Mic and camera not working in Zoom, Teams, Discord or Google Meet

First: does it work outside the app?

Before you dig into app menus, find out which side the problem is on. Open our webcam and mic test, press Start camera and mic test and allow access. You get a live picture, a level meter in dBFS and a short meeting checklist. It runs on your device: nothing is recorded or uploaded.

• Both work here, not in the app: the hardware and drivers are fine. The cause is the app’s device choice, the app’s own permission in Windows or macOS, or another app holding the camera. Read on.
• Nothing works here either: the problem sits lower down. Go to microphone not working on Windows, the Mac guide or camera not working on a laptop first.
• The browser asks nothing and shows "blocked": fix the site permission with allow microphone and camera in your browser. Google Meet runs in the browser, so this matters for Meet too.

Want to hear what meeting apps do to your voice? The mic test has a Processed (like Zoom/Discord) switch that turns on echo cancellation, noise suppression and automatic gain, the same kind of processing call apps use.

How to test your mic in Zoom

In the Zoom Workplace desktop app on Windows, macOS or Linux:

1. Click your profile picture, then Settings (newer versions also have a gear icon in the navigation bar).
2. Open the Audio tab.
3. Under Speaker, pick your speakers or headset from the drop-down and click Test speaker. You should hear a tone.
4. Under Microphone, pick your mic and click Test microphone. Zoom records a short clip and plays it back.
5. If your voice is too quiet, drag Input volume up, or turn on Automatically adjust microphone volume (this disables the manual slider).

During a meeting, click the up arrow next to the Audio button to switch the microphone or speaker without leaving the call.

Music, instruments or a voice that keeps cutting out

Zoom treats steady sounds as noise. Under Microphone modes you can lower background noise suppression (Auto, Low, Medium, High) or choose Original sound for musicians, which turns noise suppression off. In a meeting, pick Original sound for musicians from the same up-arrow menu next to Audio. On Windows 11, Zoom also notes that the system’s own audio enhancements can strip instrument sound before Zoom ever gets it.

How to test your mic in Microsoft Teams

In the Teams desktop app:

1. Click Settings and more (the three dots next to your profile picture), then Settings.
2. Choose Devices.
3. Under Audio settings, pick your audio device, then the Speaker and Microphone from their drop-downs.
4. Under the camera section, choose your Camera and check the preview.
5. Click Make a test call to check how your mic, speaker and connection sound before a real call.

The same Devices page has Noise suppression (and, with a voice profile, Voice isolation). If your voice drops out mid-sentence, try a lower noise suppression setting. Before each meeting, the pre-join screen also lets you pick Computer audio and change devices. Your work account’s IT admin can lock some of these settings.

Discord mic not working but the test works

This one is common enough to have its own search phrase. Discord’s Let’s Check test shows a moving bar, yet friends hear nothing. The usual reasons are input mode and filters, not the mic. In the desktop app:

1. Open User Settings (the gear next to your name) and go to Voice & Video.
2. On the Voice tab, set Input Device to the exact mic you want, not just "Default".
3. Press Let’s Check and speak. If the bar moves, the mic reaches Discord.
4. Look at Input Mode. With Voice Activity, Discord only sends sound above the Input Sensitivity threshold. Turn off Automatically determine input sensitivity and drag the slider left of where your normal speaking level sits. With Push to Talk, nothing is sent until you hold the key.
5. Turn Noise Suppression off for a moment. Krisp-style suppression can cut quiet voices, singing or a voice that changes pitch.
6. Still silent? On the Debugging tab, use Reset Voice and Video Settings. On Windows you can also switch Audio Subsystem between Standard and Legacy.

Also check the obvious: the crossed-out mic and headphone icons at the bottom left (mute and deafen), and whether the server lets your role speak in that channel.

How to test your mic in Google Meet

Meet runs in your browser, so two permissions apply: the browser’s permission for meet.google.com and the operating system’s permission for the browser.

1. Open the meeting link. On the preview screen, your mic, speaker and camera appear at the bottom of the preview tile.
2. Pick the right device from each drop-down. If you use a monitor with speakers, make sure it is not the selected output by mistake.
3. Speak. If the small mic bar moves, Meet hears you.
4. In a meeting, open More options (three dots) → Settings → Audio or Video to change devices.
5. If the mic is blocked, click View site information in the address bar and turn Microphone on. In Chrome, chrome://settings/content/microphone should say Sites can ask to use your microphone.

Google also lists Companion mode as a trap: in Companion mode your mic and speaker are off by design. Leave and rejoin normally.

App permissions on Windows and Mac

Zoom, Teams and Discord are desktop apps, and both Windows and macOS can block them separately from your browser.

Windows 11

1. Open Start → Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone.
2. Turn on Microphone access and Let apps access your microphone.
3. Turn on Let desktop apps access your microphone. Zoom, Discord and the Teams desktop app count as desktop apps.
4. Repeat under Privacy & security → Camera with Camera access, Let apps access your camera and Let desktop apps access your camera.

Windows 10

1. Open Start → Settings → Privacy → Microphone.
2. Turn on Microphone access for this device and Allow apps to access your microphone.
3. Scroll down and turn on Allow desktop apps to access your microphone. Do the same on the Camera page.

Mac

1. Open the Apple menu → System Settings → Privacy & Security.
2. Click Microphone and turn the app on. Then do the same under Camera.
3. Quit and reopen the app: it often only notices the change after a restart.

Works in the browser test, not in the app: a checklist

• Another app holds the camera. On Windows a camera usually works in one app at a time. Close other call apps, browser tabs with a camera open and camera utilities, then try again.
• "Default" points somewhere else. Apps that follow the system default switch when you plug in a headset or a monitor. Pick the device by name in the app.
• Bluetooth headset in call mode. When its mic is in use, many Bluetooth headsets switch to a hands-free mode with narrower sound. That is normal; a wired or USB mic sounds fuller.
• Filters fighting each other. Turn off noise suppression in the app first, then the system’s audio enhancements, and test again.
• Out-of-date app. Update Zoom, Teams or Discord; old versions hide newer audio settings.
• Too loud. If the webcam and mic test says the mic works but is too loud, lower the input level: a clipping voice sounds crackly in every app. The results guide explains the dBFS numbers.