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Why is one AirPod louder than the other one

Why is One AirPod Louder Than the Other One? (Check this 1 Easy Guide!)

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I am sure that every owner of Apple AirPods can confirm they’ve been facing an issue with AirPods, one being louder than the other one.

If your Apple AirPod experiences this issue, it can be pretty frustrating, especially if you own a new model or your AirPods have served you well for a long time.

Do not worry; there are easy tricks you can do to solve this issue on your own, and based on feedback from other people, these steps can fix the problems with Apple AirPods when one is louder than the other.

One AirPod is louder than the other one

Why is One AirPod Louder Than the Other One – How to Fix it?

If one of your AirPod is louder than the other, the most probable reason is earwax, dirt, or sweat, which have built up and formed a layer over your AirPods speaker. Use a dry toothbrush or Q-tip to remove them from your AirPods gently, and the sound will get better instantly.

1. Clean Apple AirPods and Charging Ports

I am sure you’ll agree that while using your Apple AirPods, it happens that they get dirty from time to time. It could be caused by dirt, grime, earwax, etc., either in your Apple AirPods or the charging case. All of these things can cause some issues.

If you wear your AirPods in the rain or during a workout, moisture will lead to buildup. The salt from your sweat remains in your AirPods, which can also mess up the sound quality of your AirPods. On top of that, drying AirPods will pick up dust from the surroundings. 

The issue is present even more on the AirPods Pro and their rubber tips – they collect sweat, earwax, and dirt like hell. 

If the sound quality and volume decrease rapidly, get a closer look to see if there is not any grime and get it cleaned by following the steps below. 

Check your AirPods closely to see if there isn’t any dirt that could be caked onto your speaker and charging ports.

Follow the steps below if you want to clean your Apple AirPods deeply.

Grab Q-tip and clean these areas gently:

  • Metal ring at the bottom of your Apple AirPods
    • You can also add a little bit of isopropyl alcohol at the end of your Q-tip if required – approved by Apple.
Clean AirPods metal ring
  • Speaker and Microphone of your Apple AirPods
    • in case you need to clean your Apple AirPods Pro, you need to remove the rubber tip first
How to clean your AirPods
  • Clean your AirPods charging case as well

Following the steps above improves your Apple AirPods sound and volume intensity significantly.

2. Make Sure Audio is Balanced

It happened to some of the people who faced one AirPod is louder than the other that they had incorrect audio settings on their devices.

An audio setting named Balance allows you to spread the volume between your left and right earbud. First, you need to check if this setting is correctly balanced, meaning in the middle and audio is distributed evenly between your AirPods.

If you have it “balanced” entirely to the right, there will be no sound coming from your left AirPod.

Check audio balance settings by following the steps:

  • Go to Settings
  • Scroll down to Accessibility
  • In the Hearing section select Audio/Visual
  • Check and Confirm balance is set in the middle
Audio balance settings

3. Reset Bluetooth

If the previous step of adjusting the audio balance did not fix your issue, follow the one below. You first have to try resetting your Bluetooth on your device.

iOS Bluetooth reset

Follow these easy steps to reset your Bluetooth:

  • Go to the Settings
  • Select Bluetooth
  • Toggle Bluetooth off and wait 20 seconds
  • Toggle Bluetooth back on
  • Select your Apple AirPods and try to connect them

Another option is to swipe down from the top right corner and tap on the blue Bluetooth icon in your control center so the icon is now grey. Then, wait approximately 20 seconds and tap on the icon again – the color changes to blue.

Note: You must swipe up from the bottom for iOS devices with a physical home button to access the iOS control center.

If the audio problem persists and one AirPod is louder than the other one, give it a try resetting your Bluetooth once more before moving to further steps. It has been proven in most cases that this easiest step fixed the issue.

4. Reset Apple AirPods

Resetting your Apple AirPods is another easy way to fix audio volume issues. A bit more complex, but 90% of the users fixed their problems by doing this.

As a first part, you need to Forget This Device:

  • Go to Settings
  • Select Bluetooth
  • Click on the info icon next to your AirPods
  • Select Forget This Device
  • This step will remove your AirPods from your device
iOS Forget Bluetooth device

Now, when your Apple AirPods have been removed, follow these steps to pair them back with your device:

  • Make sure you enabled Bluetooth on your device
  • Place both Apple AirPods into the case and open the case’s lid
  • Press and hold the button on the back of your charging case until the led is blinking white
  • A pop up window will appear on your device – select Connect
  • It might take a couple of seconds, and your AirPods connect to the device.

If the steps above don’t resolve the issue, continue with further steps below.

5. Restart your iPhone

The issue can be with something other than your Apple AirPods but can point to the problem with your iPhone.

There are two elementary and quick steps how to reset your iPhone.

First – have you tried turning your iPhone Off and On again?

You can resolve many software failures and bugs just by simple iPhone restart, as it will remove all the temporary files from the device so that the restart will clear all current software states.

To restart iPhone with touch ID:
  • Hold the side button
To restart iPhone without touch ID:
  • Hold the side button and the volume button at the same time


Second way is to reset Network Settings on your iPhone:

  • Open the Settings
  • Scroll a bit down to General
  • Select Reset at the bottom of your screen
  • Choose Reset Network Settings

This easiest fix can often solve the issue of one Apple AirPod being louder than the other.

6. Update iOS

While using outdated software, you might face AirPods connection issues, sound quality issues, and volume issues.

Always keep your device up to date. By running the most recent software, you eliminate all the possible compatibility gaps with other devices, not only your Apple AirPods, and keep your device secure.

Last but not least, all the new releases of iOS also bring new features to the end users.

If you don’t want to think about it or check for an update manually, you can enable automatic updates on your device.

Update iOS and enable automatic updates by following these steps:

  • Go to Settings
  • Scroll down to General
  • Select Software updates
  • Choose Automatic updates
  • Toggle Download iOS updates and Install iOS updates
  • Go back and check if there is any pending update available
  • If yes, select Install Now.
iOS update
iOS update

Once again, always keep your device up to date.

7. Turn off Nearby Devices

Ensure that you don’t have any nearby Bluetooth devices that could interfere here. If there are some, power them off.
For example, any other phones, headphones, keyboards, and so on in the area.

As another alternative, you can go to your iPhone Settings and Forget the device for every paired device with your iPhone. You’ve already seen more information here.

Once following these steps, you can be sure there are no other devices that could be causing the issue with the AirPods connection.

8. Turn off Automatic Ear Detection

Apple AirPods have built-in technology to identify when they are in your ear.
When the device gets the confirmation, the audio starts to play automatically.

One of the primary root causes of this feature is not working correctly because your Apple AirPods are dirty or covered by earwax. So make sure you follow the steps above.

Start with disabling the Automatic Ear Detection feature in your Settings:

  • Go to Settings
  • Select Bluetooth
  • Tap on the Info button next to your AirPods
  • Scroll down a bit and toggle OFF Automatic Ear Detection

Remember that by disabling this feature, your Apple AirPods will play the audio even if you put them off from your ears.

9. Charge your AirPods

Remember that if your Apple AirPods have a low battery (10% or less), they might lose connection, sound quality, volume, or microphone functionality.

Because of the reasons above, it’s always best to keep your Apple AirPods fully charged. And it’s not that hard since Apple AirPods can charge fully in approx. 1hour. You can even get one hour of playback by charging for 10 minutes. Which is just brilliant, isn’t it?

Before we forget, it’s also safe to have them charged while looking for lost AirPods.

To Sum Up …

Apple AirPods can face sound quality, microphone, volume, and connection issues like any other wireless headphones. However, if you check all tips and guides on this page, there is a high chance you will resolve your problem with your Apple AirPods.

Let’s start with the easiest step, cleaning your AirPods on your device, which is the root cause in most cases. More tips can be found here.

If your Apple AirPods are still facing an issue with the microphone, sound quality, or volume – and you followed all the steps on this page or in this article, you should look for an expert to help you in this area. 

With some older models, buying a new one can be a great idea. With headphones, you can get significantly better sound quality, including a full warranty, for a slightly higher price.

If your Apple AirPods are new, check if you still have a warranty on your device and use that if possible.

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