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This wikiHow teaches you how to customize your notification settings on an Android. In addition to changing your general alert sound, you can often set different notification tones for certain apps, as well as assign custom alert tones to your contacts. Androids come with pre-installed tones, but if you're looking for something different, you can download a new one from an app like Zedge, use an existing audio file, or even create your own new tone.
Method 1 of 4:
Create a Notifications folder if you don't already have one. Use the file manager to navigate to your Internal Storage and scroll through its contents. Do you see a folder called "Notifications?" If not, tap the menu icon (⋮) and tap Create folder. Rename the new folder "Notifications."
Copy or move the audio files to your Notifications folder. Your file manager app will let you move or copy this sound file to any directory you want. To do this on a Samsung, tap and hold the audio file, select Move, navigate back to the Notifications folder, and tap Paste. Most other apps work similarly, though you may need to tap a menu after long-tapping the file.
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Use your new audio file as a notification. Now that you've added your audio file to the correct location, you can use it as your default notification sound, for a specific app, or as a custom text alert.
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. The easiest way to do this on most Androids is to swipe down from the top of the screen and tap the gear at the top-right corner. You can also tap the Settings gear icon in your apps menu.
Tap Sound & vibration or Sound . The Settings is different for each phone make and model, but it'll be something sound-related. This menu lets you customize all sounds on your device, including alarms, notifications, and ringtones.
Tap Save or OK . This is only necessary on some Androids—others automatically change the notification tone as soon as you tap it.
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Tap Apps & notifications , Notifications , or Apps . One of these options will display a list of apps on your Android. If you see a "Notifications" option in the Settings menu, tap that option first. If you don't see that option, tap Apps instead.
Tap Notifications . If notifications can be changed for this app, this option will be under the "Notifications" option.
Tap a notification category. Depending on the app, you may be able to set different notification sounds for different functions of the app. For example, if you're editing Samsung Notes, you can set different sounds for syncing, importing data, and other features. [1] X Research source
Tap OK or Save when you're satisfied. If no such option appears, just tap the back button and you're good to go.
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Open your text messaging app. The steps to assign different notification sounds to different contacts are a little different depending on the app you're using. We'll cover two of the most popular texting options: Google Messages and Samsung Messages. Other platforms should be similar.
Tap the ⋮ menu. It's the icon with three vertical dots in the top-right corner of the screen in most apps.
Tap the Notifications or Custom Notifications option. If you are using Samsung Galaxy, tap Set Custom Notification. If you are using Google Messages, tap Notifications.
Tap OK or Save when you're satisfied. If you don't see an option like this, just tap the back button to return to the previous screen. The next time the selected contact sends you a text message, you'll hear their new custom sound.
AdvertisementIf you're using a Samsung, you can create a notification sound using the Voice Recorder app. [2] X Research source Just record a sound and tap Save. The file will save to your Internal storage > Voice Recorder folder, which is good to remember since you'll need to move it in a few moments.
Notification tones are usually short—if you create your own, keep them at one second or close.You can make your own custom ringtone on a computer. Check out How to Make Your Own Ringtone to learn how to do this on a computer using a free app called Audacity.
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