace account
  • A Voice Standard or Voice Premier license; auto attendants are not on every Voice plan
  • Your welcome greeting, after-hours message, and any menu prompts as audio files
  • A spare Voice number to assign to the finished auto attendant

Step by step

  1. Create the auto attendant

    In the Admin console, go to Apps, then Google Workspace, then Google Voice, then Auto attendants, and click Create. Name it and add an optional description.

  2. Add your welcome greeting

    Under Initial greeting, click Add A Welcome Message. Choose Upload your own audio and add your recorded file, or use text-to-speech if you don't have a greeting ready yet.

  3. Build the menu

    Click Play Menu Prompts, then Add A Prompt For The Key for each option, for example press 1 for sales. Upload audio for each prompt the same way you uploaded the welcome message, then set what each key does: transfer to a person, a ring group, or another auto attendant.

  4. Set business hours and after-hours messages

    Click Edit Business Hours to set your open hours, add any holiday closures, and upload or type the after-hours announcement callers hear outside those hours.

  5. Preview before you publish

    Click Preview, then Call, to place a live test call in your browser and walk through every menu option before anyone outside your team hears it.

  6. Publish and assign a number

    Click Publish to make the attendant live, then assign it a Voice number under Phone Numbers so callers can actually reach it.

Tips

  • Keep the welcome message and every menu prompt in the same voice so the phone tree sounds like one recording.
  • Set separate after-hours and holiday messages; Google Voice plays them automatically outside your set hours.
  • Call the number yourself after publishing to confirm every key press does what you expect.

Build your phone tree

Get a full Google Voice auto attendant, welcome message plus every menu prompt, in one voice and ready to upload.

Build your phone tree

Common questions

Does Google Voice support phone trees with multiple menu levels?

Yes. Each auto attendant's menu options can transfer to another auto attendant, so you can nest a submenu behind a key press, for example press 2 for a department that has its own set of options.

What audio format does Google Voice accept for an auto attendant greeting?

Google's setup guide does not list accepted formats or a file size limit for uploaded greetings, so we export a normalized MP3 that has worked in testing; keep files small and preview the attendant before you publish it.

Do I need a paid Google Voice plan for an auto attendant?

Yes. Google Voice auto attendants are available with a Voice Standard or Voice Premier subscription; they are not included on every Voice plan, so check your subscription in the Admin console first.

Can I set a different greeting for after-hours and holidays?

Yes. Business Hours lets you set a standard greeting and a separate after-hours message, and Holiday Closures let you point specific dates to that after-hours message or one of their own.

Can I hear my auto attendant before it goes live?

Yes. Click Preview and then Call to place a live sample call through your browser so you can walk the whole menu before you click Publish.

Where does a caller end up if they don't press a key?

Wherever you set the menu's default action. Options include repeating the menu, playing a message, sending the caller to voicemail, or transferring to an operator or another number.

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