How to add custom ringtones and sounds to your Android phone

Android is all about customization.

Don’t like your launcher? Get a new one. Don’t like your gray keyboard? Change it up! Got the same ringtone as that annoying co-worker at the other end of the room? Just don’t like the lame, old sounds that came with your sweet, new phone? No problem — we have options. Once you get the hang of it, the world is your ringtone.

Let awesome ring.

• How to find and set ringtones through the Zedge app
• How to add your own ringtone to Android
• How to apply your custom ringtone in Settings
• How to apply a custom ringtone to a contact
• How to apply a custom notification tone

How to find and set ringtones through the Zedge app

There’s a lot of places to find ringtones, but far and away the easiest is Zedge. Zedge is a customization app that looks to personalize two of the most basic aspects of your phone: your sounds and wallpapers. Zedge even streamlines the process, letting you download and set your ringtone from the same screen!

Once you find a ringtone in the app you like (browsing or searching), here’s how to set it:

Tap the white download button in the middle of the screen.
Tap Set ringtone.

Tap Allow to allow Zedge to download the ringtone.

Tap Settings to be taken to the page where you can allow Zedge to modify system settings, like your ringtone.
Tap Allow modify system settings.

Tap the back button to return to Zedge. You’ll see a toast notification at the bottom of the screen telling you the ringtone has been applied.

How to add your own ringtone to Android

If you find your ringtones other places — or have one you just need to add to the phone — then you’ll need to get it into the proper folder in the Android file system, and that requires a file manager app. Now, some phones have file managers on them out of the box, but if not, you’ll need to download one from the Google Play Store, like Solid Explorer. Once you’ve installed a file manager and downloaded the ringtone you want to your device, we need to move it to the proper folder:

Find and long-press your desired ringtone in the Downloads folder. After long-pressing the first ringtone, you can tap more ringtones if you wish to copy multiple sounds at once.
Tap Copy. The icon may vary from file explorer to file explorer, but on Solid Explorer, it’s the icon with two documents stacked on top of each other.
Swipe in the menu from the left side of the screen.

Tap Internal Memory.

Tap the Ringtones folder. If you want to set the sound you’re moving as a text tone or an alarm, you would tap the Notifications folder or Alarms folder.

Tap Paste.

Some phones’ Settings app will see the new ringtones immediately, but just in case yours doesn’t go ahead and reboot the phone. Upon reboot, the new ringtones will appear in the list of available ringtones. Now all that’s left to do is set the ringtone.

How to apply your custom ringtone in Settings

Open Settings.
Tap Sound. This menu may be named differently depending on your phone, with possible names being Sound and Display, Personalization, etc.

Tap Phone ringtone.

Tap the custom ringtone you added to the ringtones folder.

Tap Save or OK.

How to apply a custom ringtone to a contact

Open Contacts.
Tap the contact you wish to set a custom ringtone for.

Tap the three-dot menu icon in the top right corner.

Tap Set ringtone.
Select the custom ringtone you added to the ringtones folder.

Tap Save or OK.

How to set a custom notification sound in Settings

Open Settings.
Tap Sound. This menu may be named differently depending on your phone, with possible names being Sound and Display, Personalization, etc.

Tap Default notification sound.

Select the custom notification sound you added to the Notifications folder.

Tap Save or OK.

Your turn

So what awesome ringtones are you setting on your phone? Share your most outrageous and hilarious ringtones in the comments below!

Updated February 2018: This article has been rewritten and condensed for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!