If you’re interested in starting a career as a YouTuber – whether that involves singing, podcasting, or voiceovers – then one of the first things you’ll need is a quality microphone to help you create professional-sounding recordings.
It can be tempting, especially for beginners, to put off parting with your hard-earned cash before your passion project starts to generate income. After all, the built-in microphone on your laptop, tablet or even your smartphone sounds pretty good already, right?
Wrong!
The fact of the matter is that even an inexpensive external microphone will help you produce far more professional-sounding content.
So give your future fans and subscribers a treat for their ears and find out which of our top YouTube mic picks will do your voice justice.
What are the best YouTube mics?
Shure SM7B
The SM7B is a dynamic mic favoured by many professional podcasters, including the celebrity hosts of The Joe Rogan Experience, Anna Faris is Unqualified, and WTF with Marc Maron.
The Shure SM7B is not only one of the best vocal mics on the market – it’s also great for recording instruments such as acoustic guitars and even drums. While this expensive microphone may seem intimidating for beginners on a budget, Shure are a leading brand in audio equipment for a reason – once you hear your voice recorded with an SM7B, you’ll never want to use another mic.
Pros & Cons
Flat frequency response
The close-talk windscreen can be detached if not needed
Not freestanding – you will need to purchase a separate weighted boom arm to suspend the SM7B from
Relatively low output – many users also buy a Cloudlifter to boost the signal
Blue Yeti Nano
The Blue Yeti name is legendary in the podcasting and streaming community, so it deserves a mention for its reputation alone.
That said, the Blue Yeti Nano more than lives up to the hype – its small yet solid body houses dual capsules, which allows you to change between a cardioid and an omnidirectional polar pattern, depending on what you’re recording. As an added bonus, Logitech has made their Blue Vo!ce vocal effects software available for free to everyone who purchases a Blue Yeti microphone, so you can access a range of professional effects and filters without having to part with another penny.
Pros & Cons
Compact size
Switchable pickup pattern
Expensive product
The onboard volume dial is not silent
Blue Yeti X
For even more polar pattern choices, check out the most professional member of the Blue Yeti family: the Blue Yeti X.
The Blue Yeti X contains four condenser capsules, allowing you to choose either a cardioid, an omnidirectional, a bidirectional, or a stereo pickup pattern. This solid metal condenser microphone can help you sound like a professional whether you’re recording a voiceover, streaming, or even in a meeting.
Pros & Cons
Superior audio quality
Customisable LED display
The polar pattern selector is on the back of the mic, making it easier to hit by accident
The microphone is heavy at 1.3kg
Donner DC-20
The DC-20 includes everything a beginner needs (except an audio interface) if they’re ready to take the next step of their digital audio journey. The smart, silver finish on the zinc alloy body looks and feels great for the price.
If you want a dynamic microphone of the same quality for the same price, look no further than the Donner PO-8, which also comes with a full kit.
Pros & Cons
A well-built condenser at a low price
Includes a shock mount with a pop filter, a tripod, an XLR cable, and a soft case
The plastic shock mount feels a little flimsy
The mic is overly sensitive to background noise
Fifine AmpliGame A8
This compact YouTube microphone houses a cardioid capsule that will help you record a crisp, clean-sounding conversation.
Aimed mainly at gamers, the Fifine AmpliGame A8 is what’s been missing from your desk. At the touch of one button, you can switch between several RGB light patterns to match your mood and setting; at the touch of another, you can instantly mute the mic.
Pros & Cons
Plug in and play
Compatible with most operating systems and consoles
The included stand doesn’t prevent the mic from picking up desk-related sounds such as tapping on your keyboard
The sound quality is only good when you position your mouth very close to the mic
Maono HD300T USB/XLR
The Maono HD300T is a smart dynamic mic with a tight cardioid pattern, complete with onboard volume controls and a 3.5mm headphone jack input.
The HD300T is probably the most versatile microphone on this list. Not only can it either be used as a handheld mic for performance or be suspended from the included shock mount for recording, but it can also be plugged straight into your device via a USB-c connection or into your audio interface via an XLR connection.
Pros & Cons
It can record studio-quality vocals
On-mic volume controls
The included stand is quite short and a little unstable
The output volume is a bit quiet
Hayner-Seek L02-53A
This condenser mic from Hayner-Seek comes with all the bells and whistles you could possibly need: a boom arm, a pop shield, a shock mount, and more.
The microphone itself is not to be sniffed at – it’s a sensitive, low-noise, unidirectional mic that excludes any off-axis background noise, giving you a clear, natural-sounding recording. Hayner-Seek includes an XRL to 3.5mm head jack lead in this kit, which is useful if you’re wiring your YouTube mic directly into a camera or camcorder.
Pros & Cons
Everything you need to set yourself up as a podcaster
The mic can pick up sound from an impressive distance
The boom arm isn’t fully stable when holding the mic
You’ll need to purchase a separate audio interface – it’s not plug in and play
Tonor TC20
Another all-inclusive podcaster start kit, the Tonor TC20 is slightly more expensive than the Hayner-Seek model – but it does also come with a slightly better spec.
Tonor has also packaged together everything from a boom arm to a washable foam mic head cover, and the microphone has a similarly tight cardioid pattern that boosts the sound in front of it and reduces the noise behind it. Again, you’ll need an audio interface to use this microphone, but once you’re ready to start building your professional set-up, there’s a lot more this YouTube mic can do.
Pros & Cons
Includes a 3-metre XLR cable
Solid metal microphone build
The structure of the stand and mounted pop shield isn’t as sound as it should be
The sound quality is a little tinny
Fifine T669
The T669 from Fifine is another affordable condenser microphone with a cardioid pickup pattern – but you won’t need an audio interface for this one, since it’s USB.
When it comes to off-axis noise cancellation, Fifine has really done their homework. Combine this with the T669’s warm, mid-range boost, and you’ve got yourself the ideal YouTube microphone for recording voiceovers.
Pros & Cons
There is a handy gain control dial on the front of the mic
High-quality pop filter
The boom arm audibly squeaks
The microphone is not compatible with Xbox
Trust GXT 252+ Emita
You can tell as soon as you pick up the metal-bodied Emita that Trust is a brand you can rely on.
Complete with a 2-metre USB cable, you can plug this mic for streaming straight into your PC, PlayStation 4, or PlayStation 5. If you don’t have the need or the space for a boom arm, you can either purchase the Emita as a standalone mic or with a simple stand.
Pros & Cons
High-quality microphone build
Great background noise cancellation
No mute button
The boom arm is lightweight
That’s our rundown of the best 2023 mics for YouTubers – but how do you know which choice is right for you? Read on to find out how to choose the best mic for your YouTube career:
What are you going to use your mic for?
The type of microphone that’s right for your YouTube career will depend on the type of career you want to pursue. There are a few types of microphones out there, but the main two are dynamic microphones and condenser microphones.
Simply put, condenser mics are better for capturing the most accurate sound. They are more sensitive and delicate, so they do pick up more background noise, and can distort when exposes to louder sounds.
Condenser microphones also have a range of pickup patterns – some even have a handy switch to let you change their pattern. This is great for situations where you might want an omnidirectional pattern, which picks up noise from all directions.
Dynamic mics, on the other hand, are better for capturing louder sounds. They’re more robust than condenser microphones, but most won’t pick up quieter sounds, and won’t give you quite as true a representation of the original sound you’re recording.
Most dynamic mics have a more ‘shaped’ frequency response, which means that they are more responsive to some frequencies than they are to others. A ‘shaped’ frequency response is described in terms like ‘low-frequency roll-off’, which means the mic doesn’t pick up lower-frequency sounds like the hum of an air conditioning unit, and ‘mid-range boost’, which means the mic can boost medium-frequency sounds.
What equipment are you going to use?
These days, it’s easier than ever to take your work on the go thanks to editing programs designed for portable devices such as smartphones and tablets. Some microphones for YouTubers have been designed specifically to work with this type of device, whereas others have been designed to be used as part of a professional studio set-up.
USB mics
The main advantage that USB microphones have over other types can be summed up in one word: convenience. You won’t require an audio interface, as you can plug your microphone directly into your device, and the soundwaves are converted into digital information via the USB cable.
USB mics are convenient for another reason – they tend to be much more affordable than XLR mics. Read our full list of USB mics here.
XLR mics
The first thing you need to know about XLR mics is: you’ll also need to buy an audio interface. However, whatever you might feel like you’re losing in terms of desktop space and budget, you’ll be gaining in terms of superior audio quality and control over your sound.
The XLR cable itself is described as ‘balanced’ because rather than transmitting a signal via a single wire, it transmits two versions of the signal – one original, and one with the polarity reversed. This helps to get rid of unwanted interference from other electrical devices.
Professional sound engineers tend to gravitate towards mics with XLR connectors because they’re more robust than other connector types, meaning they can withstand the wear and tear of setting up live performances as well as in-studio recording sessions. In most cases, you will need to plug your XLR mic into an audio interface, and then plug your interface into your recording device. Read our list of audio interfaces here.