Disable Notification Previews on iPhone (iOS 11)

This guide shows you how to turn off notification previews for all apps on an iPhone running iOS 11. This stops sensitive message content from appearing on the lock screen or in banners, so only the app name and “Notification” show until you unlock your phone. You don’t need any special tools—just your iPhone and a few minutes.

What You’ll Need

• An iPhone running iOS 11 (Settings > General > About > Version to check)
• Your passcode or Touch ID/Face ID to unlock the Settings app if you have restrictions enabled

Step-by-Step

1. Unlock your iPhone and go to the home screen.
2. Tap the Settings icon (the gray gear).
3. Scroll down and tap “Notifications”. It’s usually about halfway down the list, between “Do Not Disturb” and “Control Center”.
4. Look at the top of the Notifications screen. You’ll see a section called “Show Previews” with three options: “Always”, “When Unlocked”, and “Never”.
5. Tap “Never”. This is the master switch that affects every app at once.
6. Press the Home button (or swipe up from the bottom on iPhone X) to exit Settings. Your change saves automatically.
7. Test it: lock your phone and have someone send you a text or a message from any app. You should see the app name and “Notification” instead of the actual message content.

Common Mistakes

• Changing only one app: Many people go into individual app settings and turn off previews there, then wonder why other apps still show content. The “Show Previews” option at the top of the Notifications screen is the global control.
• Confusing “When Unlocked” with “Never”: “When Unlocked” still shows previews on the lock screen if your phone was recently unlocked and hasn’t relocked yet. If you want zero previews anywhere, choose “Never”.
• Forgetting that banners still appear: Even with previews off, you’ll still get banner alerts at the top of the screen when you’re actively using your phone. The banner will just say “Notification” instead of the message text.
• Assuming it affects the Notification Center: After you set “Never”, pulling down the Notification Center while your phone is unlocked will also show only “Notification” instead of content. This is expected behavior.

Tips

• Use “When Unlocked” as a middle ground: If you want previews when you’re actively using the phone but not when it’s sitting on a table, pick “When Unlocked”. This is a good balance for most people.
• Set per-app exceptions: After setting the global option to “Never”, you can still go into individual app settings (within Notifications) and turn previews back on for specific apps you trust, like your calendar or a work chat app.
• Check lock screen widgets: Some apps show previews through lock screen widgets (swipe right on the lock screen). To disable those, go to Settings > General > Accessibility > Today View and turn it off, or edit the widgets to remove sensitive ones.
• Restart your phone if it doesn’t take effect: Rarely, a setting change needs a reboot to fully apply. Press and hold the power button, slide to power off, then turn it back on.

Troubleshooting

Previews still showing after setting “Never”: First, go back to Settings > Notifications and confirm the “Show Previews” option actually says “Never”. If it does, try a hard restart (press and hold both the Home and Power buttons for 10 seconds until the Apple logo appears). If that doesn’t work, check if you have any Screen Time or Restrictions enabled that might be overriding the setting.

Only some apps are affected: This usually means you previously set a per-app override. Go to Settings > Notifications, tap the specific app, and scroll down to “Show Previews”—set it to “Never” there as well.

The option is grayed out: This can happen if you have a corporate profile or parental controls installed. Go to Settings > General > Profiles & Device Management to see if there’s a configuration profile that restricts notification settings. You may need to remove it or ask your administrator to allow changes.

Notifications aren’t appearing at all: If you set “Never” and now you’re not getting any banners or sounds, check that you didn’t accidentally turn off “Allow Notifications” at the top of the Notifications screen. That’s a separate toggle that completely silences everything.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will this stop all notification sounds? No. “Show Previews” only controls whether the message content appears on screen. Sounds and vibration continue to work as before. To silence sounds, you’d need to adjust “Sounds” settings or use Do Not Disturb.

Does this affect the Apple Watch? No, this setting is per-device. If you have an Apple Watch, you’ll need to change the same setting on the watch itself (Settings > Notifications > Show Previews) or in the Watch app on your iPhone.

Can I still see message content after unlocking? Yes. Once you unlock your iPhone, opening the app will show all messages normally. The “Never” setting only hides content from the lock screen and banners, not from inside the apps.

Will this drain my battery? No, disabling previews has no effect on battery life. It’s purely a display setting.

How do I turn previews back on? Go back to Settings > Notifications > Show Previews and choose either “When Unlocked” or “Always”. The change applies immediately.

Does this work for all apps, including third-party ones? Yes, the global “Show Previews” setting applies to every app on your iPhone, including messaging, email, social media, and any other app that sends notifications.

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