Make emergency calls on iPhone

: June 7, 2024
: Apple

Table of Contents

Make emergency calls on iPhone

Make emergency calls on iPhone

In case of emergency, use iPhone to quickly call for help. With Emergency SOS, you can quickly and easily call for help and alert your emergency contacts.

If you share your Medical ID, iPhone can send your medical information to emergency services when you call or text 911 or use Emergency SOS (U.S. only).

Note: For emergency help in the U.S., you can send a text message to 911 (not available in all locations). See the Apple Support article Text 911 on iPhone or Apple Watch.

Dial the emergency number when iPhone is locked

On the Passcode screen, tap Emergency.
Dial the emergency number (for example, 911 in the U.S.), then tap .

Use Emergency SOS (all countries or regions except India)

On an iPhone with Face ID, iPhone SE (2nd generation), iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus: Press and hold the side button and either volume button. Continue to hold the buttons when the Emergency SOS slider appears, until iPhone plays a warning sound and starts a countdown. (To skip the countdown, drag the Emergency SOS slider.) When the countdown ends, iPhone calls emergency services.

Or, you can enable iPhone to start Emergency SOS when you click the side button five times. Go to Settings > Emergency SOS, then turn on Call with Side Button.

On other iPhone models: Click the side button or Sleep/Wake button (depending on your model) five times, then drag the Emergency SOS slider.

After the emergency call ends, iPhone alerts your emergency contacts that you made a call and sends them your current location (if available).

Use Emergency SOS (India)

On an iPhone with Face ID: Triple-click the side button. Or, if Accessibility Shortcut is turned on, press and hold the side button and either volume button until the sliders appear, then drag Emergency SOS.
On an iPhone with a Home button: Triple-click the side button or Sleep/Wake button (depending on your model).

By default, iPhone plays a warning sound, starts a countdown, then calls the emergency services.

After the emergency call ends, iPhone alerts your emergency contacts that you made a call and sends them your current location (if available).

Change your Emergency SOS settings

Go to Settings > Emergency SOS.
Do any of the following:
- Turn Auto Call on or off: When Auto Call is on and you start Emergency SOS, iPhone plays a warning sound, starts a countdown, then calls the emergency services in your region.
- Turn the countdown sound on or off: When Countdown Sound is on, iPhone plays a warning sound even in silent mode or when Do Not Disturb is turned on.
- Manage your emergency contacts: Tap Set Up Emergency Contacts in Health or Edit Emergency Contacts in Health. See Create and share your Medical ID in Health on iPhone.

Important information about emergency calls on iPhone

You can use iPhone to make an emergency call in many locations, provided that cellular service is available, but you should not rely on it for emergencies. Some cellular networks may not accept an emergency call from iPhone if iPhone isn’t activated, if iPhone isn’t compatible with or configured to operate on a particular cellular network, or (when applicable) if iPhone doesn’t have a SIM card or the SIM card is PIN-locked.
In certain countries or regions, your location information (if determinable) may be accessed by emergency service providers when you make an emergency call.
Review your carrier’s emergency calling information to understand the limits of emergency calling over Wi-Fi.
With CDMA, when an emergency call ends, iPhone enters emergency call mode for a few minutes to allow a call back from emergency services. During this time, data transmission and text messages are blocked.
After making an emergency call, certain call features that block or silence incoming calls may be disabled for a short period of time to allow a callback from emergency services. These include Do Not Disturb, Silence Unknown Callers, and Screen Time.
On an iPhone with Dual SIM, if you don’t turn on Wi-Fi Calling for a line, any incoming phone calls on that line (including calls from emergency services) go directly to voicemail (if available from your carrier) when the other line is in use; you won’t receive missed call notifications.

If you set up conditional call forwarding (if available from your carrier) from one line to another when a line is busy or not in service, the calls don’t go to voicemail; contact your carrier for setup information.