Nest Doorbell Microphone Not Working? (Fix Woes Fast)

Wondering why your Nest Doorbell microphone not working? You will find out in this guide!

A malfunctioning microphone on your Nest Doorbell can be frustrating, but it is often a frequent occurrence among doorbell users.

However, before doing a replacement, be informed that there are several ways that you should attempt on your own to fix your microphone within 30 minutes.

If your Nest doorbell microphone is not working, restart the unit and check microphone volume settings and app permissions. If the problem persists, uninstall and reinstall the app and factory reset the doorbell as a last resort.

Let’s move further and learn about the possible causes!

Why is Google Nest Doorbell Microphone Not Working?

Having a non-working microphone can be incredibly frustrating when you solely rely on this for two-way communications.

However, there could be different factors that can prevent your Ring Doorbell microphone from working.

Let’s discuss them quickly:

Now, that you’re familiar with possible causes, let’s start with troubleshooting!

8 Ways to Fix Nest Doorbell Microphone Not Working?

If your microphone on the Nest doorbell is not working, fear not.

The troubleshooting methods below will help you fix your Nest doorbell microphone, so we recommend not skipping anything. 

Tip: Apply all the methods in order, as described below!

1. Restart Your Nest Doorbell

The first and obvious step you must take is to restart the Nest doorbell. 

Although that’s a simple thing to attempt, it helps refresh the system and network connection and clear any temporary software glitches. 

Here are the steps to restart your Nest Doorbell:

For Nest Doorbell (Battery):

1. Locate the reset pinhole on the doorbell’s back.
2. Press and hold the button for about 5 seconds.
3. When the doorbell lights up, release the button.
4. The device will restart, having a solid white light.

For Nest Doorbell (Wired):

1. Locate the pinhole at the Nest doorbell’s bottom. 
2. Press inside the hole using a paperclip or needle.
3. Keep holding the Reset button for ~10 seconds. 
4. Then, release the button, and your unit will restart.

Tip: If your doorbell has a power cord, unplug it for a minute, then plug it back in to perform a power cycle and discharge the device.

2. Check the Microphone Settings

If you can’t hear visitors through your Nest Doorbell, it might be because the microphone is accidentally turned off or the volume is too low. 

Just check the app to turn on the microphone and adjust the volume. This will help you hear visitors and have smooth conversations.

Follow these steps to inspect your Nest doorbell audio settings:

1. First, open the Home app on your mobile.
2. Press and hold your Nest Doorbell’s tile.
3. Tap on Settings and then choose Audio.
4. Next to “Microphone,” tap on the toggle.
5. Go down and look under “Camera volume.” 
6. Drag the slider left to increase the volume.

With a wired Nest doorbell, you can’t adjust the microphone volume in the app or on the device, as there are no physical buttons on the device for volume adjustment.

However, these models are usually loud enough to be heard by someone nearby.

If this doesn’t help, keep reading!

3. Check Doorbell Wi-Fi Connection

The microphone relies solely on your home’s Wi-Fi network to transmit audio data.

If the internet reaching your doorbell is not reliable, the device may lose connections to the app and will mute the microphone itself.

To prevent this from happening, it’s recommended to power cycle your Wi-Fi router and make sure your doorbell is within the Wi-Fi range.

This will help your doorbell to get a reliable and stable internet connection.

If that doesn’t work, you should check your download and upload internet speed.

To do this, open the Home app → Favorites → Wi-Fi → Network performance → Run speed test. 

Note: If you have slower speeds, disconnect some devices from the network to free up the bandwidth, and contact your ISP to check for any outages.

4. Check for Bluetooth Interference

While Bluetooth interference isn’t the most common occurrence for a microphone not working, it’s still worth considering as a potential factor. 

If any Bluetooth devices are operating on the same frequency as your Nest Doorbell, it can interfere with its wireless microphone communication.

To avoid Bluetooth interference:

• Temporarily disable the Bluetooth on your device.
• Look for any Bluetooth devices and remove them.

When ready, restart the doorbell and check if the microphone works.

If the microphone works better, move other Bluetooth devices further away to minimize potential interference and test.

If the microphone issue persists, continue reading the guide for more troubleshooting.

5. Verify Application Permissions

If the Nest doorbell’s microphone is still not working, check whether the Home and Nest apps can access your phone’s microphone. 

Both apps require access to capture the voice and transmit it to the doorbell for communication.

Talking to visitors won’t be possible without access, so it’s crucial to grant access momentarily.

Here are the steps to check app permissions:

1. Open the Settings app on your phone.
2. Then, scroll down and enter “Apps.”
3. Next, locate and tap on the Nest app.
4. Press on the “App Permissions” tile.
5. Tap the toggle next to the Microphone.
6. Repeat the steps for the Google Home.

If the microphone permission is already granted, consider disabling and re-enabling the toggle switch, which can sometimes reset the functionality.

Other than that, you must verify that all the essential permissions like internet, camera, and storage are also granted for both applications.

Tip: We recommend rebooting your phone when ready!

6. Uninstall and Install the Nest App

If you’ve tried the above steps and the doorbell’s microphone is still not working, uninstall and reinstall the Nest app, which will clear any data corruption.

However, the reinstallation will wipe out your settings, customization, and configuration, so if you have any settings that you want to recover, create a backup.

Here are the steps to reinstall the Nest app:

1. From the App Store or Google Play, find the Nest app. 
2. When the app appears, press the “Uninstall” button.
3. When the app is uninstalled, restart your mobile phone.
4. Open the app store and tap the “Install” or “Cloud” button.
5. Finally, log in to the Nest app with your Google account.

If you still have problems with the microphone after the reinstallation, there’s more to attempt!

7. Factory Reset Your Nest Doorbell

There’s a chance the problem is with the Nest Doorbell software, as sometimes the app gets buggy or corrupted.

If this happens, the only fix is to reset the doorbell to its factory settings. 

This will erase all your settings and recordings and get your microphone working again, but you’ll need to carry out the initialization procedure from scratch.

Here are the steps to factory reset the Nest doorbell:

Nest Doorbell (Battery):

1. Locate the Reset pinhole on the doorbell’s back.
2. Press and hold the button for about 10 seconds.
3. You’ll hear a countdown, and the light will flash. 
4. Info: You must see a yellow blink about four times.
5. Once you hear a reset tone, release the button.

Nest Doorbell (Wired):

1. Insert the release tool and remove the doorbell from its base.
2. Press and hold the Reset button and the big doorbell button.
3. Keep holding both buttons for about 10 seconds continuously.
4. Finally, the Nest doorbell will chime, so release both buttons.

After reset, your doorbell will appear as “offline.”

To remove this, open the Nest app, then tap Settings > Remove device > Confirm.

After that, go through the setup process again, and you are done so you can test whether the microphone is now working.

If not, you may be dealing with a hardware problem…

8. Check for Hardware Damage

If nothing helped you so far, your Nest Doorbell might have a hardware problem.

In most cases, the hardware problem could be related to a microphone malfunction. 

The only thing you can do here is to contact Nest Support to seek professional assistance.

If your warranty is intact, you’d be lucky, as you can get a replacement doorbell to your doorstep.

Quick Recap:

When the Nest doorbell microphone not working, restart the doorbell, verify the internet, and check microphone and app permissions.

If the issue persists, uninstall and reinstall the Nest app and factory reset the doorbell. 

Follow us for more Nest doorbell guides and troubleshooting!