My Phone Speaker Is Not Working [Fixed]

If you’re asking yourself why your phone speaker is not working, you’ve landed on the right page.

Below, you’ll find various tried and tested troubleshooting ideas to fix your smartphone speaker.

Solution 01: Remove TRS Accessories

Tip, ring, and sleeve (TRS) accessory jacks, also known as 3.5 mm audio jacks, disable all speakers on the device, including the loudspeaker at the bottom and the earpiece on the top bezel.

If any such accessories or jacks are connected to the device, remove them and check if the phone speaker is working again.

Solution 02: Turn Up the Device Volume

Is it possible you’ve lowered the media or device volume to its lowest setting? Here’s how to turn up all volume types on your mobile phone:

1. Press the volume down button once.
2. Tap the horizontal three dots icon.
3. The Sound & vibration menu will pop up.

4. Increase the following settings to max:
   • Media volume
   • Call volume
   • Ring volume
   • Notification volume .

If you’re unable to hear any audio in a specific app, disable Multi-volume:

1. Open the Settings app and go to the Sound & vibration screen.
2. Scroll to the bottom to find the Multi-volume setting. Tap on that.

3. Disable the feature by sliding the toggle.

Solution 03: Examine the Speaker

Visually inspect the bottom loudspeaker and top earpiece for dirt or lint. Remove those using a soft and small paintbrush. Do it carefully so you don’t damage the speaker grill or diaphragm.

Water damage to the speaker could also prevent it from functioning properly. Gently tap the speaker’s side or grill on tissue paper to expel water. Then, switch off the device and let it dry for a few hours.

Alternatively, you can use a third-party app to expel water using speaker vibration. Here’s how:

1. Install the Speaker cleaner app from Google Play.
2. Open the app and tap Clean Speaker to start the process.
3. Place your phone on a clean surface with the screen facing down on the surface.
4. Wait for the cleaning process to stop. If you don’t hear any sound from the phone, that’s a hint that cleaning is over.

Solution 04: Test for a Loose Speaker Connection

Play a video or audio file with max sound from the media player app. Now, gently tap near the speaker and see if tapping enables audio. If it does, there’s a loose connection between the speaker hardware and the mobile phone motherboard. Take the device to a service center for advanced hardware troubleshooting.

Solution 05: Disable Bluetooth

When your mobile phone is connected to a Bluetooth audio system, the built-in speaker won’t work. Swipe down from the top of the screen twice. You should see the Bluetooth option.

If the Bluetooth option shows a white or blue background, it’s active. Tap on it to disable it and then play any music on your mobile phone. The speaker should work now.

Solution 06: Enable Ringer

If the speaker isn’t playing any audio during incoming calls, that’s because of the Do Not Disturb feature. Swipe down from the top of the screen twice to see the Do Not Disturb button. Tap on it once to deactivate it.

Solution 07: Set Ringing and Notification Audio

If someone sets None in Sound & vibration options like Phone ringtone (SIM slot 1), Default notification sound, etc., your phone’s speakers won’t work when someone calls or texts you.

Go to Settings > Sound & vibration. Find the following settings and assign a ringtone for them:

• Phone ringtone (SIM slot 1)
• Phone ringtone (SIM slot 2)
• Default notification sound
• Default alarm sound.

Solution 08: Tap on the Right Speaker Button

All incoming phone calls and internet-based voice calls (e.g. Messenger app or WhatsApp) will route audio through the earpiece instead of the loudspeaker.

When you want to route the audio to the loudspeaker, tap on the Speaker icon after receiving the incoming call.

If the speaker icon shows a Bluetooth icon, then a wireless headphone is connected to the device. Disable Bluetooth and then tap on the Speaker icon.

Solution 09: Fix Audio Adjustment Settings

1. Tap on the gear icon (Settings) on the device’s Home Screen.
2. When the Settings app launches, scroll down to find Accessibility. It should be near the Apps settings.
3. Inside Accessibility settings, scroll down to the bottom and tap on the Audio adjustment menu.

4. Here, ensure the Audio balance is set in the middle instead of Left or Right.
5. Also, disable Mono audio if you’ve been using this feature. Or, enable Mono audio if you turned it off previously.

If the speakers start working again, roll back the above Audio adjustment setting to its previous configurations.

Solution 10: Check the Media File or Player

Alternatively, it could be an audio issue related to the file you’re playing.

Try a different audio or video file. Sometimes, the media player app’s sound setting could be the root cause. Make sure you’ve increased the volume of the media player app.

Modern multimedia files come with multiple audio outputs. Apps like VLC media players can switch to different audio outputs depending on the default setting. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open VLC and tap on the Settings icon.
2. Scroll down to the Extra settings section and tap Audio.

3. On the VLC Audio settings screen, scroll down to the bottom and tap on Audio output.

4. Select AudioTrack.

Solution 11: Close All Background Apps

Too many open apps could take up the whole memory of the device and stop it from functioning properly.

So, close all background apps by tapping the square button at the bottom of the screen and then swiping up all app cards to the top of the screen.

Alternatively, you can tap the square button and tap Clear all.

Solution 12: Restart the Device

Temporary and minor program errors on your Android device’s operating system can stop the audio driver from functioning appropriately. So, long press the power button and choose Restart when the power menu shows up.

Solution 13: Clear Cache Partition

1. Power off the mobile phone.
2. Wait for 20 seconds since the screen has turned black.
3. Now, press and hold the power button and volume down button simultaneously.
4. If you can do it properly, the Android logo will show up. This isn’t the ordinary start-up screen of your mobile phone.
5. Wait until you see a menu.
6. Use the volume up or down key to highlight the Android recovery mode option.

7. Press the power button to access it.
8. Again use the volume down or up keys to select the Clear cache partition option.
9. Press the power button to clear the cache.
10. Wait for the device to restart itself.

Solution 14: Reboot to Safe Mode

To rule out any custom launcher, theme, configuration, or third-party app causing the speaker issue, follow these steps:

1. Long press the power button until the power menu shows.
2. Long press the power icon on the screen to bring up the Reboot to safe mode option.
3. Tap OK to reboot the mobile phone into safe mode.

4. Test your mobile phone speakers in safe mode.

Solution 15: Use an Audio-Testing App

1. Install the Speaker Tester app from Google Play.
2. Bypass the subscription prompt by closing it. You can subscribe later if you like it.
3. You should now see the speaker testing console.
4. Tap the Auto Test icon or perform manual tests for Bass, Middle, and High.

6. The device speakers are working perfectly if you can hear any sound from either the earpiece (the top bezel speaker) or the loudspeaker.

Related readings:

• Phone Speaker Not Working But Headphones Do

So, now you know what to do if your phone speaker is not working! If you’re still having issues, there must be a critical hardware failure. Take your mobile phone to an authorized service center.