On your iPhone, you can set, cancel, or snooze alarms in the Clock app. Siri also can set alarms for you. Several users have reported that, sometimes, the iPhone alarm is not working as expected. More specifically, the iPhone alarm is not going off.
iPhone alarm’s not going off can be a very important problem because it may cause you to be late to work and miss important meetings or deadlines. This article explains how you can troubleshoot when the iPhone alarm is not going off.
Common reasons your iPhone alarm isn’t going off
There are several reasons why iPhone alarm might not go off. One common cause is software bugs especially if your iPhone is running an outdated version of iOS. Your iPhone’s sleep schedule settings can also interfere with alarm sounds. Incorrect settings can cause your alarm not to go off at the scheduled time.
Additionally, incorrect Date & Time settings may affect your alarms. Another potential issue is the alarm volume—if your alarm volume is too low, the alarm could go off and you simply won’t even know. Attention Aware features can also be problematic; it causes alarms to ring silently. Finally, the StandBy feature might be the culprit for iPhone alarms not going off.
How to fix your iPhone alarm not going off
If your iPhone alarm isn’t going off, try these fixes to make sure you wake up on time:
Turn off Attention Aware features
The first fix involves turning off Attention Aware Features on the iPhone. Attention Aware Features can lower the volume of some alerts, and do other smart things when your phone has identified that you’re looking at the screen.
Turning off Attention Aware Features might fix the iPhone alarm issue. To do it, open the Settings app, tap Face ID & Passcode, and turn off Attention Aware Features.
Turn off StandBy
Some people have pointed out that disabling the StandBy feature can help fix iPhone alarm not going off issue. When you use StandBy, haptics for your alarms are disabled. StandBy is an iOS feature that turns the iPhone into a smart display when it’s charging and placed horizontally.
Like the Attention Aware Features solution, you might want to test it out. Disable StandBy and set an alarm to see if it goes off. To do it, go to the Settings app, tap StandBy, and toggle it off.
Check the alarm’s volume
If your problem is the alarm volume is too low or quiet, then check your iPhone volume level. Your iPhone’s ringer volume is what controls how loud your alarms will sound. Make sure the ringer volume is set high enough to wake you — otherwise, the alarm could go off and you simply won’t even know. To turn up your iPhone’s ringer volume, follow these steps:
- Go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics.
- Under Ringtone and Alerts, drag the slider right to increase the volume. As you drag, an alert will play, so you can hear how the volume changes.
Tip: To prevent the volume buttons on your iPhone from changing the alarm volume, turn off Change with Buttons toggle.
Note: Do Not Disturb, the Ring/Silent switch, and Silent mode don’t affect the alarm sound. If you use the Ring/Silent switch or Action button to turn on Silent mode or turn on Do Not Disturb, the alarm still sounds. If you connect headphones to your iPhone, the alarm plays at a set volume through the built-in speakers on your iPhone as well as wired and wireless headphones.
Check alarm settings
Unfortunately, most of the time when an iPhone alarm doesn’t go off when you expect, the root cause is user error — you probably simply set the alarm incorrectly. The most common errors? Choosing PM instead of AM (or the other way around) or believing the alarm was set to recurring when in fact it was a one-time alarm. Here’s how to check:
- Open the Clock app on your iPhone.
- Tap the Alarms tab.
- Find the alarm that didn’t work the way you expected. Check for the proper time, AM/PM setting, and see if it’s set to recur on the days of the week you want. If not, tap Edit in the upper-left corner.
- Tap the alarm, make your changes, then tap Save.
Make sure that your alarm sound isn’t set to None
If your alarm only vibrates, make sure that your alarm sound isn’t set to None. To do this, open the Clock app, tap the Alarms tab, then tap Edit. Tap the alarm, then tap Sound and choose a Sound.
Check your iPhone sleep settings
Your iPhone’s sleep schedule settings can interfere with alarm sounds. You can modify or delete the sleep settings in the Health app.
- Go to the Health app on your iPhone.
- Tap Browse at the bottom right, then tap Sleep.
- Scroll down to Your Schedule.
- Tap Full Schedule & Options, then turn off Sleep Schedule (at the top of the screen).
Set the date and time automatically
Manually adjusting the time on your iPhone in Settings to change app behavior, like game timers, isn’t recommended and can affect alarms. The remedy? Turn on Set Automatically in Settings.
- Go to Settings > General > Date & Time.
- Turn on Set Automatically.
Delete and Re-add Your iPhone Alarm
One simple fix that worked for me was deleting and re-adding alarm that wasn’t going off. When I did this, my alarm went off without any problem.
If you haven’t done this yet, try deleting the alarm that’s not going off and re-adding it. Here’s how:
- Open the Clock app on your iPhone.
- Tap Alarms.
- Swipe left over the alarm, then tap Delete.
Now re-add the alarm:
- Tap the Add button.
- Set the time, then choose any of the following options:
- Repeat: Choose the days of the week you want the alarm to repeat.
- Label: Give the alarm a name, like “Water the plants.”
- Sound: Choose a vibration, song, or ringtone.
- Snooze: Turn on to see a Snooze button with your alarm. (It pauses the alarm for 9 minutes.)
- Tap Save.
You can also ask Siri to set an alarm for you. Activate Siri and say something like: “Set an alarm for 7 a.m.”
Update your software
Perhaps your iPhone alarm did not go off because of an iOS bug. Luckily, updating iOS on your iPhone has the potential to resolve many issues, including issues with your alarm not going off. You can check for an iOS update by going to Settings > General > Software Update. If an update is available, tap Update Now and follow the prompts on your screen.
Restart your device
There might be some sort of software glitch that’s preventing your alarm from going off. You can clear out this kind of temporary glitch by turning your iPhone off and then back on again. Here’s how:
- Go to Settings > General > Shut Down, then drag the slider.
- Wait for your iPhone to turn off completely.
- To turn on your iPhone, press and hold the power button until the Apple logo appears.
Contact Apple Support
If your iPhone alarm still isn’t working, you may want to contact Apple, and schedule a Genius Bar appointment. You can also chat with Apple online.
iPhone Alarm Not Working? It’s Possible to Fix It
Unlike external iPhone parts like buttons, the alarm not working on your iPhone is most likely software-related. This means that something is interfering with the alarm, and finding out what that is allows you to fix the problem.
If you can’t find the problem, you can download a third-party alarm which will help you wake up in time while you figure it out. While this issue is common, there are ways to resolve it while you wait for a permanent solution from Apple.