Speaker test
Check each speaker separately, sweep the full frequency range, and find out whether your sound output is working. No permission needed.
Left and right channels
Play each side and check the sound comes from the speaker it says. If Left plays on your right, your channels are swapped, which is a cable or a settings problem rather than a fault.
Stereo image
Frequency range
Listen for where the sound disappears at each end, and for any buzz or rattle. Laptop speakers commonly produce nothing below about 200 Hz, which is normal for their size rather than a fault.
Single tone
Hearing range
Play each frequency and mark the ones you can hear. Work upward and stop when you hear nothing.
What each section checks
Left and right channels
The most useful test on the page. Playing one side at a time immediately answers three separate questions: whether each speaker produces sound at all, whether they are connected to the side they claim, and whether one is quieter than the other.
Sound from only one side is the single most common speaker complaint, and it is far more often a balance setting or a partly inserted plug than a dead speaker.
Stereo image
The tone moves continuously from left to right. On working stereo output it should travel smoothly and reach each extreme cleanly. A tone that jumps rather than glides, or never fully leaves one side, points at a balance setting or a mono downmix somewhere in the chain.
Frequency sweep
Runs from 20 Hz to 20 kHz over about eighteen seconds. Listen for where sound appears and disappears at each end, and for any buzz that only occurs in a narrow band.
The sweep compensates for how human hearing works. Ears are far more sensitive around 3 kHz than at the extremes, so a sweep played at constant amplitude is inaudible at the bottom and unpleasantly loud in the middle. This one adjusts level as it climbs to stay roughly even, which makes the roll-off points much easier to hear.
Single tone
Holds one frequency so you can compare speakers, check whether a rattle is frequency-specific, or find a resonance in the room.
Hearing range
Steps through frequencies from 50 Hz to 20 kHz. Treat the result as information about your whole setup rather than about your ears, for the reason in the questions below.
If you hear nothing at all
Work through these in order, because the first three account for most cases.
- Check the output device. Your computer may be sending audio somewhere else entirely: a monitor over HDMI, a disconnected Bluetooth headset, or a virtual device installed by conferencing software. This is the most common cause by a wide margin.
- Check the volume in three places. System volume, per-application volume for your browser, and any hardware dial or mute switch. A browser muted in the system mixer looks identical to broken speakers.
- Check the tab is not muted. Browsers let you mute individual tabs, and it is easy to do accidentally. A muted tab usually shows a crossed-out speaker icon.
- Try headphones. If headphones work and speakers do not, the problem is the speakers or the port they use, not the computer's audio.
What this test cannot tell you
It measures nothing. There is no microphone involved, so the page has no way to know what actually came out of your speakers. Everything here depends on what you hear, which makes it excellent for finding dead channels and roll-off points and useless for measuring frequency response properly.
Volume comparisons between devices are also unreliable, since system volume, hardware gain and speaker sensitivity all sit between this page and your ears.
Common questions
Does this test need microphone permission?
No. This tool only plays sound, it does not listen, so no browser permission prompt appears. If you want to test your microphone instead, that is a separate tool and it does ask, because recording requires permission.
Why do the tones sound louder than music at the same volume?
Pure tones concentrate all their energy at one frequency, while music spreads it across many. At an identical system volume a sine wave is perceived as considerably louder and more fatiguing. Start with the test volume low and raise it gradually.
My laptop produces nothing below about 200 Hz. Is it broken?
Almost certainly not. Small drivers physically cannot move enough air to reproduce low frequencies. Most laptop and phone speakers roll off somewhere between 150 and 300 Hz, and that is a size limitation rather than a fault.
Left plays on my right side. What is wrong?
Your channels are swapped, which is a wiring or settings problem rather than a hardware failure. Check that the cables are in the correct sockets, that a headset is not on backwards, and that no balance or channel swap option is enabled in your sound settings or your audio interface software.
Is the hearing range section a hearing test?
No, and it should not be treated as one. What reaches your ears depends on your speakers, your volume and your room as much as on your hearing. Most laptop speakers cannot reproduce above about 15 kHz at all, so a low result usually reflects the equipment. If you are genuinely concerned about your hearing, see an audiologist, who can test it properly under controlled conditions.
I hear a rattle or buzz at certain frequencies.
That usually means something is resonating rather than the speaker failing. Check for loose panels on the laptop or desk, objects touching the speaker grille, and anything sitting on the same surface. If the rattle persists with the speaker isolated, the driver itself may be damaged.
Troubleshooting guides
Test your other hardware
Most hardware faults travel in pairs. If one device is misbehaving, check the rest.