The Audio Hijack
Apple’s AirPods feature a highly touted seamless switching capability. If you are listening to music on your iPhone and then sit down and open a video on your Mac, your AirPods are supposed to intelligently sense which device you are actively using and automatically route the audio connection to that device. In practice, this “auto-switch” feature can be incredibly frustrating. If you are on a crucial Zoom call on your iPhone, simply waking up your Mac from sleep might cause the computer to automatically hijack the AirPods connection, cutting your phone audio completely and leaving you scrambling to reconnect.
Disabling AirPods Auto-Switching in macOS
To maintain control over your audio routing and stop macOS from automatically connecting to your AirPods and stealing the signal from your other Apple devices, you must change the Bluetooth connection behavior.
First, ensure your AirPods are currently connected to your Mac (you can only change these settings while they are active). Click the Apple logo in the top-left corner and select System Settings. In the left sidebar, click on Bluetooth. Locate your AirPods in the list of devices and click the small Info (i) button next to their name. A new window will pop up with specific settings for those earbuds. Look for a dropdown menu labeled Connect to This Mac. By default, it is set to “Automatically.” Click the dropdown and change it to When Last Connected to This Mac. Now, your Mac will only connect to your AirPods if it was the very last device you actively used them with, preventing unexpected audio hijacks.