Can’t hear people on Discord – how to fix Discord no sound

Before you tinker with any settings, you have to check if your audio output, like headphones or speakers, is actually working properly. To do this, you can run a quick check by – 

• Connect your headphones or speakers to another device
• Check if the output is working with any other app
• Disconnect and reconnect the audio output

If the output device is working with other devices and apps, it means there might be a problem with audio settings within Discord. 

By some accident, you might have changed the audio settings in Discord. To check if everything is okay, head over to the Discord app > Settings > Voice & Video. Once you locate this, check if – 

• The selected input and output devices are right
• Input and output volumes are maxed out or set at an appropriate level

Another quick fix that might work, especially if Discord has just been updated, is that you can restart the app. To do this, close the application, wait for a few seconds, and then launch it again. 

As mentioned in our how to update Discord guide, the app scans for updates when you launch it and updates itself automatically. However, if for some reason the update wasn’t done, you will have to do it manually. 

Here’s how to do it –

• Exit Discord and re-launch the app. This will trigger the automatic scan and install process for updates
• Hit the Ctrl + R shortcut to trigger the scan process

If there are any updates, let them get install. Then, restart the app and see if the audio is working.

If you are using the desktop app and your headphones or speakers don’t seem to work with it, you can give the mobile app or the Discord web a shot. If you can hear people on the mobile app or web, then you can consider using it temporarily. 

One of the easiest steps you can take in fixing your audio output issue is to make sure your audio device is set to your primary input & output device.

To do this, follow these steps – 

• Go to your PC Settings > System > Sound
• In Sound settings, under Output, you will see ‘Choose where to play sound’
• Click on the option, and a dropdown menu of available output options will appear – select the right option here
• Check if you can hear audio on Discord

Sometimes, hardware components aren’t compatible with Discord’s latest audio subsystem. Simply reverting to the legacy audio subsystem will resolve this issue.

Here’s how to do it – 

• Head over to Discord settings
• Select the “Voice & Video” tab
• Scroll down and find the “Audio Subsystem” section
• From the drop-down menu, select the “Legacy” option
• Select OK, and let Discord restart
• Check if the audio works now

We always like to steer away from reinstalling software as it’s a tedious, tiresome task. However, it can be necessary for certain scenarios. If Discord isn’t playing ball, I’d definitely recommend doing a full reinstall because its a relatively quick process, unlike other software.

You can completely delete and reinstall Discord in about five minutes. If it doesn’t work after the reinstall, then you know it has something to do with the computer configuration with Discord.