How to Manage Camera Permissions in Microsoft Edge

Microsoft Edge decides camera access per website. Your operating system decides separately whether Edge may use the camera at all. Both must allow access before a site can show your video. This guide covers both layers, how to choose the camera Edge offers to sites, and how to confirm that the change worked.

Before you start

• Connect the webcam, or confirm the built-in camera is enabled. Some laptops have a physical shutter, a privacy switch or a function key that turns the camera off.
• Close other apps that may be using the camera, such as video call clients or recording software. Depending on the device and driver, a camera in use elsewhere may be unavailable to the browser.
• Update Microsoft Edge if possible. Settings labels and their location in the menu have changed between versions, so your screen may not match every name below exactly.
• If the computer is managed by an employer or school, some camera settings may be locked by policy and show a note that your organization manages them.

The permission settings themselves are stored in your Edge profile on the device, and changing them does not need an online service. What a website does with the video after you allow access is a separate question. Some camera tests run entirely in the browser, while call services send video to their servers. Check each site's own privacy information instead of assuming the video stays on your device.

Step-by-step instructions

1. Change the permission for the site you are on

This is the quickest way to fix a single site. Open the website and select the icon at the left of the address bar. Depending on the page and version, this is a lock or a site information icon. Open the site's permissions and set Camera to Allow, Block or Ask. Reload the page so the site requests the camera again with the new setting. To undo the change, return to the same panel and switch the value back, or use the option to reset the site's permissions if your version shows one.

2. Review camera settings for all sites

Open the Settings and more menu (the three dots), choose Settings, then open the area for site permissions. In many versions it is labelled Cookies and site permissions. Choose Camera there. If you cannot find it, type camera into the search box at the top of the Settings page.

• Ask before accessing: when on, sites must ask before using the camera. When off, Edge blocks camera requests without asking. Keep it on unless you want to block every site by default.
• Block list: sites listed here cannot use the camera. Remove a site with the menu or delete button next to its entry if you blocked it by mistake.
• Allow list: sites listed here can use the camera without asking again. Remove sites you no longer trust or use.

3. Choose the selected camera

If more than one camera is connected, such as a built-in camera plus a USB webcam or a virtual camera from another app, the Camera settings page usually shows a drop-down list of devices. The camera chosen there is the default that Edge offers to sites. Many call and meeting sites also have their own device menu, and that choice can override the browser default for the site. If the wrong image appears, check both places.

4. Allow Edge in the operating system

If a site still cannot see the camera after you allow it in Edge, check the operating-system permissions.

• Windows 11 and Windows 10: open Settings, go to the privacy section and choose Camera. Make sure camera access is on, that apps are allowed to access the camera, and that desktop apps are allowed to access the camera. Edge is a desktop app, so it relies on that last setting. Exact labels differ between Windows versions.
• macOS: open System Settings (System Preferences on older versions), go to Privacy & Security, choose Camera and turn on Microsoft Edge. macOS may ask you to quit and reopen Edge before the change applies.
• Other systems: look in the system privacy or permission settings for a camera entry that lists Edge.

Check the output

Open a page that uses the camera, such as a webcam test page or a meeting preview, and allow access when prompted. While a site is using the camera, Edge normally shows a camera indicator in the address bar. Selecting it shows which site has access and lets you change the setting. Some systems also show their own indicator, such as a light next to the lens or an icon in the taskbar or menu bar.

Confirm that the preview shows the expected camera rather than a different or virtual device. Resolution and frame rate depend on the camera hardware, its driver, the format the website requests and the available bandwidth. Allowing access does not raise them. If a site reports these values, treat them as what that site received, not as the camera's maximum. Poor lighting often causes a dark or noisy image and can lower the frame rate on some webcams, so test in steady, front-facing light before assuming a settings problem.

Common problems and next steps

• No permission prompt appears: the site may already be in the Block list, or Ask before accessing may be off. Remove the site from the block list or switch to Ask, then reload the page.
• Permission is allowed but the video is black or missing: check the operating-system permissions, the physical shutter or privacy key, and whether another app is holding the camera. Close that app and reload the page.
• The wrong camera is used: change the selected camera in Edge settings and in the site's own device menu, then reload the page.
• The camera appears in other apps but not in Edge: restart Edge after changing operating-system settings, and check whether an extension that controls privacy or media is blocking access.
• Settings are greyed out or marked as managed: an administrator policy controls them, so contact whoever manages the device.
• Permissions are forgotten in InPrivate windows: InPrivate browsing does not keep site settings after the window closes, so allow the camera again in each session or use a normal window.
• The site still fails in Edge but works in another browser: clear or reset that site's permissions in Edge and try again, then contact the site's support with the browser version and any error message it shows.