Thursday, January 22, 2026

Alarm Reminders in iOS 26.2: Turn Reminders Into Can’t-Miss Alerts

Alarm Reminders in iOS 26.2: Turn Reminders Into Can’t-Miss Alerts

In iOS 26.2, Apple added a practical upgrade to Reminders: mark a task as Urgent and your iPhone schedules an alarm when it’s due. If you rely on Reminders for time-critical work, this change makes missed tasks a lot less likely.

By Rodger Mansfield, Technology Editor
January 22, 2026


iOS 26
If you’ve ever had a reminder fire while your phone was silenced, you know the problem: you get a polite notification at the exact wrong moment, and it disappears into the chaos. 

For some tasks, “polite” is not good enough. Paying a bill. Joining a call. 

Taking medication. 

Leaving for the airport.

Here's a Cool Tip:  Try the new Urgent Alarm feature in the Reminders App.

iOS 26.2 lets Reminders schedule an alarm for tasks you mark as Urgent, including when your device is silenced or a Focus mode is active. 

iOS26 Reminders Alarms

Feature Explanation

This feature lives inside Reminders, not Clock.

In iOS 26.2, you can mark a reminder as Urgent. When you do, Reminders schedules an alarm at the reminder’s due time. Apple also notes two important operational details:

The alarm triggers even if the phone is silenced or a Focus mode is on.

Alarms for urgent reminders only activate on the device that Find My uses as your location.

That second point matters if you carry multiple Apple devices, or if your iPad is your shared location device for Find My.

What You’ll Gain
  • Outcomes at a glance.
  • Make critical reminders much harder to miss.
  • Keep Focus modes on without losing time-sensitive tasks.
  • Reduce “notification blindness” for high-priority work.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Here's how to do it.

iOS

Turn on iCloud Reminders first (recommended and required for Urgent)
  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap [your name].
  3. Tap iCloud, then turn on Reminders.

Create a reminder
  1. Open the Reminders app.
  2. Tap + New Reminder, then type your reminder.

Set a due date or time
  1. Tap the Date and Time button.
  2. Choose Today, Tomorrow, This Weekend, or tap Date & Time to set a specific day and time.
  3. Important default: If you set a due date but no time, the notification appears by default at 9:00 AM.

Create an urgent reminder that triggers an alarm (iOS 26.2)
  1. In a Reminders list, tap the reminder you want to mark as urgent.
  2. Tap the Info button.
  3. Under Date & Time, turn Urgent on.
  4. If Date and Time aren’t already set, Reminders defaults them to the next hour.
Reminder Alarms Example

fig. 1 - Reminder Alarms Example

Add a location-based reminder
  1. Tap the Location button.
  2. Choose a suggested location or tap Custom.
  3. Choose whether you want the reminder when arriving or leaving.
  4. Set the perimeter for the reminder area.
Pros and Cons

Pros
  • Urgent reminders can cut through silence and Focus modes for truly time-critical tasks.
  • Keeps your workflow inside Reminders instead of creating “alarm sprawl” in the Clock app.
  • Great for recurring operational routines (morning checklist, daily reporting, inventory checks).

Cons
  • Urgent alarms only activate on the device used by Find My as your location, which can surprise multi-device users.
  • Requires iCloud Reminders for Urgent, so some account setups may not qualify.
  • Still time-based. It’s not a full automation engine.

Feature Access

Who gets it: Users with iOS 26.2 and iCloud Reminders set up for urgent reminders.

Platforms: iPhone (iOS), plus Reminders across Apple devices signed into the same Apple Account.

Special behavior: Urgent alarms only activate on the device Find My uses as your location.

Score

Criterion  |  Score (0–10)  |  Justification

Value 9
Urgent turns Reminders into a true time-critical tool without needing separate alarm apps.

Usability 8
Simple toggle, but the Find My “shared location device” requirement can confuse power users.

Wow Factor 6
It’s not flashy, but it fixes a real productivity failure mode.

Total: 23/30 👍 Good
A meaningful reliability upgrade for Reminders, especially if you run your day inside Focus modes.

Key Takeaways

If a task is truly time-sensitive, marking it Urgent in iOS 26.2 upgrades it from “notification” to “alarm.” 

Pair that with good Date & Time habits and you get fewer misses without drowning in alerts.

Cool Tip Snapshot
  • Feature Name: Urgent Reminders (Alarm scheduling)
  • Platform(s): iOS (Reminders app)
  • Quick Benefit: Alarms trigger even when silenced or Focus is on
  • Access Type (Free, Subscription, Beta): Free with iOS 26.2; requires iCloud Reminders for Urgent

Try It Yourself

Pick one reminder you keep missing, set Date & Time, then mark it Urgent. 

If it saves you once this week, it’s earned a permanent spot in your workflow. 

Comment with your best “urgent reminder” use case, subscribe to the One Cool Tip newsletter, and share this article with your team, family, and friends.

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Have a great tip or tech question?

Rodger Mansfield, a seasoned technology expert and editor of OneCoolTip.com, transforms complex tech into practical advice for everyday users. His Cool Tips empower readers to stay productive, secure, and one step ahead in the digital world.



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