Looking to make your iPhone a portable white noise machine? It’s easier than ever with iOS 26. Whether you’re a parent soothing a baby, someone with autism who only falls asleep to the calming frequency of white noise through a noise-cancelling headset, or just want a great tip for better sleep, this built-in background sound feature is incredibly helpful. In this guide, we’ll show you how to play white noise on your iPhone all night — no extra apps needed.
Steps to play white noise on iPhone all night (iOS 26)
Turning on white noise is a great way to help you relax or drift off to sleep. Here’s how to set up background sounds so your iPhone plays white noise all night.
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
- Scroll down and tap Accessibility.
- Under the Hearing section, tap Audio/Visual.
- Select Background Sounds.
- Toggle on Background Sounds at the top.
- Tap Sound.
- Choose Balanced Noise (or other options like Bright Noise, Dark Noise, or even Ocean if you prefer different frequencies).
- Adjust the volume slider to your comfort level.
- Make sure “Stop Sounds When Locked” is turned off, as well as Stop Sounds with a Timer keep off in iOS 26. so it keeps playing all night.
- Exit Settings, and your white noise will keep running in the background while your iPhone is locked.
Play white noise on iPhone all night using Control Center- (Shortcut Method)
No more pulling up YouTube for this—unless I specifically wanna fall asleep to some Skyrim or Harry Potter ambience.
- Unlock your iPhone.
- Swipe down from the top right corner to open Control Center.
- Tap the + button in the top left corner to add controls. (Make sure your phone is unlocked for this to show.)
- On the next screen, tap Add a Control.
- Search for Background Sounds, which you’ll find under Hearing Accessibility, and tap it to add.
- Tap on any blank area to exit edit mode.
- Now, back in Control Center, you’ll see a shortcut icon. Tap it, and your iPhone will start playing bright noise.
- To change sounds or adjust volume, just long-press the icon.
That’s it — a quick and easy way to turn on white noise right from your iPhone’s Control Center.
Triple-click the Side Button to play white Noise on iPhone (Accessibility shortcut)
You can play white noise all night on your iPhone by setting up an Accessibility shortcut. Just go to Settings > Accessibility > Accessibility Shortcut and select Background Sounds. Then triple-click the side button anytime to start or stop white noise instantly — perfect for falling asleep.
Try it tonight — it’s a simple way to turn your iPhone into a powerful white noise machine. If you found this helpful or have other sleep tricks, drop a comment or share this guide with someone who could use a peaceful night’s rest!
