How to Use a Webcam Microphone on Discord

The short answer

Most webcams with a built-in microphone appear in Discord as a separate audio input device. To use it, open User Settings (the gear icon next to your username), go to Voice & Video, and choose the webcam's microphone from the Input Device dropdown. Then run Discord's microphone test to confirm it picks up your voice.

Discord handles the camera and the microphone separately. Choosing your webcam under the Camera setting does not switch your audio input to the webcam's microphone, and the reverse is also true. You have to set each one yourself.

This guide covers the Discord desktop app and Discord in a web browser. On phones and tablets, Discord normally uses the device's own microphone, so these steps are not the usual path there.

Before you start

• Connect the webcam directly to your computer and give the system a moment to recognize it. If a USB hub causes trouble, try a port on the computer itself.
• Know roughly what your webcam's microphone is called. It usually includes the webcam's brand or model name, though some show up with a generic label such as "USB Audio" or "Microphone Array."
• Close other apps that might be using the microphone, such as other calling apps or recording software, while you set things up.
• If you use Discord in a browser, use a browser that supports Discord voice and video.

Step 1: Make sure your operating system lets Discord use the microphone

If the system blocks microphone access, Discord can't receive audio, even when the correct device is selected.

• Windows 10 and 11: Open Settings, then Privacy & security (Privacy on Windows 10), then Microphone. Turn on microphone access and make sure desktop apps are allowed to use the microphone. The Discord desktop app falls under desktop apps.
• macOS: Open System Settings (System Preferences on older versions), go to Privacy & Security, then Microphone, and turn on the switch for Discord. If Discord was open when you changed this, quit and reopen it.
• Browser: When Discord asks for microphone access, choose Allow. If you blocked it earlier, open the site permissions for Discord, usually through the icon to the left of the address bar, set Microphone to Allow, and reload the page. The browser itself also needs microphone permission from the operating system, using the same settings described above.

How you'll know it worked: Discord appears in the system's microphone permission list with access turned on, or the browser shows microphone access as allowed for Discord. Permission only allows access. It does not confirm that Discord is receiving any sound.

Step 2: Select the webcam microphone in Discord

• Open User Settings using the gear icon next to your username at the bottom left.
• Under App Settings, choose Voice & Video.
• Open the Input Device dropdown and select the entry that matches your webcam.
• If you see an option called Default, know that it follows your operating system's default microphone. That might not be the webcam. Picking the webcam's entry by name is the more reliable choice.

How you'll know it worked: The webcam's microphone is shown as the selected input device. This only means Discord detects the device. The next step checks whether audio is actually reaching Discord.

If the webcam's microphone isn't listed, unplug the webcam and plug it back in, then fully quit and restart Discord. If it still doesn't appear, check whether the operating system sees it. On Windows, look under Sound settings in the input devices list. On macOS, look under System Settings, then Sound, then Input. If the system doesn't list it either, the issue lies with the connection, the driver or the webcam itself, not with Discord.

Step 3: Test the microphone in Discord

• In the same Voice & Video page, find the microphone test (labeled "Let's Check" in recent versions) and start it.
• Speak at your normal volume and from your normal distance from the webcam.
• Watch the level indicator move as you talk.
• If the test plays your voice back, listen for clarity, background noise and volume.
• Stop the test when you're done.

How you'll know it worked: The indicator moves when you speak and stays mostly still when you're quiet. That confirms input activity. If you can hear the playback, you can also judge whether your voice is intelligible, meaning clear enough to understand, which matters more than the meter alone. A moving meter can still go along with muffled, distant or echoing audio.

About target levels: No verified input-level numbers or decibel thresholds were available for Discord or for particular webcam models, so this guide does not recommend any specific figure. In practice, adjust the Input Volume slider until your speech clearly moves the meter, the playback doesn't sound distorted or clipped, and the meter doesn't stay pinned at maximum.

Step 4: Adjust how Discord decides when you're speaking

Webcam microphones usually sit farther from your mouth than a headset microphone does. As a result, they often pick up your voice more quietly and room sound more noticeably. These settings, found on the same Voice & Video page, are the main ones to check.

• Input Mode: Voice Activity sends audio whenever your sound rises above a threshold. Push to Talk sends audio only while you hold a key you choose. Push to Talk can help if a webcam microphone keeps picking up keyboard or room noise.
• Input Sensitivity: With Voice Activity, Discord can set the threshold for you automatically. You can also turn that off and drag the slider yourself. During a mic test, the threshold should sit where your speech goes past it and quiet background sound stays below it. If people say your first words get cut off, lower the threshold. If they hear constant background noise, raise it.
• Voice processing: Options such as noise suppression and echo cancellation can reduce background sound and speaker echo. If your voice sounds warbly or cut up, try turning these on and off one at a time and compare the results.

Step 5: Confirm the camera separately (if you'll also use video)

In the Video Settings part of Voice & Video, choose your webcam from the Camera dropdown and use Test Video. A preview of your image shows that Discord can capture video from the webcam. This setting is unrelated to the microphone choice from Step 2.

Step 6: Check in a real call

Discord's built-in test shows that the microphone works on your computer. It does not show how you sound to other people after your audio passes through the connection and their own devices. To check that, join a voice channel or call with someone you trust and ask whether they can hear you clearly and steadily.

How you'll know it worked: The green ring around your avatar lights up when you speak, which means Discord is sending your audio. The other person confirming they understand you is the only real test of call quality. If they report dropouts or delay but your local test sounded fine, the cause is more likely your network connection than the microphone.

In the desktop app, you can usually change your input device during a call without opening full settings. Right-click the microphone icon next to your username and pick a device from the menu that appears.

Quick fixes if it still doesn't work

Symptom | Likely cause | What to try

Webcam mic missing from Input Device | Device not recognized, or Discord opened before it was connected | Reconnect the webcam, restart Discord, and confirm the operating system lists the microphone

Device selected but meter never moves | Permission blocked, microphone muted, or another app using it | Recheck Step 1, make sure you're not muted in Discord, and close other audio apps

Meter moves but others can't hear you | Muted or server-muted in the channel, or sensitivity threshold set too high | Check the mute icons and lower the input sensitivity

Voice sounds quiet or distant | Microphone too far away or input volume set low | Move closer to the webcam and raise Input Volume, watching for distortion

Others hear echo of themselves | Your speakers feeding into the webcam microphone | Use headphones or turn on echo cancellation

Audio sounds distorted or cut up | Input level too high or processing artifacts | Lower Input Volume and turn processing options on and off one at a time

If none of these fixes help, try the webcam's microphone in another app or in the operating system's own sound settings. If it fails there too, the problem lies with the device or its driver, not with Discord's settings.