How To Turn Emergency Alerts Off On Iphone

So there I was, at 2:47 AM, dreaming peacefully about winning the lottery and buying a private island. Suddenly, my iPhone let out a shriek that could have woken the dead—a deafening, repeating siren sound that felt like an air raid drill in my bedroom. It was an AMBER Alert for a town I’d never heard of, 300 miles away. I nearly threw my phone across the room, and honestly? My heart didn't stop racing for ten minutes.

That’s when I realized: your iPhone is a great servant, but a really terrible alarm clock manager. The good news is that you don't have to live in fear of these screeching interruptions. Let me show you exactly how to turn those emergency alerts off—without getting yourself in trouble with the law, obviously.

First, know what you’re actually dealing with

Apple splits emergency alerts into two very different categories. Government alerts—like AMBER Alerts, extreme weather warnings, and national security threats—are opt-in by default, but you can usually switch them off. Then there are Emergency SOS alerts for real personal danger, and trust me, you don’t want to disable those unless you enjoy risking your life for a good night’s sleep.

Side note: Turning off AMBER Alerts does not make you a bad person. It just means you don't want to be startled awake by a missing minivan in another state. I support your sanity.

The main event: Where to find the settings

Open your Settings app—you know, the gray gear icon that’s probably hiding on your third home screen page. Scroll down until you see Notifications and tap it. Then, keep scrolling all the way to the very bottom of the Notifications page.

Seriously, keep scrolling. Right underneath all your app notification settings, you’ll see a tiny section called Government Alerts. It’s almost hidden, like Apple’s little secret for treasure hunters. Here you’ll find toggles for AMBER Alerts, Emergency Alerts, and (in some countries) Public Safety Alerts.

Just flip the switch for AMBER Alerts to off. That’s it. You’re done. No conspiracy theories needed.

What about that sneaky “Emergency Alert” toggle?

I know you’re looking at it, thinking, “Should I turn that off too?” Here’s the honest truth: Emergency Alerts cover things like tsunami warnings, missile threats, and actual life-or-death situations. I personally leave this one on because I like knowing when the sky is falling. But if you live in a area that sends false alarms for every thunderstorm? You have my permission to toggle it off. Just be aware that if a real emergency happens, your phone will stay silent as a library mouse.

My two cents: Keep it on. You can always put your phone on Do Not Disturb at night, which quiets it without removing protection. That’s my little hack.

Wait—what if you still get alerts after turning them off?

This happens, and it’s incredibly annoying. Sometimes, carriers override your settings with their own “presidential” level alerts that cannot be disabled. For example, in the U.S., the Presidential Alert is mandatory by law. You literally cannot turn it off, and it will sound like the apocalypse has begun, even with everything toggled off.

If that’s the case, your only option is to put your iPhone into Do Not Disturb or Airplane Mode temporarily. But don’t keep it on forever—you might miss an important call from your mom or, you know, the literal president.

One final trick: The “Silent” approach

If you’re too lazy to dig through settings (no judgment, I’ve been there), just flip the Mute switch on the side of your iPhone. Emergency alerts will still appear on your screen, but they won’t scream at you. It’s like putting a gag on a fire alarm—not perfect, but it works in a pinch.

Alternatively, you can schedule a Downtime in the Screen Time settings to block all notifications during your sleeping hours. This is my personal favorite because it feels like building a tiny soundproof bunker for your brain every night.

But what about test alerts? (You know, the ones that say “This is only a test”?)

Ah, the infamous test alerts. Some countries run them monthly, and they’re just as jarring as the real thing. You can’t disable those from your phone settings—they’re broadcast by your carrier. Your only defense is to memorize the test schedule and put your phone face-down for ten minutes. Or just embrace the chaos and pretend you’re in an action movie for 15 seconds.

Irony alert: The irony is that we spend all this effort silencing alerts, only to panic when the phone is too quiet and we miss something important. But you know what? You’re not paranoid—you’re just a human being who wants to sleep without being startled by a robotic siren.

The takeaway (and a little peace of mind)

Turning off emergency alerts on an iPhone is simple, but it’s also a personal choice. You are allowed to prioritize your morning commute over a stranger’s missing dog. You are allowed to value your sleep over a weather alert for a county you don’t live in. And you are definitely allowed to enjoy your phone without it screaming at you every time the government tests its loudspeaker system.

So go ahead, toggle those switches. Sleep peacefully. And if the world really does end? Well, I’ll be the one posting a screenshot of the Presidential Alert on Twitter before the power goes out. See you there.