Change the settings of your AirPods and AirPods Pro

Learn how to change the name of your AirPods and change what happens when you double tap your AirPods (1st and 2nd generation) or press and hold on AirPods Pro (1st and 2nd generation).

Name your AirPods

  1. Open your charging case.
  2. With your AirPods in your ears and connected to your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Bluetooth. Alternatively, you can go to Settings > [your AirPods].
  3. Tap the More Info button  next to your AirPods. 
  4. Tap the current name.
  5. Enter a new name for your AirPods.
  6. Tap Done.

Change the press-and-hold action on AirPods Pro

AirPods Pro have three noise control modes: Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency mode, and Off. AirPods Pro (2nd generation) also offer Adaptive Audio, which controls noise based on your environment. You can switch between noise control modes in Control Center or Settings.

By default, when you press and hold the force sensor on the stem of your left or right AirPod, your AirPods Pro switch between Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency mode. You can change which noise control modes the press-and-hold action uses:

  1. With your AirPods in your ears and connected to your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Bluetooth. Alternatively, you can go to Settings > [your AirPods].
  2. Tap the More Info button  next to your AirPods in the list of devices.
  3. Under Press and Hold AirPods, tap Left or Right, then make sure that Noise Control is selected.
    AirPods settings on iPhone
  4. Select the two or three noise control modes that you want to use with press and hold. If both AirPods are set to change noise control modes, a change to the press-and-hold action settings on one AirPod applies to both.

You can also set the press-and-hold action to allow you to use Siri. In the AirPods Pro settings screen, tap Left or Right, then select Siri. You can have one AirPod set for Siri and the other set to change noise control modes.

Change the double-tap action on AirPods (1st and 2nd generation)

You can choose what you want to happen when you double-tap one of your AirPods (1st and 2nd generation):

  1. Open your charging case.
  2. With your AirPods in your ears and connected to your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Bluetooth. Alternatively, you can go to Settings > [your AirPods].
  3. Tap the More Info button  next to your AirPods.
  4. Select the left or right AirPod to choose which AirPod you'd like to double-tap for Siri, playing or pausing audio content, or skipping between tracks.

Turn Automatic Ear Detection on or off

By default, AirPods sense when they're in your ear and receive the audio from your device. AirPods also pause and resume playback when you remove one of your AirPods, or stop playback—and won't resume—when you remove both. When you have Automatic Ear Detection on and you're not wearing your AirPods, audio plays through your device's speakers.

When you turn off Automatic Ear Detection, these features are off and all audio plays to your AirPods whether or not you're wearing them.

Set Microphone to left, right, or automatic

There's a microphone in each AirPod, so you can make phone calls and use Siri. By default, Microphone is set to Automatic, so that either of your AirPods can act as the microphone. If you're using only one AirPod, that AirPod will be the microphone.

You can also set Microphone to Always Left or Always Right. You can also set Microphone to Always Left or Always Right to always have either the right or the left AirPod use the microphone even if you remove it from your ear or put it in the case.

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