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HearMyMic
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Hear yourself mic test

Switch on “Hear yourself live” to listen to your microphone in real time. Put on headphones first.

Microphone test

Your browser will ask for permission. Choose Allow to start.

Your audio never leaves your device.

Your mic is working

Listening…

–∞ dB

WaitingSay something at your normal speaking volume.

Something went wrong

See how to fix it

Record and play back

Hear exactly how you sound to others.

Your recording will show up here.

Hear yourself live

Plays your mic through your speakers or headphones.

Use headphones to avoid feedback. Speakers can cause a loud squeal.

Your microphone

Microphone
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Sample rate
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Channels
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Echo cancellation
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Noise suppression
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Auto gain control
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Estimated latency
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Level
—

Results are approximate. They show what your browser reports, and can differ from what another app or the people on your call hear.

Live monitoring, right in your browser

Sometimes you don’t want a recording. You want to hear your mic as you speak, so you can move it around, adjust the volume and notice problems the moment they happen. The “Hear yourself live” switch sends your microphone straight to your headphones while the test is running.

It’s off by default for a good reason. If your mic can hear your speakers, the sound loops around and builds into a loud squeal. With headphones on, that loop can’t form.

How to hear yourself through your mic

  1. Put on headphones

    Wired headphones or earbuds work best. They add the least delay and they keep your speakers from feeding back into the mic.

  2. Start the test

    Press “Test my mic” and allow microphone access. Make sure the level meter responds to your voice.

  3. Turn on “Hear yourself live”

    Flip the switch. You should hear your own voice in your headphones immediately. Start with your volume low and bring it up.

  4. Listen while you adjust

    Move the mic closer and farther, tap the desk, rustle some paper. You’ll hear exactly what the mic picks up as you change things.

  5. Switch it off when you’re done

    Flip the switch back or press Stop. Monitoring also ends as soon as you leave the page.

Why there’s a slight delay

Your voice has to travel from the mic, through your computer’s audio system, through the browser and back out to your headphones. That trip takes time, typically a few hundredths of a second on a wired setup. You’ll notice it as a faint doubling of your own voice.

Bluetooth headphones add much more, often a fifth of a second or longer, because the audio is compressed and sent over the air in both directions. That’s normal and it isn’t a fault in your microphone. For the tightest monitoring, use wired headphones.

The “Estimated latency” line in the panel shows the delay your browser reports. Treat it as a rough figure. Not every browser reports every part of the chain.

Live monitoring or playback: which one to use

Use live monitoring to position a mic, set your level, or check for hum and background noise as you move things around. Use the 5 second recording when you want to judge how you actually sound, because it’s hard to listen critically while you’re talking.

If you’d like to hear your mic in your headphones all the time, including during games and calls, that’s a system or headset setting usually called sidetone or mic monitoring. Our guide on hearing your mic in your headphones covers it.

Questions and answers

Why should I use headphones for this test?

Without them, your microphone picks up its own sound from your speakers, which is amplified and picked up again. That loop turns into a loud howl within a second or two. Headphones keep the sound out of the mic.

I turned on “Hear yourself live” but hear nothing. What’s wrong?

Check that the level meter is moving, that your headphone volume is up, and that sound is going to the output you’re wearing. On an iPhone, the silent switch can mute live monitoring, so switch it to ring and raise the volume.

Why do I hear an echo of my own voice?

That’s the monitoring delay. Your voice reaches your ears directly first and through the headphones a moment later. Wired headphones keep the gap small. Bluetooth makes it much more obvious.

Is the delay I hear the same delay people hear on calls?

No. Call delay depends on the internet connection between you and the other person. What you hear here is only the local loop through your own device.

Can I keep hearing myself after I close this page?

No. Monitoring stops when you stop the test or leave. To hear your mic all the time, use your operating system’s or your headset’s monitoring feature.

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