I use the alarm function in the iPhone’s clock app to remind me when to feed my cat. I’ve found that she annoys me less when she thinks the alarm is in charge of mealtime, not me (it sounds stupid, but it works). When I’m out of the house, though, that alarm is mostly just a nuisance, so I set my alarms to only go off when I’m home.
This isn’t just useful for cat lovers. For example, maybe you don’t want your usual alarm to go off in the morning when you’re on vacation, or you have alarms that are useful at work but you don’t want to hear at home. The point is that you can set up alarms to only go off when you’re in a certain location using the iPhone’s built-in Shortcuts feature – here’s how.
First: Set up and name alarms
Photo credit: Justin Pot
The first step should be obvious: set up some of your alarms if you haven’t already. Go to the Clock app, tap alarm and click on the plus sign in the upper right corner. Pay attention to the label Field – the next steps will be much easier if you give your different alarms precise names. For example, I named them after the food my cat gets at certain times.
Second, set up shortcuts to turn these alarms on and off
Next, we need to set up some shortcuts: one to turn the alarm off when you leave home and one to turn the alarm back on when you return.
Open the Links app on your iPhone and then create a new shortcut. I recommend naming the first shortcut “Home”. Tap Add action and find the Clock App, Tap Turn alarm on/off. Make sure the shortcut is pointing to your specific alarm and is set to turn the alarm on. Add as many alarms as you want to toggle and save your shortcut by tapping Completed.
Photo credit: Justin Pot
Now create another shortcut, this time called “Leave Home.” Repeat the process and make sure the same alarms turn on again.
You should now have two new shortcuts – one to turn your alarms on when you get home and another to turn them off when you leave the house. Now we need to set them up to run automatically.
Third: Automate things
Tap the automation tab in the Shortcuts app – you will find it at the bottom of the screen. Click the plus button in the top right corner and select the Arrive Option. Enter your home address as the location. I also recommend using the Run immediately Option – otherwise the shortcut will only run if you happen to look at your phone when you get home.
Photo credit: Justin Pot
When you get home, you will be asked which shortcut you want to run. Look for the shortcut you named. Come home. You’ve now set up an automation that will turn on your alarms when you get home. Now we need to set up a second automation, this time turning off your alarms when you leave the house.
Tap the plus button to create a new automation. This time we will use the Leave Option. Use your home address as the location, as before, and again I recommend using the Run immediately Option. This time, set the automation so that your Leaving the house Abbreviation.
Everything should be set up now! Try it out now. Next time you leave the house, open the clock app and make sure your alarms are off. Then check that they are on when you get home. I have been using the app for almost a year and love it. I hope you find it helpful.
