Audio / Device checks
Hearing Range Test: Highest and Lowest Frequency You Can Hear
Find the highest and lowest tones you can hear: set a comfortable volume with a 1 kHz reference, then answer for each step from 8 to 20 kHz and from 250 Hz down to 20 Hz. A curiosity test, not a medical hearing test.
Hearing Range Test: Highest and Lowest Frequency You Can Hear: The test plays pure tones at fixed steps: upwards from 8 kHz until you stop hearing them, then downwards from 250 Hz. It records the last tone you heard in each direction and shows your device's sample rate, which sets the highest tone it can produce: half the rate, so 24 kHz at 48,000 Hz. Runs 100% locally in your browser with zero server file uploads.
- Category
- Everyday tools
- Runs
- In your browser
- Cost
- Free · no sign-up
- Availability
- Ready to use
Runs entirely in your browser
This is not a medical hearing test. It cannot measure hearing loss, and your device and headphones limit what it can play. If you notice changes in your hearing, see a doctor or audiologist.
Put on headphones, play the 1,000 Hz reference tone, and set a quiet but clear volume. Keep that volume for the whole test.
Human hearing is often quoted as 20 Hz to 20 kHz, but the upper limit falls with age, from the late teens onward, and with exposure to loud noise. Many laptop and phone speakers cannot reproduce very high or very low tones, so a tone you cannot hear may simply not be playing; use good headphones. Low tones need more volume to be heard at all.
Age and high frequencies
Age-related hearing loss, presbycusis, begins at the highest frequencies and spreads downward; noise exposure adds to it. That is why a high-pitched tone can be audible to teenagers and not to their parents.
Protect your hearing
Sounds above about 85 dB for long periods can cause permanent damage. To see how loud your surroundings are, use the sound level meter.
How to use it
- Put on headphones, play the reference tone, and set a quiet but clear volume.
- Answer whether you hear each tone as the frequency rises, then as it falls.
- Read the highest and lowest tones you heard.
Privacy & limitations
Sound is generated in your browser, and the answers are not stored.
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Frequently asked questions
Is this a hearing test?
No: it does not control the sound level, test each ear at standard levels, or measure hearing loss. See an audiologist if you are worried about your hearing.
Why can't I hear above 15 kHz?
High-frequency hearing declines with age from the late teens onward, and many headphones and speakers roll off above 15 to 18 kHz anyway.
Why do low tones need more volume?
The ear is much less sensitive at low frequencies; at the same level, 30 Hz sounds far quieter than 1,000 Hz.
Free tool · runs in your browser · no account required