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Camera not working in Zoom

Black video, “Zoom is unable to detect a camera”, or the wrong camera showing.

First, test it.
The webcam test shows in seconds whether the device works at all — that decides which steps below apply.
Open the webcam test

Three places can block a microphone or camera, and all three must say yes: the operating system (privacy settings), the browser or app (site permission or device picker) and the hardware (mute switch, shutter, cable). Work through them in that order.

Open the webcam test first. If you see yourself here, the camera and OS are fine and the fault is inside Zoom (steps 1–4).

  1. Zoom is using the wrong camera. In a meeting click the ^ next to Start/Stop Video and pick your camera. Virtual cameras (OBS, Snap Camera, Camo) stay in the list after the app is closed and show black.
  2. Video is simply stopped. The camera icon with a red line means off; press Alt+V / ⌘+Shift+V. Hosts can also stop attendee video.
  3. Another app owns the camera. Only one app can use most webcams at a time. Close Teams, Meet tabs, FaceTime, Photo Booth, Camera app, OBS, then stop and start video in Zoom. On Mac, Continuity Camera can switch to your iPhone unexpectedly — pick the Mac camera in step 1.
  4. OS privacy switch. Windows 11: Settings › Privacy & security › Camera: Camera access on, Let apps access your camera on, Let desktop apps access your camera on. macOS: System Settings › Privacy & Security › Camera › Zoom on (toggle off/on after a macOS update).
  5. Privacy shutter or kill switch. Many laptops have a sliding cover over the lens, a camera key (for example F8 on many Lenovo models, with an LED) or a side switch. External webcams may have a lens cap.
  6. Windows camera disabled. Settings › Bluetooth & devices › Cameras: your camera should be under Connected cameras, not Disabled. Click it › Enable. Also run Troubleshoot there.
  7. Antivirus webcam protection. Kaspersky, Bitdefender, Norton, ESET and others can block apps from the camera silently. Open the security app and allow Zoom.
  8. Driver. Device Manager › Cameras (or Imaging devices) › right-click › Update driver or Uninstall device, then restart. Zoom itself: update to the latest version.

Zoom in a browser

The browser needs camera permission for zoom.us: unblock camera in Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari.

Phone

iPhone: Settings › Zoom › Camera on. Android: Settings › Apps › Zoom › Permissions › Camera. Tap the flip icon if it shows the rear camera.

Did it work?

Run the webcam test again. If the device now registers here, every app that has permission will see it too.

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Questions, answered

My video is very dark or grainy.

Light yourself from the front (a lamp behind your screen), not from behind. In Zoom › Settings › Video tick “Adjust for low light”. Our webcam test shows the resolution and frame rate your camera actually delivers.

Zoom shows my camera name but the picture is black.

Almost always another app is holding the camera (step 3) or a shutter is closed (step 5).