Ever since I got my first phone, I have always relied on the alarm feature on my phone to wake me up. When I experienced my alarm not going off for the first time, not only did it crash my sleep schedule, it ruined my whole day.
If you are a person who is solely dependent on alarms to wake up and get your day started, you certainly know what kind of role it plays in your life.
To avoid similar things happening to you, read this article to know how you can prevent yourself from stumbling upon such situations.
Why is My Alarm Not Working?
Most of the time, we tend to turn off the volume and fall asleep without realizing it.
You might think your alarm didn’t go off, but it did go off. Your volume was too low to wake you up from deep sleep.
Here are some things we can check to make certain that it’s not a blunder caused by the user:
- AM/PM Arrangement
- Non Repeating or One Day Alarm
- Connection with headphones or other devices
- Alarm sound set to None
Troubleshooting the problem that is causing your alarm not to work is no big deal, not to mention that it will only take a maximum of 5 minutes of your time to fix this issue. In this article, we will walk through the causes and fixes of your alarm that is not going off.
Ways to Fix Your Alarm That Won’t Go Off
It is rare for a clock app to function abnormally. It is more likely to be a mistake when the alarm doesn’t go off. Make sure you set the alarm properly at the correct time before you decide to do something extravagant.
Before You Begin
To check whether the problem is Sound-related or not, follow these steps
- Set the alarm for the next minute
- See if the alarm goes off or not
If you see an alarm screen pop up on your screen, here’s what you can do:
- Go to Settings
- Tap on Sounds
- Increase the volume
To fix this issue, you have to adjust the volume and repeat these steps and recheck if the alarm goes off or not.
If that’s not the case, then the first thing you can try doing is restart your phone.
Phone Restart
Restarting your phone makes your phone work so much better as it solves conflicts and clears all the data from the RAM. To restart your phone, follow these steps below:
On Android
- Long press the Side button for 5 to 7 seconds.
- A power menu will appear
- Click on Restart
Doing this restarts your phone and makes it function considerably a lot better.
On iPhone
- Press and hold on either Volume Up or Volume Down button along with the Side or Home button
- On the top, the power-off slider appears
- Swipe the Slider to the right
This shuts down your iPhone. Long press the Side button until you see the Apple logo.
Recheck Additional Settings
Sometimes, we make a mistake while arranging or setting alarms. To fix this,
- Go to Clock App
- Tap on Alarms and select the alarm that didn’t go off
- Select Additional Settings
Check AM/PM Arrangement
Make sure you set your alarm in “Am” if you want it to go off in the morning; otherwise, set “Pm” for midday. It is one of the most popular blunders among users. However, this shouldn’t be a big cause if your phone is in 24-hour format.
Tap on Repeat
The second most common error caused by the user is setting the alarm for a single day and hoping it would go off every other day. Before you save your alarm, repeat it on those days you want it to go off.
- Press on Repeat
- Customize it accordingly
- Select the days you want it to go off
This way, you can set the same alarm for multiple days without worrying about setting it every other day.
Choose the Sound of Your Preference
Sometimes, our human brain cannot respond to soft sounds, especially when we are deep asleep. You can also set your favorite song as your alarm to help you wake up more vigilant.
- Press on Sound
- Select Pick a song
- Choose your favorite from the library
Make sure Not to set alarm sounds to none and use a loud sound.
Updating the Software or Application
When there are bugs in your software or clock application, it will crash and won’t function smoothly to give its best results. You can fix this bug only if the update is available. However, different systems have different troubleshooting options. We will list the causes and fixes for iOS and Android phones below.
On iPhone
- Go to Settings
- Tap on General Tab
- Tap on Software Update
- Select the upgrade available
- Tap on Install Now
If the “Install now” option isn’t available, plug your iPhone to power, connect it to the Wi-Fi internet, and then re-follow the steps. If you see “Download and install” option instead
- Tap on Download and Install
- A dialogue box appears.
- Type in your Passcode
- Tap Install Now
On Android
- Go to Play Store
- Click on your Profile icon on the top right
- Tap on Manage Apps & Device
- Click on Update all
This will install the new update available on your device and make your phone work better. If the “Install now” or “Update” option doesn’t appear, your software or app has already been updated. For such an instance, try following other steps.
Disconnect Bluetooth Devices
If your phone is connected to any Bluetooth device like headphones or earbuds, the alarm will relocate to that device instead. Whether wired or not, you will hear your alarm directly in your ears, and the volume might not be loud enough to wake you up. Make sure to disconnect any Bluetooth device or earphones before sleep.
Set a New Alarm
You can set a new alarm for the same time if the alarm you put before isn’t going off. These steps are the same for both IOS and Android mobiles.
- Go to the Clock app
- Tap on the + icon on the top right corner
- Select the hour you want the alarm to ring
- Click on Save
Performing this will set a new alarm on your phone.
Turn Notification on Under Sleep Focus
Turning your sleep mode on under focus might prevent your alarm from going off sometimes. The function of this mode is to prevent you from receiving calls and notifications; however, a bug might cause your alarm not to go off. This method is only available for iPhones. To avert this from happening, follow the steps below.
On iPhone
- Go to Settings
- Tap on Focus and press on Sleep
- Press on Apps under Allowed notification
- Tap on the + icon to Add Apps
- Select Clock and click Done at the top right corner
This will allow your clock app to send notifications and the alarm goes off at the assigned time.
Clear Cache
Cache memory is a system that temporarily stores data in your device. Clearing cahe helps you clear out all the unwanted data and free up some memory. This will remove the older alarm, so you must set a new one. This option is only available for Android Mobiles.
On Android
- Open Setting Apps
- Scroll down and tap on Apps and search for Clock
- Press on the Storage option
- Tap on Cache and select Clear Cache
You can also Clear All Data if clearing the cache isn’t enough to make your alarm go off.
Turn On Notifications
Users setting the alarm for the first time might face this problem. If your clock app doesn’t have permission to send notifications, your alarm won’t go off. To prevent this, follow the steps below to grant access to your clock app to send notifications. This is only possible for Android devices.
On Android
- Go to Settings App
- Search for App Notifications and tap on it
- Press on Clock
- Tap on the slider to turn on the Notification Priority
This makes your alarm notification the prime concern and appears at the top.
Reset All Settings
The last option you can try is resetting all settings on your phone to make your alarm go off. If none of the options above work, reset your setting and check whether the alarm goes off or not. This option is available for both iPhone and Android.
On iPhone
- Tap on Settings apps on the screen of your phone
- Press on the General tab
- Scroll down and click on Transfer or Reset iPhone
- Press the Reset button
- Select Reset all settings
Following these steps deletes all the customized settings, including all the alarms, and sets it back to its default settings.
On Android
- Tap on the Settings App
- Tap on Apps & Notifications
- Press on See all Apps option
- Under App Info tab, tap on Three dots icon at the top right corner
- A drop-down appears. Press on Reset App Preference option
- Click on Reset all Apps once the dialogue box appears
This will reset all preferences for disabled apps, their notifications, and default applications. However, this option is not available for all android phones. After performing this step, you have to set a new alarm and start fresh.
