Did you know that iOS has built-in ambient noise options? While third-party white noise apps are good, Apple’s own option is free and already on your device. In iOS 18, two new background sounds have been added: Fire and Night.
To find these built-in sounds on your iPhone and iPad:
- Open Settings
- Go to Accessibility
- Open Audio & Visual
- Select Background Sounds
You’ll find various ambient noises here. They are also available on macOS under System Settings > Accessibility > Audio.
There were originally six sound options, but iOS 18 now offers eight:
- Balanced Noise
- Bright Noise
- Dark Noise
- Ocean
- Rain
- Stream
- Night
- Fire
Fire and Night are the new additions. Fire has become my favorite for writing sessions.
One great thing about Background Sounds is that they keep playing even when other audio is on.
Using Control Center to access sounds:
Instead of opening Settings each time, you can quickly access Background Sounds via Control Center.
In iOS 17 and earlier, you could set up a Control Center toggle for Background Sounds. iOS 18 makes this even easier.
In iOS and iPadOS 18, you can create a Background Sounds toggle in three different sizes and long-press to quickly change sounds and adjust the volume.
The new Control Center features and new noise options have made me use Background Sounds more often in iOS 18.
Do you use Background Sounds? What do you think of the new options? Let us know in the comments.