How to Fix a Discord Camera That Isn't Working

As a VoIP platform, Discord allows you to communicate with your friends via chat, voice, and video calls. If you've been using video calls in Discord to connect with your friends, you may be experiencing some difficulties. Discord, for example, may fail to detect your camera or even use it after detecting it.

In most cases, the problem is caused by a lack of permissions or faulty camera drivers. If you can't connect with your friends because the Discord camera isn't working, use the solutions in this guide to quickly resolve the issue. So, let's get started.

1. CHECK CONNECTION

You can start by ruling out any connection issues. For instance, if you’re using an external webcam, make sure it’s plugged in the right, or try switching to a different USB port. Plus, if your webcam has a physical on/off switch, make sure it is turned on.

2. RUN DISCORD AS ADMIN

To protect your privacy, Windows may restrict third-party apps and services from using the microphone and camera. So, if Discord isn't detecting your microphone and camera, try launching it with administrative privileges.

Right-click the Discord app icon and choose Run as administrator from the menu that appears.

If Discord is up and running, you can set the app to launch with administrative privileges. This is how.

Step 1: Select the Discord app icon and press Alt + Enter to open its Properties.

Step 2: Under the Compatibility tab, mark the box that says ‘Run this program as an administrator.’ Then hit Apply followed by OK.

3. CHECK CAMERA PERMISSIONS

Next, you need to check the permissions to ensure apps have an access the camera on your PC. Here’s how.

Step 1: Open the Start menu and click on the gear icon to launch the Settings app.

Step 2: Navigate to the Privacy & security tab, scroll down to the App permissions section, and select Camera.

Step 3: Turn on the switch next to Camera access.

Step 4: Next, ensure that Discord can access the camera.

4. RUN CAMERA TROUBLESHOOTER

If Discord continues to fail to detect your webcam, you can use Windows' camera troubleshooter to have it detect and resolve any issues for you. This is how.

Step 1: Click on the search icon on the Taskbar, type in troubleshoot settings and press Enter.

Step 2: Go to Other troubleshooters.

Step 3: Run the Camera troubleshooter from here.

5. UPDATE OR REINSTALL DRIVERS

Camera drivers that are corrupted or out of date can also cause such failures. To resolve this, update the camera drivers on Windows. Continue reading to find out how.

Step 1: Press Windows key + S to open Windows Search, type in device manager, and press Enter.

Step 2: Expand Cameras, right-click on your webcam, and choose Update driver.

Check Discord to see if the camera is working. If the problem persists, repeat the previous steps to uninstall the drivers. When you reboot your computer after removing them, Windows will automatically reinstall them.

6. DISABLE HARDWARE ACCELERATION IN DISCORD

Such issues may arise if you've enabled hardware acceleration on Discord to improve the performance of your PC. You can see if disabling hardware acceleration in Discord solves the problem. This is how.

Step 1: Launch the Discord app on your PC. Click on the gear icon next to your username to open Settings.

Step 2: Navigate to the Voice & Video tab and turn off the H.264 Hardware Acceleration option on your right.

7. REINSTALL DISCORD

If nothing seems to help, you may be dealing with corrupted app data or an incorrect Discord installation. The only way around this is to delete all app data and reinstall the Discord app from scratch.

Step 1: Press Windows key + R to launch the Run command, type in %AppData%, and press Enter.

Step 2: In the file explorer window that opens, select the Discord folder. Then click on the trash icon at the top to delete it.

Step 3: Now open the Start menu, type in Discord, and click on Uninstall.

Once removed, open Microsoft Store to download Discord again.

8. TRY DISCORD WEB VERSION

Finally, if you've had enough of the Discord app's issues, you can try Discord's web version. It has the same user interface and contains all of the necessary features.

ARE YOU ABLE TO SEE ME?

One of the aforementioned suggestions should help with the camera issues on Discord. You can also check to see if your antivirus programme has blocked Discord from accessing the camera. If, on the other hand, none of the apps on your PC can access the camera, read our dedicated guide to resolving camera issues in Windows 11.