How to Fix Google Chrome No Sound or Audio Output

Many users prefer to stream their favorite content on their laptops rather than on their smartphones. The more immersive viewing experience and the ability to watch videos in 4K chooses PC are even more apparent.

Following this tradition, recently, I opened Chrome and was about to play a popular TV series online. However, I noticed one major issue bugging the entire experience — the browser couldn’t play audio.

To be double sure, I tried a slew of other apps, and they were able to play the audio without any fuss. So all this made one clear- the issue was with the Chrome browser itself.

Furthermore, it turned out quite a few concerning users are facing this issue. Fortunately, a few workarounds exist that should help you fix Google Chrome has no sound or audio issues. So without further ado, let’s check them out.

Verify Chrome Audio Settings

In this section, we will be verifying three necessary Chrome audio settings. These involve checking the tab’s mute option, verifying that Chrome can play audio across websites, and checking the browser’s Sound Mixer settings.

Here are the steps to check if the site is Unmute in the browser:

1. Launch the Chrome browser and right-click on the tab that isn’t playing audio.
2. If you get the Unmute option, then it means that you have muted the tab.
3. Click on the Unmute site and bring back the audio.
   

However, if that is not the case, check the Chrome Sound Settings page.

1. Click on More for the menu list and select the Settings option.
2. Then navigate to Privacy and Security and select Site Settings.
3. Click on Additional Site Settings and choose Sound.
4. Now make sure that Allow sites to play sound toggle is turned on.
   
5. Likewise, verify that the site isn’t blocklisted under the Mute section.

If that’s all well and good, you need to check the sound settings within the operating system. macOS does not have the custom sound option for the selected apps.

Here are the quick steps for Windows OS sound settings:

1. Move to the Taskbar and click the upward arrow to open the Windows tray.
2. Right-click on the Sound icon and select Open Volume Mixer.
   
3. Make sure Chrome isn’t muted and set at a high sound limit.
   

All these three methods are the basic fixes, but in most instances, they are known to rectify the Chrome audio issues. See if it can spell out success in your case or not.

Check Chrome Output Source (Windows OS)

If there is more than one output device connected to your PC, then it might be the case that Chrome is using the inactive source. To verify that Chrome is using the correct audio source, proceed with the following instructions:

1. Bring up the Windows Settings page via Windows + I shortcut keys.
2. Then go to System and select the Sound option.
3. Scroll to Advanced Sound Options and hit on App volume and device preferences.
   
4. Now check the Output source next to Chrome and make sure that it is set to the right one (i.e., Default).
   
5. If that is not the case, select the option from the drop-down.
6. Once done, restart the browser and check if it fixes the Chrome sound and audio issue.

Sometimes, you might have a wireless headset connected to your PC, and the sound might be routed through it. In such cases, reverting to the default audio source, as mentioned above, should be able to rectify the issue.

Disconnect Bluetooth Audio Devices

There are chances that your Bluetooth audio devices have taken precedence over the system speaker. Hence, you should disconnect the Bluetooth device. The best way to do this is to disable the Bluetooth feature within the operating system.

Turn Off Bluetooth on Mac

1. Open System Preferences from the Apple icon.
2. Select Bluetooth from the Preferences window.
3. Click on the Turn Bluetooth Off command button.
   

Turn Off Bluetooth on Windows

Reset Chrome Browser

Resetting the browser will delete the temporary data and disable all the extensions.

Since most browser issues usually stem from either of these two components, you could consider resetting the browser to its default settings. Here are the steps to reset:

1. Launch the Chrome browser and type in chrome://settings/reset in the Omnibox (address bar).
   This will take you to the Reset page.
2. Click on Reset settings to their original defaults.
   
3. Finally, click the Reset Settings command button.
   
4. Once the process stands complete, restart the browser.

When a lot of temporary data accumulates over time or due to a malicious third-party extension, the browser might not function as expected. In that case, resetting it is the best route forward.

Bottom Line

With this, we conclude the guide on how to fix the Chrome sound and audio issues. While sound issues on your PC could be attributed to audio drivers, this time, it doesn’t seem to be the case.

The reason was that all the other apps could play the sound well and well, and the issue was only with this offering from the Silicon Valley tech giants.

With that said, in my case, the issue was attributed to Chrome’s audio source, and switching it to the default one rectified the issue.

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