If your Samsung Galaxy S25+ has gone silent, missing calls and messages because the vibration motor isn't working, it's a surprisingly common hiccup. The good news is that it's almost always a software or settings issue you can fix yourself in a few minutes.
Perform a Quick Restart
Before diving into settings, give your phone a fresh start. Press and hold the Volume Down button and the Side key (power button) together for about 10 seconds. Release them when you see the Samsung logo appear. This force restart clears out any temporary glitches that might be stopping the vibration motor from responding.
Verify Your Sound and Vibration Mode
It sounds simple, but double-check your sound profile. Swipe down from the top of your screen twice to open the Quick Settings panel. Look for the sound mode icon, it might say "Sound," "Vibrate," or "Mute." Make sure it's set to either "Sound" or "Vibrate." If it's on "Mute," your phone won't vibrate for anything.
You can also check this in Settings > Sounds and vibration > Sound mode. I'd set it to "Sound" to test, as this enables both ringtones and vibration.
Check the Core Vibration Toggles
Head into your sound settings to make sure vibration is fundamentally enabled. Open Settings > Sounds and vibration. Here, you'll find a few critical switches.
First, ensure "Vibrate while ringing" is turned on. If it's already on, try turning it off and back on again. Just below that, you might see "Vibrate for calls and notifications." Make sure that's enabled too. These are the master switches for your phone's haptic feedback.
Adjust the Vibration Strength
Sometimes the vibration isn't broken, it's just too faint to feel, especially if the phone is in a pocket or on a soft surface. In the same Sounds and vibration menu, tap on "Vibration intensity." You'll get separate sliders for call vibration, notification vibration, and touch feedback.
Slide them all up to the maximum and test your phone. If you start feeling the buzz now, you can always adjust them back down to a level you prefer. This is a quick fix I've seen work on a lot of Galaxy phones.
Inspect App-Specific Notification Settings
If your S25+ vibrates for some apps but not others, the problem is isolated to that app's configuration. Go to Settings > Apps, select the app that's not vibrating (like Messages or Gmail), and tap "Notifications."
Make sure notifications are allowed for the app overall. Then, tap into specific notification categories (like "New messages" or "Primary inbox"). Look for a "Vibrate" toggle and ensure it's turned on. Some apps bury this setting deep within their own in-app menus as well.
Test in Safe Mode
Booting into Safe Mode temporarily disables all third-party apps you've downloaded. If vibration works perfectly in Safe Mode, you know a recently installed app is causing the conflict. To enter Safe Mode on your S25+, press and hold the Side key until the power menu appears.
Then, tap and hold the "Power off" option on your screen. A prompt will appear asking if you want to reboot to Safe Mode. Tap "OK." Your phone will restart with "Safe mode" visible in the bottom corner. Test your vibration here. To exit, just restart your phone normally.
Update Your Software
Outdated system software can have bugs that affect hardware functions like the vibration motor. Samsung regularly releases updates with fixes. Go to Settings > Software update > Download and install.
Let it check for and install any available updates. After the phone reboots, check if the vibration is working. This is especially important if the issue started after you got the phone or after a recent major update.
Check for Interference from Themes
If you've applied a custom theme or icon pack from the Galaxy Store, it might have accidentally altered system behaviors. Try reverting to the default theme to see if that resolves it. Long-press on an empty area of your home screen and tap "Themes."
Tap on "My stuff" at the bottom, find the "Default" theme, and apply it. This resets your visual style without touching your apps or data. After applying, test your vibration again immediately.
Run a Hardware Diagnostic Test
Samsung phones have a built-in diagnostic menu to test components. Open your Phone dialer app and type *#0*#. This will launch a secret service menu with a grid of colored buttons.
Tap the button labeled "Vibration" or "Vib." Your phone should immediately produce a strong, sustained buzz. If it vibrates perfectly in this test, your hardware is definitely fine and the issue is purely software or settings related.
Reset All Settings
If you've tried everything and your S25+ still won't vibrate, a settings reset can help. This will revert all your sound, display, network, and privacy settings back to factory defaults, but it won't delete any of your personal data, photos, or apps.
Go to Settings > General management > Reset > Reset all settings. Confirm your PIN or password and let the phone reboot. You'll need to reconfigure things like Wi-Fi passwords and wallpaper, but it often clears up stubborn glitches affecting hardware functions.