What Is Focus Mode and How to Use It in iOS 15

Jun. 21, 2021

With never-ending alerts and frequent phone calls, it becomes hard to concentrate and focus on the task at hand. While iOS already offered ways to keep unnecessary phone calls and notifications at bay, there wasn’t a centralized feature to let users control alerts from one convenient spot — up until now. With iOS 15, you can use Focus mode on your iPhone or iPad to minimize distractions and concentrate on the things that matter to you. Whether you want to dive deep into gaming without any interference, sleep with complete peace of mind, or binge-watch some of thebest TV series on Netflix, read on to learn what is Focus mode and how to use it in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15.

To get going, let’s first learn what exactly is Focus mode in iOS 15 and how it works for iPhone and iPad users. Then, we will explain how to create differenttypes of custom Focus modes, including one for gaming, reading, work, and many others, depending on your needs. So let’s dive right in!

Focus mode in iOS 15 aims tohelp you concentrate on the things that matter to youby getting rid of all the distractions like unwanted app notifications and phone calls. You can consider Focus mode as the more expanded form of Do Not Disturb mode that has existed in Apple’s mobile OS for several years.

To ensure you don’t miss out on important alerts and stay committed to your task, it uses four effective principles:

For enhanced control, Apple has included both sleep tracking and Do Not Disturb in Focus mode. So, apart from creating a focus for your work or personal tasks, you can also fine-tune DND and sleep tracking right from inside the Focus mode.

As to what type of focus modes you can create on your iOS 15 device, it all depends on your needs and the tasks you want to take on with the desired concentration. Here are the focus modes you can create in iOS 15:

Thanks to seamless syncing, your created focus mode is shared across all of your Apple devices linked with the sameiCloudaccount. That means when you turn on your Focus Mode on your iPhone, it will automatically be enabled on your iPad, Mac, and even the Apple Watch as well.

Probably the best part about Focus mode is that it is fully customizable. If you ever feel the need to tweak your focus, you can choose to allow/ disallow any apps from sending notifications. Besides, you can even customize the home screen pages, dim lock screen, and hide notification badges when Focus mode is turned on.

For better control over apps that have requested to share your Focus Status, Focus mode lets youstop apps from seeing your Focus Status. So, if you ever happen to put privacy over everything else, you can take advantage of this essential feature to hide your status. And when a focus becomes unnecessary, you will be able to delete it.

Now that you know you can create a focus mode for all sorts of purposes, let’s learn how to create a new focus mode in iOS 15.

2. Now, tap on the“+” buttonat the top right corner of the screen.

Note: Alternately, you can access Focus modes from the Control Center. Swipe down from the top right and find the “Focus” tile. After that, long-press and hold the Focus tile to expand, and tap on theNew Focus (+)button.

3. On the next screen, select a focus to get started. You have multiple options to choose from – driving, fitness, gaming, or custom. If you want to focus on something else, tap on “Custom” and then name your focus. For the purpose of this guide, I’m going to choose the Custom option. As steps are identical, you can choose any option depending on your needs.

4. Next up, choose the people you want to receive notifications from when the Focus mode is enabled. Simply tap the“+”contact button and select the preferred contacts from your address book. After that, tapAllow. If you don’t want notifications from anyone, choose the “Allow None” option. Note that you also have the option to allow calls only from favorites or no one. You can tap onCalls Fromand then customize the incoming calls as per your needs.

5. Up next, choose apps you want to get notifications from when the Focus mode is active. Tap on the“+” buttonand then select the preferred apps from the list. After that, tap theAllowoption at the bottom. Again, if you don’t want to receive alerts from any app, choose the “Allow None” option. If you wish to receive time-sensitive alerts from the apps that are not on your allowed list, make sure to turn on theTime Sensitivetoggle.

6. Finally, you should see the confirmation screen saying your focus is ready. TapDoneto finish.

Note:By default, iOS shares your focus profiles across devices including Apple Watch, Mac, and iPad linked with the sameiCloudaccount so that you can manage them with ease. However, you can disable this functionality if you no longer want to share your focus profiles across your Apple devices.

Once you have created a focus, you can customize it as and when you want to suit your needs better. For instance, you can fine-tune the home screen pages, lock screen, and even hide notification badges when the Focus mode is turned on. So lets’ take a look at the steps you need to follow to customize a focus mode to your needs:

2. On this screen, you can choose toallow/ disallow notificationsfrom people/ apps, turn off/ on Focus Status, and time-sensitive notifications as per your needs.

3. 3. Notably, you can also customize the home screen and lock screen to ensure they do not distract you when you have a focus turned on. Besides, there is also an option to fine-tune the name and appearance just in case you want to further personalize a Focus.

If you wish to customize the home screen for a Focus, tapHome Screenlocated under theOptionssection. After that, you have the option tohide the notification badgesso that they do not distract you. Moreover, you can also choose to show only selected home screen pages when Focus mode is enabled.

To show only selected home screen pages during a Focus, turn on theCustom Pagestoggle. After that, choose the home screen pages that you want to show. In the end, make sure to tapDoneto finish.

When a Focus is active, you can dim the lock screen so that it won’t appear to deviate you from your path. Depending on your needs, you can also show/hide the silenced notifications on the lock screen. SelectLock Screenlocated under theOptionssection and then turn on/offDim Lock ScreenandShow on Lock Screentoggles.

With iOS 15 and iPadOS 15,Do Not Disturb has become part of Focus. With the addition of new features like the ability to share focus status and customize the home screen, DND has now become more functional. Plus, you can treat it like any other focus and tweak Do Not Disturb Focus Mode to your liking.

On the other hand, Smart Activation can play a vital role in helping you get the most out of Focus mode. More on this later.

I know, you must now be wondering how to enable/ disable focus mode to ward off any distractions. Well, to get it done, you don’t need to look anywhere else but the Control Center or the Lock Screen. Yeah, you read that right! So without further ado, let’s take a look at both methods:

You can turn on focus mode and choose how long it should be active right from the control center of your iOS device. Just follow the steps below:

2. After that, tap on theFocusbutton. Do note that if you tap the crescent moon icon, you will instantly enable the Do Not Disturb mode.

3. Next, tap on afocus modeto enable/ disable it.

4. If you want to choose how long a focus should be active, tap on thethree dotsnext to a focus mode. Then, you have three options to choose from:

Once you enable a Focus Mode from the Control Center, you will see the icon for that focus on the lock screen – just below the clock. You can use it to turn on/ off the Focus Mode or switch to another Focus Mode from the lock screen itself. To learn how it works, follow the steps below:

1. To turn off or change the Focus Mode, long-press and hold on the focus icon under the clock.

2. Then, you will see the same set of Focus Mode options as above on your screen. Pick the Focus Mode you want to switch to, and well, you are done.

You can also choose to enable Focus mode automatically at a set time, location, or while using an app on your iOS 15 or iPadOS 15 devices. If you wish to remain committed to your schedule, Smart Automation could be the ideal way to go.

2. Now, tapthe “+” buttonto the left ofAdd Schedule or Automation. Next, go ahead and customize the smart activation for your Focus. You can choose to enable it ata specific time, when you arrive at a locationorwhen you open a specific app.

Note:With predefinedFocusprofiles likeWorkout and Fitness, Smart Activationis enabled by default. You can check the status under the “Turn on Automatically” section and also enable/disable it from there.

Keeping track of all the apps that have requested to see and share your focus status is pretty straightforward. So, you can control which apps can access your focus status and stop the least important ones. Both in terms of flexibility and privacy, this is a well-thought-out feature.

1. Open theSettings appon your iPhone or iPad, and head over toPrivacy -> Focus.

2. Next, you should see the list of all the apps that have requested access to see and share your Focus Status. Now,turn on/off the toggleright next to a specific app as per your needs.

To ensure you are not disturbed by random phone calls in the middle of an important task, Focus mode also lets you allow/ disallow phone calls. If you don’t want any sort of interference, you can completely disallow phone calls. But if you wish to let your friends and family members reach out to you, there is an option to allow phone calls only from favorites.

1. Launch theSettings appon your iPhone or iPad ->Focus-> choose afocus.

2. Now, tap on thePeopletile located under theAllowed Notificationssection.

3. Next, tap on Calls From. After that, you can choose to disallow repeated calls orreceive calls only from Favorites. Bear in mind that a second call from the same person within three minutes will not be silenced.

Should you ever wish to remove a focus mode that is no longer part of your schedule, you can do so from the settings with ease. Follow the steps listed below:

1. On your iPhone or iPad, navigate toSettings -> Focus->select a focus profilethat you want to delete.

2. Next, hit theDelete Focusbutton at the bottom. A popup will appear from the bottom asking you to confirm by tappingDelete Focusagain. Do it and you are good to go!

Tips to Use Focus Mode in iOS 15 Like a Pro

That’s pretty much it! Hopefully, you have now got a better insight into how Focus mode works in iOS 15 on your iPhone and iPad. So times when you may wish to concentrate on your important tasks without being distracted by anything, Focus mode will come in handy. Give it a shot if you haveinstalled the iOS 15 developer beta, and I’m sure you will come out pretty impressed with it. And, of course, if you ever hit a roadblock, be sure to reach out to us for help.

Moreover, iOS 15 has come up with a plethora of impressive features, including the much-appreciated ability towatch movies together on FaceTime,make a FaceTime call to Android and Windows users, andSafari web extensions. Take a look at the linked guides to learn all about newly added features in iOS 15.

An old school bibliophile who turned a tech nerd out of obsession. When he is not digging into hacks and tracking down stories that are breaking the internet, you may find him reciting poems.