Mic test

HearMyMic is a free microphone and webcam test that runs in your browser. It puts the checks people usually need in one place, so you don’t have to install an app or join a call just to find out whether you can be heard.

• Live meter and waveform: shows your voice as you speak, so you can see at a glance whether the mic is picking you up.
• Record and play back: captures 5 seconds so you can listen, which is the closest you can get to hearing what other people hear.
• Hear yourself live: sends your mic to your headphones in real time, which is handy for placing a mic or checking for noise.
• Device details: shows the microphone name, sample rate and channels, and whether echo cancellation, noise suppression and auto gain control are on.
• Microphone picker: lets you switch between connected microphones without leaving the page.
• Webcam check: the webcam and mic test page adds a live camera preview next to the level meter.

Run a test whenever something about your setup changes: a new headset, a new laptop, a browser update, or a system update that may have reset your privacy settings. It’s also worth a minute before anything important, such as a job interview, an online exam, a podcast recording or a stream.

Gamers use it to confirm a headset works before joining voice chat, and students and teachers use it before online classes. If people have told you that you sound quiet, distant or robotic, a recording here helps you hear the problem yourself and decide whether it’s the microphone, the room or the app.

The test above is the same on every page, but each page is written around a different job. If you want to judge your sound, use the mic test with playback. If you want to listen as you talk, try the hear yourself mic test. Before a video call, the webcam and mic test checks your picture and your audio together.

If you’re preparing for a specific app, there are pages for Zoom, Discord, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet that show where each app keeps its microphone settings. There are also device pages for iPhone, Android, Mac, Windows 11 and Chromebook. If something is already wrong, the troubleshooting guides cover a mic that isn’t working, is too quiet, is blocked by permissions, or echoes.

The meter measures how strong the signal from your mic is, compared with the loudest signal your browser can capture. The rating turns that into plain words.

• Quiet: your voice is reaching the mic, but only just. People may ask you to speak up. Move closer or raise the input volume in your system settings.
• Good: a healthy level for calls and recordings, with room to spare when you laugh or raise your voice.
• Loud: the signal is close to the maximum. Loud sounds may distort. Move back a little or lower the input volume.

The rating is a guide, not a lab measurement. Automatic gain control, which many browsers switch on by default, constantly adjusts your level, so the number moves around a bit.

Once the test is running, the panel under the tool lists what your browser reports about the mic it opened: the device name, the sample rate, the number of channels, and whether echo cancellation, noise suppression and auto gain control are on.

The device name is the most useful line. If it says “Webcam” when you expected your headset, you’ve found your problem. Choose the right microphone from the list that appears when more than one is connected.

Estimated latency is the delay your browser reports between capturing sound and playing it. Some browsers don’t report it at all, in which case the panel says so.

A few small changes make a bigger difference than most upgrades. Test after each one so you can see which helps.

• Distance: keep a headset boom or desk microphone close, about a hand’s width from your mouth. Halving the distance makes you much louder compared with the room.
• Room: hard walls and bare floors add echo. Curtains, a rug or a few cushions soften it.
• Noise: switch off fans and close windows if you can, and keep the mic away from the computer’s fan vents.
• Headphones: wear them on calls so the other person’s voice doesn’t leak from your speakers back into your mic.
• Level: speak normally and aim for a steady “Good”. If it’s off, adjust the input volume in your system sound settings.

Yes. The test runs as code inside your browser tab. Your audio goes from the mic to the meter on your screen and nowhere else. There’s no account, no upload and no server-side recording. The 5 second clip lives in your browser’s memory and is gone when you close or reload the page.

You can take the permission back at any time from the lock or settings icon in your browser’s address bar.

HearMyMic measures what your browser can see. It can’t judge studio qualities such as frequency response, and it can’t look inside other apps, which add processing of their own. It also doesn’t test your speakers or your internet connection, so a call can still sound choppy with a perfectly good mic.

If the test passes but an app still can’t hear you, check that app’s own input device setting and its microphone permission in your operating system.