Mumble review: a voice room you can host

Mumble is free open-source voice chat for a family, a club, or a game group that wants its own room. You install a desktop app and join a server that someone in the group runs, or a server you already trust. The project describes it as a free, open source, low-latency, high-quality voice chat application, with encryption on the connection.¹

Last checked October 28, 2026.

At a glance

• What it is: A voice-chat client and a separate server, mumble-server (also called Murmur).⁵
• Works on: Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and macOS. Latest stable release: 1.5.939 (9 October 2026). The last macOS build in that 1.5 series is 1.5.901. The official iOS app was last updated in 2017.²⁵
• Price: Free to download. The server is described as free software with no licensing cost.¹
• Licence: Permissive. You may share and modify it if you keep the copyright notice and the licence conditions, and you need written permission before using the name The Mumble Developers to promote a derived product.²³
• Best for: A standing voice room on a server you run or trust.
• Official site: mumble.info

What Mumble does (and how it protects your privacy)

Mumble is two programs: the client you speak with, and the server, mumble-server (formerly Murmur).⁵ The client runs on Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and macOS. The server should run wherever Qt, a toolkit for desktop programs, can be installed.⁵ Current versions prefer Opus, an audio format, for all audio.⁶

A channel is a room on that server. People in your channel, and in linked channels, hear normal talking when you have permission to talk there. Whisper sends voice to specific people or channels.⁶ The host uses an access control list, a permission list, to decide who may speak.¹

Which server you join is the privacy choice. The website has no form of user input, and it does not handle any user and personal information beyond simple and non-associated access logging.⁴ On first start the app makes a certificate, a digital ID on your computer, and servers use certificates to recognize you.⁷ Communication is always encrypted, with public/private-key authentication by default. A public key is a lock you can share. The private key stays with you. The site says administrators like self-hosting and the control it gives them over data security and privacy.¹ Each packet is encrypted once while it is transferred. If voice goes through the control connection, it uses TLS, the encryption on that link. If it is sent directly over UDP, a way to send small packets quickly, it uses OCB-AES128.⁶

Key features of Mumble

• Communication that is always encrypted, with public/private-key authentication by default.¹
• A certificate created on first start, which you can use as it is. A valid email is recommended even then.⁷
• Channels and whisper. A channel is the room. Whisper goes to specific people or channels.⁶
• Push-to-talk or voice activity, plus echo cancellation and noise suppression.⁸
• An access control list so the host decides who may talk.¹
• An in-game overlay that shows who is talking, and positional audio that places voices by direction and distance in the game.¹⁸
• A server you run, or the public list. Hosting the server software has no licence fee.¹
• Privacy switches under Settings, Network, Privacy, for update checks and for sending your operating system. Anonymous statistics are sent only if you submit them.⁴

Pros and cons

Pros

• The client and server are free, and the source is public under a permissive licence.¹²
• Voice is encrypted in transit with TLS or OCB-AES128.⁶
• You can host the server and choose who may speak.¹
• It runs on Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and macOS, with Linux packages and a community Flatpak.²⁵
• Stable release 1.5.939 was published on 9 October 2026.²

Cons

• Someone must run a server. Connecting sends that server the data the session needs, and you should read its privacy policy.⁴
• The stable macOS build in the 1.5 series is 1.5.901. The latest stable release overall is 1.5.939.²
• The official iOS app is unmaintained (last update 2017). Other apps on the download page are third-party and are not maintained by the project.²
• Mumble 1.6 is a release candidate, described as a snapshot, not the stable release. That snapshot is the first to include pre-built macOS arm64 binaries. The stable download is 1.5.939.¹²
• Upgrades from 1.3 or older need a manual uninstall. The project calls that path unfixably broken.²
• SuperUser, the admin account, bypasses the permission lists and stays off until you set its password.⁵

Is Mumble safe and private?

The server still handles the call. Opening the public list requests it from the project, and only the data required for that request is sent. Servers shown in the connect dialog also receive a ping, a short check used to show delay and how many people are connected.⁴ Connecting exchanges the technically required data with that server, so read the operator’s privacy policy.⁴ A server set to register on the public list sends the details from its configuration, or details it works out automatically, and those details are published.⁴

Anonymous statistics are sent only if you choose to submit them. They include the operating system, the IP address (for country information), the Mumble version, and some other information. An IP address identifies your connection on the network.⁴ If update checks are enabled, the client sends the app version and the operating system or app type. If the overlay and positional-audio plugin checks are enabled, they send that version and the operating system type.⁴ You can stop the client sending your operating system to servers. That switch, and the update checks, are under Settings, Network, Privacy.⁴ The copyright names The Mumble Developers. Source code is public on GitHub as mumble, and the downloads page calls the licence permissive.²³

How to get started with Mumble

1. Download the client from the official downloads page: Windows, macOS, a package from Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, or Arch Linux, or the Flatpak from the Flatpak community. The page links instructions for verifying GPG signatures of the downloads.²
2. Install it. On macOS, drag the app into Applications. The stable 1.5 Mac build is 1.5.901. Uninstall Mumble 1.3 or older first.²⁵
3. Open Mumble and keep the certificate it creates. You can connect at once. A valid email is recommended even with that certificate, so you can later upgrade it for the same address without the server forgetting you.⁷
4. Use the microphone wizard, or open Configure, then Settings. Push To Talk sends while a key is held. Voice Activity sends when you speak.¹⁸
5. Connect to your group’s server or the public list. Opening the list contacts the project.¹⁴
6. Join a channel. Linked channels hear you when you are allowed to talk. Local loopback plays your voice back so you can check it first.⁶⁸
7. To keep the room, install mumble-server (Murmur) from the same page.² The README links an official Docker image for running that server. Set a SuperUser password, or that admin account stays off.⁵ BellCrier’s free password generator can make a long one. Then open Settings, Network, Privacy.⁴

Who should use Mumble (and who might prefer something else)

Mumble suits a group with a host they trust, or someone willing to run the server. The project says administrators like self-hosting because it gives them control over data security and privacy.¹

For video in a browser, Jitsi Meet is a meeting tool you can host yourself. For text, Dino chats from Linux with an XMPP account, and Zulip sorts team threads by topic.

Frequently asked questions

Is Mumble free?

Yes. It is free, open source voice chat, and the server has no licensing cost.¹ The latest stable release is 1.5.939, from 9 October 2026, and the licence is permissive.²

Is Mumble safe for a private conversation?

Traffic to the server is encrypted with TLS or OCB-AES128.⁶ The server still receives what the connection needs, so run it yourself or pick a host you trust.⁴ Anonymous statistics, if you send them, include an IP address used for country information.⁴

Does Mumble work on iPhone?

The client runs on Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and macOS.⁵ The iOS app is unmaintained, last updated in 2017. Other linked apps are third-party and are not maintained by the project. The stable 1.5 Mac build is 1.5.901.²

Can I use Mumble without running a server?

Yes. Join a public server or any server you already know.¹ Install mumble-server, also called Murmur, when the group wants to keep the room itself.²

Sources

1. Mumble: official website
2. Mumble: Downloads
3. Mumble: Licence
4. Mumble: Privacy
5. Mumble developers: README on GitHub
6. Mumble developers: Voice data protocol notes
7. Mumble: Certificates
8. Mumble: Audio settings