Your camera was fine yesterday. Today, Teams shows a black screen or a greyed-out video icon, and your meeting starts in two minutes. It happens to almost everyone who uses Teams regularly, and nine times out of ten it comes down to one of four fixable causes: a Windows privacy setting, the wrong camera selected in Teams, a driver problem, or another app holding the camera hostage.
What a Teams camera problem actually looks like
Before jumping to fixes, check which type of problem you have. The cause varies depending on the symptom.
- Black screen in the camera preview – Teams detects the camera but cannot display a feed
- Camera icon greyed out or missing – Teams cannot see any camera device at all
- “We couldn’t use your camera” error message – permission or driver conflict
- Camera works in other apps but not Teams – a Teams-specific setting or cache issue
- Camera freezes mid-call – driver conflict or hardware acceleration problem
The four most common causes
Most Teams camera issues trace back to one of these:
- Windows privacy settings – a Windows update reset camera permissions and Teams lost access
- Wrong camera selected in Teams – Teams defaulted to a different device after an update or driver change
- Another app is using the camera – Zoom, Google Meet, the Windows Camera app, or even a browser tab can lock the camera so Teams cannot connect
- Outdated or corrupted camera driver – particularly common after a major Windows update
Quick fixes to try first
These take less than 60 seconds and sort most problems without going near any settings.
1) Fully quit Teams and relaunch it
- Right-click the Teams icon in your system tray (bottom-right on Windows), then select Quit
- Reopen Teams. Do not just click the X button – that only minimises the app.
Why it helps: Teams caches device states at startup. A full quit and relaunch forces it to re-detect your camera.
2) Unplug and replug your external webcam
- Disconnect the USB cable, wait five seconds, then reconnect it to a different USB port.
- If your webcam has a physical privacy shutter or cover, make sure it is open.
Why it helps: Windows re-detects the device and clears any hardware-level conflict.
3) Run a test call in Teams
- In Teams, click your profile picture, then Settings > Devices. Look for the camera preview at the top of the page.
- If the preview is black or missing, you have confirmed a camera issue. Work through the fixes below in order.
Fix 1: Check Windows camera permissions
This is the most common cause. Windows 11 and Windows 10 both require apps to be explicitly granted camera access. A Windows update can quietly reset this.
- Press Windows + I to open Settings.
- Go to Privacy and Security > Camera.
- Make sure Camera access is toggled On.
- Make sure Let apps access your camera is On.
- Scroll down to Let desktop apps access your camera and make sure that is On too.
- Reopen Teams and check the camera preview in Settings > Devices.
If you are on macOS: go to System Settings > Privacy and Security > Camera, and make sure Microsoft Teams is ticked.
Fix 2: Select the right camera in Teams
Teams can default to the wrong camera device, especially if you have a built-in webcam and an external USB camera connected at the same time.
- In Teams, open Settings (click your profile picture, then Settings).
- Select Devices.
- Under Camera, click the dropdown and choose the correct camera.
- If the preview is still black, switch to a different camera in the list and then switch back. This forces Teams to refresh the connection.
Fix 3: Close apps that are using your camera
Your camera can only be used by one application at a time. If Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, OBS, the Windows Camera app, or even a browser tab with video permissions is running, Teams cannot access the camera at all.
- Open Task Manager (press Ctrl + Shift + Esc on Windows).
- End any processes for Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, OBS, or any browser-based video tool.
- Relaunch Teams and check whether the camera preview loads.
On macOS: use Command + Option + Esc to force-quit any app that might be accessing the camera.
Fix 4: Update or reinstall your camera driver
An outdated or corrupted camera driver is a frequent cause of black screens and freezing video in Teams, particularly after a major Windows update.
- Press Windows + X and select Device Manager.
- Expand the Cameras category.
- Right-click your camera and select Update driver.
- Choose Search automatically for drivers.
If Windows does not find a newer driver, visit the manufacturer’s website directly (Logitech, HP, Dell, Jabra, or your laptop brand) and download the latest driver for your model.
On macOS: camera drivers are bundled with macOS updates. Go to Apple menu > System Settings > General > Software Update to check for any pending updates.
Fix 5: Clear the Teams cache
A corrupted Teams cache can cause camera issues that persist even after the driver is working correctly.
- Fully quit Teams (right-click system tray icon > Quit).
- Press Windows + R to open Run, then type: %userprofile%\appdata\local\Packages\MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\Microsoft\MSTeams and press Enter.
- Delete the folder contents. Do not delete the folder itself.
- Restart Teams and test the camera.
If you use the classic Teams client (the older version), the cache path is: %appdata%\Microsoft\Teams. Navigate there via Run, then delete the contents of the Cache folder.
Fix 6: Turn off hardware acceleration in Teams
GPU hardware acceleration can conflict with certain webcam drivers and cause black screens or frozen video. Turning it off is safe and easy to reverse.
- In Teams, click the three dots (…) next to your profile picture, then Settings.
- Select General.
- Tick the box next to Disable GPU hardware acceleration.
- Restart Teams when prompted.
If crashes stop after doing this, your graphics driver is likely the root cause. Update your GPU driver through Device Manager or your graphics card manufacturer’s website, then try re-enabling hardware acceleration later.
Fix 7: Repair or reinstall Teams
If nothing else has worked, repairing or reinstalling Teams clears any corrupted files that earlier steps did not reach.
Repair first (Windows)
- Go to Settings > Apps, then search for Microsoft Teams.
- Click Advanced options > Repair.
- Test the camera. If it is still not working, go back and select Reset.
Reinstall from the Microsoft Store (last resort)
- Uninstall Teams via Settings > Apps.
- Open the Microsoft Store, search for Microsoft Teams, and install the latest version.
- Sign back in and test the camera before joining any meetings.
Fixes by symptom
Not sure which section to go to? Use this shortcut.
Camera works in Zoom or Google Meet but not Teams
- Teams privacy permissions have been blocked – go to Fix 1.
- Another app is still holding the camera – go to Fix 3.
- Teams cache is corrupted – go to Fix 5.
Black screen in the camera preview
- Check Windows camera permissions first (Fix 1).
- Try switching to a different camera in Teams then switching back (Fix 2).
- Update your camera driver (Fix 4).
- Turn off hardware acceleration (Fix 6).
Camera freezes mid-call
- Turn off hardware acceleration (Fix 6) – this is the most common cause of mid-call freezes.
- Update your GPU driver through Device Manager.
- Turn off background effects in Teams Settings > Devices – these are GPU-intensive and can cause lag on older machines.
Camera icon is greyed out before a meeting starts
- Another app is using the camera – close all other video apps (Fix 3).
- Disconnect and reconnect the USB webcam if you use an external one.
Simple habits that prevent camera problems
- Keep Windows and Teams updated. Most camera bugs are fixed in updates.
- Do not rely on just minimising Teams between calls. Restart it fully at least once a day.
- Disconnect USB webcams when you are not using them. This prevents background apps from quietly locking the device.
- Check your camera permissions after every major Windows update. They can reset without warning.
- If you use background blur or virtual backgrounds regularly, make sure your GPU drivers are current. These effects are graphics-intensive.
FAQs
These are the questions that come up most often from UK business users trying to fix their Teams camera.
Why does my Teams camera work in other apps but not Teams?
Teams requires explicit camera permissions in Windows privacy settings, separate from other apps. Go to Settings > Privacy and Security > Camera and make sure both Teams and desktop apps are permitted. A corrupted Teams cache can also cause this. Clear the cache (see Fix 5 above) if permissions are already correct.
Why is my Teams camera showing a black screen?
A black screen usually means Teams can see the camera but cannot get a feed from it. The most common causes are a driver conflict or GPU hardware acceleration interfering with the camera. Try updating your camera driver (Fix 4), and if that does not clear it, turn off hardware acceleration in Teams Settings > General (Fix 6).
How do I check which app is using my camera on Windows?
Go to Settings > Privacy and Security > Camera. At the bottom of that page, Windows 11 shows which apps have recently accessed the camera and when. You can also open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and look for processes like Zoom, Skype, or Google Chrome that might be holding the camera open.
Will clearing the Teams cache delete my messages or files?
No. The Teams cache is a temporary store of local app data. Clearing it does not delete any messages, files, or account information. Everything syncs back automatically from Microsoft’s servers when you reopen Teams.
My camera icon in Teams is greyed out before the meeting starts. Why?
A greyed-out camera icon most often means another application is already using the camera, or that Teams has lost permission to access it. Close all other video apps (Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, OBS), then check Windows camera permissions. If the icon is still greyed out, reconnect your external webcam if you use one.
What if none of these fixes work?
If you have worked through every fix above and the camera still fails, the issue is likely a deeper driver conflict, a hardware fault, or a company policy restriction applied by your IT administrator. This is where a managed IT support provider can help. UK IT Services provides remote and onsite support for exactly these kinds of persistent Microsoft 365 and Teams issues. Get in touch for a free consultation.
Still stuck? Let Our IT team handle it
Most Teams camera issues are a five-minute fix once you know where to look. Work through the list from the top, starting with Windows permissions, and you will sort it in most cases. If the problem keeps coming back, that is a sign of a deeper driver or software conflict that needs a proper look. Our team at UK IT Services handles Teams, Microsoft 365 support, and all day-to-day IT issues for businesses across the UK. We also cover everything from managed IT support to cybersecurity. If your team runs on Teams, it pays to have someone watching over it.
Want Microsoft 365 managed properly for your business? See our Microsoft 365 support services.