iOS 17 brought some great new features and updates iphone change notification sound for specific app, but one function that still lacks customization is app-specific notification sounds. While you can change default system sounds like ringtones and text tones in Settings, third party apps are still limited to using the default notification sound or custom sounds set by the developer.
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Introduction
Notifications are a big part of the iPhone experience. The alert sound helps you identify when a particular app needs attention without having to look at the screen. This works well when you only have a handful of apps sending notifications. However, as you install more apps, it can get tedious trying to identify which app needs attention from the generic notification sound.
The ability to assign custom iphone change notification sounds on a per-app basis would improve quality of life and productivity. You could set a unique sound for important apps like email, calendar, and messaging so they stand out. Unfortunately, iOS 17 still does not have this capability for third-party apps.
iPhone Changing Notification Sounds in iOS 17
iOS does allow you to customize some default system sounds that apps can take advantage of.
Here’s how to access these sound settings:
- Open the Settings app
- Scroll down and tap Sounds & Haptics
- Under the Sounds and Vibration Patterns section, you can tap the various sounds to change them:
- Ringtone – The sound when you receive a phone call
- Text Tone – The sound when you receive a new text message
- New Voicemail – The sound when you receive a new voicemail
- New Mail – The sound when you receive a new email
- Sent Mail – The sound when an email is sent successfully
- Calendar Alerts – The sound when you receive a calendar notification
- AirDrop – The sound when you send or receive an AirDrop file transfer
So any apps that trigger the above system sounds will take advantage of your custom sound selection.
The problem is that third-party apps do not automatically tap into these system sounds (except occasionally for text tone and calendar alerts). Instead, they rely on the default iOS notification sound or custom audio clips supplied by the developer.
Why App Notification Customization Is Limited
The reason Apple does not allow unique notification tones for all third-party apps likely comes down to optimization, simplification, and control.
Allowing super customizable notifications has the downside of increased battery drain and system resource usage. So Apple locks down the experience to ensure optimal performance for the majority of users.
Additionally, by limiting notification behavior, Apple can deliver a more consistent and simplified user experience. This aligns with Apple’s common design philosophy across their products and services.
Finally, Apple tends to enforce strict control over iOS to optimize security and privacy. Giving apps more background access to customize notifications could raise potential security concerns.
While these are all valid reasons, the lack of per-app notification customization remains one of iOS’s biggest shortcomings for power users. Let’s hope it finally gets addressed in a future iOS 18 update!
Workarounds and Solutions
If you really want to assign a unique notification sound for third-party iOS apps, there are a couple of tricky workarounds:
Use Ringtone instead of Notification Sound
Some apps allow you to specify a custom sound for incoming call notifications. Since the ringtone channel gives apps more customization power, you can misuse this feature to effectively set a custom notification sound.
For example, WhatsApp lets you configure custom sounds for calls and messages separately. By choosing a sound for WhatsApp calls rather than notifications, you can simulate a custom alert tone.
The downside is you may hear the “ringtone” sound even when you just receive a typical WhatsApp message. But for apps that don’t have separate channels, this might be your only option.
Use Notification Groups
iOS does permit creating iphone change notification sound groups with a shared sound. By carefully grouping specific apps, you can simulate custom notification tones.
For example, create a Games group and set a custom sound effect. Then disable notifications from individual game apps and just enable notifications from the Games group. Now all your games apps will trigger that special sound.
The limitation is you can only group notifications from apps that make sense to bundle together, making unique sounds difficult. But you can get creative with groups like Social, Entertainment, Utilities, etc.
Table: Workarounds for Custom Notification Sounds
Here’s a table summarizing the feasibility of these workarounds:
| Approach | Pros | Cons | Feasibility |
| Use Ringtone Instead of Notification | Works for some apps | Only suitable if app uses rings for calls/messages | Medium |
| Leverage Notification Groups | Groups logically related apps | Requires deliberate grouping and management | Medium |
| Developer Adds Custom Sound | Depends on developer support | Out of user’s control | Low |
The Verdict
While iphone change notification sound iOS 17 brought some exciting changes like haptic keyboard feedback and battery percentage in the status bar, notification customization unfortunately saw zero improvements. Your only options are the system sounds under Settings > Sounds & Haptics, or getting creative with the workarounds mentioned above.
Hopefully, iOS 18 will finally unlock greater notification control and personalization for third-party apps. In the meantime, try out some of the grouping strategies or ringtone misuse tricks to give important apps the unique sounds they deserve. Just be prepared for occasional inconsistencies and limitations.
Conclusion
iPhone change notification sound are a pivotal part of the mobile experience. Unique alert tones help notifications stand out so you never miss something important from an app. While Apple does not yet permit full control over notifications in iOS, you can leverage some clever workarounds to simulate custom sounds in the interim.
We expect future iOS versions will open up greater notification customization to address power user demands. But for now, you can still achieve some degree of personalized sounds through ringing tricks or notification grouping. Just be ready for frustrating inconsistencies.
What notification customization features would you like Apple to add in the future? Have you found any other creative workarounds? Let us know in the comments!