Open Settings and find the Sounds & Haptics menu

To change your alarm tone, start by opening the Settings app on your iPhone — the grey icon with gears. Scroll down until you see Sounds & Haptics (on newer iPhones) or Sounds (on older models). Tap it.

Once you're in Sounds & Haptics, scroll down past the volume sliders. You'll see a section labeled Sounds and Vibration Patterns. Look for the line that says Alarm — this is where you change what sound plays when your alarm goes off. The menu structure is the same across all recent iPhone models, though the exact wording may vary slightly depending on your iOS version.

Select a new alarm tone from the list

Tap on Alarm. Your iPhone will show you a list of built-in tones. Each one has a name like "Radar," "Bells," "Chord," or "Alarm." When you tap a tone name, it plays a preview so you can hear what it sounds like before you commit to it.

Scroll through the list until you find one you want. The tone you pick will become the default alarm sound for all new alarms you create going forward. (If you've already set up individual alarms in the Clock app, this change won't affect those — you'd need to edit each one separately.) Once you've selected your tone, simply exit Settings by tapping the back arrow or swiping from the left edge of the screen.

Key Takeaways

  • The alarm tone setting is in Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Alarm, not in the Clock app itself.
  • Changing the default alarm tone only affects new alarms you create going forward, not existing ones.
  • You can preview each tone by tapping its name before you decide.
  • If you want a different sound for a specific alarm, you can edit that individual alarm in the Clock app instead of changing the system default.
  • Built-in tones are the only sounds available as system defaults; custom songs require editing individual alarms.

Why the alarm tone won't change for existing alarms

When you change the default alarm tone in Settings, it only applies to alarms you create after that point. Any alarms you've already set up keep their original sound. This is by design — your phone assumes you chose those sounds for a reason and doesn't overwrite them.

If you want to change the sound on an alarm you've already created, open the Clock app, tap Alarm at the bottom, find the alarm in the list, tap Edit, then tap the sound line and pick a new tone. Save it, and that specific alarm will use the new sound. You can do this for as many existing alarms as you want without affecting the system default.

Using custom sounds as alarm tones

The built-in tones are the only sounds you can set as your default alarm tone directly from Settings. If you want to use a song from your music library or a sound you've downloaded, you'll need to set it on individual alarms in the Clock app, not through the system default.

To do this, open the Clock app, tap Alarm, tap Edit on the alarm you want to change, tap the sound line, then scroll to the top where you'll see Pick a song. This lets you choose from your Music library or any songs you've downloaded to your device. That custom sound will only apply to that one alarm, not to all your alarms. If you want multiple alarms to use the same custom song, you'll need to set it individually on each one.

Troubleshooting: alarm tone not changing

If you've changed the default tone in Settings but your alarms still use the old sound, check whether you're looking at alarms you created before the change. As noted above, existing alarms keep their original sound. Create a new test alarm to confirm the new default is working.

If even new alarms aren't using the tone you selected, restart your iPhone. Sometimes the Settings app doesn't apply changes until you power cycle. Hold down the side button and volume button together, slide to power off, wait a few seconds, then power back on. After the restart, create another test alarm to see if the new tone takes effect.

Changing alarm tones for specific times of day

iPhone doesn't have a built-in feature to automatically use different alarm tones based on time of day. However, you can create multiple alarms at different times and give each one its own sound by editing them individually in the Clock app. This way, your 6 a.m. alarm could use one tone while your 9 a.m. alarm uses another.

To set this up, create each alarm separately in the Clock app, then edit each one to assign a different tone. While this requires more manual setup than a single system default, it gives you full control over which sound plays at which time. You can also disable alarms you don't need on certain days using the toggle switch next to each alarm in the list.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will changing my alarm tone affect my notification sounds?

No. Alarm tones and notification sounds are separate settings. Changing one doesn't touch the other. Notification sounds are set in Settings > Notifications > [app name], not in Sounds & Haptics.

What if I want my alarm to vibrate silently instead of making a sound?

In the Clock app, edit the alarm you want to change, tap the sound line, then scroll to the very top and select None. The alarm will still go off at the set time, but it will only vibrate — no sound will play.

Can I use a voice memo as an alarm tone?

Yes, but only for individual alarms in the Clock app, not as the system default. Record your voice memo in the Voice Memos app, then edit an alarm in Clock, tap the sound line, tap Pick a song, and look for your recording in the list.

Why do some of my alarms still use the old tone after I changed the default?

Alarms you created before changing the default tone keep their original sound. The new default only applies to alarms created after the change. Edit any existing alarm individually in the Clock app if you want it to use the new tone.