As a built-in screen reader, Windows “Narrator” never fails to impress. You can make this handy tool read aloud what’s on your screen – whether it’s text, dialog boxes, buttons, or user interfaces. Due largely to its versatility and the ability to perform tasks with precision, it can be used for various purposes such as reading articles, composing emails, and browsing the web.
For all being so efficient, the Narrator does go out of sync and tends to misbehave once in a while. When that happens, it feels rather irritating as many of your tasks seem to lose steam. But bother not! Having gone through this irritation a few times, I’ve jotted down the 16 most effective tips and tricks to fix the Narrator not working on Windows 11 problem.
Fix Windows 11 Narrator Not Working on Your PC
So, what could have derailed the Narrator on your PC? Frankly speaking, it might be the byproduct of a number of culprits including –
- Wrongly adjusted volume
- Greedy third-party audio enhancements
- Corrupted audio drivers
- Persistent system bugs
- Faulty keyboard layout
- Incorrect Accessibility settings
In this detailed Windows guide, we are going to take each one of the above-mentioned villains into account and look for workable solutions to fix the issue and restore the Narrator to its original avatar.
1. Ensure the Narrator is Active on your PC
Especially when in a hurry to sort out a vexing problem, many a time we tend to check off the fundamental things. Therefore, head into the Narrator setting and make sure it’s set up perfectly.
- Go to the Settings app > Accessibility > Narrator.
- Make sure that the toggle for Narrator is active. Additionally, ensure that the keyboard shortcut for the Narrator “Ctrl + Win + Enter” is enabled as well.
- If this feature is already turned on, disable it. Wait for a few seconds and then turn it back on to check if it has started working.
2. Restart Your PC
When you have a pretty quick and handy solution like the “Soft Reset” aka restart readily available, why look any further? So, reboot your PC and bring on the Narrator to figure out if it has begun to behave on the expected lines.
3. Check Audio Settings
Is the correct audio output device enabled on your PC? If not, get it right to resolve the problem.
- To do so, head over to the Settings app on your Windows device > System > Sound.
- Under the Output section, choose your active device and test it out to make sure it’s live and kicking as usual.
4. Check Volume Levels
Is the volume level muted or too low on your PC? Fine-tune it properly. You can take advantage of the volume mixer to adjust the volume with precision.
- Simply, right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar and choose Open Volume Mixer.
- After that, adjust the volume.
5. Check Keyboard Layout
It’s worth pointing out that if the keyboard layout on your PC is not in sync with the whole setup, the Narrator might fail to work properly.
- Dive into the Settings app on your device > click on the Time & Language tab in the left sidebar > Language & Region.
- Then, ensure that the desired keyboard is selected.
6. Restart Narrator Service
Windows 11 provides a native way to reboot the Narrator service. For times when the built-in screen reader seems to ill-function, it comes into play. Credit where credit is due, it’s able to get rid of the problem – more often than not.
- On your PC, press Win + R to access the Run dialog > type services.msc > hit Enter.
- Now, find Narrator and right-click on it.
- Next, select the “Restart” option in the menu.
- Make sure the Startup type option is set to Automatic.
7. Disable Third-Party Audio Enhancements
While third-party audio enhancements are noteworthy, at times, they tend to conflict with the system audio and cause unexpected problems. Keeping this very downside in mind, I would recommend you turn off the third-party audio enhancements.
- Simply, right-click the speaker icon at the bottom right corner and choose Sound Settings.
- Now, click on your output device and choose Advanced.
- Next, disable “Enable audio enhancements” > reboot your system and check if the luck has finally prevailed.
8. Create a New User Profile
In some rare cases, the Windows Narrator problem is profile-specific. Hence, creating a new user profile may help troubleshoot the issue.
- Open the Settings app > Accounts > Other users.
- Now, add a new user and figure out if the Narrator has begun to function.
9. Reset the Entire Narrator Settings
Another reliable solution that you should make sure to give a chance is the ability to reset the entire Narrator settings. If the problem is cropping up due to a wrong configuration, it will let you troubleshoot the hurdle.
- On your Windows device, go to the Settings app > Accessibility > Narrator.
- Scroll down to find the “Reset Narrator settings” option > click Reset and confirm the action when prompted.
- Now, restart your computer > activate Narrator, and set it up to your heart’s liking.
10. Check for Background Apps Conflicts
Haven’t yet been able to restore the malfunctioning Narrator on your PC? Now, is the right time to disable all apps that might be interfering with Narrator.
- On your PC, launch Task Manager using the Ctrl + Shift + Esc keyboard shortcut or the search tool.
- Click on the Startup tab and then disable all the redundant/less useful apps.
11. Update Windows
If your PC has to deal with outdated software, you don’t need to run anywhere to spot the devil. The good thing is the latest Windows update might already have arrived with a permanent fix.
- To update your Windows device, go to Settings > Windows Update > Check for updates.
12. Run the Accessibility Troubleshooter
“Accessibility Troubleshooter” has a knack for nabbing and fixing Accessibility related issues on Windows.
- Head into the Settings app > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters.
- Navigate to find Accessibility and hit the Run button.
- Let the troubleshooter go about the job without any disturbance. If it manages to discover any issue, be sure to fix it right away.
13. Update Audio Drivers
Should the Narrator’s issue continue to hold the fort, it wouldn’t be wrong to put the sole blame on the out-of-date audio drivers.
- Open the Device Manager using the search bar or Win + X shortcut.
- Look for the Sound, video, and game controllers section and expand it.
- Right-click your audio device. When a tiny popup shows up with multiple options, select Update driver.
- Select Search automatically for drivers and follow the on-screen instructions.
14. Reinstall Audio Drivers
Even after updating the audio drivers, if the Narrator problem hasn’t gone away, try reinstalling the drivers.
- Launch Device Manager > find and expand the Sound, video, and game controllers section.
- Then, right-click your audio device and choose Uninstall the device.
- Next up, restart your PC to let Windows automatically reinstall the driver.
15. Run an SFC Scan
Corrupted system files could also be major factors behind the Narrator issues. So, what’s the right way to flush out the corrupted system files? Well, SFC aka System File Checker has long been a highly effective tool for diagnosing and eliminating malicious files on PC.
- To get going, fire up the Command Prompt as Administrator on your device.
- Now, input sfc /scannow and press Enter.
- Once the scanning is done, reboot your system.
16. Perform a System Restore – Last Resort
This one is rightly considered to be the last resort. Therefore, the option to restore Windows to a previous state should only come into the picture when nothing comes to your rescue.
- Navigate to the search bar > type in Create a restore point and launch it.
- Hit System Restore.
- Now, find and select a restore point where the Narrator was working.
Wrapping up…
There you have it! I know the Narrator has returned to form on your PC and so has the beloved screen reading experience. Now, share your thoughts and the tips that have sorted out your Windows screen reader.
