Since 2014, Apple has included a feature in iOS called Live Listen that allows an iPhone or iPad to serve as a remote microphone for an MFI-compatible hearing aid.

When Apple released iOS 12, it added Live Listen support for AirPods and AirPods 2, making it possible to use your iOS device as a directional mic and have the audio relayed to Apple's wireless earphones.

iphone xs and airpods
As an accessibility feature, the idea behind Live Listen is for it to be used by people who are hard of hearing or need extra help separating voices in a loud environment, but it can be useful in other ways, too.

If you're on a family vacation, for instance, you could use your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ as a makeshift baby monitor for when the baby's napping and you're in another room with the TV on. All you'd need to do is put the iOS device near the baby's crib and wear a single AirPod, which should have a strong enough Bluetooth range to allow you to listen in from afar.

Live Listen will work even when other audio is being played on your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ – so you could listen to a podcast, say, and still be keeping tabs on the baby. Just note that whatever it is that you're listening to will switch to mono output to match the Live Listen stream, and the AirPods' tap gestures will be disabled for as long as the feature is active.

Live Listen is easy to set up and use once you know how. The following steps show you how it's done on an ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ running iOS 12 or later.

How to Set Up Live Listen on iPhone and iPad

  1. Launch the Settings app on your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌.
  2. Tap Control Center.
    how to set up live listen with airpods

  3. Tap Customize Controls.
  4. Scroll down and tap the green plus (+) button next to Hearing.

How to Use Live Listen on iPhone and iPad

  1. Put your AirPods in and connect them to your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ in the usual way.
  2. Launch Control Center on your iOS device: On an ‌iPad‌ with a Home button, double-tap the Home button; on ‌iPhone‌ 8 or earlier, swipe up from the bottom of the screen; and on a 2018 iPad Pro or ‌iPhone‌ R/X/XS/XS Max, swipe down from the upper right of the screen.
    how to use live listen with airpods

  3. Tap the Hearing icon.
  4. Tap Live Listen.
  5. Place your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ close to the person you want to hear, preferably in front of them.

If the output to your AirPods is too quiet or too loud, use the volume buttons on your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ to adjust the volume level.

live listen not working airpods
If you see the message "Unavailable for current route" when you try to turn on Live Listen, restarting your iOS device and then forgetting and re-connecting your AirPods in the Settings app's Bluetooth menu should fix the issue.

Related Roundup: AirPods 4
Buyer's Guide: AirPods (Buy Now)
Related Forum: AirPods

Top Rated Comments

iLoveDeveloping Avatar
iLoveDeveloping
83 months ago
Wow I knew nothing of this. Is it just me or do apple do a terrible job these days of actually telling users about features? I remember when the iPhone / iPod came out, for years almost every feature was explained and used in marketing on the website, i have literally found features on my phone by accident since getting a new iPhone8 that I didn’t even knew it had or how they worked. And I used to be a developer for 3 years, I can’t image how older users like my parents would even know how to use some thing or if they were even there in the first place. Apple is really doing a lousy job especially in the last 2-3 years in this regard (yes sales are through the roof but I’m specifically talking about informing users about great little features, and that silly tips app is a joke). It’s now more of an ‘object’, who cares what it does just look how pretty it is. A far cry from the jobs days.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kagee1 Avatar
Kagee1
83 months ago
Wow I knew nothing of this. Is it just me or do apple do a terrible job these days of actually telling users about features? I remember when the iPhone / iPod came out, for years almost every feature was explained and used in marketing on the website, i have literally found features on my phone by accident since getting a new iPhone8 that I didn’t even knew it had or how they worked. And I used to be a developer for 3 years, I can’t image how older users like my parents would even know how to use some thing or if they were even there in the first place. Apple is really doing a lousy job especially in the last 2-3 years in this regard (yes sales are through the roof but I’m specifically talking about informing users about great little features, and that silly tips app is a joke). It’s now more of an ‘object’, who cares what it does just look how pretty it is. A far cry from the jobs days.
I couldn’t agree more. Perhaps Apple has gotten “too big for its britches.”
[doublepost=1541422111][/doublepost
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sunapple Avatar
sunapple
83 months ago
Wow I knew nothing of this. Is it just me or do apple do a terrible job these days of actually telling users about features? I remember when the iPhone / iPod came out, for years almost every feature was explained and used in marketing on the website, i have literally found features on my phone by accident since getting a new iPhone8 that I didn’t even knew it had or how they worked. And I used to be a developer for 3 years, I can’t image how older users like my parents would even know how to use some thing or if they were even there in the first place. Apple is really doing a lousy job especially in the last 2-3 years in this regard (yes sales are through the roof but I’m specifically talking about informing users about great little features, and that silly tips app is a joke). It’s now more of an ‘object’, who cares what it does just look how pretty it is. A far cry from the jobs days.
I'm sorry, but nowadays there're just a lot more features than five years ago and finding those features, the important ones, is still very easy. This has zero to do with Jobs.

https://www.apple.com/accessibility/
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FloatingBones Avatar
FloatingBones
83 months ago
Wow I knew nothing of this. Is it just me or do apple do a terrible job these days of actually telling users about features?
The Apple Store's Today at Apple ('https://www.apple.com/today/') sessions are an excellent way to find out about how to do things. I recently attended four of these sessions with a friend for learning iPad skills. This was an excellent way for my non-techie friend to get up to speed on iOS/iPad, but the bonus was how much I learned during the process.

I couldn’t agree more. Perhaps Apple has gotten “too big for its britches.”
Have either of you attended any TaA sessions? Apple's instructors will cover the material for a particular session, plus questions/issues that students have. It kept some of the best features of the old One to One ('https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_to_One_(Apple)') product: anyone can ask anything in the sessions, and the instructors will work hard to address those questions with the student -- either during the session or in a few minutes afterwards.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
Read Full Article • 220 comments
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
Read Full Article • 30 comments
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
Read Full Article • 44 comments
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
Read Full Article • 90 comments
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Launch Now Just Months Away: Here's What We Know

Tuesday March 18, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
Read Full Article • 50 comments
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
Read Full Article • 39 comments
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...
Read Full Article • 145 comments
Windows Vista

Apple Might Be Having Its Windows Vista Moment, Says Analyst

Thursday March 20, 2025 6:52 am PDT by
Is Apple experiencing a "Vista-like drift into systemically poor execution?" That was a question posed by well-known technology analyst Benedict Evans, in a recent blog post covering Apple's innovation and execution, or seemingly lack thereof as of late. He is referring to Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system, which was widely criticized when it launched in 2007 due to software bugs,...
Read Full Article • 181 comments