A free online hearing test with pure tones and a frequency sweep
This online hearing test plays pure tones at the frequencies used in a standard hearing screening — 250 Hz, 500 Hz, 1 kHz, 2 kHz, 4 kHz and 8 kHz, optionally 125 Hz, 3 kHz and 6 kHz — to one ear at a time through your headphones. You raise the level in 5 dB steps until you just hear three soft beeps, mark it, and the tool builds a rough audiogram for both ears and compares them. A separate frequency sweep finds the highest (or lowest) pitch you can hear.
Be clear about what it can and cannot do. A clinical audiogram is measured in dB HL with calibrated equipment in a quiet booth. A web page cannot know how loud your headphones are, so every level here is relative to your device’s maximum output. The test is useful for spotting a difference between ears, a dip at high frequencies, or a change compared with your own earlier result on the same headphones — not for a diagnosis.
The tones are generated in your browser with the Web Audio API. Nothing is recorded or uploaded.
How to use the Hearing Test (Tone Screening)
- Sit somewhere quiet, put on wired or good wireless headphones (left and right the right way round) and turn the volume down.
- Press Play reference tone and set the device volume so the 1 kHz tone is clearly audible but comfortable. Do not touch the volume again.
- For each step, press Play tone. If you hear nothing, press + 5 dB and play again; when you just hear the beeps, press I heard it. Use − 5 dB to check you can still hear it a little quieter.
- If a tone is still silent at 0 dB, press Not heard at the loudest; never push the device volume higher to compensate.
- Read the audiogram: right ear in red circles, left ear in blue crosses, with differences of 15 dB or more flagged.
- Try the Frequency range sweep and press stop as soon as the rising tone disappears.
Hearing Test (Tone Screening) features
Standard test frequencies
Six octave frequencies from 250 Hz to 8 kHz, or nine with 125 Hz, 3 kHz and 6 kHz, presented in the usual audiometric order starting at 1 kHz.
One ear at a time
Tones are panned fully left or right so each ear is tested separately (headphones required).
Pulsed tones
Three 350 ms beeps with soft 25 ms ramps — easier to detect than a steady tone and free of clicks.
Rough audiogram
A familiar chart with O for the right ear and X for the left, the quietest levels at the top, and a table with the difference between ears.
Frequency sweep
A 30-second logarithmic sweep from 8 to 20 kHz, 250 to 20 Hz or the whole range, with the frequency at the moment you stop.
Safety first
Starts quiet, caps at the device maximum, warns at loud settings, and remembers your last result only on this device.
Understanding the levels
Levels are shown in decibels below full scale: 0 dB is the loudest sine wave your device can play at its current volume, −20 dB is ten times quieter in amplitude, −40 dB a hundred times. With the volume set from the reference tone, people with typical hearing often hear the middle frequencies around −60 to −80 dB on good headphones, but this depends entirely on the equipment.
What matters is the shape and the comparison: a curve that drops at 4 kHz in both ears is a pattern often linked to noise exposure; one ear 15 dB or more worse than the other at the same frequency is worth checking, because the headphones are the same for both ears.
| Frequency | Everyday sounds in that range |
|---|---|
| 250–500 Hz | Vowels, men’s voices, bass, a fridge hum |
| 1–2 kHz | Most speech energy, phone ringtones |
| 3–4 kHz | Consonants such as s, f and th — clarity of speech |
| 6–8 kHz | Birdsong, hissing sounds; the first range to fade with age and noise |
The upper limit of hearing and age
Young people can often hear up to 17–20 kHz; the upper limit typically falls with age, which is why “mosquito tones” around 17 kHz are audible mainly to teenagers. Many headphones, laptop speakers and Bluetooth codecs cut off above 15–16 kHz, so a low sweep result may be your equipment. For more tone experiments, the tone generator plays any frequency, and the speaker test checks left and right channels.
Hearing Test (Tone Screening) FAQ
Is this online hearing test accurate?
It is uncalibrated: the levels are relative to your device, not clinical dB HL. It can show a difference between ears or a change over time on the same headphones, but only an audiologist can measure your hearing properly.
Do I need headphones?
Yes, for testing each ear separately. With speakers both ears hear the tone, and room echoes make quiet tones unreliable. Wired headphones avoid the processing some wireless earbuds apply.
What does a difference between my ears mean?
A consistent difference of about 15 dB or more at the same frequency can be a sign of a hearing problem in one ear, or of earwax or an ear infection. Repeat the test, swap the headphones round, and if it persists see a doctor or audiologist — promptly if it appeared suddenly.
Why can’t I hear the 8 kHz tone?
High frequencies are the first to fade with age and noise exposure, and some headphones reproduce them poorly. Try other headphones before drawing conclusions.
Can this test damage my hearing?
Not if you follow the instructions: start with the device volume low, use the reference tone to set a comfortable level and never raise the device volume during the test. Stop immediately if any tone is uncomfortable.
Is my result saved?
Your last set of levels is kept in your browser on this device so you can see it again. It is never uploaded; press Start over to clear it.