Bluetooth calls not working on Android? Here’s what to do

In the current state of affairs, with all major OEMs avoiding headphone jacks like plague, Bluetooth audio is for many a preferable option. If not for the outspoken audio output (a quality often isn’t comparable to wired solutions just yet), then for hands-free calls. It seems that some users on Android 12 have had issues with that, as Bluetooth calls are not working anymore.

Table of contents:

1. Reboot your phone
2. Update firmware
3. Remove headphones/car system and pair them again
4. Turn off HD audio
5. Disable Bluetooth A2DP Hardware Offload
6. Reset Network Settings
7. Reset your device to factory settings

Android 12 broke Bluetooth audio in calls

If a recent Android update broke Bluetooth audio calls, make sure to:

• Restart your device and try again.
• Install system updates.
• Remove the Bluetooth device and pair it again. You can also reset earbuds/headphones to factory settings if possible. Also, if the device has a way to update firmware, make sure to keep it up to date.
• Reset Network settings or reset your Android to factory settings if the problem is still there and you depend on Bluetooth calls.

Solution 1 – Reboot your phone and clear the cache

Let’s start by rebooting your device. Some users also managed to address the problem by enabling and then disabling Airplane mode so it’s worth a shot.

The next step is to navigate to Settings > Apps > All apps and enable System services. After that, locate the Bluetooth app and clear the cache and data from it. Reboot your device once again and test Bluetooth again. You should also check for improvements with NFC disabled. Some say that the connection substantially improved with NFC being disabled.

If the issue persists and Bluetooth audio in calls is not working at all or crackling, continue to the next step.

Solution 2 – Update firmware

The next thing to do is to check for possible updates. There are a lot of reports related to Bluetooth issues after upgrading to Android 12. The issues were non-existent on Android 11.

Hopefully, OEMs addressed the problem with patches and that’s the reason why you should keep your device up to date. Check for updates in Settings > System > Software update and install any available updates.

Solution 3 – Remove headphones/car system and pair them again

It’s hard to pinpoint the exact cause for the issue but removing and pairing devices again usually helps. What you’ll need to do is delete the troublesome device (be it wireless headphones or a car system) from the list of paired devices and try pairing again.

Follow these steps to remove and pair again Bluetooth device with your phone:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Bluetooth.
3. Open Paired devices. On some Android skins, you’ll need to be connected to the audio device to access the option to Unpair. If that’s the case, turn on Bluetooth and connect to the headphones/car system.
4. Tap Unpair.
5. Restart your phone and the device you want to pair your phone with. After that, navigate to Settings > Bluetooth again and pair it with the audio device.

Solution 4 – Enable Phone calls

Some OEMs also have a toggle to enable or disable phone calls on a particular paired Bluetooth device. Make sure that Phone calls are indeed enabled under that particular device.

This is how to ensure that Phone calls are enabled for a Bluetooth device:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Bluetooth.
3. Tap on your device on the Paired devices list.
4. Toggle Phone calls On.

Solution 5 – Disable Bluetooth A2DP Hardware Offload

Alternatively, you can take a step forward and tweak Bluetooth-related Developer options. There are more than a few options you can just change to System default. Also, you can switch to AVCRP version 1.6 instead of 1.4 which is the default one, and change the codec to AAC.

The most important one and the one that usually addresses the problem is Bluetooth A2DP Hardware Offload. You need to disable that option.

Here’s how to access Developer options and tweak Bluetooth settings:

1. On your phone, open Settings > About phone (or System).
2. Tap on the Build number seven times.
3. Get back to the Setting where you should see Developer options.
4. Navigate to Disable Bluetooth A2DP Hardware Offload and toggle it off.
5. Also, you can try switching from SBC to aptX mode. You need to be connected to your headphones/earbuds to see this option. Thank you Surfdude 764 for recommending this in the comments.

Solution 6 – Reset Network Settings

If none of the previous steps worked for you and Bluetooth calls are still not working on Android 10, make sure to reset Network Settings. Have in mind that this will erase all SSIDs and Bluetooth-paired devices.

Follow these steps to restore Network Settings to their default values:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose System or General management.
3. Tap Reset.
4. Then select Reset Network Settings.
5. Confirm the selection.

Solution 7 – Reset your device to factory settings

And, finally, if even resetting of Network Setting fell short, the only thing we can suggest is to factory reset your device. This won’t downgrade your device to Android 11 but it should address issues that awoken after the OTA update to Android 12.

Here’s how to reset your Android device to factory settings:

1. Back up your data from the internal storage (photos can be saved to Google Photos, and other media can be saved to an external storage or a PC).
2. Navigate to Settings > System > Reset or Settings > General management > Reset.
3. Select Factory data reset (Erase All Data).
4. Follow the instructions to reset your device to factory values.

That’s a wrap. Thank you for reading and please tell us if any of these steps helped you address the issue or not. The comments section is below. Also, make sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in February 2020. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.