> A global mute shortcut for your microphone on Windows. Works over any app, shows muted or live on every monitor, and supports hold to talk. # Mic Mute Hotkey for Windows One keyboard shortcut that mutes and unmutes your microphone in every program at once, with a clear on-screen sign of which way it went. One payment. No subscription. 14-day money-back guarantee. 3.7 Ctrl + Alt + M ### A shortcut that works anywhere Registered with Windows, so it fires while a call, a game or a document has focus. Change it to any combination you like. Muted · Live ### You always know which way it went A plate appears in the corner of every monitor for a moment, and the tray icon keeps showing the state after it fades. Hold to talk ### Or keep it closed by default The microphone stays muted and opens only while you hold a key of its own, the way push to talk works in games. ## See it in action ![The Microphone muted and Microphone live plates](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/hotkey-mic-muter/s2.jpg) Muted or live, in the corner of each screen and out of the way of faces on the call. ![The Ctrl + Alt + M shortcut, with a note that Windows refuses a combination another program already owns](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/hotkey-mic-muter/s3.jpg) If another program already owns the keys you picked, the app tells you. ![The app window with the microphone picker, an input volume slider at 78% and the shortcut](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/hotkey-mic-muter/s4.jpg) Pick the microphone and set its input level from the same window. ![Muted and live tray states, including a mute made by a headset button](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/hotkey-mic-muter/s1.jpg) Close the window and the shortcut keeps working from the notification area. ## Why a mute key beats the mute button Every calling app puts its mute button in a different place, and some programs that use your microphone have no button at all. When you need to cough, answer someone in the room or take a phone call, hunting for the right window is too slow. A system-wide shortcut solves that, but only if you can trust it. That is why this one watches the microphone itself rather than its own last keypress. Mute from Teams, a headset button or a laptop key, and the tray icon and the on-screen plate follow along. The live input level in the window answers the other half of the question: when you are unmuted, is the microphone actually hearing you? ### How to set up a mic mute hotkey in Windows Hotkey Microphone Muter registers one shortcut with Windows that mutes and unmutes your microphone from any program. Setting it up takes a minute. - Choose the microphone to control, such as a headset, a webcam or the one built into the laptop. - Keep the default Ctrl+Alt+M, or record any combination you like. If another program already owns it, the app tells you. - Set the microphone's input volume on the same screen and watch the level move as you speak. - Turn on the sound if you want to hear when it mutes, as well as see the plate. - Close the window. The shortcut keeps working from the notification area. ### Hold to talk instead of toggling A toggle leaves the microphone in whatever state you last set, which is easy to forget. Hold to talk turns that around: the microphone stays muted and opens only while you hold a key of its own. Let go and you are muted again. This works the way push to talk does in games, but for every program on the PC at once. For a day of meetings it is the safer way round, since forgetting to mute is no longer possible. ### Seeing whether your mic is muted or live Each time the state changes, a plate saying muted or live appears in the corner of every monitor. It fades after a couple of seconds and cannot be clicked, and it stays out of the middle of the screen, where the faces on a call are. After the plate fades, the tray icon keeps showing the state. Because the app watches the microphone itself, the plate and icon also follow a mute made by your meeting software, a headset button or a laptop key. ### Starting every session muted The app can start with Windows, and it can start muted. Together, that means the microphone is off from the moment you sign in, and nothing goes out until you press your key. Since the mute happens in Windows itself, every program using that microphone goes quiet together. No account is needed, and it works with no connection at all. ![](https://cdn.evlarsoft.com/related/v1/icons/hotkey-mic-muter.png)**Hotkey Microphone Muter**Utilities & tools One payment. No subscription. 14-day money-back guarantee. - **3.7_★_**Rating - **3.0 MB**Download size - **2.0.7**Updated Oct 2026 - **2022**First released - **Win 10 & 11**Works on - **English**Language - **No ads; works offline, and backup is optional**Privacy ## Get every app with BundlApps Hotkey Microphone Muter and 304 more EvlarSoft apps in one subscription. [Join the waitlist](https://bundlapps.com/?ref=evlarsoft-app) ## Hotkey Microphone Muter features - **A global mute shortcut**Works while any other program has focus. - **Your own combination**Ctrl+Alt+M by default, or any keys you choose. - **Clear conflict warnings**If another program holds the keys, the app says so. - **A plate on every monitor**Muted or live in the corner, fading after a couple of seconds. - **An optional sound**Hear the change without looking away from the call. - **Follows the real microphone**Mutes from meeting apps, headset buttons and laptop keys show up too. - **Hold to talk**The microphone stays muted and opens only while you hold a separate key. - **Pick the microphone**Choose a headset, webcam or built-in mic when the PC has more than one. - **Input volume and live level**Set the level and check the mic is hearing you. - **Start muted**With start with Windows, a session begins silent until you mean to speak. ## What people use it for ### Back-to-back meetings One key that works in Zoom, Teams, Meet and whatever the next invite uses. ### Gaming and streaming Hold to talk, or a quick mute without leaving the game. ### Working from home Starting every session muted, so nothing goes out until you mean it to. ## What people say > ★★★★★ > > “The new update fixed most of the problems I was facing. Excellent work, thank you!” > > عبدالعزيز, SA ## What's new in 2.0 - Any shortcut you like, instead of a fixed Ctrl+Alt+M - Mutes made by other apps, headsets and laptop keys are shown too - Hold to talk, on a separate key - A live input level and an input volume slider - Start muted, so a session begins silent - The on-screen plate now appears on every monitor, in the corner ## Questions Anything else? [Ask us](https://evlarsoft.com/contact?topic=support&app=Hotkey%20Microphone%20Muter) ### Does it work in Zoom, Teams and Discord? Yes. It mutes the microphone in Windows itself, so every program using that microphone goes quiet together. ### What if my shortcut is already taken? Windows will not give a combination to two programs. The app tells you when that happens, so you can pick another. ### I have more than one microphone. Which does it mute? The one you choose in the window, whether that is a headset, a webcam or the built-in microphone. ### Can I hear when it mutes? Yes, there is an optional sound, for when you would rather not look away from the call. ### Does it need an account? No. Sign-in is only there if you want your settings backed up to another PC. ### Which versions of Windows does it run on? Windows 10 (version 1809 or later) and Windows 11. ### Is it a subscription? No. Hotkey Microphone Muter is a one-time purchase of $3.99, and updates are included. ### How do I get it? Buy it on this page and your license key arrives by email. If the button says Notify me, Hotkey Microphone Muter is not on sale here yet; leave your email and we will tell you when it is. **Prefer widgets?** The [Mic Muter widget](https://widgetspark.com/widgets/micmuter) on WidgetSpark does a similar job, alongside over 100 other desktop widgets in one app. ## More audio tools from EvlarSoft [ ![](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/mic-camera-use-detector/s4-640.jpg) ![](https://cdn.evlarsoft.com/related/v1/icons/mic-camera-use-detector.png) ### Camera & Mic Privacy Indicator Audio and music See which apps are using your camera and microphone. Tally lamps light up the moment an app turns either one on, and a week of history shows who used them and for how long. $1.99 · lifetime · 3.7 ](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/mic-camera-use-detector)[ ![](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/modern-volume-mixer/s2-640.jpg) ![](https://cdn.evlarsoft.com/related/v1/icons/modern-volume-mixer.png) ### Modern Volume Mixer Audio and music A volume slider for every app that is playing, one click from your clock. Click the tray icon, turn one thing down, click away. Each slider carries a live level bar, so you can see which app is making the noise, and its own icon and name so you can tell them apart. Mute one app without muting the rest, level everything again from the tray menu, and point it at any output rather than only the one Windows is using. It does nothing at all while it is closed. $1.99 · lifetime ](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/modern-volume-mixer)[ ![](https://evlarsoft.com/apps/volume-level-locker/s1-640.jpg) ![](https://cdn.evlarsoft.com/related/v1/icons/volume-level-locker.png) ### Volume Level Locker Audio and music Set a volume and have it stay there. Volume Level Locker gives each playback device a floor and a ceiling and holds it between them, so anything that moves the volume outside the band — a keyboard key, a headset dial, another program, somebody else at the desk — is put straight back. Mute it and it unmutes, because a floor means sound keeps coming out. Every device keeps its own band, so the speakers and the headphones are not the same rule. 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