The fastest way to silence notifications right now

Open Settings, tap Notifications, then tap the app you want to mute. Toggle off "Allow Notifications" to stop all alerts from that app, or scroll down and turn off the specific types — sounds, badges, banners — you don't want to see. If you want to silence everything at once without changing individual apps, swipe up from the bottom of your screen (or down from the top right on newer iPhones) to open Control Center, then tap the bell icon with a slash through it to turn on Do Not Disturb.

The difference between these two approaches matters. Turning off notifications in Settings is permanent until you turn them back on. Do Not Disturb is temporary — it silences your phone for a set time, then notifications resume. Most people use Do Not Disturb for right now (during a meeting, dinner, sleep) and Settings changes for apps they never want to hear from.

Key Takeaways

  • Do Not Disturb silences all notifications temporarily and is the fastest way to quiet your phone for the next hour or until you turn it off manually.
  • Turning off notifications in Settings for a specific app is permanent and stops that app from alerting you until you change the setting again.
  • You can allow notifications but turn off only the sounds or badges, so you see the alert when you open the app but don't get interrupted.
  • Focus modes let you create custom rules — for example, allowing calls from family while silencing everything else during work hours.

Silencing everything with Do Not Disturb

Do Not Disturb is the quickest tool when you need quiet right now. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen on iPhone 8 and earlier, or swipe down from the top right corner on iPhone X and newer. Look for the bell icon with a line through it. Tap it once to turn Do Not Disturb on. Your phone will stop making sounds and vibrating, and notifications will arrive silently in the background.

By default, Do Not Disturb stays on until you manually turn it off. You can change this by holding down the bell icon (instead of just tapping it) to set a time limit — for example, "For 1 hour" or "Until I leave this location." When the time expires, notifications resume their normal sounds and vibrations. Calls from people in your Favorites list will still ring through even with Do Not Disturb on, unless you change that setting in Settings > Do Not Disturb.

Turning off notifications for one app

If a specific app is the problem — say, a work chat tool that pings you constantly — you can silence just that app. Open Settings, scroll down and tap Notifications, then find the app in the list and tap it. At the top, toggle off "Allow Notifications." That app will no longer send you any alerts, badges, or sounds.

You don't have to go all or nothing. If you want to see the notification when you open your phone but don't want to be interrupted by a sound or vibration, keep "Allow Notifications" on and scroll down to toggle off "Sounds" or "Vibration." You can also turn off "Badges" — the red number circles on app icons — while keeping everything else on. This way the app can still notify you, but only when you're actively looking at your phone.

Using Focus modes for custom rules

Focus modes let you create different notification rules for different situations. For example, you might set up a Work focus that silences social media apps but allows messages from your boss, or a Sleep focus that silences everything except emergency calls. Open Settings, tap Focus, then tap the plus icon to create a new focus.

When you create a focus, you choose which apps and people can notify you. You can also set it to turn on automatically at a certain time of day or when you arrive at a location. For instance, a Sleep focus can turn on automatically at 10 p.m. and turn off at 7 a.m. Once you've set it up, you can set up it from Control Center the same way you'd turn on Do Not Disturb — just tap the focus name instead of the bell icon.

What happens to notifications when they're muted

When you mute an app's notifications in Settings, that app stops trying to reach you entirely. No sound, no vibration, no badge on the icon, and no banner on your screen. The app itself doesn't know you've muted it — it will still send the notification, but your phone straightforward won't show it to you. If you later turn notifications back on, you won't see the old notifications you missed; only new ones will appear.

Do Not Disturb works differently. Notifications still arrive on your phone and are stored there — you just don't hear or feel them. When you turn Do Not Disturb off, you'll see all the notifications that came in while it was on, stacked in your notification center. This is why Do Not Disturb is better for temporary silence and Settings changes are better for apps you genuinely don't want to hear from.

Stopping notifications from specific people

If one person is sending you too many messages, you can silence notifications from them without muting the entire app. Open the Messages app, find the conversation, swipe left on it, tap the bell icon with a slash, and select "Mute." That person's messages will still arrive, but you won't get a notification sound or vibration. You'll see the message when you open Messages, and the conversation will have a muted bell icon next to it so you remember it's silenced.

The same option exists in other apps — Mail, FaceTime, and some third-party messaging apps. Look for the conversation or contact, swipe left (or long-press on some apps), and look for a mute or silence option. This is useful when you want to stay in touch with someone but don't need to be interrupted every time they write.

Turning notifications back on

To turn notifications back on for an app, go to Settings > Notifications, find the app, and toggle "Allow Notifications" back on. If you only turned off sounds or badges, toggle those back on individually. For a muted conversation in Messages or Mail, open the app, find the conversation, swipe left, and tap the bell icon again to unmute it.

If you turned on Do Not Disturb and set a time limit, it will turn off automatically when that time expires. If you turned it on without a time limit, you'll need to open Control Center and tap the bell icon again to turn it off. There's no notification that tells you Do Not Disturb is on — you have to remember to check, or you might miss important calls or messages.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will people know I muted their notifications?

No. When you mute an app or a conversation, the other person has no way of knowing. They'll send messages or notifications normally. You just won't see or hear them until you unmute. The only exception is if you set your status to "Do Not Disturb" in an app like Slack or Teams — that's a separate setting that tells people you're busy.

Can I mute notifications but still get calls?

Yes. Do Not Disturb silences notifications but allows calls from people in your Favorites list by default. You can change this in Settings > Do Not Disturb > Allow Calls From. You can also use Focus modes to allow calls from specific people while silencing everything else. For individual apps like Messages, you can mute notifications but still receive calls from that app.

What's the difference between muting and turning off notifications?

Muting usually refers to silencing a specific conversation or person within an app, while turning off notifications means disabling all alerts from an entire app. Both prevent you from being interrupted, but muting is more selective. In some apps, the terms are used interchangeably.

If I turn on Do Not Disturb, will my alarm still go off?

Yes. Alarms set in the Clock app will ring even when Do Not Disturb is on. Do Not Disturb only silences notifications and calls, not alarms. This is why it's safe to use Do Not Disturb while sleeping — your alarm will still wake you up.

Can I schedule Do Not Disturb to turn on automatically?

Yes, but you need to use a Focus mode instead of plain Do Not Disturb. Create a Sleep focus or Work focus in Settings > Focus, then tap "Customize Focus" and set a schedule. You can make it turn on at a specific time each day or when you arrive at a location. Once it's scheduled, it will set up automatically without you having to do anything.