Quick answer
Open chrome://settings/content/microphone, set the site to Allow, then confirm your operating system also allows Chrome to use the microphone. Reload once and try again.
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Chrome microphone permissions
Chrome checks two layers before a website hears your voice: the site permission and the operating system permission. Fix both in the same session and dictation starts working.
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Allow the mic for one site
- Open the site (for example zahvox.com/tool).
- Click the lock icon on the left of the address bar.
- Choose Site settings.
- Set Microphone to Allow.
- Return to the tab and reload it once.
Manage every site at once
- Open chrome://settings/content/microphone in the address bar.
- Under Allowed to use your microphone, review each entry.
- Under Not allowed, remove any site you want to reset.
- Set the default to Sites can ask if you want a prompt on new sites.
Check the operating system layer
- macOS: System Settings, Privacy and Security, Microphone, enable Google Chrome.
- Windows 11: Settings, Privacy and security, Microphone, enable Let apps access your microphone and enable Chrome.
- ChromeOS: Settings, Privacy and security, Microphone.
- Restart Chrome after any change so it picks up the new grant.
Chrome on Android
- Tap the lock icon in the address bar.
- Tap Permissions, then Microphone, then Allow.
- If the option is greyed out, open Android Settings, Apps, Chrome, Permissions, Microphone and switch to Allow only while using the app.
Common mistakes
- Reloading before the prompt is answered, which cancels the request.
- Leaving another tab that is already recording (Meet, WhatsApp Web, Discord) which holds the mic exclusively.
- Trying voice-to-text on an http:// site; Chrome only exposes the mic on secure origins.
- Forgetting the second layer at the operating system level.
How Zahvox uses the microphone
Zahvox reads the browser microphone through the Web Speech API. Nothing is uploaded to Zahvox servers; audio flows through your browser to the recognition engine and text comes back into the transcript. Grant the site once and the mic stays on for the tab session.
Frequently asked questions
Keep exploring
Voice-to-text not working
Broader troubleshooting checklist.
Browser microphone blocked
Steps for Edge, Safari, and Firefox.
Free voice tool
Open the tool once permissions are fixed.
Web Speech API
What Chrome uses under the hood.
Live transcript feature
What appears once the mic works.
Voice-to-text on Android
Mobile Chrome specifics.
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