Fix Android Speaker Not Working

There are times when you find that your Android phone’s speakers have suddenly stopped working. Most users usually realize this when they try to play something on their phone but they hear nothing. If this happens to you, do not panic as there are various reasons your phone’s speakers are not functioning.

There are methods that you can apply to your phone and potentially get the speakers to start working again. These are pretty easy to use methods and you do not need to be tech-savvy to be able to use and follow these methods.

How to Test Android Phone Speaker

Before you go ahead and start fixing your Android device’s speakers, it is a good idea to first test the speakers. It might be that your speakers are working just fine but the way you were trying to use them was not correct.

To test your Android speakers, open the Music app on your phone, and play an audio file. If the file plays and you can hear the audio, that means your speakers are working just fine. Try your speakers with one more app as well just to be sure.

On some phones, you can head into the diagnostic menu to test your speakers. The above method should work just fine on nearly all devices to test the speakers.

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How to Get the Sound Back on Your Phone

Now that you have tested your speakers and found that they are indeed not functioning, you can follow the following methods until the issue is resolved on your phone.

Tip 1. Test the Speakers on the Diagnostic Menu

This is a self-test method for Android phones that allows users to check the quality of certain parts by themselves to determine the cause of the problem. Please follow the steps below to check if there is a problem with the speaker of your Android phone.

Step 1. Open the “Phone” menu and tap the number of “ *#0*# ”to enter the test menu.

Step 2. Choose “Speaker” and then follow the steps to test your phone’s speaker.

Tip 2. Check Do Not Disturb

Do Not Disturb is a mode on Android phones that lets you block all kinds of notifications on your phone. When this mode is enabled, your phone will not play any sounds including any sounds meant to be played from the speakers.

If you are trying to play something while the Do Not Disturb mode is enabled, you might not hear anything from your phone. To fix this, simply turn off the aforesaid mode and your speakers will be back in action again. Here is how you do that.

Step 1. Head to Settings > Sounds & vibration > Do Not Disturb on your phone.

Step 2. Turn the toggle for Do Not Disturb to the OFF position.

You can now try playing an audio file on your phone.

Tip 3. Make Sure Bluetooth is Not Connected

One of the reasons your Android speakers are not working is that you have connected your phone to a Bluetooth device. When this is the case, your phone actually sends the audio signals to the device that you are connected to.

An easy way to get around this issue is to disconnect your phone from that device. To do this, follow the following steps.

Step 1. Go to Settings > Bluetooth & device connection > Bluetooth on your device.

Step 2. Tap the cog icon next to the device you are connected to and select Disconnect.

You can remove the connected device from the list as well if you would like.

Tip 4. Clean the Speaker

In order for your phone’s speakers to properly function, they must be in a good condition. If your speakers have gathered dust and other particles, you will need to clean your device especially the speakers to try and fix the issue.

Get a clean cloth and find where the speakers are located on your phone. Use the cloth to gently wipe the speakers and the area around it. Make sure there is no dust inside of the speakers. If there is, seek technical assistance to remove that dust.

Tip 5. Restart the Device

One of the common methods to fix it when your Android speakers are not working is to reboot your device. If there are apps or other utilities causing interference with your phone’s speakers, turning your phone off and then back on should fix most of those issues. Also, there is no harm in doing this method.

Nearly all Android devices can be rebooted using the Power button. Some devices show on-screen options to let you decide what you want to do with your phone. To reboot your device:

Step 1. Press and hold down the Power button for a few seconds.

Step 2. Tap the option that says Restart to reboot your phone.

When your phone reboots, try playing something from your speakers.

Tip 6. Disable the Silent Mode

You probably already know your phone comes with multiple sound modes. One of these methods is the silent mode, and as the name implies, this mode puts all of the sounds on your phone into silence.

Because of that, your phone does not play anything through the speakers and this makes most of you think that it is your speakers that are not working. You need to turn off the silent mode on your phone to fix the issue.

To do that, flip the switch on your phone that helps switch between modes and put your phone into the general model.

Tip 7. Check App-Specific Sound Settings

Android has many types of apps and certain apps come with their own sound settings. In these apps, you can enable and disable sounds for various activities. If you have turned off the sounds option in these apps, that may be why you cannot play the sound through the speakers while you are using these apps.

Since each app has a unique menu, you cannot follow a generic procedure to get back your sound. The best way to fix the issue, in this case, is to head into the settings menu for your app, and then find the option for sound. Make sure no sound options are disabled.

Tip 8. Use Safe Mode on Your Device

In case you are not already aware, safe mode is a mode on your phone that only loads the essential files to turn your device on. If you have installed any apps and those apps are causing the speaker issues, you can use this mode to troubleshoot the issue and remove the problematic apps.

Using safe mode is as easy as tapping a few options. In fact, your entire system works like normal mode even when you are in safe mode. The method to access safe mode varies by the device you have. The following shows how you access safe mode on an Android phone.

Step 1. Press and hold down the Power button for a few seconds.

Step 2. Tap and hold on the Power off option.

Step 3. You will see a prompt on your screen. Tap OK and your phone will reboot into safe mode.

Step 4. You can now remove the problematic apps and see if your sound is back.

Tip 9. Reset Your Android Phone to the Factory Settings

If you have not had luck with any of the above methods, your last resort is to reset your Android phone to the factory settings. This erases all the data stored on your device including your settings. So you’d better backup your phone before resetting your Android phone to Factory Settings. If you are fine with that, this might fix the speaker issue on the device if it is caused by a software tool.

The following is how you go about resetting your phone.

Step 1. Go to Settings > System > Reset options on your device.

Step 2. Tap Erase all data (factory reset) to reset your phone.

Once your phone is fully reset, your speaker issue should likely be resolved.

The Bottom Line

Your Android phone’s speaker could stop working for various reasons. Luckily, you have several fixes to that and you can apply those to possibly fix the problem on your device. If you have any questions, please leave a message in the comment area.