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Hearing Test

Name on the App Store: 听力自测 - 测听力·听力图·耳朵自查

Check your hearing at eight frequencies on your own headphones and get a standard audiogram. Five minutes, all on your device.

Download on the App Store (China)
  • CN¥8
  • iOS 18.1 or later
  • v1.0.2 · updated 2026-09-18

The app's interface is in Simplified Chinese only.

What it can't do

This section isn't a disclaimer. It's part of the product.

This app is not a medical device. It cannot be used to diagnose hearing disorders, and it does not replace an examination or advice from a hearing professional.

  • The absolute numbers are not reliable. Acoustic calibration has not been completed yet, so absolute values are for reference only. What you can trust is the shape of the curve (which frequency ranges are relatively weaker) and the trend across repeated tests — systematic error cancels out when you take the difference. If you can get a reliable audiogram from an actual measurement, the app has a calibration feature that can set the absolute zero point.
  • There are problems it cannot identify. Sudden hearing loss, ear pain, vertigo, or hearing that gets worse in only one ear — if any of these happen, see a doctor as soon as possible. Don't look for answers here.
  • Switch headphones and you can't compare directly. The absolute zero point goes with the headphones. Change devices and your earlier numbers lose their reference point.

What it does

It uses pure-tone air-conduction audiometry to measure your hearing threshold at eight frequencies, on your own headphones, and draws a standard audiogram. The whole test takes about five minutes and runs entirely on your device.

  • Eight frequencies from 250 to 8000 Hz, left and right ears measured separately
  • Follows the up-down method commonly used in clinics, with pulsed pure tones
  • Draws a standard audiogram (the notation used internationally: red circles for the right ear, blue crosses for the left)
  • Saves your history and shows how your results change from test to test
  • Can save results to the Hearing category in the Health app

Who it's for, and what problem it solves

Lately it feels a little harder to hear, or there's a slight ringing in your ears. But the change isn't big enough to make you book an appointment and wait your turn. So it just hangs there. You're not sure it's really getting worse, and you have nothing to compare it against.

This app does one small thing: it gives you a baseline of your own. Test once today and again in three months. Put the two curves side by side and you can see the change. It doesn't tell you what the change means — that's a doctor's job. But it turns "is my hearing really getting worse?" from a feeling into a line you can look at.

Why we built it

It started when a family member said their hearing hadn't been very good lately. They have worn headphones regularly for a long time, and at a high volume.

That reminded me of my time in the US: my iPhone, paired with AirPods Pro 3, already had a hearing test built into the system. But their iPhone is in China, and it doesn't have that feature.

I went through Apple's official feature availability page, and the picture was clearer than I expected. Apple's Hearing Test feature is listed for 179 countries and regions. The list includes Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and Japan, South Korea and Singapore — but not mainland China. Search the whole page for the word "China" and nothing comes up. And the feature only supports AirPods Pro 2 and Pro 3. Noise-cancelling headphones from other brands can't use it either.

In other words: the hardware is in your hands, the feature exists, and you still can't use it.

Why this is worth an app has nothing to do with technology. It's about getting an appointment.

In every country, medical resources are relatively scarce. Getting an appointment means waiting in line. Going on a workday means taking time off and losing pay. And with hearing, the worst case isn't "a check finds a problem." It's "putting the check off." If you wait until you clearly can't hear well, there's less left that can be saved.

So from the start, the goal of this app was never diagnosis. It's to help you know when it's time to see a doctor. You can test at home any time and build up a curve of your own. If the trend looks wrong, that's when you go and wait in that line.

That's also why it works the way it does: following the trend matters more than chasing absolute numbers. Absolute numbers depend on acoustic calibration. But for the shape of the curve and the change between tests, systematic error cancels out when you take the difference. And those are exactly what the "should I see a doctor?" decision needs.

How to use it

  1. Fill in the pre-test questionnaire — a cold, an ear infection, or exposure to loud noise in the past 24 hours can all make your hearing temporarily worse
  2. Headphone check — identifies the type of headphones and confirms that left and right aren't swapped and there's no crosstalk between them
  3. Environment check — measures the noise in your room; if it's too loud, your hearing will measure worse than it really is
  4. Start the test — eight frequencies, each ear tested separately, about five minutes
  5. See your results — a standard audiogram, which you can save to the Health app and compare with your past results

If any of the first three steps fails, what you measure is not your real hearing.

Privacy and data

The app does not connect to the internet. Its code has no ability to make network requests.

  • Does not collect personal information
  • Does not collect device identifiers
  • Does not use third-party analytics or ad services
  • Does not require an account
  • Test records are stored only on your device

Protecting your hearing

The app includes guidance based on the safe listening standard developed jointly by the WHO and ITU (ITU-T H.870):

At 80 dB, 40 hours a week. At 90 dB, only about 4 hours. That's just a few presses of the volume button, and a tenfold difference in how much listening is safe.

Every 3 dB increase in sound pressure level cuts the safe listening time in half.

Questions

Can a phone test your hearing? Are the numbers accurate?

It can show the shape of your hearing curve and how it changes over time. The absolute numbers are not reliable. The app has not been acoustically calibrated yet, and the absolute zero point is different for every pair of headphones and every device. What you can trust is which frequency ranges are relatively weaker, and how your results change from one test to the next — systematic error cancels out when you take the difference.

Can this replace a hearing test from a doctor?

No. It is not a medical device. It cannot be used to diagnose hearing disorders, and it does not replace an examination or advice from a hearing professional. If you have sudden hearing loss, ear pain, vertigo, or hearing that gets worse in only one ear, see a doctor as soon as possible. These are problems this app cannot identify.

What headphones should I use?

The pair you normally wear is fine. What matters is using the same pair every time. Before the test, the app runs a headphone check: it identifies the type of headphones and confirms that left and right aren't swapped and there's no crosstalk between them. After you switch headphones, the absolute numbers can't be compared directly with your earlier results.

Why do I have to fill in a questionnaire and measure room noise before the test?

A cold, an ear infection, or exposure to loud noise in the past 24 hours can all make your hearing temporarily worse. A noisy room makes your hearing measure worse than it really is. If any one of these checks fails, what you measure is not your real hearing. These three steps are not there for show.

Are my test results uploaded anywhere?

No. The app does not connect to the internet — its code has no ability to make network requests. It does not collect personal information or device identifiers, does not use third-party analytics or ad services, and does not require an account. Your records stay only on your device.

Why isn't Apple's Hearing Test feature available on iPhones in mainland China?

Because mainland China is not on Apple's availability list for that feature. According to Apple's official feature availability page (checked 2026-09-21), the Hearing Test feature is listed for 179 countries and regions, including Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and Singapore, but not mainland China. The feature also has a hardware requirement: it only supports AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3. Noise-cancelling headphones from other brands can't use it.

What's a safe volume for headphones?

Under the safe listening standard developed jointly by the WHO and ITU (ITU-T H.870), the reference level for adults is 40 hours a week at 80 dB. Every 3 dB increase in sound pressure level cuts the safe time in half, so at 90 dB you have only about 4 hours. A few presses of the volume button make a tenfold difference in your safe allowance.

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