Google Pixel devices are among the best in user experience because of the stock Android operating system. The stock OS has great features and is pretty reliable and efficient in performance. However, with time or because of some issues, you might encounter problems with your Google Pixel device running on the stock Android operating system. It can be due to several issues, such as installing third-party applications or external malicious apps corrupting the operating system. There are several solutions to get your phone back to its optimal performance, ranging from just a restart, a factory restart, or a new firmware. When you are sure that the problem is with the software and that the factory reset didn’t help, it’s time to install stock firmware on Google Pixel.
The other reasons you might need to install stock firmware include a bootloop, where your phone cannot load the operating system. Another reason is if you installed a custom firmware or ROM on your phone and now want to return to stock firmware. Finally, if your phone is rooted, you won’t get the latest updates from Google via OTA. So, installation of stock firmware is the way to go.
You can install stock firmware on a Google Pixel phone in several ways. In this guide, we will cover the method that uses Android Flash Tool, which is an official tool from Google used to flash firmware on Pixel phones.
Install Stock Firmware on Google Pixel via Android Flash Tool:
Before getting started, a few things need to be considered. Installing stock firmware is like installing a whole new operating system on your Android phone, so it will delete all the data present on your phone. If you back up your phone and all your Data with a Google account, then you don’t need to worry about it. Otherwise, make sure to move your data to somewhere safe: an external hard disk, an SD card, or a cloud.
Prerequisites:
- Make sure all the data on your phone is backed up.
- Make sure your phone is charged at least 50%.
- You need at least 10GB of space on your phone’s internal storage.
- Suppose you are using a Windows computer. Download the Android USB drivers for Windows from here. You don’t need to install them if you’re using the MAC OS or Linux machine.
- Now, you need to go to your phone’s Settings to enable USB debugging and OEM unlocking. Go to Settings -> Developer Settings -> Enable USB Debugging and OEM unlocking.
- If you can’t, see the developer settings in the settings menu. Then, you need to enable it by going to Settings -> About phone -> Tap on build number 9 times.
- Remember that flashing stock firmware via the official Android Flash Tool does not void your phone’s warranty.
Steps on how to flash stock firmware on Pixel Device:
- Once you finish the prerequisites, you have to connect your Google Pixel device to your computer using the data cable. Then, on your phone, allow the computer to have ADB access.
- Open the Flash Tool website on your computer and click on Get Started.
- Now, you will be prompted to download and install Android USB drivers on your computer. If you have already installed them. Click on Already Installed.
- Give permission to the Flash tool to access ADB via the prompt on the screen.
- Now, the flash tool will show your phone and its model. Select it. If you don’t see your phone, click Add new device and follow the instructions onscreen.
- Once you select your phone, you will see it has been successfully connected to your computer and the flash tool.
- The next step is to find the appropriate firmware/operating system for your Google Pixel device.
- On the screen, you will see the popular builds, which are not public but the ones people use to test the upcoming firmware. If you want to install the public stock firmware that is available to everyone else, not just the developers. Select the Latest Public Release.
To avoid losing your phone’s data, you can customize the flashing of the stock firmware process. Once you have selected the build, click on the pencil icon. Then, uncheck the Wipe Device, Lock Bootloader, and Force Flash all Partitions to prevent losing data on your Pixel.- Once all is set, click on the install build button. Now you will see the precautions on the screens that say, “Do not unplug your device while the firmware is being installed”, and let your phone be. Do not interact with your phone. Let it install the stock firmware in peace.
- The flashing process will begin after accepting the terms and conditions. It might take some time as it has to download the firmware, which usually has a couple of GBs in size.
- Your phone will restart once stock firmware is downloaded and installed on your Pixel device. Next, you will see a prompt like the one below. Afterwards, you can start using your phone.
Final Note
After installing new firmware, your phone will look brand new, like it came out of the box. If your phone was rooted before, the root would be gone, and now you will get the latest OTA updates from Google. However, if you still face some issues on your Google Pixel device after flashing, chances are there are some hardware issues with your phone. You should contact Google support for that.
This guide can be used to install stock firmware on Google Pixel 2, Pixel 3, Pixel 4, Pixel 5, Pixel 6, Pixel 7, and Pixel 8, including their variants.
Suppose you have any questions regarding the method above on how to install stock firmware on a Google Pixel device via Android Flash Tool. Feel free to drop a comment below or ask me via contact us or social media networks.
