Phone doesn't ring for incoming calls

Symptoms

• Phone vibrates but doesn't play a ringtone
• No vibration or sound at all for incoming calls
• Alarms and notifications work fine
• Certain contacts don't ring while others do

Likely causes

• CommonDo Not Disturb or Focus mode enabledThese modes silence calls by default unless a contact is marked as an exception.
• CommonRinger volume turned down or mutedThe physical mute switch or a low ringer volume setting silences calls specifically.
• PossibleContact-specific silence or blocked statusIndividual contacts can be set to silent or blocked, stopping their calls from ringing.
• PossibleSoftware glitch in the phone or notification appA stuck process can prevent the ringtone from triggering even with correct settings.
• Less commonSpeaker hardware issueA damaged ringer speaker would also affect other sounds like alarms.

What to do

1. Check that the physical mute/ring switch (iPhone) or Do Not Disturb toggle (Android) is off.
2. Turn the ringer volume up using the volume buttons while on the home screen, not during a call.
3. Check Focus modes or Do Not Disturb settings for scheduled silent periods.
4. Open the contact's info and confirm they aren't set to silent, blocked, or a custom low-priority ringtone.
5. Test with a call from a different number to see if the issue is contact-specific.
6. Restart the phone to clear any stuck notification process.
7. Check that a ringtone is actually assigned in Settings > Sounds.
8. If alarms and notification sounds also fail to play, treat this as a speaker issue rather than a ringer setting problem.

When to call a pro

If all sounds including alarms are silent after checking every setting, have the speaker hardware checked by a professional.

Safety