You want to silence a Zoom meeting while keeping music, videos, or other computer sounds audible. Start with whether you still need to speak: an app volume mixer or browser mute control leaves your microphone connected, while disconnecting Zoom audio stops both listening and speaking. Here are the controls to use on your device.
Mute just Zoom in Windows 11
Zoom keeps playing when you click Mute because that button controls your microphone, not the sound you hear.
While the meeting is producing audio, open Start > Settings > System > Sound > Volume mixer.
Under Apps, set Zoom’s volume to 0, leaving the system volume unchanged. Your other apps remain audible, and your Zoom microphone connection stays available.
If multiple Zoom entries appear, adjust the entry controlling meeting playback.
For quicker access next time, right-click the taskbar speaker icon.
Select Open volume mixer.
Alternatively, press Windows+Ctrl+V to open the sound-output page of Quick Settings, which includes the per-app mixer on current Windows 11.
To hear the meeting again, raise the same Zoom volume control.
Disconnect meeting audio when you do not need to speak
This stops incoming and outgoing meeting audio on Windows, Mac, and Linux while keeping video and chat available.
Click the up arrow beside Audio in Zoom’s meeting toolbar.
Select Leave Computer Audio. Other computer audio remains available. Participants have this option as well as hosts.
Choose Join Audio when you want to reconnect.
If your meeting runs in a browser
Browser sound controls work only for a meeting running in the Zoom Web App, and they leave your microphone connected. The invitation route is to open the meeting link, cancel the desktop-app launch prompt, then select join from your browser. That link appears only when the host has the Show a “Join from your browser” link setting enabled, which is the default, and end-to-end encryption turned off; otherwise join another supported way. Alternatively, Zoom’s Web App has a Join Meeting option.
In Chrome, the meeting tab’s right-click menu offers Mute site and Unmute site. This setting also silences other tabs from the same site.
In Microsoft Edge, Ctrl+M mutes the selected meeting tab; repeating the shortcut restores sound. Firefox offers the same shortcut or a clickable speaker icon on the tab, with either action repeated to unmute. On Mac, the shortcut is Control+M; Command+M minimizes the Edge window.
In Safari on Mac, clicking the meeting tab’s Audio button silences it, and clicking again restores sound. In Safari on iPad, tapping Mute in the search field or on the meeting tab silences playback; tapping the muted button restores it.
A Mac app volume option with SoundSource
SoundSource is a paid utility with a trial that controls Zoom’s playback separately from your Mac’s master volume.
- 1.On the SoundSource website, select Free Download and follow the installation instructions.
- 2.Open SoundSource’s menu-bar panel while Zoom is playing meeting audio.
- 3.Locate Zoom under Applications.
- 4.Reduce Zoom’s application volume to zero.
- 5.Raise that same volume control when you want to hear Zoom again.
Use Ubuntu’s application sound controls
Ubuntu’s per-application controls silence Zoom without lowering other apps.
Open Activities.
Search for Sound.
Open Sound.
Select Volume Levels in Sounds.
Reduce Zoom’s slider to 0 while it is producing audio. Zoom needs to be playing sound to appear in the application controls.
Mute any additional Zoom playback stream listed separately.
If Zoom’s stream does not support adjustment, select Leave Computer Audio from the arrow beside Audio in Zoom. This also disconnects your microphone. These Ubuntu menu paths do not apply to every Linux desktop.
On a phone or tablet, disconnect Zoom audio
Muting your microphone in the Zoom mobile app leaves incoming meeting sound playing.
During the meeting on iPhone, iPad, or Android, open More.
Tap Disconnect Audio. This stops incoming Zoom audio and disconnects your microphone, so you cannot speak through the meeting audio connection until you rejoin it.
When you need audio again, tap Join Audio.
Choose Wifi or Cellular Data to reconnect.
Keep future meetings from connecting audio automatically
In the signed-in Zoom desktop app, click your profile picture.
Open Settings > Meetings & webinars > Join experience.
Under When joining meetings and webinars, turn off Automatically connect to computer audio, unless your administrator has restricted this setting.
For the mobile equivalent, tap your profile picture in the top-left corner of the Zoom app.
Open Settings > Meetings.
Under When joining meetings, disable Auto connect audio.
Join your next meeting without connecting audio.
On desktop, dismiss the audio prompt without connecting.
Remember that staying disconnected prevents both listening and speaking until you choose Join Audio.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I mute just one participant for myself?
Zoom does not provide independent local volume controls for individual participants. Muting meeting playback silences all participants you would otherwise hear.
Why not turn Zoom’s Speaker volume slider all the way down?
Zoom says its Speaker volume slider can affect device-wide volume. It is not a reliable control for silencing Zoom while preserving other computer sounds.
Will an app mixer also silence Zoom notifications?
An app mixer controls application playback, rather than only one meeting. Notifications and other Zoom sounds using the muted playback control are silenced too.
Do Zoom’s keyboard shortcuts mute the sound I hear?
No. Alt+A on Windows and Command+Shift+A on Mac control your microphone. They do not silence incoming meeting audio.