iPhone is not vibrating on silent? How to fix

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iPhone vibration

The vibration feature is extremely important on iPhones. It alerts you about incoming calls, messages, or any other phone notifications—while the phone is on silent mode. So, when the iPhone vibration is not working, you’re likely to miss a lot. Which could be costly in various situations.

In this article, we’ll discuss the iPhone vibration feature, factors that might cause it to fail, and different ways to fix the problem. Keep reading to learn more.

Why your iPhone doesn’t vibrate on silent

There are two main reasons why your iPhone doesn’t vibrate on silent: software or hardware issues.

Now, the software problems are easy to use on your own, but the hardware malfunctions are usually complex and would need the skills of a qualified technician (preferably Apple support) to solve.

Here are the solutions for iPhone not vibrating on silent:

1. Check if the vibration feature is enabled

For vibration to work on your iPhone, you must activate it. Follow this guide to check if it’s active:

  1. Go to “Settings” then select “Accessibility”.
  2. Click on “Touch”.
  3. Scroll down to “Vibration” and toggle it ON.
  4. This will enable system-wide vibrations on your iPhone.

Now that you’ve switched the status to active, do the following:

  1. Go back and open “Settings”
  2. Tap on “Sounds & Haptics”
  3. You will find two options, “Vibrate on Ring” and “Vibrate on Silent”
  4. Toggle ON the “Vibrate on Silent”

If it’s already enabled but the vibration is not working on iPhone, then toggle OFF and back ON again.

vibration feature on iPhone

You can select a Default vibration, or customize it for your Text tone, Ringtone, sent mail, new voice mail, calendar alerts, airdrop sound, and reminder alerts. To customize:

  1. Open “Settings”.
  2. Go to “Sound & Haptics”
  3. Tap on “Ringtone”.
  4. At the top, you’ll find the “Vibration” option. Here, you can pick any of the vibration patterns available, or click on custom.
  5. Don’t select “None”.

2. Force restart your iPhone

This is always the go-to solution for many iPhone issues. It will close all apps and repair any system issues when the phone reboots. Below is a breakdown of ways to force restart different iPhone models.

  • How to force restart iPhone 6 and earlier models: Press then hold the sleep/wake button and the home button at the same time. Release them immediately the Apple logo appears on the screen.
  • How to force restart iPhone 7: Press and hold the volume down button and the sleep/wake button concurrently. Release them when the Apple logo shows up.
  • How to force restart iPhone 8 and later models: Press and release the volume up button fast, then quickly press and release the volume down button. Lastly, press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears.

3. Update your iOS

An outdated iOS version could be the reason your iPhone won’t vibrate on silent. Get the latest update and see if it solves the issue. Follow these steps:

  1. Go to “Settings”, then select “General”.
  2. Tap on “Software Update” to download and install the latest iOS.

Actually, the regular iOS updates are to fix bugs and system problems the vibration not working on silent.

Read Also: Change the number of rings before voicemail answers on iPhone

4. Disable Do Not Disturb on your iPhone

Check if Do Not Disturb is enabled on your iPhone. This mode prevents any form of an alert. You might have enabled it while going to sleep but forgot to Disable it.

  1. Go to “Settings”.
  2. Select “Do not Disturb”.
  3. Toggle it OFF.

Ideally, you can push down the control center then tap the moon icon to disable Do Not Disturb.

5. Reset all settings

Reset all your iPhone settings to default to see if your iPhone will start vibrating on silent. Make sure you back up your iPhone data first to be safe. Here are the steps to follow:

  1. Open “settings” then go to “General”.
  2. Tap on “Transfer or reset iPhone”.
  3. Select “Reset”.
  4. Tap “Reset all Settings”.
  5. You’ll have to enter your iPhone passcode for security reasons.
  6. Tap on confirm Reset all Settings
  7. Wait for the phone to reboot then activate the vibration.

If your iPhone uses iOS 14 and other previous versions, you’ll have to:

  1. Launch the Settings app.
  2. Tap on “General”.
  3. Open “Reset” then tap “Reset all settings”.
  4. Enter your passcode to confirm that you want to reset all settings.

6. Factory reset your iPhone

The next solution is to factory reset your iPhone and set it up like a new phone. Start with backing up your data then follow these steps:

  1. Launch “Settings” and tap “General”.
  2. Select “Reset”.
  3. Scroll down and tap on “Erase all content and settings”.
  4. You’ll see a confirmation pop-up, tap on “Erase Now”.
  5. Wait for everything to be erased.
  6. Your phone will reboot.
  7. Follow the on-screen instructions to set up the iPhone.
  8. When you get to “Apps & Data”, you can either “Set up as new iPhone” or “Restore iPhone from backup”.

You can also factory reset your iPhone using a MacBook. The steps to follow are:

  1. Connect the iPhone to the mac with lighting to the USB connector.
  2. Enter your lock screen passcode to unlock the iPhone.
  3. Go to the bottom menu bar and click on the “Finder icon”.
  4. Choose your iPhone on the screen. It’s on the left pane.
  5. Go to the right pane, under the software section, press the “Restore iPhone” button.
  6. Click the “Restore” button on the confirmation pop-up.
  7. Wait for your iPhone to be restored to default.
  8. Click “OK” then wait for your iPhone to show up in the sidebar pane.
  9. The iPhone will restart with a “HELLO” screen.
  10. Follow the on-screen instructions to set up the iPhone.
  11. When you get to “Apps & Data”, you can either “Set up as new iPhone” or “Restore iPhone from backup”.

Read Also: Here’s why your contact numbers showing up instead of names on iPhone

7. Test the vibration motor

If your iPhone isn’t vibrating on silent yet, you can test its vibrator motor to be sure it’s not a hardware problem. The simplest way to do it is to download a vibration test app from the App Store and use it to run the vibrator motor test.

When you tap the “Start” button on the app and your phone vibrates, then the motor is in good shape, if it doesn’t vibrate then you need to look for an Apple care technician.

The other test requires you to:

  1. Go to “Settings”.
  2. Tap on “Sounds” then toggle ON both “Vibrate on Ring” and “Vibrate on Silent”.
  3. Next, toggle ON the “Ringer” then toggle it back OFF.
  4. If you feel the iPhone vibrating when the Ringer is ON/OFF, your vibration motor works. If it doesn’t vibrate, the vibration motor is damaged.

8. Contact Apple support

If none of the DIY solutions work, reach out to the Apple support team through phone, email, their website, or go to the nearest apple store with your phone.

Explain your problem to the support expert and work together to find a reliable solution. Be sure to back up your data and carry the phone’s original warranty if it’s still valid.

Conclusion

That wraps up the repair guide for an iPhone that is not vibrating on silent. Take time to try the different solutions before seeking professional help. Remember to share your experience. Especially a new fix that isn’t listed above.