A microphone can go quiet for simple reasons: a muted headset, a privacy switch that got turned off, the wrong device picked as the input, or an audio driver that failed to load. The fixes below go from the quickest checks to the driver, so try them in order and test the mic after each one.
Check the cable, the wireless link and any mute switch
Start with the hardware, because it takes a minute and rules out a lot.
- Push a wired microphone or headset all the way into its jack or USB port. For a USB device, try a different port.
- For a Bluetooth headset, make sure it is switched on, paired and showing as connected in Windows.
- Look for a Mute button on the headset, a microphone key on the laptop keyboard, or a privacy switch from the PC maker. Any of these can silence the mic completely.
- Make sure the microphone is positioned so it can actually pick up your voice.
Turn the microphone back on in privacy settings
Windows can block every app from the microphone, and an update sometimes resets these switches. On Windows 11:
- Open Settings > Privacy & security > Microphone.
- Turn on Microphone access.
- Turn on Let apps access your microphone and pick the apps that may use it.
- Turn on Let desktop apps access your microphone if you use programs such as Teams, Zoom or a desktop browser. Desktop apps are not listed individually.
- If the switches already look on, turn them off and on again.
Windows 10 privacy path and webcam microphones
On Windows 10, go to Settings > Privacy > Microphone, choose Change and turn on Allow apps to access your microphone. Below that, allow the Microsoft Store apps you need and make sure Allow desktop apps to access your microphone is on. If the microphone is built into a webcam, also open the Camera page in the same Privacy section (Privacy & security > Camera on Windows 11) and allow camera access, because the two can share one device.
Pick the right input device and test it
With several audio devices attached, Windows may be listening to the wrong one. Open Settings > System > Sound and look under Input.
- Select the microphone you want to use.
- Select the > arrow on its right to open its properties.
- Under Input settings, choose Start test and speak normally.
- Choose Stop test, then Play to hear what was recorded.
- If it is too quiet, drag the Input volume slider to the right and test again.
Enable the microphone and check its levels in the Sound window
The classic Sound window shows settings the newer page hides, including a microphone that has been disabled.
- Press Win + R, type mmsys.cpl and press Enter. You can also right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar and choose Sounds.
- Open the Recording tab.
- Right-click your microphone and choose Enable if it is listed as disabled.
- Right-click it again and choose Set as Default Device.
- Double-click the microphone, open the Levels tab, make sure it is not muted and move the volume up. On Windows 10 you can also adjust Microphone Boost here.
- Open the Advanced tab and clear Enable audio enhancements, then select Apply. Some drivers let enhancements block the mic from every app.
Run the recording troubleshooter
On Windows 11, open Settings > System > Sound, scroll to Advanced and select Input devices under Troubleshoot common sound problems. On Windows 10, open Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Additional troubleshooters and run Recording Audio. Follow the prompts and let it apply any fix it offers, then test the mic again.
Reinstall the audio driver if Windows does not list the microphone
If Input shows no device at all, the audio driver is the usual cause. Removing it makes Windows load a fresh copy.
- Right-click the Start button and choose Device Manager.
- Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
- Right-click your audio device and choose Uninstall device. Tick the box that removes the driver for this device, then select Uninstall. Repeat for any other audio device in the list.
- Restart the PC. Windows normally reinstalls the audio devices by itself.
- If nothing comes back, open Device Manager again, right-click Sound, video and game controllers and choose Scan for hardware changes.
- Right-click the audio driver that reappears and choose Update driver.
Install Windows updates and the maker's audio driver
A driver that came with a recent update can be the very thing that broke the mic, and the PC maker's own package often maps the built-in microphone correctly. Open Settings > Windows Update, select Check for updates, then go to Advanced options > Optional updates and install any driver updates before restarting. If the microphone is still missing, find the support page for your exact PC model on the maker's website, download the audio driver from there, install it and restart.