Quick fix: Open Settings → System → Sound → Volume mixer. Each running app shows an Output device dropdown. Pick the desired output per app — Discord to headphones, Spotify to speakers, etc. The assignment persists across app restarts on Windows 11.

You want Spotify to play through your living-room speakers (over Bluetooth) while your Teams call routes through your USB headset. Windows 11 supports per-app audio output natively — no Voicemeeter, no virtual cables. The control is in the new Volume Mixer, which most users haven’t discovered.

Symptom: Want different apps to play audio through different output devices.
Affects: Windows 11 (and Windows 10 2004+) with multiple audio output devices.
Fix time: ~3 minutes.

What causes this

Historically Windows had one default audio output per session — every app routed there. Windows 10 2004 added per-app routing via the new Volume Mixer in Settings. Windows 11 polished the UI. The feature works without third-party tools but is buried — most users still think they need Voicemeeter or VB-Audio Virtual Cable for what Windows now does natively.

Method 1: Assign output devices via Volume Mixer

The standard native approach.

Open Settings → System → Sound.
Scroll to Advanced section. Click Volume mixer.
The mixer shows each currently-running app with audio. Each entry has:
- App name and icon
- Volume slider
- Output device dropdown (default: “Default – Speakers” or similar)
- Input device dropdown (for apps with microphone access)
Click the Output device dropdown for the app you want to route. Pick the desired output (e.g., for Spotify, pick “Living Room Speakers” / Bluetooth).
The app immediately routes audio through the selected device.
Repeat for other apps.
The assignment persists for the app — relaunching the app remembers the chosen output.

Per-app routing works for nearly every audio app on Windows 11. Discord, Spotify, Edge, Teams, Zoom, browsers, media players.

Method 2: Use the system-tray quick switcher per session

For one-off routing changes.

Click the speaker icon in the system tray to open Quick Settings.
Click the right-arrow next to the volume slider. This shows all output devices.
Pick a device. This sets the system default output.
For per-app: open the app you want to route. Play audio (so the app appears in Volume Mixer). Then use Method 1.
Without an active audio stream, an app doesn’t appear in Volume Mixer — start audio first, then route.

Use this for default-device switching combined with Volume Mixer for per-app.

Method 3: PowerShell automation for scripted setups

Use when you want to automate the routing — e.g., a Stream Deck button that switches outputs.

Install the AudioDeviceCmdlets module:

Install-Module -Name AudioDeviceCmdlets -Scope CurrentUser -Force

List devices:
```
Get-AudioDevice -List
```
Set default playback:
```
Set-AudioDevice -ID "{deviceID}"
```
For per-app routing programmatically, the SoundVolumeView utility from Nirsoft (free, nirsoft.net) handles per-app:
```
SoundVolumeView.exe /SetAppDefault "Bluetooth Headphones" all "Spotify.exe"
```
Bind to Stream Deck or AutoHotkey for one-click switching.

This is the right approach for automation. Most users don’t need this — Method 1 covers the common case.

How to verify the fix worked

Open the Volume Mixer. Each running app shows the desired output in its dropdown.
Play audio in each app simultaneously. Audio routes to different devices.
Close and reopen an app. The same output device is remembered.
Run Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_SoundDevice | Format-Table Name, Status in PowerShell. All devices show OK status.

If none of these work

If per-app routing doesn’t persist after app restart, or apps don’t appear in Volume Mixer, three causes apply. Exclusive mode interference: some apps (Steam audio, certain audio production tools) request exclusive control of an audio device. In Sound settings → More sound settings → Playback tab → Properties → Advanced, untick Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device. App is using WASAPI exclusive: some audio apps bypass the Windows mixer entirely. Check the app’s settings for an audio output device option directly. Bluetooth profile switching: Bluetooth devices using A2DP vs HFP appear as separate devices in Volume Mixer. Pick the A2DP entry for high-quality stereo. For chronic routing issues with specific apps, Voicemeeter Banana (free, vb-audio.com) gives more powerful routing than Windows’ native per-app feature.

Bottom line: Per-app audio output is native on Windows 11 — open Settings → Sound → Volume mixer and pick the output device per app. Routing persists across app restarts.