Can I set the iPhone to vibrate except for one contact?

Question

iPhone 5s, iOS 9

I currently leave my phone almost exclusively on silent mode using the switch on the side so that it vibrates on notifications. But I want it to ring when one particular person calls me. Is this possible?

I've seen a similar workaround using the do not disturb function, but I don't think that solves my issue. I want it to vibrate on all notifications, texts, and calls, except ring when one particular person calls.

Answer 1

Buy a 'silence' ringtone from the iTunes Store. Make this your default tone, except for that one person.

Answer 2

You cannot do this, as you cannot define exceptions to the Mute toggle. Here are the possibilities I see, none of which solve your problem exactly:

1. Disable all sounds for all apps, including ringtones (you can do this by making a blank ringtone file yourself, or by getting one from the iTunes Store). Then go into that one contact and assign a ringtone to them. However, disabling app sounds also disables their vibrations.
2. Using Do Not Disturb allows you to specify a group of contacts that will bypass the setting, causing your iPhone to ring. You can find this setting under Settings → General → Do Not Disturb → Allow Calls From. Again, this will also disable vibrations, as you appear to know already.
3. In the overkill category, you could get an Apple Watch. Notifications will transfer to your Watch and not ring or vibrate your iPhone. You can then disable sounds without disabling taps on the Watch. When you get a phone call, your iPhone will still ring (this is the one exception to notifications on Apple Watch). From there, disable all ringtones except for that one contact as I described in 1.

Answer 3

While this was not possible at the time of the question, there is now a "None" option in the text tone vibration settings on a contact's card.

Answer 4

Record a silent ringtone or find a free one. Make that your default ringtone. Then adjust the ringtone for that contact. Ideally, you would be able to set a ringtone per contact group like you can with Android and other phones but not with apple.

Here are steps to create your own ringtone ref

How to Convert a Voice Memo into Ringtone for iPhone

Before you go ahead with the procedure, you’ll need to download GarageBand from the App Store. In order to use this technique to convert your audio recording into a ringtone, your device needs to be running iOS 11 or later. You’ll also need to record audio first using the Voice Memos app. Once you’re done, simply follow the steps below for making a custom ringtone.

1. Open the “Voice Memos” app on your iPhone.

2. Your previous recordings will show up here. Tap on the recording that you want to set as your ringtone and press the “triple-dot” icon for more options.

3. This will open the iOS share sheet. Tap on “Save to Files” to save this recording within the Files app.

4. Choose a preferred directory to save the recording and tap on “Save”.

5. Next, Open the GarageBand app on your device.

6. Choose any instrument that’s available. It doesn’t matter which instrument you choose, as the procedure is going to remain the same. In this instance, we’re choosing Keyboard.

7. Once you’ve opened the instrument, tap on the “project” icon as shown in the screenshot below.

8. Here, tap on the “loop” icon located at the top-right corner in order to open your audio recording.

9. Make sure you’re under the “Files” section and then choose “Browse items from the Files app”.

10. This will open your Files directory within the GarageBand app. Find and tap on the audio recording you saved in Voice Memos.

11. In this step, long-press the file name in order to open it in the project menu within GarageBand.

12. Drop the file as the second track, because the first track by default is reserved for the instrument you chose.

13. Now, tap on this track and drag the ends to trim the audio recording according to your preferences. You can play it back using the “Play” icon located at the top, if necessary. However, you might want to disable the annoying metronome by pressing the icon located to the right of “record” icon.

14. Once you’re done adjusting your clip, make sure it’s under 40 seconds in length. Now, tap on the “downward arrow” icon at the top-left corner and select “My Songs”.

15. Your GarageBand project will show up under Recents as “My Song”. Long-press on it to access more options.

16. Now, tap on “Share” as shown below.

17. In this step, select “Ringtone” in order to export your project as a ringtone.

18. Now, you can give the ringtone a name of your choice. Once you’re done, tap “Export” located at the top-right corner of the screen.

19. Once the export is successful, tap on “Use sound as…” in order to set it as your default ringtone right within GarageBand.

20. Here, you can choose to set it as your default ringtone or a text tone. Additionally, you also have the option to assign the sound to a specific contact. However, if you just want to add it to the list of existing ringtones, tap on “Done” instead.

Now you’ve learned how to set your voice recordings as a custom ringtone by using GarageBand on your iPhone.

Answer 5

Yes you can easily!

go to the contact in your iphone from the contact menu, then click "ringtone" scroll to the top and there is an "Emergency Bypass" option

enable it

There you go!