Pixel alarm not going off? What actually silences it on Google Pixel phones

If your alarm didn't go off on a Google Pixel, it's rarely the phone killing the app — Pixels are the gentlest Android phones about that. It's almost always Bedtime mode or Do Not Disturb, the Alarm volume, your alarm app being set to Restricted battery use, or an overnight system update that restarted the phone.

The short version:

• Check the Alarm volume slider and the alarm's own sound.
• Make sure Do Not Disturb and Bedtime mode let alarms through.
• Set your alarm app's battery use to Unrestricted.
• Install system updates during the day before an important morning.
• Allow Alarms & reminders for the alarm app.

Pixels rarely kill apps — so look elsewhere first

dontkillmyapp.com, which rates every phone maker on how aggressively it stops background apps, gives Google its best score: "On Pixel and Nexus devices you have the lowest chance of something going wrong." That's useful, because it tells you where not to start. On a Xiaomi or OnePlus the battery manager is the usual suspect; on a Pixel it's usually a setting you or a schedule turned on.

Every cause, in the order to check

1. Alarm volume and the alarm's sound

Android keeps the alarm on its own slider, separate from ringtone and media — silent mode doesn't touch it, but the slider itself can be low. Check it under Sound & vibration, then open the alarm and make sure its sound isn't set to None. If it rings but too quietly, that has its own causes.

2. Bedtime mode and Do Not Disturb

Pixel's Bedtime mode, in Digital Wellbeing, can switch on Do Not Disturb at night. Alarms are allowed through by default, but that exception can be turned off, and an alarm app that doesn't play on the alarm channel can be silenced anyway. The three ways Do Not Disturb silences an alarm are covered separately.

Beyond Alarm

Beyond Alarm does this part for you: the alarm will not switch off until you have actually moved, and the apps you pick stay locked afterwards.

3. The app's battery use is Restricted

Pixels give each app one of three battery settings. In Google's words, Unrestricted allows "battery usage in background without restrictions", Optimized is "recommended for most apps", and Restricted restricts background use — "app may not work as expected" (Pixel Phone Help).

Google recommends leaving Adaptive Battery on, and that's right — don't turn it off for the whole phone. Instead, open Settings → Apps → See all apps → your alarm app → App battery usage, and choose Unrestricted for that one app.

4. An update restarted the phone overnight

Pixels can install system updates overnight and restart to finish them. After any restart, Android keeps app data locked until you first unlock the phone, so most third-party alarm apps can't set their alarms until then. We explain exactly why a restart silences alarms here. Before a morning that matters, check Software updates in the evening and install anything pending while you're awake.

5. The app can't set exact alarms

Since Android 12, an app needs the Alarms & reminders permission to ring at an exact time. It's normally granted on install but can be switched off — check it under the app's page in Settings.

Test it tonight

Set an alarm for three minutes from now, lock the phone and leave it. If it rings, the basics are fine. The two things a quick test can't catch — Bedtime mode's schedule and a pending update — are worth a ten-second look before bed.