I cannot access my camera when using Microsoft Teams

Question

My camera is connected but for some reason I lost my camera as i am using Microsoft teams.

Answer 1

Hi @H.A. Fernandez, 

I hope you are doing well. 

Thank you for reaching out regarding your experience with Teams. The issue usually occurs if the camera isn't allowed in system settings, another app is also using the camera, or Teams cache is conflicting.  

To resolve the issue, please follow these steps (The following guidance is for Windows devices. If you are using a different device, please let me know): 

1. Allow your apps to access the camera  

• Select Start  > Settings  > Privacy & security  > Camera .  
• Turn Let apps access your camera> On   
• Turn Let desktop apps access your camera> On   
• Under the app list, ensure Microsoft Teams is On   

• Note: If camera access for the device is turned off and greyed out, you'll need an administrator on the device to turn on camera access for you.  

2. Test your camera in a different app  

Use the Camera app in Windows to check if the issue is specific to a certain app.  

• Open Start > Camera and see if the preview works.  

3. Clear Teams cache   

• Close Teams completely, then delete all files of:    %userprofile%\appdata\local\Packages\MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\Microsoft\MSTeams   
• After that, reopen Teams and test spell check.   

4. Clear Office cached credentials    

• Open Control Panel > Credential Manager.    
• Select Windows Credentials.    
• Remove all credentials listed for Office by selecting the drop-down arrow next to each one, and select Remove.    

5. Reset Teams 

• Type settings in the search box, and then select the Settings app from the results.  
• Select Apps > Installed apps, and then type Microsoft Teams in the search box.  
• Locate the New Microsoft Teams app from the results, select the More options button (...) on the right, and then select Advanced options.  
• In the Reset section, select Reset.  
• Restart Teams.  

6. Contact IT admin  

If you are using work-issued laptops managed via Intune or Azure AD, camera access may be restricted by your organization. In this situation, only your organization's IT admin can resolve this.   

Moreover, they can also create a support ticket to Microsoft Support on your behalf if the issue requires deeper investigation.  

I hope this information is helpful. Please follow the steps above and let me know if it works for you. If not, we can continue working together to resolve the issue.   

Thank you for your patience and understanding. If you have any questions or need additional assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out so I can continue to support you. If you found the response useful, please consider marking it as accepted, as this may help other community members who are looking for similar guidance.   

I look forward to continuing the conversation.   

---

If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment". 

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.     

Answer 2

Try the following steps to restore camera access in Microsoft Teams:

1. Close other apps that might be using the camera (for example, Skype or FaceTime), then reopen Teams and try again.
2. If using an external webcam, unplug it and plug it back in, then test again in Teams.
3. Restart the device and then start Teams first before opening other apps that might use the camera.
4. On Windows, make sure apps are allowed to use the camera:
   • Select Start > Settings > Privacy > Camera.
   • Under Allow access to the camera on this device, select Change and turn Camera access for this device on.
   • Ensure Allow apps to access your camera is turned on.
   • Scroll down and make sure Allow desktop apps to access your camera is turned on so Microsoft Teams can use it.
5. On Mac, check app permissions:
   • Open System Settings.
   • Go to Security & Privacy > Privacy > Camera.
   • Ensure Microsoft Teams (work or school) is enabled.
   • Close all apps and restart the device.
6. If using Teams on the web, ensure the browser is allowed to use the camera:
   • In Edge: Settings and more > Settings > Cookies and site permissions > Camera, and turn on Ask before accessing (recommended).
   • In Chrome: Settings > Privacy and security > Site settings > Permissions > Camera, select the correct camera and set Sites can ask to use your camera.
   • In Safari: Preferences > Websites > Camera, and set When visiting other websites to Ask or Allow.
7. Make sure Windows or Mac OS and the Teams app are fully updated, then test the camera again in Teams.

If the problem persists after these steps, contact the device manufacturer to rule out a hardware issue or use Contact Microsoft support.

---

References:

• My camera isn't working in Microsoft Teams
• Camera doesn't work in Windows
• New Teams crashes whenever I turn on a webcam in a meeting - Microsoft Q&A
• On desktop Teams, my camera and screen sharing look as if they work as if they work fine, but they do not - Microsoft Q&A
• my camera does not function in windows - Microsoft Q&A
• my camera is not listed under device manager camera is not listed and it's not under imaging devices - Microsoft Q&A
• Camera fails in Teams - Microsoft Q&A