Top 2 Ways to Change Default Ringtone App on Android

Many of them like to use custom ringtones on our Android phones. For this we usually need help from a file manager or a ringtone app like Zedge. But when we try to change the ringtone, we are redirected to the native Sound Picker app, which only lists the pre-installed ringtones. So, here we will tell you how to change the default ringtone app on Android phones.

For some users, the ringtone picker app gets stuck on a third-party app. That’s why they want to delete the default settings for the ringtone and go back to the Sound Picker or Sounds app. The problem arises because the user chooses ‘Always’ instead of ‘Only once’ when asking the phone to choose a default ringtone app.

We need to change ringtone or notification picker app on android. Let’s see various ways to do this.

1. Reset or Clear Defaults

If you have multiple apps for the same task, you must have noticed that your phone prompts you to choose a default app. It gives you two options when listing apps – Just once and Always. If you select Only once, that task will be completed once using the selected app. The interface will ask the same question again. And if you go with Always, the same app is used to complete the action.

That’s why you don’t see multiple options when changing ringtone. In the Sounds/Sound picker or in the file manager, Google Drive etc. You must be stuck in another application such as

Here are the steps to reset the default ringtone app:

Stage 1: Open Settings on your phone and go to Apps or Apps & notifications or Application manager depending on the option available on your phone.

step 2: Tap the three-dot icon in the upper right corner and select Show system. If you don’t see the three dots icon or Show system is not available, tap on See all apps. Next, tap on the three-dot icon and select Show system.

Stage 3: Scroll down and look for Media storage. Tap on it.

Step 4: Tap on Open by default. If you don’t see it, tap on Advanced and you’ll find Open by default.

step 5: Tap on Clear defaults. If no defaults are set or all options are greyed out, skip to step 7.

Step 6: Try changing your ringtone now. If you get the ‘Complete action using’ menu, you have successfully managed to change the ringtone picker app. If the issue still persists then check the next step.

Step 7: You have to repeat the above steps to clear the defaults for Sounds, Sound Picker and Android System. If you’ve selected an app like file manager or Google Drive as the default app for ringtones, clear the defaults as well using the steps above.

2. Reset App Preferences

If you can’t find the default app or if the above method doesn’t fix the problem, you need to reset app preferences. But when you do, it clears the default processes for all apps on your phone, not just the ringtone. It will also reset disabled apps, permission restrictions, app notifications and more. Learn in detail what happens when you reset app preferences on Android.

If you fully understand the implications of the reset, here’s how to reset app preferences:

Stage 1: Open Settings on your Android phone. Tap on Apps or Apps & notifications.

Step 2: Hit the three-dot icon at the top and select Reset app preferences. Confirm on the next screen.

Note: If there is no three-dot icon, tap on See all apps.

Fly: You can also go to Settings > System > Reset options > Reset app preferences.

Bonus Tip: Customize the Open With Setting

The Open With Native or Complete Using menu lists available applications. You can take the help of a third-party app known as Better Open With to make it smarter.

Download Better Open With

With this app, you can choose a different app to complete your transaction each time without setting any of them as default. The app gives you some time to choose an app for the task, otherwise it completes the action with a preset app. You need to set a preferred app for various actions in the Better Open With app settings. So you get the benefits of using this app both Just Once and Always.

Goodbye Default Apps

While our post is mainly about resetting ringtone app on Android, the same logic and steps can be used to reset defaults for other apps. For example, if a social app defaults to Google Photos to select pictures instead of the gallery app, or if you want to reset the app to view videos on your phone. Similarly, sometimes Google Play Music is chosen as the default music player. In such cases, you also need to clear the defaults.

Next: Wondering what the Do Not Disturb (DND) mode is on your Android? Find out the answer in our next post where we compare DND to silent and airplane mode.