Fix “No audio detected from microphone” in Claude Code.

1. Start a new Claude Code session (quit with /exit and run claude again, or claude --resume to keep the conversation). This fixes the most common causes.
2. Check System Settings → Sound → Input: the right microphone is selected and its level moves when you talk.
3. Check System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone: your terminal (or VS Code) is switched on.

1. You closed the lid, slept the Mac or plugged in AirPods mid-session

   The session keeps recording from the device it found at start-up. When that device disappears or re-appears (closing the lid on Apple Silicon, waking from sleep, Bluetooth headphones connecting), it records silence from then on. Toggling /voice off and on doesn’t help. Start a new session; if that still fails, quit and restart the terminal.

   Reported in #78169 (lid close, closed as not planned), #88890 and #89635 (Bluetooth, sleep). A default-device change fix shipped in v2.1.195 (#65331).

2. Claude Code updated itself while the session was open

   On macOS the auto-updater replaces the binary that a running session still uses, and macOS stops granting that old process the microphone. Recording appears to start but delivers silence. Restart the session (claude --resume keeps your conversation).

   Open issues #99892 and #94687.

3. The session has been running for a very long time

   Voice that worked earlier in a long session can stop. Start a fresh session.

   #52845, a duplicate of #40091 (closed as not planned).

4. The wrong input device is the system default, or its level is at zero

   Claude Code records from the system default input. On macOS open System Settings → Sound → Input, pick your microphone and talk to see the level move. On Windows: Settings → System → Sound → Input.

   From the Claude Code docs.

5. Your terminal isn’t allowed to use the microphone

   macOS grants the microphone to the app Claude Code runs in: Terminal, iTerm2, Ghostty, Warp, or VS Code for its integrated terminal. Turn it on in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone. If the app isn’t listed, reset its permission so macOS asks again, quit the app with ⌘Q, reopen it and run /voice. Always pass the bundle ID: without it, tccutil resets the microphone permission of every app.

   # Terminal: com.apple.Terminal · iTerm2: com.googlecode.iterm2
   # Ghostty: com.mitchellh.ghostty · Warp: dev.warp.Warp-Stable · VS Code: com.microsoft.VSCode
   tccutil reset Microphone com.apple.Terminal
   
   # Not sure of the bundle ID? Ask macOS:
   osascript -e 'id of app "iTerm"'

   From the Claude Code docs.

6. The session was started in the background

   Sessions dispatched with claude agents run in a background process that macOS can’t attribute the microphone to. Dictate in a normal foreground session.

   Open issue #86217.

As of October 2026. From Claude Code’s docs and its GitHub issues.

Why does /voice work in a new tab but not in my old session?

Something changed after the old session started: you switched or reconnected an input device, closed the lid, or Claude Code updated itself. The old session is still bound to the stale device or binary. A new session picks up the current one.

Why is my Claude Code microphone not working?

If Claude Code says “No audio detected from microphone”, recording started but heard only silence: start a new session and check the input device and its level. If it says “Microphone access is denied”, allow your terminal under Privacy & Security → Microphone. If /voice is an unknown command, sign in with /login: voice needs a Claude.ai account and doesn’t work with an API key, Bedrock or Vertex.

How do I enable the microphone for Claude Code?

Run /voice in Claude Code, then allow your terminal app (or VS Code) in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone when macOS asks. On Windows allow desktop apps under Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone.

Is there a way to avoid this entirely?

Use a microphone that isn’t the Mac’s. Copy That records on your iPhone or Apple Watch, transcribes on your Mac with Whisper and pastes into Claude Code, so input devices, lids and microphone permissions on the Mac don’t matter.