Summary

If others cannot hear you in a Teams meeting, or you cannot hear anyone else, the issue is almost always a device selection mismatch, a Windows privacy setting, or a driver problem. This article walks you through every user-level audio fix, ordered from fastest to most thorough.

In this guide

• 1. Check the Mute Button and In-Meeting Audio Controls (15 Seconds)
• 2. Select the Correct Audio Device in Teams Settings
• 3. Check Windows Sound Settings
• 4. Allow Microphone Access in Windows Privacy Settings
• 5. Reconnect or Re-Pair Your Audio Device
• 6. Fix Bluetooth Headset Using Wrong Audio Profile
• 7. Reinstall the Audio Driver
• 8. Clear the Teams Cache
• 9. Test Audio Outside of Teams

Before You Start

• A headset, microphone, or speaker connected to your computer (built-in, USB, or Bluetooth).
• Microsoft Teams desktop app installed and signed in.
• If using a USB headset, ensure it is plugged in before opening Teams.

Instructions

1. Check the Mute Button and In-Meeting Audio Controls (15 Seconds)

The most common cause of "others can't hear me" is being muted.

1. Look at the meeting toolbar at the top (or bottom) of the Teams meeting window.
2. Check the microphone icon:
   • If it has a line through it — you are muted. Click it to unmute (or press Ctrl + Shift + M).
   • If it shows a white pulsing circle when you speak — your microphone is active and working.
3. Also check the speaker icon in the toolbar. If it has a line through it, your incoming audio is muted. Click it or press the volume keys on your keyboard.
4. If you still hear nothing, click the three dots (…) in the meeting toolbar > Audio settings to verify which devices Teams is using for this call.

Verification: The microphone icon pulses when you speak, and you can hear other participants.

2. Select the Correct Audio Device in Teams Settings

Teams may be pointed at the wrong microphone or speaker — especially if you recently connected or disconnected a headset.

1. Open Microsoft Teams.
2. Click Settings and more (...) next to your profile picture in the top-right corner, then select Settings.
3. Click Devices in the left sidebar.
4. Under Audio devices, check three settings:
   • Speaker — Select your headset or external speakers. Avoid "Default" if you have multiple devices.
   • Microphone — Select your headset microphone or external mic. Avoid "Default" if possible.
   • If you see a combined device (e.g., "Jabra Evolve2" or "Poly Voyager"), select it for both speaker and microphone to keep them in sync.
5. Click Make a test call to verify. Teams will call you, play a message, record your voice, and play it back.
6. If the test call works but meetings still have issues, the problem may be meeting-specific audio routing. During a live meeting, click three dots (…) > Audio settings and verify the device selections match.

Verification: The test call plays audio through your selected speaker, records your voice through your selected microphone, and plays back a clear recording of your voice.

3. Check Windows Sound Settings

Windows controls the system-level audio routing. If the wrong device is set as default in Windows, Teams may inherit that incorrect setting.

1. Right-click the Speaker icon in the system tray (bottom-right corner of the taskbar).
2. Select Sound settings.
3. Under Output, verify the correct speaker or headset is selected. Click the dropdown to change it if needed.
4. Under Input, verify the correct microphone is selected.
5. Speak into your microphone and watch the Input volume bar — it will move when you talk. If it does not move at all, the microphone is either muted, disconnected, or selected incorrectly.
6. Click Volume mixer (at the bottom of Sound settings) and verify that Microsoft Teams is not individually muted or set to very low volume.

Verification: The input volume bar moves when you speak, and the output device matches your headset or speakers.

4. Allow Microphone Access in Windows Privacy Settings

Windows can block specific apps from accessing the microphone entirely. If this is disabled, Teams will not detect your microphone even though other apps might work.

1. Open Settings (press Windows + I).
2. Click Privacy & security in the left sidebar.
3. Under App permissions, click Microphone.
4. Ensure Microphone access is toggled On at the top.
5. Scroll down to Let desktop apps access your microphone and ensure it is toggled On.
6. If you see Microsoft Teams listed individually, ensure it is toggled On.

Verification: The microphone permission is enabled for desktop apps. Restart Teams after changing this setting.

5. Reconnect or Re-Pair Your Audio Device

Loose connections and stale Bluetooth pairings cause intermittent audio failures.

For USB headsets:

1. Unplug the USB headset from the computer.
2. Wait 10 seconds.
3. Plug it back into a different USB port if possible (front panel vs. back panel, or a different side on a laptop).
4. Wait for Windows to detect the device (you may hear the USB connection chime).
5. Return to Teams Settings > Devices and verify the headset appears.

For Bluetooth headsets:

1. Turn the headset off, wait 5 seconds, then turn it on.
2. If the headset does not reconnect automatically, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices.
3. Find your headset in the list. If it shows Connected voice, music — it is working.
4. If it shows only Connected music — the hands-free (microphone) profile is not active. Click the device and verify both profiles are enabled.
5. If the headset does not appear at all, click Add device > Bluetooth and re-pair it.
6. After reconnecting, go back to Teams Settings > Devices and select the headset.

Verification: The headset appears in both Windows Sound settings and Teams device settings. Test with a Teams test call.

6. Fix Bluetooth Headset Using Wrong Audio Profile

Only one of the two Bluetooth audio profiles carries a microphone.

Bluetooth headsets have two audio profiles: Hands-Free (for calls — includes microphone but lower audio quality) and Stereo (high-quality audio but no microphone). Teams may connect to the stereo profile, which is why you can hear music but your microphone does not work.

1. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Devices.
2. Find your Bluetooth headset and click it.
3. Look for two entries in Windows Sound settings:
   • Headset (Hands-Free AG Audio) — This is the call profile with microphone support.
   • Headphones (Stereo) — This is the music profile without microphone support.
4. In Teams Settings > Devices, select the Hands-Free version of the device for both Speaker and Microphone.
5. If Teams only shows the Stereo version, disconnect and reconnect the Bluetooth device, then check again.

Verification: Teams shows the Hands-Free profile selected. The microphone works during a test call, even though audio quality may sound slightly lower than the stereo profile.

7. Reinstall the Audio Driver

If the audio device is detected by Windows but produces no sound or input, the driver may be corrupted.

1. Right-click the Start button and select Device Manager.
2. Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
3. Right-click your audio device (e.g., Realtek Audio, Intel Smart Sound, or your headset name).
4. Select Uninstall device. When prompted, check Attempt to remove the driver for this device if available.
5. Click Uninstall.
6. Click the Action menu at the top of Device Manager and select Scan for hardware changes. Windows will detect the missing driver and reinstall it automatically.
7. Restart your computer.
8. After restarting, verify the audio device reappears in Device Manager and test in Teams.

Verification: The audio device reappears in Device Manager after the scan. Teams test call works with both speaker and microphone.

8. Clear the Teams Cache

A corrupted Teams cache can cause device settings to become stuck or ignored.

1. Close Microsoft Teams completely:
   • Click the X to close the window.
   • Right-click the Teams icon in the system tray (click the ^ arrow if hidden) and select Quit.
2. Press Windows + R, type %appdata%\Microsoft\Teams and press Enter.
   • For New Teams, the path is %localappdata%\Packages\MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\Microsoft\MSTeams.
3. Delete all files and folders inside this directory.
4. Reopen Microsoft Teams. It will rebuild the cache and you will need to sign in again.
5. Go to Settings > Devices and re-select your audio devices.

Verification: Teams opens fresh, audio devices are selectable, and a test call works correctly.

9. Test Audio Outside of Teams

If none of the above steps work, determine whether the issue is Teams-specific or system-wide.

1. Open any other application that uses audio — a YouTube video in your browser, the built-in Voice Recorder app, or Windows Sound settings test.
2. Play audio through your headset or speakers. Does it work?
3. Record a short clip in Voice Recorder. Does it capture your voice?
4. If audio works in other apps but not Teams, the issue is Teams-specific. Try reinstalling Teams:
   • Go to Settings > Apps > Installed apps.
   • Find Microsoft Teams, click the three dots (…), and select Uninstall.
   • Download and install Teams again from https://teams.microsoft.com/downloads.
5. If audio does not work in any app, the issue is system-wide — the audio driver or the hardware itself. Ask IT to reinstall the audio driver for your device, and tell them audio fails in every app including Voice Recorder, not only in Teams.

Verification: This method identifies whether the root cause is in Teams or in Windows/hardware, directing you to the right next step.

Troubleshooting

DANGER

Before joining an important meeting, always use the Make a test call feature in Teams Settings > Devices. This takes 30 seconds and confirms both your microphone and speakers are working before you are live with colleagues or clients.

There is now a second route that does not send you out to app settings at all: on the pre-join screen of the meeting you are about to enter, select Test mic and speaker. Teams records a short audio clip and plays it back, which confirms the right devices are selected and that you will be heard.

Symptom / Error	Potential Cause	Solution
Others can't hear me	Muted in Teams	Click the microphone icon in the meeting toolbar or press Ctrl + Shift + M to unmute.
I can't hear anyone	Wrong output device selected	Check Teams Settings > Devices > Speaker and select the correct device (see Method 2).
"No audio device found"	USB headset not detected	Unplug the headset, wait 10 seconds, plug into a different USB port (see Method 5).
Echo or feedback during calls	Speaker audio feeding into mic	Use a headset instead of built-in speakers. For full troubleshooting, see the dedicated echo and feedback guide.
Bluetooth headset mic not working	Stereo profile active, not Hands-Free	Switch to the Hands-Free AG Audio profile in Teams device settings (see Method 6).
Audio works in Spotify but not Teams	Teams privacy or cache issue	Check microphone privacy settings (Method 4), then clear the Teams cache (Method 8).
Audio cuts in and out	Weak Bluetooth or network	Move closer to your PC if using Bluetooth. Switch to a wired headset to rule out interference.
Microphone volume is very low	Input volume set too low	Go to Settings > Sound > Input and increase the Input volume slider to 80-100%.
Audio device keeps switching	Windows selecting "default"	Set a specific device in Teams Settings > Devices instead of leaving it on "Default."

Related Articles

• How to Fix Echo, Feedback, or Background Noise in Microsoft Teams Meetings
• How to Fix Audio or Video Not Working in Microsoft Teams
• How to Troubleshoot Audio and Sound Issues on Windows
• How to Troubleshoot Bluetooth Device Issues
• How to Fix Microsoft Teams Not Opening or Loading
• How to Clear the Microsoft Teams Cache
• Understanding Teams Meetings — Features, Roles, and Best Practices

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