iOS 18.4 brings Priority Notifications; here’s how to enable it

Apple released the first developer beta for iOS 18.4 over the weekend, and it brings a new feature that will show you the most important alerts on top of your iPhone’s lock screen.

First showcased at WWDC24, the new Priority Notifications feature uses Apple Intelligence to determine which alerts are important and which ones are distractive. Here’s everything you need to know about the feature and how you can enable it on your device.

What are Priority Notifications in iOS 18.4 and how to enable the feature?

Priority Notifications are important alerts that will be displayed in a separate section on your iPhone’s lock screen. The feature uses Apple Intelligence to determine notifications as important and less important, and then categories them to show on top. This will ensure that you no longer miss important alerts.

While most important notifications will be displayed on top, you can still see all your other notifications by swiping up on the lock screen. This is a great feature for those who usually miss out on important alerts.

An important alert can be anything, from a message from your boss or simply an email that says important in the subject. All such alerts will be displayed under the Priority Notifications tab on your iPhone’s lock screen.

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As of now, the iPhone sorts notifications in chronological order, showing the most recent alerts on top. With Priority Notifications, you may no longer have to worry about missing out on any important alerts. However, note that this feature is currently in beta, and we are yet to test it, so whether it rightly segregates all alerts remains to be seen.

For some reason, Priority Notifications are disabled by default. However, you can enable it by heading to Settings > Notifications > Priority Notifications. Simply turn on the feature and all the incoming alerts should be categorised based on their importance.

Notably, since this is an Apple Intelligence feature, only iPhone 15 Pro or newer models will be able to use this feature. While the feature is available in the beta update, it is expected to roll out for everyone in April.