Where to find notification settings on your iPhone
Notifications on iPhone live in two places: the Settings app, where you control what gets through, and the lock screen or notification center, where you see what arrived. To turn notifications on for a specific app, open Settings, tap Notifications, find the app name, and toggle the switch next to "Allow Notifications" to on (it will turn green). That single toggle is what most people need — it opens the door for that app to send you alerts.
Once you allow notifications from an app, you can decide how they show up. The same screen lets you choose whether alerts appear on your lock screen, in your notification center (swipe down from the top), or as a banner that pops up while you're using your phone. You can also turn on or off the badge (the red number on the app icon) and the sound that comes with each alert.
Key Takeaways
- Open Settings, tap Notifications, find your app, and toggle "Allow Notifications" on to receive alerts from that app.
- You can choose where notifications appear — lock screen, notification center, or as a banner — without turning them off entirely.
- Turning off the sound or badge for an app still lets you see notifications if you check your notification center, so you don't miss important messages.
- Scheduled Summary groups notifications from multiple apps into one digest at a time you choose, reducing interruptions throughout the day.
- Focus modes let you silence notifications from specific apps during work, sleep, or other times without uninstalling the app.
The difference between lock screen, banner, and notification center alerts
When you allow notifications, you choose how they reach you. A lock screen notification appears on your phone's locked screen and stays there until you swipe it away or unlock your phone. A banner slides down from the top while you're using an app and disappears after a few seconds. A notification center notification doesn't interrupt you at all — it only shows up if you swipe down from the top of the screen to look for it.
Most people choose "Lock Screen" and "Notification Center" together, which means you see the alert if you pick up your phone, but it doesn't interrupt what you're doing. If you want to be interrupted — for a messaging app or a calendar reminder — choose "Banner" instead. Banner notifications appear on top of whatever you're doing and require you to dismiss them or wait for them to fade.
Using Scheduled Summary to batch notifications
Scheduled Summary groups notifications from apps you choose into a single digest that arrives at a time you set. Instead of getting ten notifications from social media throughout the day, you get one notification at 9 a.m. that shows all ten at once. You turn this on in Settings > Notifications > Scheduled Summary, then toggle it on and choose which apps to include.
This works best for apps that are not urgent — news apps, social media, email newsletters. You would not add your messaging app or calendar to Scheduled Summary because you probably want to see those right away. The digest arrives as a single notification, and you can tap it to see all the alerts grouped together, or ignore it if you are busy.
How Focus modes silence notifications without turning them off
A Focus mode is a preset that silences notifications from specific apps during a time or situation you choose. You might create a "Work" Focus that silences social media and news apps between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., or a "Sleep" Focus that silences everything except your alarm and messages from family. When the Focus is active, notifications from those apps still arrive — they just don't make a sound or light up your screen.
To set up a Focus, go to Settings > Focus, tap the plus sign, choose a name (Work, Sleep, Driving, Gym), and then tap "Customize" to pick which apps stay silent. You can set a schedule so the Focus turns on and off automatically, or turn it on manually when you need it. This is more flexible than turning notifications off entirely, because you can still check your notification center if something urgent comes up.
Turning off badges and sounds for specific apps
The red number on an app icon is called a badge. It tells you how many unread notifications you have. You can turn off the badge for an app while keeping notifications on — this means alerts still arrive and you can see them in your notification center, but you won't see a number on the app icon reminding you to check.
To turn off the badge, go to Settings > Notifications, find the app, and toggle off "Badge App Icon". To turn off the sound, toggle off "Sounds". You can also choose a different sound for each app if you want some to be louder or more noticeable than others. These controls let you keep notifications without the constant visual or audio reminder.
What happens when you turn off all notifications from an app
If you toggle off "Allow Notifications" for an app, that app cannot send you any alerts at all — no lock screen notifications, no banners, no badges, no sounds. The app still works normally, but you will not be notified when something happens. You might do this for an app you rarely use or one that sends too many alerts you don't care about.
Turning off notifications is not the same as deleting the app. The app stays on your phone and works the same way; you just won't get alerts. If you later decide you want notifications from that app again, you can go back to Settings > Notifications, find the app, and toggle "Allow Notifications" back on.
Managing notifications from system apps like Calendar and Reminders
System apps that come built into iPhone — Calendar, Reminders, Mail, Messages — work the same way as third-party apps. You can find them in Settings > Notifications and control how they alert you. Many people want Calendar and Reminders notifications to be loud and visible because they are time-sensitive, so you might choose "Banner" for those and "Lock Screen" for everything else.
Mail and Messages are trickier because you might want notifications from some senders but not others. You can set up VIP contacts in Mail so only messages from people you mark as VIP send notifications, or use Focus modes to silence work email during evenings. For Messages, you can turn on "Filter Unknown Senders" so texts from people not in your contacts go to a separate tab and don't notify you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I turn on notifications for one contact but not others in Messages?
Not directly in notification settings. Instead, go to Settings > Messages and turn on "Filter Unknown Senders" to separate texts from unknown numbers. For contacts you know, you can use a Focus mode to silence Messages during certain times, or mute a specific conversation by opening it, tapping the contact name at the top, and toggling off "Hide Alerts".
Why do some apps not show up in my Notifications settings?
Apps that have never sent a notification may not appear in the list yet. Open the app and use it normally — once it tries to send a notification, it will appear in Settings > Notifications. Some system apps like Settings itself cannot send notifications and will not appear in the list.
If I turn off notifications, will I still get calls or texts?
Calls and texts come through regardless of notification settings — they use a separate system. Turning off notifications only affects alerts from apps. You will still receive calls and texts; you just won't get a notification alert for them if you have turned off notifications for Messages or Phone.
What is the difference between turning off a notification and using Do Not Disturb?
Turning off notifications for an app silences only that app. Do Not Disturb (or Focus modes) silences all notifications from all apps at once, except those you allow through. Use notification settings to fine-tune individual apps, and use Focus modes when you want broad silence during a specific time or activity.
Can I have different notification settings for work and personal use?
Yes, using Focus modes. Create a "Work" Focus that silences personal apps like social media and games, and a "Personal" Focus that silences work email and Slack. You can set each Focus to turn on automatically at certain times, or switch between them manually throughout the day.