You change your iPhone’s notification tone, but an app keeps playing the same sound. The control you need depends on whether the alert uses the system default, a separate sound category, or the app’s own settings. Start with the default tone below, then choose the app, contact, or email account you want to sound different.
Change the default notification sound
Use this setting for notifications that rely on your iPhone’s system default sound. Apps with their own sounds use separate controls.
Open Settings > Sounds & Haptics.
Tap Default Alerts.
Select the tone you want. This changes the default alert sound without replacing every app’s notification sound.
Separate your text, email, and calendar sounds
Open Settings > Sounds & Haptics.
Choose the alert category: Text Tone, New Voicemail, New Mail, Sent Mail, Calendar Alerts, or Reminder Alerts.
Select a sound for that category.
Give texts and calendar alerts different tones so you can tell them apart without looking at your screen.
Try an individual app’s notification settings
The app determines whether iOS offers a tone picker or only a sound permission switch.
- 1.Open Settings > Notifications.
- 2.Select the app you want to change.
- 3.Open Sounds and select a tone if a picker appears. If you see a switch, use it to enable or disable notification sounds.
Adjust an app that keeps playing its own sound
An app’s own sound setting explains why changing Default Alerts leaves its tone unchanged.
For WhatsApp, open WhatsApp > Settings > Notifications.
Tap Sound under Message notifications or Group notifications. These categories have separate sound settings.
Select an alert tone.
Tap Save.
For Gmail, open Gmail > Menu > Settings.
Under Notifications, open Email notifications > Notification sounds. For Chat, use Chat notifications > Notification sounds.
Choose a sound, or select None for silence.
For Slack, tap your profile picture in Slack.
Open Notifications > Sound.
Select your preferred notification sound.
Give a contact a recognizable text tone
Use a contact-specific tone to recognize who is messaging or calling. It applies to that person’s supported messages or calls, not every third-party messaging app.
Open Contacts.
Select the person.
Tap Edit.
Choose Text Tone for messages or Ringtone for calls.
Select the sound you want to use for that person.
Set different sounds for each Mail account
Apple Mail lets you give each email account its own sound.
- 1.Open Settings > Apps > Mail > Notifications.
- 2.Tap Customize Notifications.
- 3.Select the email account you want to adjust.
- 4.Enable Alerts.
- 5.Open Sounds and choose an alert tone or ringtone.
- 6.Repeat for another account to give it a different sound.
Find more tones and restore previous purchases
To buy additional tones, open Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Ringtone > Tone Store. Tone purchases require an Apple Account and payment method and are available in supported regions.
Purchase the tone you want. Then select it in the sound category you want to change under Settings > Sounds & Haptics.
To restore an earlier purchase, open a sound category under Settings > Sounds & Haptics and tap Download All Purchased Tones. Select the restored tone.
The download option is absent when everything is already downloaded or you have no tone purchases. Some older purchases cannot be downloaded again.
Create a custom text tone with GarageBand
GarageBand turns your own audio into a custom text tone or ringtone.
Download GarageBand from the App Store if you need it. The current listing requires iOS 26.0 or later.
Touch and hold GarageBand to open its shortcut menu.
Choose Create New Audio Recording.
Open Tracks.
Select the instrument track.
Open Loops Browser.
Import your audio through Files > Browse items from the Files app, or through Music. Protected music cannot be used.
Drag the audio into Tracks.
Trim the audio to 30 seconds or less.
Open Navigation > My Songs.
Open More > Select.
Select your project.
Choose Share > Ringtone.
Tap Export.
Open Use sound as.
Choose Standard Text Tone to use the exported audio for texts. The same menu offers Standard Ringtone and Assign to contact.
Check what is keeping your selected tone silent
Choosing a tone and allowing it to play are separate settings. Check the app’s sound permission, Silent mode, and Focus when alerts stay quiet.
Open Settings > Notifications.
Select the affected app.
Enable Allow Notifications to let that app deliver notifications.
Enable Sounds when the app provides a switch, or choose an audible tone when it provides a picker.
On an iPhone with an Action button, turn off Silent mode under Settings > Sounds & Haptics.
On a model with a Ring/Silent switch, set the switch to ring.
Open the active Focus under Settings > Focus.
Open People or Apps to check which notifications it allows or silences.
If the tone still stays silent, try the app’s own notification controls next. Return to the WhatsApp, Gmail, or Slack settings above for those apps; changing Default Alerts does not override their separate sound controls.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I temporarily mute an app without changing its notification tone?
Yes. Swipe left on one of its notifications and tap Options. Choose the available one-hour or one-day mute option. To restore delivery, use Options > Unmute. Muting suppresses sound and other interruptions without selecting a replacement tone.
How do I turn off the outgoing text message swoosh?
Open Settings > Notifications > Messages > Sounds > None. This silences both incoming message tones and the outgoing swoosh. Choose Haptics > None there to suppress vibration too.
Can one contact’s notifications sound even when my iPhone is silenced?
Yes. Open Contacts and select the person. Tap Edit, then choose Text Tone or Ringtone. Enable Emergency Bypass to allow that contact’s sounds and vibrations through applicable silencing settings.
How do I stop WhatsApp sounds while the app is open?
Open WhatsApp > Settings > Notifications > In-app notifications. Turn off Sounds. Turn off Vibrate there too if you want to stop vibration while using the app. These controls are separate from background notification sounds.