Discord Can't Hear Others? How to Fix No Sound in Calls

You can see the green ring light up around a friend's avatar, so you know they're talking, but there's silence on your end. It's a maddening problem when you're in the middle of a client call, a team meeting or a stream with guests.

Discord's Voice and Video Troubleshooting Guide is the source for everything below. It starts with the quickest checks and moves to the fiddly ones, so I've kept that order. If your problem is that others can't hear you, that's a different set of fixes, and I've kept this page to the listening side.

Checking you're not muted or deafened in Discord

The guide says to start with your mute and deafen status. Look at the mic and headset icons: a slash through either one means your voice or audio is disabled. A slashed headset is the one that silences everyone else.

Server admins can also mute or deafen people at server level. If that's happened to you, Discord says you'll need to ask an admin or the server owner to lift it.

Turning up one person's volume in Discord

Here's the tip that fixes a surprising number of cases. If you can hear everyone except one person, you may have changed that person's individual volume without noticing.

• Desktop and browser: right-click the person in the voice channel or call and use the volume slider in the menu.
• Mobile: in a voice call, long-press the person's profile to find their volume slider.

If one slider was the cause, the rest of this page won't matter.

Choosing the right output device for Discord on a computer

When you can see people speaking but hear nothing, Discord's guide points to your output device.

1. Open User Settings with the cogwheel, then choose Voice & Video.
2. On the Voice tab, open the Output Device menu.
3. Pick the device you want to listen on, such as your headset, instead of a monitor or a default that isn't working.
4. Check the output volume slider on the same screen.

Discord also says to double-check your computer's own playback devices and make sure your preferred audio device is enabled. As a last resort, try disabling other audio devices and launching Discord as administrator.

Updating drivers and the system when Discord is silent

Discord names outdated audio drivers as a common cause, and recommends updating your operating system and audio drivers. On Windows, it also mentions checking drivers for audio, webcam and graphics. If you use a USB headset, try a different USB port and make sure the jack or cable is plugged in firmly.

Trying Discord's Standard and Legacy audio subsystem

On Windows, Discord's guide suggests going to Voice & Video, scrolling to Audio Subsystem and switching between Standard and Legacy. If one doesn't help, try the other.

Another option in the same area is Reset Voice and Video Settings on the Debugging tab, which puts your voice settings back to their defaults. Make a note of any custom device choices first so you can set them again.

Giving Discord permission to use your audio on a Mac or PC

Discord asks you to check that the app has microphone and camera permission in your operating system. That's mainly for being heard, but it's a standard first step for any voice problem, and the guide links to Microsoft's and Apple's own permission pages.

Fixing Discord audio in a web browser

If you use Discord at the website, Discord says to check that your browser and its version are compatible, and that you've given Discord microphone and camera permission in the browser. It links to Safari, Chrome and Firefox guides for that. Restarting the browser and your computer can help, and so can trying a different browser.

Fixing Discord voice that you can't hear on iPhone or Android

1. Update your phone's operating system and the Discord app.
2. Check Discord has microphone permission in your phone's settings.
3. Turn off battery saver mode, which Discord lists as something to try.
4. Switch between Wi-Fi and mobile data to see if the connection is at fault.
5. Check your phone's volume. It's easy to leave the media volume low.

On an iPhone with Bluetooth headphones, Discord says to select the device through AirPlay: press the Bluetooth icon during a call and choose the headphones. It also suggests clearing caches under User Settings > Voice > Developer Settings > Cache Actions, and trying the Integrate calls with the Phone app option under Notifications.

When only soundboard clips or one app is silent

If voice sounds fine but clips aren't playing, that's a feature of its own; my guide to using the Discord soundboard explains how clips are played. And if everything on Discord is misbehaving, clearing local data can help, which I've covered in clearing the Discord cache.

Server permissions and Discord voice channels

Discord's guide separates problems that affect every server from ones that happen in a single channel. If it's only one, the server's voice permissions (Connect, Speak and Video) may be the cause, and only the owner or an admin can change them. Ask politely, and mention which channel it's in.

Contacting Discord when you still can't hear others

If you've been through all of this, Discord suggests submitting a ticket to its support team. Include your system and version, whether you're on desktop, browser or mobile, screenshots of your Voice & Video settings, a list of your input and output devices and, on desktop, the debug log from the Debugging tab.

Frequently asked questions

Why can't I hear anyone on Discord?

Discord says to check you aren't deafened, your output device is correct, the person's volume slider is up and your drivers and system are updated.

How do I change my Discord output device?

Open User Settings, choose Voice & Video and use the Output Device menu on the Voice tab.

Why can't I hear just one person on Discord?

You may have lowered their individual volume. Right-click them (desktop and browser) or long-press them (mobile) to find the slider.

What does Standard and Legacy audio do?

Discord suggests switching the Audio Subsystem between Standard and Legacy in Voice & Video settings as a fix on Windows.

Why can't I hear Discord on Bluetooth headphones?

On iPhone, Discord says to pick the headphones through AirPlay using the Bluetooth icon in a call.

What if Discord still has no sound?

Contact Discord's support team with your device details, screenshots of your Voice & Video settings and your input and output device list.