Your camera is on, and the room behind you is getting more attention than you want. Google Meet lets you blur your background before joining or during a call, with light and stronger effects on supported devices. Start with the desktop controls below, or jump to the mobile instructions for Android, iPhone, and iPad.
Blur your background before joining on a computer
Open your meeting's preview in Google Meet.
At the bottom right of your self view, click Blur.
This one-click control works in supported browsers on Windows, macOS, Linux, and ChromeOS. Meet's own blur requires no extension or separate camera app.
Already in the call? Turn blur on here
Click Video settings in the bottom meeting controls.
Select Blur background. Guests who cannot change effects before joining also have access to this route after admission.
If the blur control is missing, check the browser and device requirements below.
When the blur controls are missing
Meet's effects depend on your browser's graphics support and your device's compatibility.
On a computer, check your browser against Google's effects requirements, including graphics acceleration and WebGL support.
On Android, compare your device with Google's effects requirements: Android 9 or later on a Samsung Galaxy S9 or later, a Pixel 3 or later, or another similar device. Meeting these effects requirements does not guarantee that the latest Meet app installs on an older phone.
On iPhone or iPad, check your operating-system version against Meet's App Store listing before installing or updating. The app requires iOS 18.0 or iPadOS 18.0 or later; the older thresholds in Google's effects help are not the current app-install requirements.
Use blur on Android, iPhone, or iPad
The Meet app uses the same blur controls before joining and during a meeting, as Google's Android and iPhone and iPad instructions show.
- 1.Open Meet and select your meeting.
- 2.Tap Effects beneath your self view.
- 3.Open Backgrounds, then Blur and personal backgrounds.
- 4.Choose Slightly blur your background for light blur or Blur your background for stronger blur.
- 5.Tap Close.
Choose a lighter or stronger desktop blur
Before joining, open Backgrounds and effects.
Select Choose backgrounds and effects.
If you're already in the meeting, open Video settings instead.
Select Backgrounds in the effects panel.
Open Blur and personal backgrounds.
Choose Slightly blur your background for the lighter effect or Blur your background for full blur.
Tip: Use these options whenever you want to choose the blur strength yourself.
Remove blur and other Meet effects
This clears Meet's blur and stacked effects; effects from your operating system or a virtual camera stay on.
On desktop, click Turn off visual effects in the effects panel.
Select the effects to remove, or choose Remove all to clear them together.
On Android, iPhone, or iPad, tap Stack in your self view.
Remove the selected effect, or tap Remove All to clear all Meet effects.
If blur remains, turn it off in the operating-system controls or virtual-camera app that applied it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a keyboard shortcut to blur my background in Google Meet?
Google's published Meet shortcut list does not include a dedicated blur shortcut. Camera-toggle shortcuts turn your camera on or off; they do not blur a live background.
Can I still use Apply visual effects to blur my background?
Yes. Google introduced the More options > Apply visual effects route to the effects panel in 2021, and its current desktop screen-reader guide still lists it as a way to open visual effects during a meeting. The one-click Blur and Video settings routes above remain the quickest options.
Which other apps support background blur in Google Meet?
NVIDIA Broadcast, VCam, and Camo Studio support blur through a virtual camera. NVIDIA Broadcast requires compatible Windows RTX hardware, while VCam and Camo Studio support Windows and macOS. VCam's free version includes a watermark.
