How to Fix It When a Zoom Microphone Is Not Working

Zoom microphone not working? Zoom audio problems can manifest in a few ways:

• You can't hear other people, and they can't hear you.
• You can't hear other people, but they can hear you.
• The audio is distorted, or you hear an echo when you speak.

Depending on the underlying cause, there may be a few things you can try to get your Zoom mic working so that you can participate in meetings.

Causes of Zoom Mic Not Working

If your mic is not detecting audio in Zoom, it could be due to a few reasons:

• Your mic is muted.
• Your mic is disabled in your device's settings.
• The wrong mic or speakers are selected in Zoom.
• The meeting organizer has muted everyone else.
• Interference from other programs.
• Problems with your mic's hardware.
• Outdated device drivers.

How to Fix a Microphone Not Working in Zoom

Try these fixes in order until you can use your mic on Zoom:

1. Make sure your mic is connected and turned on. If using an external mic, examine the connecting cable, or check your Bluetooth settings if using a wireless mic. For wired mics, try plugging it into a different USB port. For Bluetooth devices, make sure the battery is charged.

2. Select Join Audio. Zoom usually requests access to your mic before you join a meeting, but in case you missed it, you can select Join Audio at the bottom of the Zoom window.

3. Make sure you're not muted in Zoom. If the microphone icon has a line through it in your Zoom window, select the Sound icon to unmute yourself.

4. Make sure your microphone is selected in Zoom. During a meeting, select the up arrow next to the Microphone icon and make sure the desired mic is chosen.

   If other people can hear you, but you can't hear them, make sure the right speaker is chosen under Select a Speaker.

5. Ask the meeting organizer to unmute you. If you think the person hosting the meeting muted you, send them a message in chat and ask to be unmuted.

6. Check your device settings. Go to the device's settings to see if your mic is enabled. Make sure you properly set up your mic in Windows and select the audio input you want on Mac.

7. Close other programs that use your mic. Make sure other software isn't competing for access to your microphone.

8. Check your app permissions. Go into your device's app settings and ensure Zoom has permission to access your microphone.

9. Update your device's drivers. If you're using Windows, go into the Device Manager to ensure your mic's drivers are up-to-date.

10. Reboot your device. The reason why rebooting resolves computer problems is that it closes any processes that might be interfering with hardware or software.

11. Mute other nearby audio devices. If you hear an echo, your microphone might be picking up the audio from another source, like a TV or speaker.

    To avoid hearing an echo in Zoom, everyone should mute their mic when not speaking. Meeting organizers can mute everyone else in the meeting.

12. Adjust Zoom's Advanced Audio Settings. Zoom offers advanced tools to improve audio playback, but they can sometimes have the opposite effect. If you have ongoing audio problems with your mic, open Zoom while not in a meeting and select the Settings gear, then choose the Audio tab and select Advanced to change these options.

13. Reinstall Zoom. If using the mobile or desktop versions, uninstall Zoom and redownload it from the Apple App Store, Google Play, or the Zoom website.

    If your microphone still isn't working, you can join a Zoom meeting by phone. If you dial into a conference, mute your computer so that it doesn't interfere with the audio.