Where to find vibration controls on your iPhone
Vibration settings live in two places on your iPhone, depending on what you want to control. The main vibration toggle is in Settings > Sounds & Haptics (called Sounds on older iPhones). A second set of vibration options sits in Settings > Accessibility > Audio/Visual, which lets you add vibration to alerts that normally only make sound.
Which one you need depends on whether your phone is currently vibrating when you don't want it to, or whether it's not vibrating when you do. The first path silences vibration across the board. The second path adds vibration to specific notifications — useful if you're in a loud environment or if you want alerts without sound.
Key Takeaways
- The main vibration on/off switch is in Settings > Sounds & Haptics, and turning it off silences vibration for calls, texts, and notifications.
- You can also control vibration per notification type — calls, texts, mail — by choosing a different vibration pattern or turning vibration off for that type alone.
- The Ring/Silent switch on the side of your phone controls whether your iPhone rings or vibrates when you get a call, separate from the Settings toggle.
- If your iPhone has a Taptic Engine (iPhone 6s and newer), you can customize how strong the vibration feels for different actions.
Turning vibration on or off for all notifications
Open Settings, then tap Sounds & Haptics. Look for the toggle next to Vibration — it's usually near the top of the screen. If the toggle is green, vibration is on. Tap it once to turn vibration off entirely. Tap it again to turn it back on.
This single toggle controls vibration for incoming calls, text messages, and most other notifications. When vibration is off, your phone will only make sound (if your ringer is on) or stay silent (if you've switched the Ring/Silent button on the side of your phone to silent mode).
Changing vibration for specific types of alerts
If you want calls to vibrate but texts to stay silent, or vice versa, you can set vibration separately for each notification type. In Settings > Sounds & Haptics, scroll down and look for sections labeled Ringtone, Text Tone, New Mail, and Calendar Alerts.
Tap any of these sections. At the bottom of the screen, you'll see a Vibration option with a list of vibration patterns — or an option to turn vibration off for that type alone. Choose the pattern you want, or select None to disable vibration for that alert type while keeping vibration on for others.
Understanding the Ring/Silent switch and how it affects vibration
The physical switch on the left side of your iPhone (above the volume buttons) controls whether your phone rings or vibrates when you get a call. When the switch shows red, your phone is in silent mode — calls and notifications will vibrate instead of ringing, even if vibration is turned on in Settings.
If the switch shows no color (or is pushed down), your phone is in ring mode — it will ring and vibrate for calls and notifications, as long as vibration is enabled in Settings. This switch overrides the vibration toggle in Settings, so if your phone isn't vibrating even though vibration is turned on, check whether the Ring/Silent switch is set to silent mode.
Customizing vibration strength on newer iPhones
iPhones with a Taptic Engine (iPhone 6s and later) let you adjust how strong the vibration feels. Go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics and look for Haptic Strength or Haptics Intensity (the name varies by iOS version). You'll see a slider with three options: weak, medium, or strong.
Move the slider to the strength you prefer. You can test the vibration by tapping the test button next to the slider. This setting affects the vibration for calls, texts, and notifications — not the vibration you feel when you tap the keyboard or use other interactive features.
Adding vibration to alerts that normally have no vibration
If you want your phone to vibrate for alerts that currently only make sound, go to Settings > Accessibility > Audio/Visual. Toggle on Vibration (or LED Flash for Alerts if you want a visual alert instead). This adds vibration to any notification that produces sound, even if you've turned off vibration in Sounds & Haptics.
This setting is useful if you're in a loud environment and need to feel your alerts instead of hearing them. It works independently of the main vibration toggle, so you can have vibration off in Sounds & Haptics but still feel alerts through the Accessibility setting.
Troubleshooting when vibration isn't working
If your iPhone isn't vibrating when it should, check these things in order. First, make sure the Ring/Silent switch on the side of your phone is not set to silent mode (it should show no color or be pushed down). Second, go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics and confirm that the Vibration toggle is turned on (green).
Third, check whether vibration is turned off for that specific notification type. For example, if texts aren't vibrating but calls are, go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Text Tone and make sure Vibration is not set to None. If none of these steps work, restart your phone — sometimes the vibration motor needs a reset to respond properly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does turning off vibration save battery?
Vibration uses slightly more battery than sound alone, but the difference is small — usually less than 1% per day. If you're trying to extend battery life, turning off vibration helps a little, but reducing screen brightness or closing background apps will have a much bigger effect.
Can I set different vibration patterns for different people?
Not directly through Settings. However, if you assign a custom ringtone to a contact in your Contacts app, you can also assign a custom vibration pattern to that contact. Open Contacts, select the person, tap Edit, then scroll down to find the Ringtone and Vibration options.
Why does my iPhone vibrate even when I have vibration turned off?
Check the Ring/Silent switch on the side of your phone — if it's set to silent mode (red showing), your phone will vibrate for calls even if vibration is off in Settings. Also check Settings > Accessibility > Audio/Visual to see if vibration is turned on there, which overrides the main setting.
What's the difference between Haptic Strength and Vibration?
Vibration is the on/off toggle for alerts like calls and texts. Haptic Strength controls how strong that vibration feels. You can have vibration turned on but set the strength to weak, or turned off entirely — the two settings work together.