A free mic test that measures your microphone's level, your room's noise and your loudest peaks in your browser, with a take to play back.
Test your microphone in your browser: a live level meter, the noise in your room, and 10 seconds of you talking to play back, with advice from the numbers.
Your microphone
Your browser asks to use your microphone after you click. Nothing is recorded until you start the test, and nothing is uploaded.
The test runs in your browser: your voice is never uploaded. The advice follows Audient's podcast guide for peaks, -6 to -4 dB, and this tool's own rules for the room.
This free mic test checks your microphone in your browser: its level, your room's noise, and how you really sound.
It measures 5 seconds of quiet and 10 seconds of you talking, plays the take back, and says what to fix, from the numbers. Nothing is uploaded.
Here's what the numbers mean, where your levels should be, and how to fix the common problems.
What is a mic test?
A mic test checks that your microphone works, and that it records you loud and clean enough.
This one goes further than a meter that moves: it measures your room's noise, your speech level and your loudest peak, and compares mics side by side.
What the numbers mean
Digital audio is measured in dBFS: decibels below full scale. 0 dBFS is the loudest a recording can hold, so every level is a negative number:
| Number | What it is | Where it should be |
|---|---|---|
| Loudest peak | The top of your loudest word | -6 to -4 dBFS |
| Speech level | Your average while talking | About 15 dB under your peaks |
| Room noise | Your room when nobody talks | Under -50 dBFS |
| Clipped samples | Sound cut off at 0 dBFS | 0 |
The peak target is Audient's podcast guide: "keep your modulation peaking between -6 and -4dB." The room and gap numbers are this tool's own rules.
Too quiet or too loud
A take that's too quiet "will sound far away, and then bringing the gain up in post will create background noise," says Audient. Raising it later raises the room too.
A take that's too loud clips: the top of each peak is cut off, and that distortion can't be fixed later. So the test flags any clipped sample, and peaks at -1 dBFS, Apple's own ceiling for podcasts.
Your room
The first 5 seconds measure the room with nobody talking: fans, traffic, a fridge. The gap between your voice and that noise is what makes a recording sound clean.
Under 20 dB, and listeners hear the room. The fixes are free: turn off fans, close windows, and move closer to the mic, which raises your voice without raising the room.
Your browser's processing
Browsers clean up a mic for calls: echo cancellation, noise suppression and automatic gain. They help on a call and can make a recording sound thin.
Switch "Browser's echo and noise processing" off to hear your mic as it is. Recording tools usually record it that way.
Compare two mics
Pick another mic from the list and run the test again. Both sit side by side, with the gap between voice and room for each.
That's the fairest way to choose between a laptop mic, a headset and a USB mic: the same room, the same words, a minute apart.
Mic not working?
- Allow the microphone – click the icon at the left of the address bar, set Microphone to Allow, then click Test my mic again.
- Pick your mic – a headset or USB mic isn't always the default, so choose it from the Microphone list once the test starts.
- On a Mac – open the Apple menu, System Settings, Privacy & Security, Microphone, and switch on your browser.
- On Windows – open Settings, Privacy & security, Microphone, and turn on Let desktop apps access your microphone.
- Other apps – quit a call app that's using the mic, then refresh this page.
After the test
Record your episode with the audio recorder, then make it an MP3 at Apple's bit rates with the audio converter. Check your camera with the webcam test.
Who is the mic test for?
It's for anyone about to record, stream or join a call:
- Webcam test – people checking their camera too
- Audio recorder – anyone who wants to record right after the test
- Screen recorder – people making tutorials and walkthroughs
- How to host a virtual summit – hosts checking their setup before an event
The rest of my tools are on the free tools page.
Mic Test FAQs
Questions about the mic test? Here's what to know.
A mic test checks that your microphone works and records you loud and clean enough.
This one measures your room's noise, your speech level and your loudest peak.
Click Test my mic, allow your browser to use it, and talk while the meter moves.
Then start the test for 5 seconds of quiet and 10 seconds of talking.
Aim your loudest words at -6 to -4 dBFS, as Audient's podcast guide says.
Never let them reach 0, where the sound clips.
You may be too far from the mic, or its gain may be low.
Move closer first: it raises your voice without raising the room.
The test records 10 seconds so you can play it back, and it stays in your browser.
Nothing is uploaded.
Plug it in, click Test my mic, and pick it from the Microphone list.
A USB mic, a headset and AirPods all test the same way.
Yes, headphones let you hear the room and small clicks that laptop speakers hide.
Yes, this mic test is free, with no account.
It runs in your browser, so there's nothing to install.
This mic test is for anyone who records or talks on camera:
- Mic test – anyone about to record or go live.
- Audio recorder – podcasters and voice-over artists recording a take.
- Audio converter – anyone turning a recording into MP3 for a podcast.
Teachers, coaches and remote teams use it before calls and courses.
There's a mic test, a webcam test, an audio recorder, a screen recorder and an audio converter.
The rest are in free tools.
Navid Moazzez
AI business strategist & AI OS builder
Navid Moazzez helps creators and founders master AI and build their own AI Operating System (AI OS) to automate their business and life.
Navid.me is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
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