You’re trying to watch a video on Facebook and there’s NO SOUND 🙁
What the hell is this?!
Maybe the video plays fine but you can’t hear anything, or the sound cuts in and out randomly, or it just sounds muffled and distorted. I’m not gonna lie, Facebook video audio breaks for the dumbest reasons and it’s annoying as hell, deadass..
Why Facebook Videos Have No Sound
Facebook video audio fails for a bunch of stupid reasons, and Facebook never tells you which one is your problem, no cap.
Here’s what’s breaking your sound:
- Video is muted by default – Facebook auto-mutes most videos
- Phone volume is turned down – Sounds obvious but happens constantly
- Bluetooth is stealing audio – Sound going to headphones you forgot about
- App permissions blocking audio – Facebook doesn’t have microphone access
- Speaker is broken or dirty – Hardware issue on your phone
- The video itself has no audio – Uploader didn’t include sound
And let’s break down how to fix each one….
Check If Video Is Just Muted
Facebook auto-mutes videos by default. This is THE most common reason you can’t hear anything!
When a video is playing, look for the speaker icon in the bottom corner. But if it has an X through it, the video is muted. Tap the speaker icon to unmute, IYKYK.
Some videos start muted and you HAVE to manually unmute them every single time. It’s annoying but that’s how Facebook designed it.
Turn Up Your Phone Volume
Sounds basic but SO many people have their media volume turned down without realizing it, fr fr.
Press the volume UP button on the side of your phone while a video is playing. And make sure you’re adjusting MEDIA volume, not ringer volume – they’re separate on most phones.
On iPhone: Go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics and adjust Ringer and Alerts slider. Also make sure Change with Buttons is turned ON so volume buttons control media.
On Android: Press volume button, tap the three dots, make sure Media Volume is turned up. Check that Do Not Disturb isn’t blocking all sounds.
Check If Bluetooth Is Stealing Audio
If your phone is connected to Bluetooth headphones or a speaker you forgot about, audio goes THERE instead of your phone speaker, deadass.
Turn off Bluetooth completely!
Swipe down from top of screen (notification shade). Tap the Bluetooth icon to turn it OFF. Try playing the video again – sound should come through your phone speaker now.
Or go to Settings > Bluetooth and disconnect any connected devices. Sometimes Bluetooth stays connected to your car or wireless earbuds even when you’re not using them..
Forget Problematic Bluetooth Devices
If a Bluetooth device keeps auto-connecting and stealing audio, forget it completely.
So go to Settings > Bluetooth, find the device, tap the (i) icon, select Forget This Device. This stops it from auto-connecting in the future.
Check Facebook’s video help page for more official troubleshooting tips.
Silent Mode Is Blocking Audio
If your phone is in silent/vibrate mode, Facebook videos might not play audio even when unmuted!
Turn off silent mode!
On iPhone: Check the physical switch on the left side of your phone. If you see orange, silent mode is ON. Flip it so you don’t see orange anymore.
On Android: Press volume button, make sure it’s on Ring or Sound mode, not Vibrate or Silent.
Clear Facebook Cache And Update
Corrupted app data can break audio on Facebook videos without you realizing it, no cap.
Android Cache Clear
Go to Settings > Apps > Facebook > Storage > Clear Cache. Don’t clear data yet, just cache. Restart phone, open Facebook, try playing a video.
But if clearing cache doesn’t fix it, THEN clear data too. You’ll have to log back in but it fixes most audio glitches.
iPhone Reinstall
Delete Facebook app completely, restart your phone, reinstall from App Store. And log back in and test video sound.
This works surprisingly often..
Update Facebook App
Old versions have audio bugs that get fixed in newer releases, fr fr.
Update on iPhone: App Store, search Facebook, tap Update.
Update on Android: Google Play Store, search Facebook, tap Update.
Having other video problems? Learn how to fix videos not playing if that’s also broken…
Test If Your Speaker Works
Maybe the problem isn’t Facebook – maybe your phone’s speaker is broken or clogged with dirt!
Play music from another app (YouTube, Spotify, etc). If you can’t hear sound ANYWHERE, your speaker is the problem, not Facebook.
Clean Your Speaker
Dirt and lint can block your phone speaker and make audio super quiet or completely silent.
Use a soft brush or toothpick to gently clean the speaker grille. Don’t jam anything in hard – just brush away visible dirt and debris.. Test audio again after cleaning.
Check Facebook App Permissions
Sometimes Facebook doesn’t have proper permissions to play audio on your device.
On iPhone: Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone. Make sure Facebook is toggled ON.
On Android: Settings > Apps > Facebook > Permissions. Enable Microphone if it’s off.
And restart Facebook after changing permissions. Try playing a video with sound again….
Also dealing with Facebook Live audio issues? That’s a related problem…
The Video Actually Has No Audio
Sometimes the video you’re trying to watch legitimately has no sound because the person who uploaded it didn’t include audio.
How to tell: Try playing OTHER Facebook videos. If those have sound but one specific video doesn’t, that video just has no audio track.
Nothing you can do about this except find a different version of the video or ask the uploader why there’s no sound.
Headphones Plugged In But Not Working
If you have wired headphones plugged in but can’t hear audio, the headphone jack or lightning port might be dirty or damaged.
Unplug the headphones completely and try playing video through phone speaker first. But if that works, the problem is your headphones or the jack, not Facebook.
Clean the headphone jack/lightning port with compressed air or a soft brush. Try different headphones to see if those work better, IYKYK.
Browser Version Might Work Better
If Facebook app audio is completely broken, try watching videos in a mobile browser instead.
Open Chrome or Safari on your phone. Go to facebook.com. Find the video you want to watch. Audio might work fine in browser even if the app is broken.
This bypasses whatever glitch is affecting the app.
Automatic Captions But No Sound
Facebook shows captions on many videos but that doesn’t mean the video HAS audio!
Captions can be auto-generated from the audio OR manually added by the uploader even if there’s no sound. So seeing captions doesn’t guarantee the video has an audio track.
Always check for the speaker icon and try unmuting first before assuming the video is supposed to have sound..
Having other Facebook issues? Check out why notifications aren’t working while you’re troubleshooting..
Audio Cuts Out Randomly
Sound plays for a few seconds then stops? Or it keeps cutting in and out during the video?
This is usually a connection issue!
Poor WiFi or mobile data causes audio to buffer and drop. Switch between WiFi and mobile data to see which works better. Move closer to your WiFi router if possible.
Restart your router – unplug for 30 seconds, plug back in. This fixes a LOT of connection problems that cause choppy audio.
Factory Settings Blocking Audio
Some phones have power-saving or data-saving modes that can block video audio to save battery or data.
Check if Low Power Mode (iPhone) or Battery Saver (Android) is turned on. These modes can disable background audio features.
Turn them off temporarily and test Facebook video sound again. Also check Data Saver settings – some phones reduce video quality and audio when data saver is active.
What Actually Works
Facebook video sound fails for multiple reasons – videos auto-muted by default, phone volume down, Bluetooth stealing audio, silent mode enabled, corrupted app data, or broken phone speaker!
Your best fixes: Check if video is muted and tap speaker icon to unmute, turn up media volume on your phone, disable Bluetooth if it’s stealing audio, turn off silent mode, clear cache (Android) or reinstall (iPhone), update Facebook app to latest version.
And remember to test OTHER videos and apps to see if it’s Facebook-specific or a phone-wide audio problem. If NO apps have sound, your speaker is broken or clogged with dirt.
Most audio issues can be fixed in 5-10 minutes once you know what to check. But if nothing works after trying everything? Your phone’s speaker might need professional repair 😉
If this helped you fix Facebook video sound, share it with friends who are also watching silent videos!
