How to Fix Headphones Not Working on Windows 10

Microsoft regularly releases Windows updates to fix problems in Windows 10. But sometimes these updates also cause issues in Windows 10. Recently an update caused headphone issues on Windows 10. Many users reported that their headphones were not working on Windows 10 after the update. And some users complained that Windows 10 was not even detecting the headphones.

Besides Windows updates, there might be other reasons causing headphone issues on your Windows 10. Altogether, it’s a huge inconvenience when your headphones suddenly stop working. So, in this tutorial, we are going to show you how to fix headphones not working on the Windows 10 issue. We will start with basic troubleshooting first.

SEE ALSO:
1. How to Fix Windows Update Issues in Windows 10?
2. How to get Windows Startup Sound back in Windows 10?

Fixing Headphones issue on Windows 10

When you have multiple audio input/output devices connected to your PC, Windows 10 sometimes fails to decide the input or output device. In such cases, you can fix the headphones not working issue by manually selecting the input/output devices on Windows 10.

1. Manually Select Input and Output Audio Devices

  • Search for “sound” in the Start menu and click on Sound Settings from the search results.
Search For Sound And Open Sound Settings
Open Sound Settings
  • Now, manually select your output (headphones) and input (mic) devices from dropdowns. After selecting the proper devices, headphones not working on Windows 10 issue should be resolved.
Select Proper Input And Output Device to fix headphones not working issue in Windows 10
Select Proper Input And Output Devices

2. Fix Basic Sound Issues with Windows Troubleshooter

  • If your issue is not solved in the previous step, click Device Properties under Output and Input Devices. In Device Properties, uncheck Disable if it is checked. Do this for both input and output devices.
Make Sure Your Headphone Device Is Not Disabled in Windows 10
Make Sure Your Headphone Device is Not Disabled
  • If everything is right in Device Properties, go back and click on the Troubleshoot button. Now, let the troubleshooter fix the “headphones not working on Windows 10” issue.
Click On Troubleshoot To Check Sound Issues and fix headphones not working on Windows 10
Use Troubleshooter to fix Headphone problems

3. Fix the “Headphones Not Working Issue” from the Sound Control Panel

  • If you are still stuck with your headphones issue on Windows 10, let’s try to fix it using the Sound Control Panel. Go to RUN (Windows + R), type the following command and press Enter.
control /name Microsoft.Sound
Go To Run And Open Microsoft Sound Properties
Go to the RUN and open the Sound Control Panel
  • Now, right-click on your headphone device and select Enable to enable your headphones device if it is disabled. If you don’t see your headphone device listed here, it might be due to driver issues. We will see that in the next section.
Enable speaker or headphone in sound control panel to fix headphones not working in windows 10
Make sure your Headphone is Enabled

4. Fix Headphones Not Working or Detecting on Windows 10 due to Driver Issues

If your headphones are not showing up in the list of input or output devices on Windows 10, then it might be a driver issue. Here, we will update the audio driver in Device Manager to fix the headphones not working on Windows 10.

  • To open Device Manager, go to RUN, type devmgmt.msc and press Enter.
Go To Run And Type Devmgmt Msc To Open Device Manager
Run > Type devmgmt.msc > Press Enter
  • In Device Manager, expand Audio inputs and outputs. Now, right-click on Speaker/Headphone… and select Update driver.
Update Sound Drivers From Device Manager to fix headphones not working on windows 10 issue
Update Sound Drivers from Device Manager
  • Now, you will see an option to update drivers automatically or manually. Click on “Search automatically for drivers” and Windows will automatically update the drivers to the latest version. You might need to restart your computer after that.
Click On Search Automatically For The Drivers to fix headphones not working on windows 10
Click on Search automatically for drivers

NOTE: If your headphones have hardware issues, you will have to get it repaired from the service center first.


5. Fixing the Headphones Issue via the Native Sound App

Besides Windows 10’s default Sound Control Panel, you will find a native Sound App on your PC based on your audio chipset type. For example, if your audio chipset is from DTS, you will find the DST Audio Control app on your Windows 10 PC.

  • Search for “dts” in the Start menu and open the DTS Audio Control app.
Search And Open Audio Application
Search And Open Native Audio Application
  • Now, go to the Listening Experience tab and select the proper input/output device in the Device dropdown. This should fix the headphones not working on the Windows 10 issue.
Select Your Headphone Or Mic As Input Device To Fix Headphone Issues On Windows 10
Select Input/Output Device from Device dropdown

Headphones Not Working on Windows 10 – Issue Resolved

The above tutorial explained several methods to fix the headphones not working on Windows 10 issue. Starting from basic troubleshooting to updating the drivers and many other ways surely would have helped you solve the issue. So, by now, your headphones issue might have been resolved. In case you are still facing the issue, you can try resetting your Windows 10 as a last resort.

Hope the above tutorial helped you solve the headphones issue. In case you still have some queries and suggestions, feel free to share them in the comment section down below. You may also consider subscribing to our newsletter to get the latest tutorials directly into your inbox.

Editorial Staff

Hi there, we are the editorial staff at WINDOSPC (former HELLPC). We are a team of funny and technical people. Feel free to get in touch with us via Contact-Us page.

One Comment

  1. On reboot, headphones will work properly..Once removed from the jack, the headphones will not work again.

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