When looking for an inexpensive smart speaker from Google, you’ll come across two options—the Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini.

The Nest Mini is the successor to the Home Mini which was discontinued but is still available to purchase at many outlets.

We’ll compare the Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini to help you decide which device is best for you.

Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini: Design

Google Home Mini is a voice-controlled audio speaker. It plays music, controls smart home devices, responds to trivia questions, adds items to your shopping list, creates appointments, manages your schedule, and more.

You can even use it to locate misplaced phones with Google Assistant.

The Google Home Mini is donut-sized and allows users to link it to their smartphone. It’s a small disk covered with a piece of fabric. On top, the Home Mini features four LED dots signaling the running functions, listening, and initiating setup.

The Google Nest Mini is the successor of the Google Home Mini. It’s affordable and considered Google’s current entry-level smart speaker.

It has a similar design and language to the Google Home Mini. Its top is covered with a durable fabric layer that comes from 100 percent recycled plastics. It has some controls on the right and the left side for changing audio volume.

The Nest Mini has LED lights illuminating the center when Google Assistant is in action. When you tap the center top, the music pauses. It looks similar to Google Home Mini in size, but the new version has a wall mount, which is quite convenient.

Naturally, the Nest Mini also features a number of improvements.

Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini: Similarities

The two smart speakers share many similarities. The devices respond to both voice and manual controls, play music, have Google Assistant, and more.

The design of both speakers is almost identical as they are the same size and have a fabric covering. The major difference is that the Nest Mini features recycled materials.

Both speakers come with the same color choices: chalk, charcoal, coral, and sky.

The microphone switch on both models enables you to turn off active listening, allowing you to stop Google Assistant from continuously listening for the activate command.

Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini: Differences

The speakers are obviously similar, but there are some important differences.

The main difference between the devices is the unique factory reset method. To reset the Google Nest Mini, you have to switch off the microphone. Then, once the LED lights turn orange, you must press and hold the speaker’s center. After five seconds of doing that, the factory reset process begins. At that point, continue holding it for at least 10 seconds more until you hear a sound confirming your speaker is resetting.

The Google Home Mini has a tiny reset button below the power cord that the user can hold down to reset it. And, same as with the Nest Mini, the reset process begins in 5 seconds, and after 10 more follow, you hear the confirmation sound that the reset is in progress.

That’s the only way to do a factory reset on both devices, as you can’t use voice commands or the Google Home app for the task for either of them.

Google Nest Mini’s speakers also produce a higher-quality sound compared to the older model.

Another feature only found on the Nest Mini is ultrasound sensing technology. When audio is playing, the volume LEDs illuminate when your hand is nearby. It manages this by emitting tiny inaudible chirps bouncing off nearby objects that reflect onto the microphones.

On the Google Nest Mini, you can play or pause music by tapping its top button. The Home Mini doesn’t have that option.

Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini: Pricing

Just like the Google Home Mini, the Nest Mini retails for the same $49 price tag. That makes it the most affordable Google-powered smart speaker available.

Since the Nest Mini was designed to replace the Home Mini, finding the older speaker is a challenge. But it’s still available to purchase at some retailers.

Both speakers often receive nice discounts and can be found for as low as $30. So if you can wait, you can save some cash.

Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini: Google Assistant

Google Home Mini and Google Nest Mini both sport Google Assistant to help you control smart home devices.

You can also connect either smart speaker to a wide variety of smartphones, including iOS and Android models.

Google Assistant can do quite a lot for you. The powerful voice assistant can answer general knowledge questions, check your emails, manage appointments, and so much more. You can also create routines and commands.

Both speakers can also make calls in the United States and Canada, which is a great plus.

Since they’re both speakers, naturally, you can also play music with streaming services like Spotify, Pandora, and others.

The Nest Mini stands out a bit since it’s updated to support Bluetooth 5 and provide a more stable connection when you’re playing wireless music from your smartphone.

Using Google Assistant, both the Home Mini and Nest Mini can be used to pull up a YouTube video over your Chromecast-enabled TV. Voice commands can also help you control compatible smart home devices like smart lights, smart switches, and security cameras. You can connect both smart speakers to Wi-Fi and be up and running in just a few minutes.

Apart from the improved sound quality, the Google Nest Mini also boasts improved bass power, doubling that of the Google Home Mini. The bass comes from a customized 1.57- inch driver designed to gather the bass frequencies and project them forward to the sound stage.

Deciding Between the Google Home Mini or Nest Mini

The Google Nest Mini is a clear upgrade of the Google Home Mini.

It provides a better overall audio experience with improved sound quality and bass. The Nest Mini delivers a much better sound that’s more precise and natural and adds to your music experience.

The newer model is both wall-mountable and eco-friendly. It boasts ultrasound technology to help you easily interact with the volume controls. You can even pair two Nest Mini speakers and create a stereo sound system.

If you want a Google smart speaker, you might as well go for the new and improved model.

And no matter what Google speaker you select, you can put it to good use in your daily life and even help plan your day.