guide · keyboard noise
Mac microphone picking up keyboard typing? How to fix it
Updated
If people on your calls hear every keystroke, it is rarely your imagination. Here is why it happens on a Mac, the free fixes that work, and what to do when you need to type and talk at once.
Why a MacBook hears your keyboard so well
A MacBook’s microphones sit in the same body as the keyboard, so the keys are closer to the mic than your mouth is, and the clicks can also travel through the case. Keystrokes are short, sharp sounds, which is exactly what a microphone picks up clearly.
1. Move the mic away from the keys
A headset, AirPods or a USB mic near your mouth changes the ratio most: your voice gets louder, the keyboard gets further away. If you use an external keyboard with a MacBook, moving it to the side of the laptop helps too. Check the mic in use under System Settings → Sound → Input.
2. Mute while you type
The simplest fix during a meeting. Zoom can unmute you only while you hold the space bar (a setting under Settings → Audio), so you stay muted while typing. It works while Zoom’s window is in front, so it won’t help if you take notes in another app.
3. Turn on noise suppression
macOS Voice Isolation (a Mic Mode, in apps that support it) and your call app’s noise suppression both reduce typing. They are free; each only works in the apps that offer it. See how to turn on Voice Isolation on a Mac and where your call app’s setting is.
4. Remove typing in every app
Aurio is a noise cancelling microphone for your Mac: it installs “Aurio Microphone”, which any app can pick, and removes background noise, typing included, on your Mac in real time. The demo below opens on the keyboard sample: a studio voice recording mixed with a public-domain recording of desktop-keyboard typing. Switch between Original and Aurio while it plays.
Clicks between your words mostly go. Clicks right under a word are reduced, not always erased; that overlap is the hardest case for any noise remover. Raise the strength slider if typing is your main noise.