Download Loopback for Mac

In the edit

Pass-Thru is the feature that makes Loopback click. You send audio out of one app, Loopback picks it up, and it arrives in another app or device as if it came from a physical input. No cables, no complex patch bays — just a virtual pipe you draw between the source and the destination.

Version 2.5.0 now runs without the launch warning on macOS 27, which is a relief if you’ve updated early. It works as an output device inside Audio Hijack for capture chains, and you can build a virtual device that grabs both microphone audio and application audio in one screen recording. Hook it up to Elgato Game Capture hardware and you’ve got game sound and voice chat on the same track.

The ARK plugin got bumped to version 13.5 under the hood, so the audio handling stays tight. The download covers macOS 14.5 through 27, and it’s still the same straightforward disk-image install: drag, copy, open.

Loopback vs BlackHole: why you might use both

Loopback shares a shelf with a handful of other Mac audio-routing apps, but it handles the job differently enough that you might end up using more than one. The main alternative is BlackHole, a free open-source virtual audio driver. BlackHole does the core job — it creates virtual devices that apps can send audio to and read from — but it expects you to configure everything through macOS Audio MIDI Setup or a third-party helper. Loopback wraps that same concept in a visual interface where you connect sources and destinations by clicking, which saves time when you are switching setups between a podcast recording and a game stream.

Another option is SoundSource, also from Rogue Amoeba. SoundSource is built for per-app volume control and system-wide audio effects, not for routing audio between apps. You can use SoundSource to boost a quiet microphone or apply EQ to Spotify, but you cannot use it to send that processed audio into a separate recording app. Loopback fills that gap. Where SoundSource adjusts what you hear, Loopback decides where the audio goes next.

Audio Hijack sits on the capture side of the same family. You can run Audio Hijack to record or process audio from any app, then feed that output into Loopback for further routing. The two apps are designed to work together, which makes the Rogue Amoeba ecosystem stronger than either tool alone. If you only need to record one app’s audio, Audio Hijack by itself is enough. If you need to combine a microphone, a web browser and a video call into a single virtual device for OBS, Loopback is the one that makes it happen.

Start with QuickTime and a screen recording

Start with something simple so you see the routing logic without frustration. Open QuickTime Player, start a new screen recording, and set the microphone input to the Loopback virtual device that appears in macOS. In Loopback, add Safari or Chrome as a source, add your built-in microphone as another source, and make sure both are routed to the same virtual output. Hit record in QuickTime and play a short video with sound while talking over it. When you play the recording back, you should hear both the video audio and your voice on the same track. That one test covers the most common use case for screen recording.

Next, try the same idea with a voice chat app. Open Discord or Zoom, set the microphone input to your Loopback virtual device, and in Loopback combine your physical microphone with music from Spotify or a soundboard app. Everyone in the call hears your voice and the audio source together, which is useful for podcast-style conversations or live shows. If the audio sounds too loud or quiet, adjust the volume sliders inside Loopback’s source blocks rather than changing system output volume.

Keep an eye on the macOS privacy permissions. Loopback needs microphone access if you route a physical mic, and it needs screen recording permission if you use it inside a capture workflow. Both permissions appear in System Settings under Privacy & Security. Grant them before you start troubleshooting why no sound arrives.

Podcasters get the most from separate audio tracks

Podcasters are the obvious fit. Recording a show with a remote guest means you want your microphone audio and the guest’s audio from Zoom or FaceTime to land on separate tracks or on one combined track. Loopback lets you create a virtual device that feeds both into your recording app, and you can adjust levels before anything hits the recorder.

Streamers and content creators who use OBS or Twitch Studio also benefit heavily. Game audio comes from one app, microphone audio comes from your input device, and you might want alert sounds from a second browser. Loopback merges all of them into one virtual output that OBS sees as a single audio source. That removes the need for third-party plug-ins or complex audio routing inside the streaming software itself.

Screen recorders who produce tutorials or software demos get a cleaner workflow. Instead of recording system audio separately and syncing it in post-production, you route the microphone and the app audio into one virtual device before recording starts. The sync is automatic because the audio arrives on one track from the beginning.

Anyone who uses Elgato Game Capture hardware for console recording should give Loopback a look. The Elgato software captures game audio from the HDMI input, but it does not naturally capture your microphone at the same time. Loopback creates a virtual device that combines the Elgato’s output with your mic input, so the recorded file has both sources without manual editing later.

The wired interface shows every connection visually

The wired interface that Loopback uses is not just a design choice — it shows every connection as a visible line between source blocks and output blocks. When you add multiple sources, you can see at a glance which apps feed into which virtual device. If audio goes silent, you spot the broken connection immediately rather than digging through menus.

Loopback works as an output device inside Audio Hijack without extra configuration. Open Audio Hijack, create a new session, and choose the Loopback virtual device as the output. Audio Hijack captures the sound from whatever sources you have set up in Loopback, and you can apply effects or record the result. That pairing saves you from duplicating routing setups in two apps.

The virtual devices that Loopback creates appear in the macOS sound settings just like a physical interface. You can select them as the input or output device in any app that respects macOS audio routing, including QuickTime, OBS, Zoom, Discord and Final Cut Pro. No driver installation is needed beyond the app itself.

The launch warning on macOS 27 is finally gone

Version 2.5.0 removed the launch warning that appeared when running on macOS 27. If you updated to macOS 27 early, you might have seen a dialog every time Loopback started. That dialog is gone now, and the app launches without extra clicks or dismissals. For anyone on macOS 27, that alone makes the update worth the download.

The ARK plugin was updated to version 13.5. ARK is the audio routing kernel that handles the actual sound passing between apps and devices. A newer version means better compatibility with recent macOS changes and fewer glitches when you switch sample rates or add multiple sources. You do not interact with ARK directly, but it runs in the background every time Loopback routes audio, so a solid update here improves reliability across all your routing setups.

Support for macOS 27 was added, but the download still covers macOS 14.5 through 27, so users on older systems are not left behind. The install process remains the same disk-image drag-and-drop that Loopback has used for years — no package installers, no background daemons, just the app in your Applications folder.

New this release

• Support for macOS 27 added.
• No more launch warning on macOS 27.
• ARK plugin updated to version 13.5.

Mac it needs

• macOS 14.5 to 27
• Intel or Apple Silicon