Zoom camera not working? How to fix it

How to fix the Zoom camera when it is not working

Start with the camera test at the top of this page. If your picture appears here, the camera and its driver work and the problem is inside Zoom (wrong camera selected, missing permission, or video turned off by the host). If it does not appear here either, fix the device first using the Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad or Android guide. That one check tells you whether to fix Zoom or the device itself, and saves you from trying fixes that cannot help.

Quick checks first

• In the meeting, click the arrow next to Start Video and pick the right camera. Laptops with a docked monitor, a virtual camera (OBS, Snap Camera) or Continuity Camera often have several to choose from.
• Close other apps that may hold the camera: Teams, Skype, FaceTime, a browser tab with a video call, or camera software from the laptop maker.
• If you joined with video off, the host may have disabled participant video. Ask the host, or check whether the camera works in a test meeting at zoom.us/test.
• Update Zoom Workplace: click your profile picture › Check for updates.

Zoom camera not working on Windows

1. Open Zoom Settings › Video & effects (called Video in older versions), choose your camera under Camera and look at the preview.
2. Open Settings › Privacy & security › Camera (on Windows 10: Settings › Privacy › Camera). Turn on Camera access and Let apps access your camera, then check that Zoom Workplace is allowed in the list. Programs installed from the web appear under Let desktop apps access your camera, which must also be on.
3. If the preview is black or frozen, open Settings › Video & effects › Advanced and turn off hardware acceleration for video processing, then restart Zoom.
4. Turn off virtual backgrounds and filters temporarily; on older graphics drivers they can stop the video entirely.
5. Still nothing? Follow the Windows camera guide on this site to check the driver in Device Manager and the camera privacy shutter or function key.

Zoom camera not working on Mac

1. Open Apple menu › System Settings › Privacy & Security › Camera and turn on zoom.us. Quit and reopen zoom.us afterwards. On macOS Monterey and earlier the switch is in System Preferences › Security & Privacy › Privacy › Camera.
2. In Zoom Settings › Video & effects, select the built-in camera. If your iPhone is nearby, macOS may offer it as a Continuity Camera and Zoom may pick it automatically.
3. Quit every other app that can use the camera (FaceTime, Photo Booth, browsers with call tabs), then restart Zoom.
4. If no app can see the camera, restart the Mac. The built-in camera has no separate driver, so a restart and a macOS update are the main fixes.

Zoom camera not working on iPhone

1. On your iPhone, open Settings › Apps › Zoom (on iOS 17 and earlier: Settings › Zoom) and turn on Camera. If Camera is missing from that screen, Zoom has never asked for access: start a video call once and tap Allow.
2. In the meeting, tap Start Video. If it is greyed out, the host has turned off participant video.
3. Check Settings › Screen Time › Content & Privacy Restrictions › Allowed Apps & Features: Camera must be on, or no app can use it.
4. Open the Camera app. If it also shows a black screen, restart the iPhone and see the iPhone guide; if Camera works, delete and reinstall Zoom.

Zoom camera not working on iPad

1. On your iPad, open Settings › Apps › Zoom (on iOS 17 and earlier: Settings › Zoom) and turn on Camera. If Camera is missing from that screen, Zoom has never asked for access: start a video call once and tap Allow.
2. Use Zoom in full screen. On some iPad models and older iPadOS versions the camera pauses while Zoom is in Split View, Slide Over or a small Stage Manager window.
3. On iPads with the front camera on the long edge, hold the iPad in landscape; on older models the camera is on the short edge, so keep your hand away from it.
4. Check Screen Time restrictions as described for iPhone, then restart the iPad.

Zoom camera not working on Android

1. Open Settings › Apps › Zoom › Permissions › Camera and choose Allow only while using the app. On Android 12 and later, also swipe down twice and make sure the Camera access tile in Quick Settings is not turned off.
2. In the meeting, tap Start Video, then tap the camera-switch icon if the wrong camera (front or back) is active.
3. Go to Settings › Apps › Zoom › Storage & cache and tap Clear cache, then reopen Zoom.
4. If the built-in Camera app fails too, see the Android guide on this site.

Zoom keeps its own camera troubleshooting article in the Zoom Support Center; search it for "video or camera isn't working".