How to Deactivate Voice Control on iPhone

Voice Control is an accessibility feature on iPhone that lets you control your device entirely with your voice. While useful for some, it can be accidentally activated by holding the Side button or Home button, causing unexpected beeps and on-screen highlights. This guide shows you exactly how to turn it off, whether you want to disable it temporarily or permanently.

What You’ll Need

Your iPhone (any model running iOS 13 or later)
Your passcode or Face ID/Touch ID (to confirm changes in Settings)

Step-by-Step

Open Settings. Tap the gray gear icon on your home screen or in your App Library.
Tap Accessibility. Scroll down about halfway through the Settings list and select it.
Tap Voice Control. It’s near the top of the Accessibility menu, under the “Physical and Motor” section.
Toggle off Voice Control. The switch at the very top of the screen will be green when enabled. Tap it so it turns gray. A confirmation popup may appear asking if you want to turn off Voice Control; tap “Turn Off” to confirm.
Check the Side or Home button setting (optional). If you want to prevent accidental activation in the future, scroll down to “Side Button” (or “Home Button”) and tap it. Choose “Siri” instead of “Voice Control” as the button’s action. This ensures that holding the button won’t trigger Voice Control anymore.
Exit Settings. Press the Home button or swipe up from the bottom to return to your home screen. Voice Control is now off.

Common Mistakes

Turning off the wrong toggle: Make sure you’re in “Voice Control,” not “VoiceOver” (which is a screen reader) or “Siri.” They are different features.
Forgetting to change the Side/Home button action: Even after turning off Voice Control, holding the button may still activate it if the button is set to trigger Voice Control. Change the button action to Siri or Off.
Not confirming the popup: If you tap the toggle but don’t tap “Turn Off” in the confirmation dialog, Voice Control stays on.
Assuming it’s off because the blue icon is gone: The Voice Control icon in the status bar disappears when off, but the feature can still be active if the toggle is on. Always check the toggle in Settings.

Tips

Use Siri to turn it off: If Voice Control is currently active, you can say “Hey Siri, turn off Voice Control” (if Siri is enabled) or simply “Turn off Voice Control” if you have “Listen for ‘Hey Siri'” enabled.
Set up an Accessibility Shortcut: Go to Settings > Accessibility > Accessibility Shortcut and select Voice Control. Then, triple-click the Side or Home button to quickly toggle Voice Control on and off without digging into Settings.
Know the difference between Voice Control and Siri: Voice Control is for controlling the device with voice commands (e.g., “Tap Home”), while Siri is a virtual assistant for tasks like sending messages or setting reminders. You can use both independently.
If you only want to pause Voice Control: Say “Go to sleep” to put Voice Control on standby. It will wake when you say “Wake up” or tap the screen.

Troubleshooting

Voice Control won’t turn off. If the toggle doesn’t respond, try restarting your iPhone: press and hold the Side button and either volume button until the power off slider appears, then slide to power off. After it’s off, turn it back on and try again.

Voice Control keeps turning back on. This can happen if you have an Accessibility Shortcut set to triple-click the button. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Accessibility Shortcut and deselect Voice Control. Also, check that the Side/Home button action isn’t set to Voice Control (as described in Step 5).

You see a blue microphone icon in the status bar. That icon means Voice Control is still listening. Follow the steps above to turn it off. If it doesn’t disappear, restart your iPhone.

Voice Control is not listed in Accessibility. This is extremely rare, but if you don’t see it, your iPhone may be running an older iOS version. Update your iPhone to the latest iOS by going to Settings > General > Software Update.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Will turning off Voice Control affect Siri?
A: No. Siri is a separate feature. You can still use Siri normally after disabling Voice Control.

Q: How do I turn off Voice Control without using the screen?
A: If Voice Control is active, you can say “Turn off Voice Control” or “Hey Siri, turn off Voice Control.” If that doesn’t work, connect your iPhone to a computer and use Finder (Mac) or iTunes (PC) to back up and then disable Voice Control via the device’s settings, though that’s a last resort.

Q: Why does Voice Control activate when I press the Side button?
A: Because the Side button (or Home button) is set to trigger Voice Control. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control > Side Button and change it to Siri or Off.

Q: Can I use Voice Control with Siri together?
A: Yes, you can. They are independent. Voice Control handles device navigation, while Siri handles assistant tasks. You can enable both.

Q: Does turning off Voice Control save battery?
A: Yes, it can help. Voice Control continuously listens for the “Hey Voice Control” phrase (if enabled) or uses the microphone when active, which can drain battery slightly. Turning it off stops that.

Q: How do I re-enable Voice Control later?
A: Simply go to Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control and toggle it on. You can also use the Accessibility Shortcut (triple-click the Side or Home button) if you set it up.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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