iOS 15 Notification Summary Scheduling Options

Apple introduced the Scheduled Summary feature in iOS 15 to help users minimize interruptions by bundling non-urgent alerts into concise digests. This article outlines the specific options added to customize notification summary scheduling intervals, detailing how users can set custom delivery times, manage daily frequency, and adjust app-level behaviors.

Flexible Delivery Times

Prior to iOS 15, notifications were delivered strictly in real time unless an entire device was placed into Do Not Disturb. With the introduction of Scheduled Summary, users can set precise times for notification delivery. Rather than relying on rigid presets, the system allows exact times to be chosen down to the minute (such as 8:00 AM for a morning review or 6:00 PM for an evening wrap-up).

Multiple Daily Summaries

iOS 15 allows users to establish multiple summary intervals throughout the day. Key aspects of this interval customization include:

  • Up to 12 Summaries: Users can create up to 12 distinct scheduled summaries across a 24-hour period.
  • Add or Remove Slots: Summaries can be added with an "Add Summary" button or removed individually, enabling single-summary, twice-daily, or multi-interval schedules.
  • Variable Spacing: Intervals do not have to be spaced evenly; an individual can schedule summaries close together during breaks or hours apart during deep work sessions.

App Selection and Prioritization

Along with time-based scheduling, iOS 15 introduced controls over which apps populate the intervals:

  • Selective App Inclusion: Users can toggle individual apps on or off to determine whether their notifications are held for the next scheduled summary or delivered immediately.
  • Average Daily Notification Count: Settings display the average number of notifications an app sends per day, helping users decide which apps to assign to a scheduled interval.
  • On-Device Prioritization: When a summary arrives, machine learning organizes the batch by relevance and user activity, placing the most important alerts at the top.

Time-Sensitive Bypasses

To prevent missed critical alerts during long intervals between summaries, iOS 15 introduced a "Time-Sensitive Notifications" toggle. Apps granted this permission can bypass the scheduled summary interval entirely, delivering urgent alerts (such as ride-share updates, security alerts, or calendar reminders) immediately while holding standard notifications for the designated summary time.

How to Access Scheduling Controls

To configure these interval settings on iOS 15:

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap Notifications.
  3. Select Scheduled Summary.
  4. Toggle the feature on to reveal and edit the Schedule section, add new summary slots, or modify delivery times.