How to Fix Zoom Microphone Issues

Zoom has taken over the online meeting world. Organizations from universities to high schools, corporate giants to friend groups — Zoom hosts quite a large crowd. 

While it would be nice if everything worked flawlessly for everyone, sadly, some of us face issues when speaking in a Zoom video meeting. Be it a broken mic or an advanced “ghost in the machine,” many things can cause Zoom microphones to malfunction. Fortunately, a lot of these problems have simple fixes.

Fixes for Zoom Microphone Issues

On PC (Windows/Mac)

The PC is a difficult platform to troubleshoot because so many things can go wrong with a PC. In order of ease, here are a few fixes you might want to try the next time you enter a zoom meeting and find yourself unable to speak (not counting social awkwardness).

Check if your mic is muted in Zoom

1. On your zoom video call, look at the bottom right corner of the screen.
2. If the microphone icon is “canceled,” it means your mic is muted in zoom.
3. Press the microphone icon to unmute yourself. Note that the meeting host might have muted you for some reason too. In that case, you should message your Host to allow you to speak and then unmute your microphone.

Choose the appropriate mic for voice communication

1. Click on the Settings icon at the top-right corner of the screen in Zoom.
2. On the left panel, navigate to the Audio tab.
3. Look for the “Microphone” text on the right. Check if your preferred mic is selected.
4. When a working mic is selected, a bar below the text will show you the microphone’s intensity of the sound detected.
5. Also, check the volume underneath the bar to set an appropriate volume. Turn Auto volume adjustment on or off to see if that fixes the issue.

Check microphone volume on your OS settings

1. On Windows,

• Search for Sound Settings on your Start Menu.
• On the Window that opens, look for the Input category.
• Choose your preferred microphone on the list.
• Once the mic has been selected, click Device properties underneath it.
• A window with the volume control for the mic should appear.

2. On Mac,

• Open System Preferences and click Sound.
• Navigate to the Input tab and click on your preferred microphone.
• The slider to control the microphone’s volume will be shown under Settings.

Reduce or disable Zoom’s audio effects and enhancements

1. Click on the Settings icon on the top-right corner of the screen in Zoom.
2. On the left panel, navigate to the Audio tab.
3. Look for a button labeled “Advanced” on the bottom.
4. A window with audio processing options will appear. You can disable and tweak these settings to see if they fix the issue.
5. If you want to cancel all audio processing altogether, put a checkmark on the message that enables the Original Audio button.
6. When in a meeting, try pressing the Turn on Original Sound option that appears on the top-left.

Check if Zoom has access to your microphone

On your PC’s settings app, look for a Privacy section.

1. On Windows,

• Search for Privacy settings on your Start Menu.
• On the window that opens, look for a tab on the left that read Microphone.
• On the right side, check if Allow desktop apps to access your mic option is turned on. If so, also check if the Zoom Meetings app has been granted access to mic audio.
• If not, add the app and give it the appropriate permissions.

2. On Mac,

• Open System Preferences and click Security and Privacy.
• Look for the tab labeled Privacy.
• Under Privacy, click Microphone on the left menu.
• Check if zoom is on the allowed list of apps.

Miscellaneous Fixes

There are a few miscellaneous fixes you should also try in combination with the fixes above. These are not particularly linked to Zoom and will also help if you have microphone issues in general.

Restarting your computer

A quick fix to always try is a computer restart. Make sure to do a cold reboot. That means you should turn off your system entirely before starting it after a few seconds. You’d be surprised how much this can solve. Windows 10 SHUTDOWN option is different, and you should not use Shutdown to do a cold restart. Use the Restart option. Then after the PC reboots up to BIOS, turn off the system manually to wait for a few minutes instead. 

Run audio troubleshooting

Microphone issues could also be caused by faulty microphones or some windows error. Run the audio troubleshooter in the Windows Sounds settings and see if that fixes your issue. Check using the Voice Recorder program inbuilt into most windows OS.

Update your audio drivers: 

Check Windows Update for the latest drivers. If no updates show, go to Device Manager and right-click your microphone on the list of audio devices. Click Uninstall this device and reboot. The latest version of the driver should automatically be installed. Mac users should also try to use the Update app to have the latest version of Mac OS on their computer.

On Mobile (iOS/Android)

Fortunately, the Zoom app on mobile isn’t as difficult to troubleshoot as the PC version of the app. Here are a few things you can do if you find yourself with muted audio on the mobile version of Zoom.

Check Audio Permissions On Android

1. Go to Settings
2. Tap on Apps & Notifications
   
3. Go to Manage apps and select zoom
4. Click on App permission
   
5. Select Microphone from the list of permissions
   
6. Check if Zoom is one of the apps on the list. 
   
7. If it is disabled, give Zoom permissions for your microphone.
8. If the Zoom app is not on the list altogether, reinstall the Zoom app and allow permissions when asked on the app.

Check Audio Permissions On iOS

1. Go to Settings 
2. Tap on Privacy
   
3. Select Microphone from the list of permissions.
   
4. Check if Zoom is one of the apps on the list. 
5. If it is disabled, give Zoom permissions for your microphone.
6. If the Zoom app is not on the list altogether, reinstall the Zoom app and allow permissions when asked on the app.

Test microphone in another application

Sometimes, the core issue might be on your device. On Android or iOS, open a volume recording app to check if your microphone is outputting audio. If not, something might be wrong with the microphone on the mobile device itself. Try using a pair of headphones or earphones with a microphone if that is the case. 

Restart your phone/tablet

Finally, give your device a quick restart to see if that fixes the issue. This will usually clear any apps that might be accessing the microphone simultaneously with Zoom. Also, clear your recent apps list to rid your phone of any background processes.

FAQ

I keep getting muted even when I unmute myself. How do I fix this?

You might be muted by the meeting host if this is the case. Ask the host not to mute you by sending them a private message in the meeting chat room.

I automatically get muted when joining meetings. Is there a fix for this?

Go to Zoom Settings and go to the Audio tab. Look for the “Always mute the microphone when joining a meeting” setting and uncheck it. You will not have your mic on when you join any meetings by default.