What is coreaudiod on Mac?
By Junaid, maker of Taskglass · Last reviewed
Handles all sound on your Mac: playback, microphones, and audio devices.
coreaudiod is the Core Audio daemon. Every sound your Mac plays or records passes through it, and it manages speakers, headphones, microphones and audio interfaces. It's normal for it to use some CPU while audio is playing, during calls, or when an app keeps an audio device open.
- Category
- macOS system
- Made by
- Apple
- Safe to quit:
- With care
Shown in Activity Monitor as coreaudiod
Why is coreaudiod using so much CPU or memory?
- Audio or video playing, or a video call in progress
- An app keeping the microphone or speakers open in the background
- Third-party audio drivers or virtual audio devices (from meeting, recording or audio-routing apps)
- Bluetooth headphones switching profiles
What to do
- 1Pause playback and end calls, then check again
- 2Quit apps that might be holding audio open, such as meeting or recording apps
- 3Remove audio software you no longer use
- 4Force quit coreaudiod if sound is stuck or crackling; macOS relaunches it within seconds
- 5Restart your Mac
Safe to quit? With care.
macOS relaunches it within seconds; sound cuts out briefly and some apps may need restarting to get audio back.
Typical usage
Rough ranges on Apple Silicon Macs. Yours will vary.
- CPU
- 0–2% when silent; 2–15% while playing or recording
- Memory
- 10–80 MB
Related processes
Part of the Taskglass Process Library