Plug and Check

Sound tools

Hearing Range Test: Which Tones Can You Hear?

Find the lowest and highest tones you can hear, from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with headphones. A quick self-check, not a medical hearing test. Runs in your browser.

This is not a medical hearing test. It shows which tones you can hear through your own headphones or speakers. Your headphones or speakers, the volume and the noise around you all change the result, and laptop and phone speakers can't play the lowest and highest tones at all.

If you are worried about your hearing, or you notice ringing, pain or dizziness, see a doctor or an audiologist.

Runs in your browser. Your answers and results never leave this device. No upload, no sign-up.

Turn your volume down first. Use headphones in a quiet room if you can. Every tone plays at 20% of full scale; never turn the volume up to chase a tone you can't hear.

Set a comfortable volume

Press Play 1 kHz tone, then set your computer's volume so the tone is clear but comfortable, about as loud as a quiet conversation. Don't change the volume again until you finish.

Choose an ear and an order

Ear

Order

Play the 1 kHz tone first.

Tones from 20 Hz to 20 kHz: heard not heard

    Your report

    Run the test above. Your results will appear here as plain text you can paste into a support chat, a return request or a forum post.

    How to check your hearing range

    1. Put on wired headphones if you have them and go somewhere quiet. Turn your computer's volume down.
    2. Press Play 1 kHz tone and raise the volume until the tone is clear but comfortable. Leave the volume there for the rest of the check.
    3. Choose both ears or one ear, and whether to go from low tones to high or from high to low, then press Start the check.
    4. Each tone beeps three times. Press I hear it or I don't hear it (or the Y and N keys). Play again repeats the beeps.
    5. Read your range: the lowest and highest tones you heard. Run it once in each direction, and for each ear, to compare.

    What your result means

    The check plays 33 tones, from 20 Hz, a deep rumble, to 20 kHz, a faint hiss at the very top of human hearing. Your result is the lowest and the highest tone you said you heard. The textbook range of human hearing is 20 Hz to 20 kHz, but few adults hear all of it: the highest tones are the first to fade with age and with years of loud noise, so a top tone well below 20 kHz is common.

    If you missed a tone between two you heard, the result lists it. A single gap can be a moment of inattention or a dip in your headphones. A gap that shows up in every run, in one ear only, is worth mentioning to a doctor.

    The low end says more about your equipment than about your ears. Most laptop and phone speakers produce little or no deep bass, and small speakers often buzz at low tones. That buzz is distortion at a higher pitch, so you can hear "something" even when the speaker can't play the tone itself.

    Why this isn't a hearing test

    A hearing test at a clinic (an audiogram) measures the quietest sound you can hear at each pitch, using calibrated headphones in a quiet booth. This page can't do that: it doesn't know how loud a tone is in your ear, because that depends on your volume setting, your headphones and how they fit. It only asks whether you hear each tone at one fixed level.

    That level is the same for every tone. Your ears are much less sensitive to very low and very high tones (the equal-loudness contours in the ISO 226 standard describe how much less), so those tones sound quieter even though the level doesn't change. The check doesn't boost them to make up for it: the boost would have to be large, and on some headphones it could be unsafe.

    How to get a reliable result

    To check that your headphones play left and right correctly before you start, use the headphone test.

    Problems with the check

    You can't hear any tone, not even the 1 kHz one

    The tones go to your system's default sound output, which may be a different device or muted.

    1. Look for a crossed-out speaker on this browser tab. In Chrome, Edge and Firefox, right-click the tab and unmute it.
    2. Check that your headphones are plugged in fully, or connected if they are Bluetooth.

    Windows 11

    1. Open Settings → System → Sound and choose your headphones under Output.
    2. In the same page, open Volume mixer and check that your browser isn't muted.

    macOS

    1. Open System Settings → Sound and choose your headphones under Output.
    2. Check that Output volume isn't at zero and Mute is off.

    On an iPhone or iPad, silent mode can mute sound from web pages. Turn it off or use headphones.

    Low tones sound like a buzz or a rattle

    Small speakers can't move enough air for deep bass, so they distort. What you hear is the distortion, at a higher pitch than the tone.

    1. Switch to headphones for the low end of the check.
    2. If the buzz stays with headphones, lower the volume a little and run the check again.

    The highest tones stop at the same point in both ears

    That often points to your equipment rather than your hearing.

    1. Try wired headphones, or another pair, and compare.
    2. Look at the sound output line in your report: the check can't play tones above about half the sample rate, and leaves them out.
    3. If you use a Bluetooth headset, make sure it isn't in call (hands-free) mode, which plays sound at a much lower quality.

    One ear hears much less than the other

    Your system's balance or a mono setting can make one side quieter, and so can the headphones themselves.

    1. Swap the headphones around (left cup on your right ear) and run the check again. If the weak side moves with the headphones, the problem is the headphones.

    Windows 11

    1. Open Settings → System → Sound, select your headphones, and check that the left and right channel levels in their properties match.
    2. Open Settings → Accessibility → Audio and turn off Mono audio.

    macOS

    1. Open System Settings → Sound, choose your headphones and center the Balance slider.
    2. Open System Settings → Accessibility → Audio and turn off Play stereo audio as mono.

    If one ear stays weaker whatever headphones you use, see a doctor or an audiologist.

    The tones are uncomfortable or hurt

    1. Stop the check and turn the volume down.
    2. Start again from the 1 kHz tone, set so it is clear but quiet.

    Pain, ringing that doesn't go away, or dizziness after loud sound are reasons to see a doctor.

    Common questions

    Is this a medical hearing test?

    No. It is a self-check of which tones you can hear through your own headphones or speakers, and those, the volume and the noise around you all change the result. If you are worried about your hearing, see a doctor or an audiologist for a proper hearing test.

    What is the normal range of human hearing?

    The textbook range is 20 Hz to 20 kHz. Few adults hear all of it, because the highest tones are the first to fade with age and with exposure to loud noise. How low you can hear in this check depends as much on your headphones or speakers as on your ears.

    Why can't I hear the highest tones?

    Age is the most common reason: the top of the range fades gradually through adult life. Your equipment may also stop short, because many speakers and Bluetooth connections cut the highest frequencies. Try wired headphones before you draw any conclusions.

    Should I use headphones or speakers for a hearing range test?

    Use wired headphones if you can. They let you check each ear on its own, keep room noise out and play the highest tones better than most speakers. Laptop and phone speakers can't play the lowest tones at all, so with them the low end of your result measures the speakers, not your ears.

    Why do the lowest and highest tones sound quieter?

    Your ears are less sensitive at the edges of the range, so a very low or very high tone sounds quieter than a 1 kHz tone at the same level. This check plays every tone at the same level and doesn't boost the edges, because a boost big enough to make up for it could be unsafe on some headphones.

    Can a hearing test damage my hearing?

    Not at a comfortable volume. Set the 1 kHz tone so it is clear but not loud, and don't turn the volume up to chase a tone you can't hear. With the volume raised, the next notification or video will play far too loud.

    Why did I get a different result the second time?

    Small changes between runs are normal: your attention, background noise, how the headphones sit and the order of the tones all play a part. Compare a run from low to high with one from high to low; where they differ, the truth is usually in between.

    Something not right?

    Tell us if your device wasn't found or a result looks wrong. Your browser, system and device model help us check.

    We read every message and use your email only to reply. Privacy notice