You finish a perfect screen recording — a gameplay run, a tutorial, a video call moment — press stop, play it back, and hear... nothing. The video is flawless and completely silent. This is one of the most common screen recording complaints on Android, and it has a mercifully simple explanation most of the time: the recorder was never told to capture audio in the first place.
Android's built-in recorder (and most third-party ones) default to No sound unless you change it before pressing record. The six fixes below start with that one setting and work outward to permissions, volume, and the app itself. Set aside five minutes, and run them in order. Covers Android 10 through 14; note that true internal-audio capture needs Android 11 or newer.
Quick Answer
Open the screen recorder's settings before recording and pick an audio source — Device audio for app/game sound, Device audio + microphone if you also want your voice. The default is usually No sound, which is why recordings come out silent. Also turn up media volume and grant the recorder microphone permission.
In This Guide
Fix 1: Turn On "Record Audio" Before You Record
On stock Android, opening the Screen Record tile shows an audio source picker — and it quietly remembers whatever you picked last time. If you (or a previous recording) left it on No sound, every recording since has been silent. Samsung's recorder hides the same choice behind a settings gear on its control bar. Either way: the setting must be chosen before the countdown starts.
- Swipe down twice from the top to open full Quick Settings and tap Screen Record (on Samsung: Screen recorder). If the tile is missing, tap the pencil icon and drag it in.
- Before tapping Start, look for the audio option: on Pixel it is a dropdown labeled Record audio; on Samsung, tap the gear icon on the recording bar and open Sound settings.
- Choose an audio source (see Fix 2 for which one), then tap Start.
- Make a 5-second test recording and play it back with the volume up to confirm sound is captured.
- If the audio option is greyed out entirely, the app you are about to record may be blocking audio capture — some apps do (see Fix 6).
Fix 2: Choose the Right Audio Source
"No sound" is only one of several wrong choices. Picking Microphone when you wanted game audio gives you room noise and no game sound; picking Device audio when you wanted commentary gives you the game and none of your voice. The names also differ by brand, which makes this genuinely confusing.
- Know the options. Pixel / stock Android: No sound, Device audio, Device audio and microphone. Samsung (One UI): No sound, Media sounds, Media sounds and mic. Xiaomi (HyperOS): System sounds, Microphone, System sounds + Microphone.
- For app or game sound only, choose Device audio / Media sounds / System sounds.
- For your voice over the screen (tutorials, commentary), choose Device audio + microphone / Media sounds and mic.
- Note: internal audio capture requires Android 11 or newer. On Android 10 and older, only microphone recording is available, so the recorder holds the phone near a speaker — expect lower quality.
- Test each source with a short recording until you get the mix you want.
Fix 3: Turn Up Your Media Volume
Embarrassingly common, especially with device-audio recording: the recorder faithfully captures the device's audio output — which was muted. If the media volume was at zero during the recording, the file contains perfect silence.
- Before recording, press Volume Up and make sure the media slider (not ringtone) is at a healthy level — half or more.
- Play a few seconds of the actual content you plan to record and confirm you can hear it through the speaker.
- Check the phone is not on silent/vibrate with media muted — some phones link the two.
- Record a short test clip and play it back before doing the real one.
Fix 4: Grant the Recorder Microphone Permission
If you chose a source that includes the microphone but the recorder lacks microphone permission, you get silence (or a recording with only the device-audio half). Android asks once, and if you tapped "Don't allow" in a hurry months ago, the permission has been denied ever since.
- Open Settings → Apps and find your screen recorder app (the built-in one may be listed as Screen Recorder or under system apps).
- Tap Permissions → Microphone and set it to Allow (choose "Allow only while using the app" if you prefer).
- While you are there, check Files and media / Photos and videos permission too — the recorder needs somewhere to save.
- On Samsung: Settings → Apps → Screen recorder → Permissions → Microphone → Allow.
- Test-record again. If Android shows a permission prompt this time, allow it.
Fix 5: Turn On Do Not Disturb
Do Not Disturb does not fix silent recordings directly, but it fixes the two things that ruin otherwise good ones: an incoming call yanking the audio focus mid-recording, and notification dings bleeding into your audio track. If your recordings have mysterious gaps or interruptions, this is why.
- Before recording, swipe down to Quick Settings and turn on Do Not Disturb.
- Alternatively: Settings → Sound & vibration → Do Not Disturb (Samsung: Settings → Notifications → Do not disturb) and turn it on.
- Check that DND is set to silence calls and notifications, not just hide the banners — look for the "Hide notifications" vs "Alarms only" behavior and pick full silence.
- Record, then turn DND back off when you are done so you do not miss anything.
Fix 6: Update or Replace Your Screen Recorder
Sometimes the recorder itself is the problem — a buggy build, or an app that simply does not support what you need. A few apps also block audio capture deliberately: banking apps and some streaming services will record a black screen or silent track no matter what you set.
- Update the recorder: Play Store → profile icon → Manage apps & device → Updates available, and update your screen recorder app plus the phone's system software.
- If recordings are still silent, test with the built-in recorder (Quick Settings tile) versus your third-party app — this tells you whether the app or the system is at fault.
- On older phones (Android 10 and below) or stripped-down OEM recorders with no internal-audio option, install a reputable third-party recorder that explicitly supports internal audio capture.
- If only one specific app records silently while everything else works, that app is blocking capture by design — record a different app to confirm, and use the blocking app's own sharing features instead.
Watch: How To FIX Sound Missing On Android Screen Recording!
The video below demonstrates the same fixes — picking the audio source, checking permissions, and getting sound back into your recordings.
Video by LoFi Alpaca — full credit to the creator.
Related Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
My recording has video but no sound at all. What is the first thing to check?
The audio source picker in the recorder's settings, before you press record. If it was set to No sound, every recording came out silent no matter what else you do. Change it to Device audio (or Device audio + microphone), then make a 5-second test recording.
Why can I hear my voice but not the game audio?
You picked a microphone-only source. The mic hears the room, not the phone's internal audio. Switch the source to Device audio + microphone (Samsung: Media sounds and mic) so both are captured.
Why is there no sound when I record Netflix or my banking app?
Those apps block screen and audio capture on purpose — for copyright and security. The recorder will produce a black frame or silent track regardless of your settings. There is no setting that overrides this; it is enforced by Android itself.
By Sameer Zehri | App Fix Guru Editor | Last updated: October 2026
