How to Enable Microphone Permissions for GoToMeeting

If other participants cannot hear you in GoToMeeting (now branded GoTo Meeting), the cause is often a blocked permission rather than a broken microphone. Access is controlled in up to three places: the operating system, the browser if you join from one, and the audio settings inside the meeting. This guide covers each one and how to confirm your voice is getting through.

Before you start

• Find out how you join meetings: the desktop app, a web browser, or the mobile app. Each one stores microphone permission in a different place.
• Connect the microphone or headset you plan to use and check for a physical mute switch or mute button on the cable or earcup.
• Close other apps that may be using the microphone, such as other calling or recording software.
• On a work-managed computer or phone, your organization may control microphone access through device management. If a setting is greyed out, you may need your IT team.
• If you join by phone dial-in, your phone line carries the audio and these computer permissions do not apply.

The permission itself is a local setting on your device. The meeting audio is then sent through the GoTo service to other participants. Granting permission lets the app or website use the microphone whenever it is allowed to run, not only during calls. Check your organization's policies and GoTo's current privacy documentation if you need details on how meeting audio or recordings are handled.

Step-by-step instructions

Windows 11 and Windows 10

• 1. Open Settings. On Windows 11 go to Privacy & security, then Microphone. On Windows 10 go to Privacy, then Microphone.
• 2. Turn on Microphone access (on Windows 10 this may appear as access for this device).
• 3. Turn on the option that lets apps access your microphone.
• 4. Turn on the option that lets desktop apps access your microphone. The GoTo desktop app usually falls under this setting rather than having its own switch.
• 5. Close GoTo completely and open it again so it picks up the change.

macOS

• 1. On macOS Ventura or later, open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Microphone. On older versions, open System Preferences, then Security & Privacy, then the Privacy tab, then Microphone.
• 2. Turn on the switch or tick the box next to the GoTo app. If you join from a browser, enable the browser instead.
• 3. If macOS asks you to quit and reopen the app, do so. Otherwise, quit the app and start it again yourself.
• 4. If the app is not in the list, start a meeting or audio test in GoTo. macOS normally shows a permission prompt the first time an app asks for the microphone.

Web browser

• 1. Open the meeting page. When the browser asks to use your microphone, choose Allow.
• 2. If you blocked it earlier, click the site controls icon at the left of the address bar, set Microphone to Allow, and reload the page.
• 3. In Safari, use Safari, then Settings, then Websites, then Microphone, and set the meeting site to Allow.
• 4. Make sure the operating system also allows the browser itself to use the microphone, as described in the Windows and macOS steps above.

iPhone and iPad

• 1. Open the Settings app and scroll down to the GoTo app.
• 2. Turn on Microphone.
• 3. Return to the app. If you are already in a meeting, you may need to leave and rejoin.

Android

• 1. Open Settings, then Apps, and select the GoTo app.
• 2. Open Permissions, then Microphone, and choose an allow option. Wording varies by manufacturer and Android version.
• 3. On Android 12 and later, also check that the Microphone access tile in Quick Settings is not switched off. That tile blocks the microphone for every app.

Choose the right input device in GoTo

Permission alone does not ensure GoTo is listening to the correct microphone. Open the audio settings from the meeting window or the app's settings. Labels and placement vary between versions. Pick your headset or USB microphone as the input device and your preferred speakers or headphones as the output device. Note your original choices so you can switch back if a different device works worse.

Check the output

• In GoTo's audio settings, speak normally and watch the input level indicator. It should move when you talk and stay mostly still when you are silent.
• Confirm that the microphone is not muted in the meeting. Also check whether the organizer has muted participants.
• If the meter stays flat, open the system sound settings and check whether the same microphone shows activity there. If it does, the problem is in GoTo or the browser. If it does not, the problem is the device or the operating system.
• The most reliable check is to join a test or real meeting and ask another participant whether your voice is clear and at a steady volume.

Keep in mind that a moving meter only shows that signal is arriving. It does not tell you how you sound to others. Room echo, background noise, and distance from the microphone all affect clarity, so a check by another listener is worth more than the meter alone.

Common problems and next steps

• No permission prompt appears: you probably denied it before. Change it manually in the system or browser settings above, then restart the app or reload the page.
• The microphone works in other apps but not in GoTo: check that GoTo has the correct input device selected, and that no other calling app is holding the microphone.
• On Windows, another app may hold exclusive control. In Sound settings, open the microphone's device properties and look for an option that lets applications take exclusive control. Turn it off as a test, and note the original setting so you can restore it.
• The sound is distorted or crackling on Windows: in the same device properties, check the default format (sample rate and bit depth). Trying a different value can help. Write down the original value before changing it.
• A Bluetooth headset sounds muffled, or the microphone is not detected: many headsets switch to a lower-quality hands-free mode when the microphone is in use. Try a wired or USB microphone to see whether the headset is the cause.
• Others hear a lot of background noise: move closer to the microphone, lower nearby noise sources, and turn on any noise suppression option your GoTo version provides.
• Settings are locked or greyed out: your organization's device management may block microphone access. Contact your IT administrator.
• Nothing works and you need to join now: use phone dial-in for audio while you fix the computer settings later.