Here’s how to make your AirPods or AirPods Pro as loud as you need, whether it’s just because you want to bump the volume up a little or there’s a sound level issue.
Before you begin, be certain that you want to make your AirPods louder.
Because ears are so fragile, hearing loss is fairly common. Don’t turn your radio volume up too loud if the issue is that you’re working from home and your neighbors have suddenly discovered the radio.
You won’t prevail in a volume battle because, for starters, you’re using AirPods and they’re using loudspeakers. More significantly, you risk losing your hearing while trying to block out their loudness.
If this is your situation, consider the noise-canceling AirPods Pro instead. Although there are better options and noise canceling options available, the inclusion of this capability to AirPods Pro is a compelling enough argument to make the switch.
Otherwise, there are two main problems that require you to adjust the volume, whether you are using AirPods Pro or standard AirPods. The first is when you just want it to be a little louder, and the second is when there is a problem.
Simple Methods for Increasing the Airpods’ Volume
The device that is making the sound controls the overall volume of your AirPods. So if you’re listening to music or podcasts on your iPhone, changing the volume on that phone will change the volume on the AirPods.
One exception is when AirPlay is added to the mix. If you are streaming video from your iPhone to an Apple TV, changing the volume on the phone has no effect. You have to make the change on the Apple TV.
When you use Siri to change the volume, it’s easy to forget about this. When you use Siri on your AirPods and tell it to turn up the volume, it does so, but it’s really just sending the command to the device that started the music.
Siri can also be asked how loud the music is on that device. Tell Siri, “Hey, how loud is this?” and it will give you a number that is a percentage of the most it can hold. You can also just say “Hey, Siri, turn the volume down” or “Turn the volume down to 50%.”
How Your iPhone May Keep the Volume Low on Purpose
If your iPhone’s battery is low, it may choose to turn down the maximum volume. This is a feature of Low Power Mode, but it is also caused by the fact that your battery is low.
So, if you have a fully charged battery and tap Control Center’s Low Power Mode button, you probably won’t hear or see any difference in the volume indicator.
But if you turn on Low Power Mode by actually running down the battery, the volume might change.
There may be an accessibility problem that could make one AirPod quieter than the other.
- Go to Settings on your iPhone.
- Pick “accessibility.”
- Go to the part about hearing.
- Tap on Audio
- Look at the setting for Balance.
If the balance slider is not right in the middle, the volume will be different.
How to Fix Most Airpods That Are Too Quiet or Too Loud
AirPods do use Bluetooth, which is something that sometimes seems less like technology and more like magic. You can tell your AirPods and iPhone to try again to figure out what volume each device thinks the other is set to.
- Play music on your iPhone while you have the AirPods in your ears.
- Turn the volume down to 0
- Go to Settings, then Bluetooth, and look in the list for your AirPods.
- Tap the info button next to “Connected.”
- Tap Disconnect
- Play the music through the speakers on your iPhone.
- Turn the volume back down to 0
- Pair your AirPods again.
- Try turning your iPhone’s volume up.
Conclusion
If you’re listening to music on an iPhone, changing the volume will affect the volume of your AirPods. Changing the volume on an Apple TV has no effect; you have to make the change on the Apple TV. Siri can also be asked how loud the music is on that device.
If your iPhone’s battery is low, it may choose to turn down the maximum volume. If you have a fully charged battery and tap Control Center’s Low Power Mode button, you probably won’t hear or see any difference in the volume.