Where notifications show up depends on your device and the app

Notifications can arrive in several places: on your phone's lock screen, in your notification center (the panel you pull down from the top), as badges on app icons showing unread counts, or as sounds and vibrations. Which ones you see depends on settings you control separately for each app and for your device as a whole. You don't have to accept all of them — you can turn on notifications for some apps and turn them off for others, or let some apps send sound while others send only silent badges.

The steps to turn notifications on are slightly different on iPhone and Android, and they're different again if you want to change what an app does after you've already allowed it to send notifications. Start with your device type below.

Key Takeaways

  • On iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications, find the app name, and toggle Allow Notifications on; on Android, go to Settings > Apps > Notifications, find the app, and toggle Notifications on.
  • After you allow an app to send notifications, you can control whether it shows badges, sounds, vibrations, or appears on your lock screen by returning to the same settings screen.
  • Some apps send notifications through your web browser instead of your phone — turn those on in your browser's settings under Notifications or Permissions.
  • If an app asks for permission to send notifications when you first open it, you can say yes or no in that moment, or change your mind later in your device settings.
  • Notification settings are per-app, so turning notifications on for one app does not affect any other app.

Turning on notifications on iPhone

Open Settings, then tap Notifications. Scroll down to find the app you want to receive notifications from. Tap the app name. Toggle the switch next to "Allow Notifications" to the right (it will turn green). That's the minimum step — the app can now send you notifications.

Once you've allowed notifications, you'll see additional options on the same screen. You can choose whether notifications appear on your lock screen, in your notification center, or as badges on the app icon. You can also turn on or off sounds and vibrations. These choices are all optional — if you want the app to send notifications but only as a silent badge on the home screen, you can turn off sounds and vibrations and uncheck "Lock Screen".

If an app asks for permission to send notifications the first time you open it, you can tap "Allow" or "Don't Allow" in that moment. If you said no and change your mind later, go back to Settings > Notifications, find the app, and toggle Allow Notifications on.

Turning on notifications on Android

Open Settings, then tap Apps (or Applications, depending on your phone's version). Look for Notifications or Notification settings — the exact name varies by manufacturer. Tap it. Find the app you want to receive notifications from and tap its name. Toggle the switch next to "Notifications" or "Allow notifications" to the right (it will turn blue or green). The app can now send you notifications.

After you've allowed notifications, you can control what kind. On the same screen, you'll usually see options for notification importance or priority level — this controls whether the app can make sound and vibration, and whether notifications interrupt you or appear silently. Some phones let you choose whether notifications appear on your lock screen. These choices vary by phone manufacturer, so look for words like "Importance", "Priority", "Sound", or "Vibration" on the screen in front of you.

If an app asks for permission when you first open it, you can tap "Allow" or "Don't Allow". If you said no and want to change it, go back to Settings > Apps > Notifications, find the app, and toggle Notifications on.

Notifications from websites and web browsers

Some websites and services send notifications through your web browser rather than through an app. When you visit a site that offers this, your browser will ask "Do you want to allow notifications from this site?" You can say yes or no in that moment.

If you said yes and want to turn them off later, the steps depend on your browser. In Chrome, go to Settings > Privacy and Security > Site Settings > Notifications, find the website name, and click the trash icon. In Safari on iPhone, go to Settings > Apps > Safari > Notifications, find the website, and toggle it off. In Firefox, go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Permissions > Notifications, find the website, and click Remove.

What to do if an app won't let you turn notifications on

Some apps require notifications to be on in order to work properly — for example, a messaging app might not alert you to incoming messages if notifications are off. If you've turned notifications on in your device settings but the app still isn't sending them, check whether the app itself has a settings menu. Open the app, look for a gear icon or a menu labeled Settings or Preferences, and look for a Notifications section inside the app. Some apps have their own notification controls separate from your device settings.

If the app still won't send notifications after you've checked both places, the app may have a bug or may be blocked by a battery-saving setting on your phone. On Android, go to Settings > Battery > Battery Saver or Adaptive Battery and check whether the app is on a restricted list. On iPhone, go to Settings > Battery Health & Device Management and look for Low Power Mode — turn it off temporarily to see if that helps.

Managing notification sounds and vibrations

After you've turned notifications on, you can control whether they make sound and vibration separately from whether they appear on your screen. On iPhone, open Settings > Notifications, tap the app name, and toggle Sound and Vibration on or off individually. On Android, open Settings > Apps > Notifications, tap the app name, look for Importance or Priority, and choose a level that controls sound — usually "High" or "Max" allows sound, while "Low" or "Min" is silent.

You can also set different notification sounds for different apps. On iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications > [App Name] > Sound and choose a sound from the list. On Android, the option is usually in the app's own settings menu rather than in your device settings — open the app, find its Settings, look for Notifications, and choose a sound there.

Turning notifications off for specific apps

If you've turned notifications on but want to turn them off for one app, go back to the same settings screen where you turned them on. On iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications, tap the app name, and toggle Allow Notifications off. On Android, go to Settings > Apps > Notifications, tap the app name, and toggle Notifications off. The app will no longer send you any notifications.

You can also turn off notifications temporarily without deleting the permission. On iPhone, you can use Focus modes to silence notifications during certain times or activities — go to Settings > Focus and create a new Focus, then choose which apps can notify you while that Focus is active. On Android, you can use Do Not Disturb mode — pull down from the top of your screen twice to access Quick Settings, tap Do Not Disturb, and choose which apps are allowed to interrupt.

Frequently Asked Questions

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

Turning notifications off in your device settings means the app cannot send you any notifications at all. Muting or silencing an app usually means notifications still arrive, but without sound or vibration — you'll see them on your lock screen or in your notification center, just silently. Check your app's settings to see if it has a mute option separate from turning notifications off entirely.

Can I turn notifications on for just one type of message from an app?

Some apps let you control notifications by message type — for example, you might turn on notifications for direct messages but off for group chats. This option is usually in the app's own settings menu, not in your device settings. Open the app, find Settings or Preferences, look for Notifications, and see what options the app offers. Not all apps have this level of control.

Why does an app say it's sending notifications but I'm not receiving them?

Check three things: first, make sure notifications are actually turned on in your device settings for that app. Second, check the app's own settings menu to see if there's a separate notification control inside the app. Third, on Android, check whether the app is on your battery saver's restricted list — battery saver can block notifications even when they're turned on. On iPhone, check whether Low Power Mode is on.

Do I have to allow notifications when an app first asks?

No. You can tap "Don't Allow" when the app asks, and you won't see that prompt again. If you change your mind later, you can go to your device settings and turn notifications on for that app at any time. Saying no doesn't prevent the app from working — it just means the app won't be able to send you notifications.

Can notifications from one app wake up my phone screen?

On iPhone, notifications can wake your screen if you've turned on "Lock Screen" for that app in Settings > Notifications > [App Name]. On Android, this depends on the notification's importance level — "High" or "Max" importance notifications usually wake the screen, while "Low" or "Min" do not. Check the app's notification settings to see what importance level it's set to.