Where to find push notification settings
Push notifications arrive as alerts on your screen, lock screen, or notification center — they come from apps and websites, not from your device itself. To control them, you go to your device's settings, not the app. On most phones and computers, the master switch for notifications lives in one central place, and individual apps have their own on-off toggles underneath.
On an iPhone, open Settings, tap Notifications, and you'll see a list of every app installed on your phone. On Android, go to Settings, then Apps or process Manager, find the app you want, tap Notifications, and toggle them on or off. On a Mac, open System Settings, click Notifications, and choose which apps can send alerts. On Windows, go to Settings, then System, then Notifications, and you'll see toggles for each app.
The location matters because app developers can't override your device settings — if you turn off notifications at the system level, the app can't send them no matter what it tries to do. This is why changing the setting in the app itself (if the app even offers that option) sometimes doesn't work: the device is blocking them first.
Key Takeaways
- Push notifications are controlled in your device settings, not inside the app — turning them off there stops them completely.
- On iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications and toggle each app on or off; on Android, go to Settings > Apps, find the app, then Notifications.
- You can allow notifications but silence the sound, vibration, or lock screen preview separately — useful if you want alerts without interruption.
- Some apps send notifications through email or SMS instead of push, so turning off push notifications won't stop all messages from that service.
Turning notifications on for a specific app
If you've blocked notifications from an app and want to turn them back on, the process is the same as turning them off — you just toggle the switch the other direction. On iPhone, find the app in Settings > Notifications and make sure the toggle next to its name is green. On Android, go to Settings > Apps, select the app, tap Notifications, and toggle Allow Notifications on.
When you turn notifications back on, you may see additional options appear: whether to show them on your lock screen, whether to make a sound, whether to vibrate, and whether to show a preview of the message. You don't have to accept all of these at once. You can allow notifications but mute the sound, or allow them silently on your lock screen but not in your notification center. This is useful if you want to know something happened without being interrupted by a noise or vibration.
Controlling how notifications look and sound
Once notifications are turned on, you can customize how they behave without turning them off completely. On iPhone, scroll down in the app's notification settings to find options for Sound, Vibration, and Badge (the red number on the app icon). You can choose a specific sound, turn vibration off, or turn off the badge entirely. On Android, the options vary by app, but you'll usually find toggles for Sound, Vibration, and Importance Level.
The Importance Level on Android determines whether a notification pops up on your screen, appears silently in your notification center, or shows only in the notification shade. High importance notifications interrupt you; low importance ones sit quietly in the background. This is more granular than iOS, which groups notifications into a few categories like Critical, Time Sensitive, and Standard.
If an app sends a lot of notifications and you only care about some of them, check whether the app itself has a settings menu inside it. Many apps let you choose which types of messages to send — for example, a social media app might let you turn off notifications for likes but keep notifications for direct messages. This is different from the device-level setting and gives you more control without silencing the app entirely.
Notifications from websites and browsers
Websites can ask permission to send push notifications through your browser, and these work differently from app notifications. When you visit a website, it may show a popup asking "Allow notifications from this site?" If you click Allow, that website can send you alerts even when you're not on the site.
To manage website notifications, go to your browser settings. In Chrome, go to Settings > Privacy and Security > Site Settings > Notifications. In Safari on Mac, go to Safari > Settings > Websites > Notifications. You'll see a list of websites that have permission to send notifications, and you can remove any of them. On iPhone, website notifications come through as regular push notifications, so you control them the same way you control app notifications.
Website notifications are often used by news sites, email services, and shopping sites to alert you to breaking news, new messages, or price drops. If you find yourself getting too many, the fastest fix is to revoke permission for that specific website rather than turning off all notifications on your device.
Notifications you can't turn off in settings
Some notifications bypass the standard settings because they're critical to your device's operation. On iPhone, notifications marked Critical (like emergency alerts or certain health warnings) will come through even if you've silenced your phone or turned off notifications for that app. On Android, system notifications like low battery warnings or security alerts work the same way.
You can't turn these off in settings, and that's intentional — they're designed to reach you when something important happens. If you're getting too many critical alerts from a specific app, the only real solution is to uninstall the app or contact the app developer to ask them to stop sending critical alerts. Some apps misuse the critical alert category, so if you're being bombarded, that's worth reporting to the app store.
Notifications that come through email or SMS instead
Not all notifications are push notifications. Many services also send alerts through email or text message, and turning off push notifications won't stop these. If you're still getting messages from an app or website after disabling push notifications, check whether they're sending email or SMS alerts instead.
To stop email notifications, look for an unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email, or go into the service's account settings and find a Notifications or Email Preferences section. For SMS alerts, you may need to reply STOP to the text message, or log into your account and turn off text notifications there. Some services require you to turn off notifications in multiple places — push, email, and SMS all have separate controls.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will turning off notifications stop me from getting messages from the app?
No. Turning off push notifications only stops the alerts from appearing on your screen. The app will still receive messages and store them — you just won't be notified when they arrive. You'll see them if you open the app manually.
Can I turn off notifications for just one type of alert from an app?
It depends on the app. Some apps let you choose which types of notifications to receive inside their own settings menu — for example, turning off notifications for comments but keeping notifications for direct messages. Check the app's settings first. If the app doesn't offer that option, you can only turn all notifications on or off at the device level.
Why do some notifications come through even though I turned them off?
The app may be sending notifications through email or SMS instead of push notifications. Check your email inbox and text messages for alerts from that service. You'll need to unsubscribe from those separately, usually through an unsubscribe link in the email or by replying STOP to the text.
Do I need to turn off notifications in the app itself, or just in device settings?
Device settings are what matter. Your phone or computer won't deliver notifications if you've blocked them in settings, even if the app is trying to send them. Turning off notifications inside the app is optional and only works if the app respects that setting — the device-level control always wins.
What's the difference between muting notifications and turning them off?
Muting usually means the notification still arrives but without sound or vibration — you'll see it in your notification center but won't be interrupted. Turning off means the notification doesn't arrive at all. On iPhone, you can choose to mute by toggling Sound off while keeping notifications on. On Android, you can set the importance level to Low to mute without fully disabling.