How to Change or Turn Off Text Message Vibrations on iPhone

To change text-message vibration, open Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Text Tone > Haptics and choose a pattern. Choose None to turn off that vibration, or Create New Vibration to make a pattern of your own. The message sound is a separate choice on the Text Tone screen.

You can also reach message-specific controls through Settings > Notifications > Messages > Sounds. Apple's current Messages guide describes Haptics in this area, with Text Tone controls where shown. Use the labels actually offered by your iOS version.

Choose the right change

Your goal	Control to use
Change the vibration for ordinary texts	Text Tone > Haptics
Keep text sounds but stop their vibration	Haptics > None; retain a text tone
Silence one busy conversation	Messages > conversation details > Hide Alerts
Change the alert for one person	That contact's Text Tone and Haptics
Stop all Messages notifications	Notifications > Messages > Allow Notifications

Haptics means the vibration feedback you feel. A vibration pattern is the timing of those pulses. Turning off text-message haptics does not necessarily turn off keyboard feedback, call vibration, or feedback from system controls. To stop those taps, see how to turn off System Haptics on an iPhone.

These instructions apply to Apple's Messages app and current iOS, including iOS 26 and 27. Other messaging apps have their own notification controls. Older iOS releases may label the pattern menu Vibration instead of Haptics.

Select a text vibration pattern

1. Open Settings and tap Sounds & Haptics.
2. Tap Text Tone to open the ordinary text alert controls.
3. Tap Haptics near the top of the tone screen.
4. Tap an available pattern. The phone should preview that pattern when vibration is enabled.
5. Return to Text Tone and choose the audible tone you want, if you also want sound.
6. Leave Settings and check the next incoming message. For a deliberate check, ask someone to send a new text while you are not viewing that conversation.

Apple documents the pattern control in Change iPhone sounds and vibrations. A contact-specific choice or a muted conversation can affect your later check, so test with an ordinary unmuted conversation first. To give one person their own sound, see how to set a ringtone or text tone for a contact.

Turn off text-message vibration

1. Return to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Text Tone > Haptics.
2. Scroll through the patterns and select None.
3. Go back to Text Tone. Keep a sound selected if you still want an audible alert, or select None for the tone if you want it silent too.
4. Review Settings > Notifications > Messages to confirm which visual alerts you want to retain.

Selecting None for haptics is narrower than disabling Allow Notifications. You can keep banners, Lock Screen notifications, and badges while changing the vibration pattern.

To restore vibration later, return to the same Haptics menu and select a pattern. To restore sound, select an audible Text Tone separately. If you tend to miss the first buzz, you can also set repeat text message alerts on iPhone.

Apple's Messages notification guide also gives the route through Notifications > Messages > Sounds. It explains that selecting None for message sounds silences the outgoing swoosh and the incoming tone; that sound setting does not offer an incoming-only switch.

Create your own vibration

1. Open Text Tone > Haptics and tap Create New Vibration.
2. Tap the recording area to create a sequence of pulses, following the on-screen recording controls.
3. Stop the recording and play the preview.
4. If it is difficult to recognize, record another version with a simpler rhythm.
5. Save it, enter a name when requested, and select the saved pattern in Haptics.

A name such as “Short text pulses” is easier to identify later than several unnamed experiments. Check the selected pattern after saving; creating one and using it are related but distinct actions.

Keep your audible text tone in mind while checking the result. A very quiet tone can make you rely on vibration more than expected, while a loud tone can remain distracting even after haptics are disabled.

Change vibration for one contact

If one person's messages behave differently, check that person's contact card before changing every text alert.

1. Open Contacts and select the person.
2. Tap Edit, then Text Tone.
3. Open Haptics and choose a pattern or None. To stop more than text alerts, see how to turn off vibration on an iPhone.
4. Review the tone and finish with the save controls, such as Done, shown on the contact screens.
5. Check a later message from that person to confirm the intended alert.

You can also start from a one-to-one Messages conversation, open its contact information, and edit the contact. If the number is not saved, add it to a contact first.

Review Emergency Bypass if the contact is allowed to interrupt a Focus. Enable or disable it only according to the interruptions you want. A special contact alert is separate from the default Text Tone used for other people.

For related sound choices, see our iPhone ringtone guide.

Silence one conversation or pause interruptions

To silence a conversation, open Messages, swipe left on the conversation, and tap the mute button. Alternatively, open the chat, tap its contact or group icon, and turn on Hide Alerts. Messages still arrive; you have changed their alerts.

Turn Hide Alerts off to undo it. Our guide to muting a text conversation explains this narrower choice.

A Focus such as Do Not Disturb can pause interruptions temporarily, according to its allowed people and apps. Review those exceptions instead of assuming that enabling a Focus blocks every vibration. Use the text pattern setting for a continuing preference and Focus for a temporary interruption rule.

For vibration-only calls and alerts, see how to put an iPhone on vibrate. That guide separates Silent mode, overall Haptics behavior, and individual vibration patterns so you can check each control.

If texts will not vibrate—or still vibrate

Check Text Tone > Haptics first. A selected None pattern explains absent text vibration, while a particular contact can have its own pattern.

On iOS 26, Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Haptics also offers overall behavior such as Always Play, Play in Silent Mode, Don't Play in Silent Mode, and Never Play. Choose the behavior that matches when you want call and alert haptics. Earlier versions can instead show switches for playing haptics in Ring or Silent mode. Do not confuse this overall behavior with the Text Tone pattern.

Silent mode can still permit vibration. If the phone is quiet but buzzing, that alone does not mean your setting failed. Check the applicable overall behavior and the message pattern.

If you receive repeated pulses several minutes apart, review Notifications > Messages > Customize Notifications > Repeat Alerts. Those repeats are separate notifications, not necessarily a longer vibration pattern.

Also check Allow Notifications, the conversation's Hide Alerts setting, and any active Focus. If only one sender behaves differently, inspect that contact's Text Tone.

Avoid using Accessibility > Touch > Vibration as a routine text-only fix. Apple's vibration guide warns that switching vibration off there also disables vibrations for earthquake, tsunami, and other emergency alerts.

Common questions

Will this change vibration in WhatsApp or another app?

The Text Tone setting controls Apple's text-message alert category. Check the other app's own notification settings rather than assuming every messaging service shares it.

Can I keep the text sound and remove vibration?

Yes. Select None under Haptics while keeping an audible Text Tone. Then check an unmuted conversation under your normal Ring or Silent mode.

Does System Haptics control message alerts?

System Haptics controls feedback for system interactions. Use Text Tone > Haptics for the message pattern.

Finish by checking an ordinary conversation and any contact with a custom tone. That lets you confirm the change without disabling unrelated alerts.