While participating in a video conference using Zoom, it is sometimes necessary to turn off the microphone to cough, eliminate background noise, or simply be polite while other people are talking. Here’s how to do it.
Mute the sound using the Zoom toolbar
To mute the audio during a Zoom meeting, you need to display the toolbar.
- On a PC or Mac, hover over the Zoom window and it will open. On an iPhone, iPad, or Android, touch the screen until the toolbar appears.
- Find the “Mute” button (which looks like a microphone) on the toolbar. On a Mac, PC, web client, or smartphone, the toolbar extends to the bottom of the screen or window. On a tablet, the toolbar appears at the top of the screen. Click or tap the “Disable” button.
- The Mute icon will turn into a barred microphone and the text will now say “Reactivate”. The microphone is now off and no one on the call can hear you.
To reactivate the microphone, click or tap the “Reactivate” button on the toolbar. After clicking “Reactivate”, the microphone will be active again and all users of the call will be able to listen to you.
Read also: How to use the whiteboard in Zoom and other tricks
Mute the sound using the Zoom keyboard shortcuts
You can also quickly silence yourself on PC or Mac using the Zoom keyboard shortcuts. If you are using a Windows 10 PC, press the Alt + A keys to turn the audio on and off. If you are using a Mac, you can press Shift + Command + A to turn the audio on and off.
Learn more about zooming out
If you are organizing a Zoom meeting full of interruptions or distracting background noise, you can simultaneously mute the sound of all the participants in the call by using the “Mute all” button in the “Participants” list.
And, if you are not hosting, but you are struggling to hear the host with the audio of all the other conference participants, you can use these keyboard shortcuts on PC or Mac to mute the sound of everyone except the host:
- Enable/disable audio for all except host (PC): Alt + M
- Mute all but the host (Mac): Command + Ctrl + M
- Turn audio on for everyone except the host (Mac): Command + Ctrl + U
Happy zoom!
