Press start, allow access and speak. This online mic test shows if your microphone is working, how loud and clear it is, and how much background noise it picks up. Run a 10 second quality check for a score out of 100, record and download a clip, hear yourself live and see every technical detail of your mic.
Say something normal, like counting to five.
Press the button, then choose Allow when your browser asks to use the microphone. Nothing is recorded unless you press record, and nothing is uploaded.
A 10 second check. First stay silent for 3 seconds so we can measure the background noise, then read the sentence out loud at your normal volume. You get a score out of 100 with tips to improve it.
Record your voice, listen back and download it. Make one clip with each microphone or setting and compare them side by side.
Listen to your microphone live, or with a delay like an echo test so you can hear exactly how you sound to others on a call.
What your browser reports about the active microphone. Low sample rates or a single channel at 16kHz usually mean a Bluetooth headset is in call mode.
| Status | Start the test to see details |
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The whole test takes less than a minute and works the same on Windows, Mac, Chromebook, iPhone and Android.
Your browser shows a pop-up asking to use the microphone. Choose Allow. If you have more than one mic, pick it from the list at the top.
Talk at your normal volume. The waveform and the circle move with your voice, and the verdict says if your mic is working.
Run the 10 second Quality Check for a score, then record a clip and play it back to hear how you really sound.
Your microphone works. Run the Quality Check to see how good it sounds.
The browser has access but no sound is arriving. Check the mute switch and pick another mic from the list.
Your mic picks up a lot of background noise or hum. See the noise tips below.
The Quality Check scores five things. Each one points to a different fix, so look at the lowest one first. Levels are in dBFS, decibels below the loudest sound your device can record.
best -26 to -12 dBHow loud your voice arrives. Too low and people strain to hear you. Too high and it distorts. Speak 10 to 20 cm from the mic.
best below -60 dBThe level in the room when you are silent. Fans, PCs and traffic raise it. Noise suppression lowers it but can make your voice sound thin.
best above 35 dBThe gap between your voice and the background. A big gap sounds clean. Move closer to the mic rather than turning it up.
best 0%How often your voice hit the maximum level and got cut off. Any clipping sounds crackly. Lower the input volume or back away a little.
best above 12 kHzHow much detail the mic captures. Good mics reach well above 12kHz. Around 4kHz to 8kHz usually means a Bluetooth headset in call mode or a laptop mic with heavy processing.
speech 85 to 255 HzThe live reading of your voice's basic pitch. Adult voices usually sit between about 85Hz and 255Hz. It shows the mic is hearing your voice, not just noise.
Pick what you see on the mic test. Most problems are a permission, the wrong input device or a mute switch, and take less than a minute to fix.
If you clicked Block once, the browser remembers it and stops asking.
The browser has access, but the sound is not reaching it.
The meter barely reaches the ideal zone when you talk.
The peak marker hits 0 dB and the Peak reading turns red.
Your speakers are playing the call and the mic is picking it up again.
The level stays high even when you are silent.
The Frequency Range score is low, or the clip sounds like an old phone call.
If the browser cannot see your mic at all, the system is usually blocking it or using a different input. Follow the path for your device, then run the mic test again.
Turn on Microphone access and Let apps access your microphone, including desktop apps. Then go to Settings, System, Sound, choose your mic under Input and check its volume.
Turn on Allow apps to access your microphone. Then open Settings, System, Sound and choose the right input device. Use Device properties to raise the volume.
Turn on your browser in the list. Then open System Settings, Sound, Input, pick the mic and raise the input volume while you speak.
Allow the browser app you use. In Safari, also check Settings, Apps, Safari, Microphone. Remove any case that covers the mic holes at the bottom.
Set it to Allow. On newer phones, also check the Microphone access switch in the quick settings panel or under Security and privacy.
Turn it on. Then open Quick Settings, select the arrow next to the volume and choose the right input.
If your mic passes here but not in an app, the app is set to a different input. These are the places to change it.
Pick your mic and use Test Mic. Turn off Automatically adjust microphone volume if your level jumps around.
Choose the Input Device and use the Mic Test button. If people cannot hear you, check Input Sensitivity and your Push to Talk key.
Select your microphone, then use Make a test call to hear a recording of yourself.
Choose the microphone. Meet runs in the browser, so the browser permission fixes above apply here too.
Set the device, then watch the Audio Mixer meter. Keep speech in the yellow and away from the red.
Choose the microphone and watch the blue dots move as you speak. Make a free test call to hear yourself back.
These are some of the most used microphones for streaming, podcasts, gaming and calls, with what to expect when you test each one.
Has four pickup patterns. Speak into the side with the logo, not the top, or it will test too quiet.
A classic broadcast mic that needs a lot of preamp gain. A low Volume score usually means the interface needs more gain.
Works over USB or XLR. Its dynamic capsule keeps the Background Noise score low in untreated rooms.
Popular with gamers. Has a tap-to-mute sensor on top, so a flat line often means it is muted.
A studio quality USB mic with a headphone jack for zero-latency monitoring of your own voice.
A podcast mic built for close speech. Get within a few centimetres for a good Volume score.
The XLR version needs 48V phantom power from the interface, or it will show no sound at all.
Has a feature called Clipguard that helps prevent crackly peaks when you suddenly get loud.
A small, budget-friendly streaming mic. Keep it close, as small condensers also catch keyboard noise.
A common first USB mic. It has a volume knob on the front, so check it is turned up before testing.
Like most Bluetooth earbuds, the mic switches to a lower quality mode on calls. Expect a narrow Frequency Range score.
Fine for calls but far from your mouth, so they pick up more room noise. Get closer to the screen to improve clarity.
Knowing your mic type explains most test results. A condenser hears more of the room, a dynamic hears mostly you, and Bluetooth trades quality for convenience.
| Type | How It Connects | Sound | Room Noise | Good For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USB condenser | Plugs straight into USB | Detailed and bright | Picks up quite a lot | Streaming, voice-over, quiet rooms |
| USB dynamic | Plugs straight into USB | Warm and focused | Rejects most of it | Podcasts and calls in noisy rooms |
| XLR condenser | Audio interface with 48V phantom power | Studio detail | Picks up a lot | Singing and studio recording |
| XLR dynamic | Audio interface with plenty of gain | Broadcast warmth | Rejects most of it | Radio, podcasts and loud voices |
| Headset mic | USB, 3.5mm jack or wireless dongle | Clear speech | Low, mic is close | Gaming and work calls |
| Bluetooth earbuds | Bluetooth | Narrow, phone-like on calls | Depends on processing | Calls on the move |
| Built-in mic | Inside the laptop, phone or webcam | Thin and distant | Picks up a lot | Quick calls |
Small changes make a big difference, and none of them cost much. Run the Quality Check before and after to see your score go up.
Distance matters most. Closer means more voice and less room.
Aim just past the mic to avoid pops on p and b sounds.
Normal speech should land in the shaded zone of the meter.
Curtains, a rug or a sofa cut echo more than you would expect.
It avoids the low quality call mode that Bluetooth uses.
Fans, air conditioning and PC fans lift your noise floor the most.
Yes. The test runs entirely inside your browser using the Web Audio API.
Your voice is analyzed on your own device. No audio is sent to any server.
Nothing is recorded unless you press record. Clips vanish when you close the page.
Press Stop Microphone or close the tab, and the browser releases the mic straight away.
Quick answers to the questions people ask most about testing a microphone.
Press Start Mic Test, allow microphone access and speak. If the waveform and level meter move with your voice, your microphone works. Run the Quality Check for a score and record a clip to hear yourself.
The verdict above the waveform changes to Your microphone is working once it hears your voice. You can also record a 5 second clip and play it back.
The most common causes are a blocked browser permission, the wrong input device selected, a mute switch on the mic or headset, or the system privacy setting turned off. Use the troubleshooter on this page to fix each one.
When a Bluetooth headset uses its microphone, it switches to a call mode with a much narrower sound range. Use a wired mic or your laptop mic for calls and keep the Bluetooth headphones for listening.
75 or more is good for calls and meetings. 90 or more is excellent and ready for streaming or podcasts. Below 55, check the lowest of the five metrics for the quickest fix.
The meter shows dBFS, decibels below the loudest level your device can record, so 0 is the maximum and every reading is negative. Normal speech is best between about -26 and -12 dBFS.
For calls, yes. They clean up background sound and echo. For music or recording, turn them off for a more natural sound. Use the switches in the tester to record a clip both ways and compare.
After you allow access, every microphone your device knows about appears in the list at the top of the tester. Pick one and the test switches to it straight away.
Yes. Open Record And Play, press record, then play the clip back or download it. Each clip can be saved in your browser's format or as a WAV file.
Yes. Open Hear Yourself and press Start Listening. Use the echo options to hear yourself with a delay, which is the easiest way to judge how you sound to others.
Yes. It works in Safari, Chrome and other current mobile browsers. Allow the microphone when asked, and check the phone's privacy settings if no pop-up appears.
Yes. All sound is processed in your browser and nothing is uploaded or stored on a server. Recordings exist only on your device until you download or delete them.
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