How to use a phone as a webcam for a Mac mini

Published 1 October 2026·6 min read

A Mac mini has no built-in camera and no built-in microphone, so for video calls it needs both from somewhere else. An Android phone can supply them. For the camera, use Android's USB webcam mode if your phone offers it, or a webcam app, or The Relay. For the microphone, you need a route that carries sound, because the free USB mode is documented as a camera only. The same applies to a Mac Studio and a Mac Pro.

Publisher note: The Relay publishes this guide and is one of the products discussed. Details about other products come from each maker's own pages, checked on 1 October 2026. Prices and features change, so confirm before you buy.

Does a Mac mini have a camera or a microphone?

No. Apple's Mac mini technical specifications list three things under Audio: "Built-in speaker", a "3.5 mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones", and "HDMI port supports multichannel audio output". No camera and no microphone appear anywhere on the page. The Mac Studio specifications list the same audio items.

Apple says it outright in a footnote on the Mac Pro specifications page, about taking phone calls on a Mac: "An external microphone or headset is required for Mac Studio, Mac mini, and Mac Pro."

On a MacBook, a phone webcam is an upgrade. On a Mac mini there is nothing to fall back on. Some displays have a camera and microphone of their own, and Apple's sound input page mentions "your display's microphone (if it has one)". If yours does not, you have two gaps to fill, not one.

What can an Android phone supply to a Mac mini?

The routes are described in full in how to use an Android phone as a webcam for a Mac. This table looks at them from a Mac mini owner's side, where the microphone column matters as much as the camera.

Route	Camera	Microphone	Connection
Android's USB webcam mode	Yes, if your phone has the option	Not described in Google's steps or the Android documentation	USB cable
Camo	Yes	Yes. Camo's Android how-to page says you can select Camo as an audio source to use the phone's microphone	"Plug in or go wireless"
Iriun Webcam	Yes	Check Iriun's site	Described as wireless
The Relay	Yes	Yes	Wireless, over your local network

With The Relay, the phone's camera and microphone both appear on the Mac, as a camera and a microphone that apps such as Zoom, Google Meet, and FaceTime can select. For a Mac with neither built in, that covers both gaps with one device you already own. Camo says it does the same, with a free version and a cable option, so it is the one to try first if a webcam is all you want.

How do I set up the phone as the camera over USB?

Try the free route first.

Connect the phone to the Mac mini with a USB data cable.
On the phone, tap the USB notification. On a Pixel it reads Charging this device through USB.
Under "Use USB for", select Webcam. If the option is missing, your phone does not offer this mode.
On the Mac, open FaceTime or your meeting app and pick the phone as the camera.

The cable needs thought on a Mac mini. The Android documentation says: "Android devices in webcam mode don't work with USB 3.0+ cables on macOS hosts because of a bug with Apple's UVC driver." Apple's specifications show that the USB ports on the current Mac mini are all USB-C or Thunderbolt, so the cable you want is a USB 2.0 data cable with a USB-C plug at the Mac end. If the phone is in webcam mode and the Mac shows no camera, change the cable before anything else.

You will still need a microphone with this route.

How do I tell the Mac mini which microphone to use?

Apple's page Change the sound input settings on Mac gives the steps:

Choose Apple menu, then System Settings, then click Sound in the sidebar.
Click Input.
Select the device you want. Apple says: "All sound input devices available to your Mac are listed."
Drag the input volume slider if you are too quiet or too loud.

On a Mac mini with nothing connected, that list has no microphone to offer. Once the phone's microphone, a headset, or a USB microphone is connected, it appears there. Meeting apps also have their own microphone menus, so check there too.

Would a headset or a webcam be the better buy?

Sometimes, yes. Be honest about what you need.

Your situation	Best answer
Occasional calls, phone has USB webcam mode	Phone over USB for the picture, any wired headset with a microphone in the headphone jack for sound. Apple's sound settings page says a single sound port "supports stereo output and mono input (such as a headset with a built-in microphone)". Confirm the headset shows under Input.
Daily calls at a fixed desk, and you never want to think about it	A USB webcam with a built-in microphone. It is always plugged in and your phone stays free.
You want the phone's better camera, no extra hardware, and no cable	The Relay, or a webcam app that carries sound.
You also want the phone's texts, notifications, and calls on the Mac	The Relay.

The Relay costs $19.99, paid once, and needs Android 8.0 or later and macOS 13 Ventura or later. It talks over your own Wi-Fi network, with Bluetooth as a fallback. Apple's specifications list Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on the Mac mini. If your Mac mini is on Ethernet, the phone still needs to be on the same local network. See why a phone and a Mac cannot see each other if they do not find one another.

Where it falls short for a desktop: it has no USB mode, so it cannot give you the plugged-in permanence of a real webcam, and using your phone as the camera means the phone is occupied during calls. We have not measured its picture or sound quality, or anyone else's. Make a test call before relying on it.

Questions people ask

Can I use my Android phone as a webcam on a Mac mini without buying anything?

For the camera, possibly: Android's USB webcam mode is free if your phone has it and you own a suitable cable. For the microphone you still need something, such as a headset you already have.

Does a Mac Studio or Mac Pro have a camera?

Apple's specification pages for both list no camera or microphone, and Apple states that an external microphone or headset is required for Mac Studio, Mac mini, and Mac Pro. Everything on this page applies to them.

Can the phone be the Mac mini's microphone without being its camera?

With The Relay, the microphone appears on the Mac as a microphone, separate from the camera, so an app can select one without the other. See using an Android phone as a microphone for a Mac.

Why does FaceTime on my Mac mini say there is no camera?

Because there is none until you connect one. Apple's FaceTime requirements ask for "a built-in or connected" microphone and camera. Connect the phone, then choose it in FaceTime's Video menu. See an Android phone as the camera for FaceTime.

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