Online hearing test, a first impression in 5 minutes

What you need

• Headphones

  Ideally covering both ears

• A quiet room

  No television or street noise

• 5 minutes

  Your result straight afterwards

How the test works

1. 1

   Set the volume

   You set the volume to a level that feels comfortable. All further tones are played relative to it.

2. 2

   Listen to the tones

   You hear single tones at different pitches, one ear at a time, and tell us whether you heard them.

3. 3

   A few questions

   A few questions about ringing in the ears, an ENT finding and any hearing aids you already wear help to put the result in context.

4. 4

   Your result

   You see your hearing curve and a first assessment of whether a hearing test with a hearing care professional is worthwhile. If you like, we email you the result.

What the online test can and cannot do

The test runs on your own device, without calibrated equipment. It shows patterns, not decibel values, and makes no diagnosis. Conspicuous results belong in a proper measurement, at our branch or with an ENT doctor.

When you should have your hearing tested

Straight away if you notice something: you ask people to repeat themselves more often, the television is louder than it used to be, or your ear rings. With no particular reason, the WHO advises a hearing test every five years from age 50 and every one to three years from age 65 (hearing screening handbook, 2021). We recommend one test a year, and in our branches it is free. Hearing loss is common. According to the WHO, over 430 million people worldwide need help because of hearing loss, and by 2050 it will be over 700 million (fact sheet of 3 March 2026).

Questions about the hearing test

How reliable is an online hearing test?

It shows whether a hearing loss is likely. Nothing more. Your headphones and your room are not calibrated, so it does not measure decibel values. A normal result does not rule out a mild hearing loss. If the result is abnormal, you should have it measured at a branch or by an ENT doctor.

What is the difference from the hearing test in the branch?

In the branch we first look into your ear canal with the video otoscope. Then we measure with calibrated equipment in a quiet room: pure-tone audiometry shows at what volume you hear each pitch, and speech audiometry shows how well you understand words. It takes about 15 minutes and costs nothing.

What does a hearing test cost?

Nothing at Elbe Akustik, online or in the branch. You do not need a prescription and you take on no obligation. You only need a prescription from the ENT doctor when the health insurer is to contribute to hearing aids.

What does my hearing curve show?

The hearing curve, the audiogram, shows for each ear how loud a tone must be for you to hear it. Low tones are on the left, high tones on the right. If the curve slopes down to the right, you hear high tones less well. This is the most common pattern in age-related hearing loss, and many consonants such as s, f and t lie exactly there.

Can I take the online hearing test with hearing aids?

Take your hearing aids out for the test and put on headphones. With hearing aids in your ears, the test measures the devices, not your hearing. We check in the branch whether your hearing aids are still set correctly.

Is the online hearing test suitable for children?

No. We test children in the branch. Paediatric audiology is our focus in Horst. If you feel that your child does not hear well, speak first to the paediatrician or the ENT doctor.