How to turn off or restart the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro

The Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro are incredible flagship smartphones. They are definitely worth considering if you are a fan of the Pixel cameras and the stock Android experience. While they are good phones, you’d find that it is rather convoluted to actually turn off the phone due to decisions that do not make good sense. If you are stuck trying to figure out how to shut down or restart the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, follow one of the methods listed in this article.

Why can’t you switch off the Pixel 7 by long pressing the power button?

On the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro, you can no longer turn the phone off conventionally by simply pressing down on the power button. Yes, doing so will not switch off the phone anymore, but it will wake up Google Assistant instead. This can be extremely annoying for new users who are used to the more simple power button shut down.

On phones launched with Android 12 and above, manufacturers can choose to wake up the virtual assistant on the device, instead of opening the power menu. If they choose to do so, the manufacturer typically renames the “Power off” button to “Side button” to be in line with this change.

Switch off the Pixel 7 using the button combo

To quickly switch off your Google Pixel 7 or 7 Pro, follow these simple steps:

1. Locate the side button and the volume down button:
   • The side button is the smaller button above the longer volume button.
   • The volume button is the long button on the right side of the phone (when the screen is facing you). The volume down button is the lower half of this long button.
2. Press them together and hold for about 3-5 seconds. This will open up the power menu on your screen.
3. Click on the Power off button on the screen to switch off the device, or click on the Restart button to restart the device.

A short press of the side button and the volume Down button takes a screenshot. If you accidentally took a screenshot instead of opening the power menu, release the buttons and try again, holding them down together for longer.

Remapping the side key to open the power menu

If you’d like to revert to the older behavior where pressing the side key opens the power menu, you can thankfully do so quite easily. Just follow the steps below:

1. Go to Settings > System > Gestures > Press & hold power button.
2. Click the Power menu option under the Press & hold power button to access section. This will switch from the default Digital assistant option to the Power menu option.

Now, every time you long press the Side key on your Pixel 7, it will open the power menu.

Use the Quick Settings menu

Google includes a power menu shortcut in the Quick Settings menu, which you can use as an alternative if you don’t want to remember the button combination.

1. Swipe down once on your homescreen to open the notification shade. Swipe down again to open the Quick Settings menu.
2. In the bottom right corner, you will see a power icon.
3. Tap the power icon, and it will open the power menu.

Use Google Assistant to turn the phone off

Google Assistant can also invoke the power menu on the Pixel 7 series for you.

• Wake Google Assistant by either pressing the Side key, or using the “Hey Google” default wake word.
• Say “Turn off my phone,” “Switch off,” or “Restart my phone.”

Once Google Assistant understands your words, it will open up the power menu. You can click on the switch off or restart buttons as per your needs.

Force-restart an unresponsive Pixel 7

If your Pixel 7 or Pixel 7 Pro is unresponsive, it would be difficult to initiate any of the above steps. In such a situation, you can force-restart the device.

1. Locate the side button and the volume down button.
2. Press them together and hold them for about 15 seconds.
3. Your phone will give a short vibration, and the display will turn off. This will be followed by the splashscreen and the boot animation, indicating a successful force restart. You will soon boot into your phone’s homescreen as you would on a regular restart.

If force-restarting your phone lands you in a bootloop — i.e. you keep looping back to the splash screen and boot animation repeatedly without reaching the homescreen — then your phone needs further troubleshooting. You can try some of these common Pixel 7 fixes for your problem.

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