Microphone Test
Press Start to see your microphone level and waveform in real time, then record a short clip and play it back to hear how you sound.
Your browser will ask for permission. Audio is analyzed locally and never uploaded.
All audio stays on your device. Nothing is recorded until you start the echo test, and nothing is ever uploaded.
How it works
- Press Start and allow microphone access when your browser asks for permission.
- Speak normally and watch the level meter and waveform respond — if they move, your microphone is working.
- Press the echo test button to record five seconds, then listen to the playback to judge volume and clarity.
Frequently asked questions
- How does this microphone test work?
- The page asks your browser for microphone access, then feeds the signal into the Web Audio API. An analyser node measures the loudness of the incoming samples many times per second, which drives the level meter, the peak marker, and the scrolling waveform. If the meter moves when you speak, your microphone, its driver, and the browser permission are all working.
- Is my voice recorded or uploaded anywhere?
- No. Everything runs locally in your browser and the page makes no network requests with your audio. The optional five-second echo recording is held in memory on your device only, so you can play it back, and it is discarded when you leave the page or record again.
- The meter does not move — what should I check?
- First make sure the correct input device is selected, both in the picker on this page and in your operating system sound settings. Then check for a hardware mute switch or keyboard mute key, and confirm the browser has permission: look for a microphone icon in the address bar. On laptops, headsets with a boom arm often mute when the arm is flipped up.
- Why do I sound quiet or distorted in the playback?
- If the playback is faint, raise the input gain in your system sound settings or move closer to the microphone. If it is harsh or crackly, the input is clipping — the peak marker near the right end of the meter confirms this — so lower the gain or increase your distance. Aim for speech that peaks well below the maximum without hugging the bottom of the meter.
- Can I use this to test a headset or USB microphone before a call?
- Yes, that is the main use case. Plug the device in first, then start the test and pick it from the input device list. The echo test is the quickest way to hear exactly what people on a Zoom, Teams, or Discord call will hear, including background noise you may not notice yourself.
About this tool
This microphone test tells you in seconds whether your mic works and how it sounds. Press Start, grant the browser permission, and speak: a live level meter shows how loud you are, a peak marker tracks your loudest moment, and a scrolling waveform draws the actual shape of the signal. If more than one input device is available — a built-in laptop mic, a USB microphone, a headset — you can switch between them without reloading the page and compare their levels directly.
Everything happens client-side. The browser’s getUserMedia API opens the microphone, and the Web Audio API analyses the raw samples in real time to compute the loudness shown on the meter. No audio is transmitted, stored, or processed on any server; the page works entirely on your device, which is exactly why the meter can respond with no perceptible delay. When you press Stop, the microphone is released immediately and the recording indicator in your browser tab disappears.
The echo test answers the question a meter cannot: what do other people actually hear? It records five seconds of audio into memory and plays it straight back, so you can judge volume, clarity, background hum, and room echo before joining a meeting, recording a podcast, or streaming. Many microphone problems — a muffled headset boom, a fan directly behind the laptop, an input gain set far too low — are obvious the moment you hear yourself.
A few practical tips: speech should move the meter clearly without pushing the peak marker to the far right, which indicates clipping and distortion. If the meter stays flat, the page shows a hint, and the usual causes are a hardware mute switch, the wrong device selected, or a denied browser permission. Test with the exact device you plan to use, since operating systems often switch the default input when something new is plugged in.