What iOS 27’s new volume control feature does
iOS 27 volume control is a new iPhone setting that replaces the single Ringtone and Alerts slider with three independent volume sliders so you can set different loudness levels for ringtones, alarms, and notification or system sounds without them affecting each other. For years, iOS forced alarms and alerts to share one volume, which meant that lowering message pings could also make morning alarms too quiet, or turning up calls could make notifications unbearable. Apple has now added a more flexible system that works much closer to what Android users have had for a long time. The feature arrives first in the iOS 27 Developer Beta, with a wider release planned later, and it lives in the familiar Sounds & Haptics settings screen on your iPhone.
How to access the new iPhone volume sliders
To start using the separate alarm volume and notification volume settings, you need to be running iOS 27, which is currently available as a Developer Beta before the general release planned for the fall. According to Lifehacker, you can install the iOS 27 developer beta if you accept the risk of instability, possible crashes, and potential data loss; most people should wait for the public beta or final release. Once you are on iOS 27, open Settings on your iPhone and tap Sounds & Haptics. This page used to show a single Ringtone and Alerts slider, but it now can expand into three distinct iPhone volume sliders: one for Ringtone, one for Alarms and Timers, and one for Alerts and System Sounds, each with its own toggle and slider.
Set a separate ringtone volume for calls
First, decide how loud you want phone calls to be. In Settings > Sounds & Haptics, look at the top of the page for the main Ringtone slider. This controls your incoming call volume and can also still act as a master volume if you keep the linked options enabled. Move the slider right to make calls louder or left to make them quieter while you experiment with notification and alarm settings below. If you keep your phone on silent often but worry about missing calls, you can raise this slider while later lowering alert sounds. As PCMag notes, iOS 27 keeps this ringtone control in its familiar place so existing users do not need to relearn the basics; the changes appear in the new sections underneath.
Create a separate alarm and timer volume
To give alarms their own loudness, stay in Settings > Sounds & Haptics and scroll to Alarms and Timers. Turn off Match Ringtone Volume. This unlocks an independent slider below. Move this slider to choose how forceful you want standard alarms and timers to sound. Lifehacker points out that sliding all the way left makes alarms much quieter but does not mute them entirely, so you still get an audible alert. PCMag adds an important detail: this Alarms and Timers slider does not control the Sleep Schedule or Wake Up alarm set through the Health app. Those Wake Up alarms already have a separate volume inside the Clock app under Alarms, where you tap Change under Sleep/Wake Up and then adjust the Sound & Haptics slider specifically for your morning alarm.
Fine‑tune alerts and notifications without muting calls
Finally, you can tame chatty apps without affecting calls. In Settings > Sounds & Haptics, find the Alerts and System Sounds section and disable Match Ringtone Volume. A new slider appears, giving you independent notification volume settings for system sounds and alerts. Slide left if messaging pings and app notifications are too loud, or slide right if you tend to miss incoming alerts. Mashable notes that this long‑desired iOS 27 volume control feature arrives after Android phones have offered separate controls for years, and it quietly solves the old limitation that tied notification sounds to ringtone volume. If you decide you still prefer one unified slider, you can simply turn Match Ringtone Volume back on and iOS will link those sounds again.
