Guide
How the Online Hearing Test Works
A volume check, then pulsed tones at six pitches in each ear that get softer until you stop hearing them. Here is exactly what happens, why, and how to read your audiogram at the end.
Take the free hearing testThe four steps
From headphones on to audiogram in about four minutes
The test is a pure-tone screening — the same kind of beep test used in a hearing booth, adapted for a browser. It needs nothing but headphones and a quiet room.
- 1
Set up in a quiet room
Put on wired or Bluetooth headphones (or choose speakers), turn off noise cancelling, and take out hearing aids. Background noise hides the softest tones, so a quiet room matters more than anything else.
- 2
Check your volume and ears
Play the 1 kHz reference tone and set your device volume so it is clearly audible but comfortable. Then play a tone in each ear to confirm left and right are not swapped. Leave the volume alone after this step.
- 3
Press when you hear a beep
Short, pulsed beeps play at random moments in one ear at a time. Press the button, Space, or Enter whenever you hear one — even if it is barely there. The tones get softer when you hear them and louder when you do not.
- 4
Read your audiogram
After six pitches per ear you get an audiogram, a hearing score out of 100, and a hearing grade. Results are saved on this device so you can re-test and compare over time.
The six pitches
250 Hz to 8 kHz — the range that carries speech
The test starts at 1 kHz, the most reliable pitch, works up to 8 kHz, then finishes with the low pitches. With headphones it runs the whole sequence in your right ear and then your left.
250 Hz
Low hum — vowels and the bass of voices. Rarely the first pitch to go.
500 Hz
Lower speech sounds and many environmental noises. Part of the pure-tone average.
1 kHz
The heart of speech energy and the most reliable pitch, so the test starts here.
2 kHz
Consonants that carry meaning — the difference between "cat" and "cap".
4 kHz
Sharp consonants like s, f, and th. The classic dip from noise exposure shows up here.
8 kHz
Very high pitches: birdsong, crisp sibilants. Usually the first to decline with age.
Method & scoring
How each threshold is found
The procedure
Each pitch starts at a moderate level. Every time you hear a tone the next one is 10 dB softer; every time you miss one it is 5 dB louder. Your threshold is the softest level you hear twice on the way back up — a shortened version of the Hughson-Westlake method audiologists use.
Random timing
The silence before each beep varies between about one and two seconds, so you cannot respond to a rhythm. Pressing when no tone is playing restarts the silence and is counted; lots of early presses lower the reliability of the result.
Hearing grade
Your better ear's average across 500 Hz, 1, 2, and 4 kHz (the pure-tone average) is graded on World Health Organization bands: 20 dB or better is normal, 21–34 mild, 35–49 moderate, 50–64 moderately severe, and 65 or more severe.
Hearing score
The 0–100 score summarizes your better ear across all six pitches. A score of 75 or more is in the normal range; every 5 dB of extra loudness needed on average costs about 6 points.
What the levels mean
Levels are shown as estimated dB HL — decibels relative to typical healthy hearing. Because browsers and headphones are not calibrated, they are estimates anchored on your volume check, not clinical measurements.
Reading the audiogram
Higher on the chart is better hearing
An audiogram plots pitch from low on the left to high on the right, and loudness from soft at the top to loud at the bottom. Each mark is the softest tone you heard at that pitch. Red circles are your right ear, blue crosses your left — the same symbols an audiologist uses — and a triangle marks the combined result in Speakers mode.
Marks in the top band (20 dB or better) are in the normal range. A line that slopes down to the right is the classic high-frequency pattern; a dip at 4 kHz that recovers at 8 kHz often points to noise exposure. An arrow pointing down means that tone was not heard even at the loudest level tested. For what the different bands mean, see the hearing loss levels guide.
Controls
Tap, or use Space and Enter
Every method responds the same way — pick whichever suits the device in your hand.
Phones & tablets
Tap the big button
The "I hear it" button responds the instant your finger touches it, so reaction time is never lost to a tap delay. It never lights up on its own — only your press changes it — so it gives no visual clue that a tone is playing.
Desktop
Space or Enter
Press Space or Enter each time you hear a beep. P or Escape pauses the test, R starts over, and M mutes the interface sounds. The test tones are never muted, because they are the measurement.
Everywhere
Pause any time
Pause from the toolbar if a noise interrupts you. Switching tabs pauses automatically. On resume, the current tone simply restarts — nothing you already answered is lost.
Common mistakes
What makes results less reliable
Changing the volume mid-test
Every level is measured relative to the volume check. Turning the volume up halfway through makes the later pitches look better than they are.
Pressing on a rhythm
The gaps between beeps are random on purpose. Pressing on a beat produces false alarms, restarts the silence, and lowers reliability. Wait until you actually hear something.
Testing with noise cancelling on
Active noise cancelling and "adaptive" sound processing can alter quiet tones. Turn them off for the test, even though they are great for listening day-to-day.
Treating a screening as a diagnosis
A browser test can tell you whether a professional check is a good idea. It cannot tell you the type or cause of hearing loss or fit a hearing aid.
- Use headphones, not speakers, so each ear is tested on its own.
- Turn off active noise cancelling, spatial audio, EQ, and "hearing enhancement" settings.
- Pick the quietest room you can — close windows and switch off fans and the TV.
- Set the volume once during the check, then do not touch it until the end.
- Press for any beep you believe you heard, but do not guess when you heard nothing.
- Test when you are rested, not right after a loud concert or a flight.
- Repeat the test with the same headphones and volume to compare results fairly.
More detail on headphones, rooms, and repeat testing is on the accuracy tips page.
Devices
Same test on phone and desktop
Phones and tablets
The test fits on one portrait screen with a large tap target. Plug in or pair your headphones before you start so the volume check uses the same output as the test.
Laptops and desktops
Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari all run the test with no plugin. Use Space or Enter to respond — keyboard responses are the fastest and most consistent.
Results on this device
Your last 12 audiograms, best score, and settings stay in this browser's local storage. Nothing is uploaded, and there is no account. Clearing site data deletes them.
Ready to check your hearing?
Grab headphones, find a quiet spot, and get your audiogram in about four minutes. Free, with nothing to install.
Take the free hearing test