Chrome browser sometimes stops playing audio on one or more websites while the system sound continues to work. Usually, a temporary mute on one website causes this, which you can fix by unmuting the page. Other times, the issue can be more severe.
If you are having trouble watching your favorite show on Chrome due to no sound, then here are some fixes that you can try.
1. Rule Out Hardware Issues
Check your hardware first before moving on to major software fixes. When Chrome stops playing audio, turn it off and try playing the audio on a different browser or using the system media player. If an issue persists throughout your system, it is not Chrome-specific, and you can resolve it by simply plugging and unplugging the sound device, replacing your output sound device, or updating the sound driver.
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If the issue is limited to Chrome, you may want to try turning off and turning back on the browser to see if this resolves the issue. Also, you can reboot your computer once to make sure a temporary glitch isn't the cause of the problem. When both of these fixes fail, it's time to troubleshoot the issue using the below fixes.
2. Check Sound on Other Websites
Start by playing sound on websites other than the one where the sound isn't playing. When you are sure that the problem lies with one website, you can unmute that tab or website to start listening to sound again. Here is how to do it:
- Open the website in a separate tab where the sound isn't working.
- Right-click on the tab.
- Click Unmute Site from the list.
If the sound is not muted already and the issue persists across Chrome, the problem lies elsewhere and needs further investigation. Continue using the fixes below in that case.
3. Check Chrome Sound Settings
If the issue is consistent throughout Chrome, you may have disabled the setting that enables websites to play sound. To confirm, follow these steps:
- In the top-right corner, click on the three vertical dots.
- Go to Settings and navigate to Security and Privacy in the left-sidebar.
- In the right-hand pane, click Site Settings.
- Scroll down and click on Additional content settings.
- Go to the Sound settings.
- Instead of Don't allow sites to play sound, select Sites can play sound.
In addition to that, Chrome allows you to mute a few websites by adding them to the list of sites that are not permitted to play sound in the customized behaviors option. Thus, make sure you have not blacklisted websites that might not be playing any sound.
If no websites were excluded, nor were sound settings disabled, check that Chrome sound isn't set to zero in the Volume Mixer.
4. Check Sound in Volume Mixer
With a Volume Mixer, you can mute your speakers, your system, or the sound from individual browsers. Here are the steps to ensure that Chrome isn't muted in Volume Mixer:
- Play a video or audio in Chrome with the sound on.
- Right-click on the speaker icon in the lower-right corner.
- Click on Open Volume Mixer.
- If Chrome is already muted, unmute it and set the volume to 100.
Alternatively, if the volume wasn't muted in the Volume Mixer, then you should try a few more system-level fixes, such as running the sound troubleshooter and updating the sound driver.
5. Run Sound Troubleshooter
Microsoft Windows includes built-in troubleshooters that diagnose and fix most system issues automatically. Similar troubleshooting is available for sound issues, as well. Thus, run it to ensure that a temporary problem from the system isn't muting your Chrome browser.
To run the Sound troubleshooter, follow these steps:
- Press Win + I to open the Settings app.
- Go to System Settings.
- In the left-sidebar, click Sound.
- Click on the troubleshoot button in the right-hand pane.
By doing so, the Get Help window will appear, where you'll be asked to allow the system to run a quick scan. Click Yes there to run a quick scan to troubleshoot the sound issue. Hearing a beep confirms that the problem doesn't lie on the system side.
Even then, update the sound driver as a last resort to eliminate any software issues.
6. Update Your Sound Drivers
To update the sound driver, follow the below steps:
- Right-click on This PC and navigate to Manage.
- Go to Device Manager on the left sidebar.
- Expand the category of Sound, video, and game controllers.
- Right-click on the sound driver and hit Update driver.
Updating the driver hasn't changed anything? It's time to rule out browser-specific issues.
7. Clear the Browser History and Cache
An unclean history and a piled-up cache can also silence your browser over time. To rule out this possibility, clear the browser's history and cache. Follow these steps to do so:
- Press Ctrl + H to open the Chrome history page.
- Click on Clear browsing data on the left-sidebar.
- Check the boxes for Browsing history, Download history, Cookies and other site data, and Cached images and files.
- Hit Clear data.
If cleaning your browser history and clearing its cache does not help, consider resetting your browser settings.
8. Reset Chrome
You can reset Chrome by following these steps:
- Click on the three vertical dots in the top-right corner.
- Go to Settings.
- Go to the Advanced menu on the left sidebar.
- Click on Reset and clean up.
- Click on Restore settings to their original defaults.
- In the popup menu, click Reset settings.
Resetting Chrome will return all your browser settings to default and resolve the Chrome not playing sound issue along with improving your browser's performance. However, it comes at a cost since all your customizations will be gone, and you'll have to start from scratch with your browser.
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Chrome Still Not Playing Any Sound?
In case Chrome is still speechless, you should try a few other fixes as a last resort to regain your browser's voice. Among them are disabling the browser extensions, performing a malware scan in your system, running a browser cleanup, and reinstalling Chrome. Even if that doesn't work, you'll have no choice but to switch to another browser until the problem is resolved temporarily.
Do you have a sluggish Chrome browser? It's then time to speed things up by switching your default search engine to Chrome, closing resource-hungry tabs, updating your browser or clearing its cache, and last but not least, disabling hardware acceleration.