How to Add Google Meet as an Audio Source in OBS
If you've ever tried to stream or record a session that includes a Google Meet call, you've probably run into the same frustrating problem: OBS captures your microphone just fine, but the audio coming from the Meet call — other participants' voices — either doesn't show up at all or bleeds in through your mic awkwardly. Getting Google Meet's audio routed cleanly into OBS requires understanding how audio routing works on your operating system, and the approach differs depending on your setup.
Why OBS Doesn't Automatically Capture Google Meet Audio
OBS records audio from sources — physical inputs like microphones, or virtual inputs like desktop audio. The challenge with browser-based apps like Google Meet is that they output audio to your speakers or headphones, not to a dedicated application audio channel that OBS can isolate.
When OBS captures Desktop Audio, it grabs everything playing through your system output — Meet voices, notification sounds, music, everything. That might work for casual use, but it's messy for professional streams or clean recordings. The cleaner approach involves creating a virtual audio cable that acts as a software-based pipe between Google Meet's output and OBS's input.
The Core Concept: Virtual Audio Devices 🎧
A virtual audio cable (sometimes called a virtual audio device or loopback interface) is software that creates a fake audio input/output pair on your computer. You route Google Meet's audio out through this virtual device, then tell OBS to listen in through the same device. The result is an isolated, clean audio feed from Meet that OBS treats like any other audio source.
Popular tools that create virtual audio devices include:
- VB-Cable (Windows, free)
- Voicemeeter (Windows, free, more complex mixing features)
- BlackHole (macOS, free)
- Loopback (macOS, paid, more granular control)
The specific tool you use matters less than understanding the routing logic: Meet audio out → virtual device → OBS audio in.
Step-by-Step: The General Routing Process
1. Install a Virtual Audio Device
After installing your chosen virtual audio software, your system will recognize one or more new audio devices. On Windows you'll see them in Sound Settings; on macOS they appear in Audio MIDI Setup and System Preferences.
2. Route Google Meet's Output to the Virtual Device
This is where the process branches depending on your OS:
On Windows: Open Sound Settings → App Volume and Device Preferences (under Advanced Sound Options). Find your browser (Chrome, Edge, etc.) running Meet and change its output device to the virtual cable. Meet's audio will now play into that virtual device instead of your speakers. Note that you may lose the ability to hear Meet through your normal headphones unless you set up audio monitoring separately in OBS or use a mixer like Voicemeeter that can split the signal.
On macOS: macOS doesn't offer per-app audio routing natively. You'll typically need to set BlackHole or your virtual device as the system output, then create a Multi-Output Device in Audio MIDI Setup that combines BlackHole with your actual speakers/headphones — so you can still hear Meet while also routing it to OBS.
3. Add the Virtual Device as an Audio Source in OBS
Inside OBS:
- In the Audio Mixer panel, click the gear icon and go to Advanced Audio Settings, or
- Go to Settings → Audio and look at your global audio device slots
Add the virtual audio device as an Audio Input Capture source, or assign it to one of the auxiliary audio slots. Label it clearly — "Google Meet Audio" works well — so you can adjust its levels independently from your microphone.
4. Verify the Signal
Before going live or hitting record, do a test call. Watch the audio meter in OBS for the Meet audio source. You should see levels moving when other participants speak. If the meter is flat, double-check that the browser is actually routing to the virtual device and not still playing to your speakers.
Variables That Affect How This Works
The setup described above is the general framework, but several factors shape what the process actually looks like for you:
| Variable | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Operating System | macOS lacks native per-app audio routing; Windows has it but it's buried |
| Browser vs. Desktop App | Some Meet configurations run as a PWA or Chrome app, which may appear differently in audio routing menus |
| Number of audio sources | Mixing Meet audio with a mic, game audio, and music requires more complex routing (Voicemeeter territory) |
| Monitoring needs | If you need to hear Meet while routing it to OBS, you need a split signal, not just a redirect |
| OBS version | Older OBS versions handle audio source management differently than OBS 28+ with the updated audio subsystem |
Common Issues and What Causes Them
Echo or double audio: Your mic is picking up Meet audio through your speakers and OBS is capturing the virtual device. Use headphones or disable desktop audio in OBS.
No signal in OBS: The browser is still routing to your default output. Check per-app audio settings again — browser updates sometimes reset these.
Can hear Meet but OBS doesn't capture it: The virtual device is set as output but OBS is listening to a different input. Match the device names exactly.
Audio delay between Meet and other sources: Virtual audio devices can introduce small latency. Use OBS's Audio Sync Offset setting on that source to compensate.
The Setup Isn't One-Size-Fits-All
What makes this process genuinely variable is that a streamer recording a webinar has completely different needs than a podcaster capturing a remote interview, or a content creator who wants Meet in the background of a gaming stream. The number of audio sources, whether you need real-time monitoring, your OS, and how much you're willing to manage in a mixer all push you toward different tools and configurations. The framework above works — but how you apply it depends entirely on what your specific production looks like.