AirPods microphone not working

Last updated: 2026-08-24

AirPods have their own set of problems that have nothing to do with your phone or computer. Most of them come from one setting, one blocked hole, or one misunderstanding about how Bluetooth audio works.

Put both AirPods in, open the mic test above, and speak.

If the waveform moves, the AirPods are fine and the problem is in one app. If nothing happens, work through the steps below.

1. Check the microphone setting

This is the first thing to check and it kills the mic completely when it is wrong.

On iPhone or iPad, open Settings, tap Bluetooth, tap the small i next to your AirPods, then find Microphone. You will see three options.

Automatically Switch AirPods is the correct choice for almost everyone. It uses whichever AirPod is in your ear.

Always Left and Always Right lock the microphone to one specific AirPod. If that AirPod is in the charging case, or you only wear the other one, you have no microphone at all. Nothing explains this to you. Calls just stay silent.

People end up on these settings by accident, or set them once for a reason they have long forgotten. Set it back to Automatically Switch and test again.

2. Clean the microphone holes

The microphone sits at the bottom tip of each stem, behind a tiny mesh. That tip goes in your pocket, and pocket lint packs into the mesh over months.

You do not need to see dirt for this to be the problem. A partly blocked mesh muffles your voice enough that people say they cannot hear you clearly, and a fully blocked one is close to silent.

Clean it with a dry soft brush. A clean toothbrush works. Brush lightly across the mesh, do not push anything into it. Never use water, alcohol, or a pin. The mesh is fragile and pushing debris inward makes it permanent.

Do the same for the speaker mesh while you are there.

3. Check ear detection

AirPods use sensors to tell whether they are in your ear. When they decide they are not, they can hand audio back to the phone and stop using the microphone.

This goes wrong when the sensors are dirty, when you wear them at an unusual angle, or with some third party ear tips.

To rule it out, open Settings, Bluetooth, the i next to your AirPods, and turn off Automatic Ear Detection. Test again. If the microphone works with it off, clean the sensor area on the inside of each AirPod and turn it back on.

4. Understand why the sound quality drops

This one is not a fault, but it worries people enough that it is worth explaining.

Bluetooth cannot send high quality audio and receive microphone audio at the same time. Those are two different modes. When any app starts using the AirPods microphone, the connection switches to the mode that supports two way audio, and playback quality drops to something close to a phone call.

So music that sounded excellent turns thin and flat the moment you join a call. That is the connection working correctly, not your AirPods breaking.

On a Mac you can see this happening. The output device name changes when the microphone becomes active.

5. Reset the AirPods

If the setting is right and the mesh is clean, reset them. This clears the pairing and any bad state stored on the AirPods themselves.

1. Put both AirPods in the case and close the lid
2. Wait thirty seconds
3. Open the lid and leave the AirPods inside
4. On your phone, go to Settings, Bluetooth, tap the i next to your AirPods, and choose Forget This Device
5. Hold the button on the back of the case for about fifteen seconds, until the light flashes amber and then white
6. Hold the case near your phone and pair again

You will need to pair them with your other devices again afterwards.

6. On a Mac specifically

Macs sometimes connect AirPods for output only, so you hear sound but have no microphone.

Open System Settings, then Sound, then the Input tab. If your AirPods are not listed there while they are listed under Output, disconnect them from the Bluetooth menu and reconnect.

Also check that the app you are using has microphone permission under Privacy & Security. On a Mac, granting permission does not apply until you fully quit the app with Cmd and Q and open it again.

When it is one app only

If the microphone works in the test above but not in a particular app, the problem is that app.

Most apps keep their own input device setting, and it often still points at a device you used months ago. Check the audio settings inside Zoom, Teams, Discord, or whatever you are using, and select the AirPods directly instead of leaving it on Default.

When to stop troubleshooting

If the microphone fails on more than one device, after a reset, with clean meshes and the correct setting, the hardware has failed.

AirPods carry a one year warranty, and AppleCare extends it. Microphone failure is covered. Apple replaces the affected AirPod rather than the pair, so the cost is lower than people expect. Book an appointment before buying a replacement set.