iPhone Volume Keeps Going Down By Itself? Here’s How to Fix It

Does your iPhone automatically lower the music, video, or ringtone volume? Don’t worry; you can solve it by turning off iOS features like Attention Aware, Reduce Loud Sounds, and other settings. Here’s how to fix automatic volume decreases on your iPhone.

Why Does Your iPhone Reduce the Volume Automatically?

Your iPhone may automatically decrease its ringer or media volume due to various reasons, such as:

• Attention Aware is enabled, causing the ringtone volume to drop when you’re looking at the iPhone.
• The device is set to reduce “Loud Sounds” when using headphones to protect your hearing.
• The volume keys are being pressed inadvertently, turning down the audio levels.
• Your iPhone is auto-enabling Do Not Disturb or Focus mode.
• A damaged volume button or liquid ingression causes the volume to decrease.

To stop your iPhone decreasing the volume on its own, we’ll start by turning off iOS features that might affect it. Failing that, we’ll walk you through standard troubleshooting tips that can also help.

Disable Attention Aware Features

Attention Aware features on the iPhone use the TrueDepth camera to detect whether you’re paying attention to the device. When you’re looking at the screen, it lowers the volume for ringtones and other alerts. And when it thinks you’re not, the display dims automatically to save battery.

So, if you notice a reduced ringer volume on your iPhone, it could be that the Attention Aware feature is automatically lowering it in the background. Here’s how to turn it off.

First, open “Settings” on your iPhone.

Tap “Face ID & Passcode.” Enter your iPhone passcode for access.

Scroll down to the “Attention” section and disable “Attention Aware Features.”

Turn Off “Change With Buttons”

The volume buttons on the side of your iPhone will only change the media volume by default, and only when your phone is unlocked. However, if “Change With Buttons” is enabled in your settings, those buttons will also change the ringer volume when your iPhone is locked, which means you can accidentally lower it by pressing the buttons in a pocket or a purse.

We suggest disabling this feature to avoid that happening. Here’s how.

Open “Settings” on your iPhone, then scroll down and select “Sounds & Haptics.”

Turn off the switch for “Change with Buttons.”

That’s it. Volume buttons will no longer affect the volume of the ringtones and alerts. You can always re-enable it later if it doesn’t solve your issue.

Disable “Reduce Loud Sounds”

The Reduce Loud Sounds feature on iPhones automatically lowers the volume when you’re listening to loud audio through headphones.

While the intent is to protect your hearing from being damaged by loud sounds, your iPhone may become too quiet as it automatically reduces volume without telling you. Here’s how you can turn it off.

On your iPhone, head to Settings > Sounds & Haptics.

Scroll to the bottom and tap “Headphone Safety.”

Turn off the switch for “Reduce Loud Sounds.”

Turn Off Bluetooth or Disconnect Devices

At times, volume changes may also happen through Bluetooth devices connected to your iPhone. If the wireless speakers or headphones paired to your iPhone have physical volume controls, someone could use them to lower the volume.

Likewise, you won’t hear audio from your iPhone speakers if they are connected to nearby AirPods or any other wireless audio devices, such as headphones or a car stereo.

Therefore, you should turn off Bluetooth and see if the issue persists to test if this is causing the issue. Swipe down from the top-right corner to open Control Center on your iPhone. Tap the Connectivity section to expand it, then tap the “Bluetooth” icon to disable it. It should turn from Blue to White.

If your iPhone keeps connecting to a Bluetooth device you don’t recognize, go to “Settings” > “Bluetooth” > and tap “I” next to the connected device.

Tap “Forget This Device.”

Finally, tap “Forget Device” to confirm.

Turn Off Focus Modes (and See if It’s Scheduled)

Focus Modes on iPhones are designed to reduce distractions and help you focus on what you’re doing. When enabled, they can be configured to temporarily silence notifications and other alerts on the device.

If your iPhone goes silent or stops ringing at a particular time of day or specific locations, Focus Modes could be the culprit. You could have accidentally enabled one, created a schedule, or turned on Smart Activation so they enable automatically.

When a Focus Mode is enabled, its icon appears in the status bar and lock screen. Here’s how you can turn it off on your iPhone.

Open “Settings” on your iPhone.

Tap on “Focus.”

Here, you can view and manage all available Focus Modes. By default, these include “Do Not Disturb,” “Personal,” “Sleep,” and “Work.”

Tap one, then scroll down and select “Smart Activation.”

Turn off “Smart Activation” to prevent that Focus mode from turning on automatically based on your location, app usage, and more.

Now repeat these steps for each Focus mode. This will prevent any Focus Modes from turning on automatically based on the time of the day or your current location.

You can also disable Focus Modes through Control Center: swipe down from the top right corner of the screen to open Control Center and tap the “Focus” button to turn it off.

Volume Dips Down Randomly When Playing Music?

If your iPhone volume dips or dampens randomly for a second or two when watching videos or listening to music, it’s most likely due to app notifications. iPhones are designed to temporarily lower the volume to help you hear audible alerts for messages, apps, and games onboard.

For an interruption-free experience, I’d advise putting your iPhone on Silent Mode. If you get frequent notifications from a particular app, you can disable sounds for that app specifically. Go to Settings > Apps and select the app in question.

Hit “Notifications.”

Turn off the switch for “Sounds.”

This will retain notifications but turn off the audible alerts accompanying them, fixing the volume dip.

Restart Your iPhone

Restarting your iPhone might clear any temporary bugs or glitches caused within iOS or due to third-party software. To restart your iPhone, trigger Siri, say “restart my iPhone,” and confirm when prompted.

Alternatively, on iPhones with Face ID, press and hold the Side button and any of the volume keys and slide to power off. For iPhones with Home buttons, press and hold the Sleep/Wake button and swipe the slider to switch off. You can then start the iPhone back again by long-pressing the Side or Sleep/Wake button.

Reset the Settings

If you can’t figure out what’s causing the volume changes on your iPhone, it’s best to reset your settings. This will only affect your iPhone settings, leaving your files and apps intact. Follow the steps below to reset all iPhone settings to factory defaults.

Open Settings on your iPhone. Tap “General.”

Next, scroll to the bottom and hit “Transfer or Reset iPhone.”

Tap “Reset.”

Select “Reset All Settings.”

Enter your iPhone passcode to confirm. Your iPhone will remove all customized settings and restore them to default values, including sounds and ringtones, display preferences, and network settings. You may need to repeat the steps above again.

If nothing works and your iPhone keeps adjusting the volume levels on its own, we’d recommend backing up your iPhone and doing a complete factory reset. However, if that’s not possible or you’re not confident backing up your device, it would be best to contact Apple Customer Support and get your iPhone checked out by Apple.