How to Stop Siri From Reading Messages on AirPods

Stop Siri from reading texts permanently or temporarily

By
Jerri Ledford
Jerri Ledford
Jerri Ledford
Senior News Editor, Fact Checker
  • Western Kentucky University
  • Gulf Coast Community College
Jerri L. Ledford has been writing, editing, and fact-checking tech stories since 1994. Her work has appeared in Computerworld, PC Magazine, Information Today, and many others.
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Updated on June 28, 2021
Reviewed by
Michael Barton Heine Jr
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Reviewed by Michael Barton Heine Jr
Michael Heine is a CompTIA-certified writer, editor, and Network Engineer with 25+ years' experience working in the television, defense, ISP, telecommunications, and education industries.
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What to Know

  • On iPhone: Settings > Control Center > tap - next to Announce Messages with Siri.
  • Swipe up on Apple Watch and tap the Announce Messages with Siri icon to disable.
  • The Announce Messages with Siri feature will read incoming text messages from your iPhone or Apple watch automatically.

This article shows you how to stop Siri from reading texts through your AirPods and other compatible earphones.

How to Turn Off AirPods Reading Messages from your iPhone

There are two ways to turn off your AirPods reading your messages from your iPhone:

  1. You can permanently remove Announcing Messages with Siri from the Control Center using Settings; or
  2. You can turn off or temporarily disable Announce Messages with Siri using the Control Center.

If you never want to use the Announce Messages function, you can remove it from the Control Center. Go to Settings > Control Center and find Announce Messages. Tap the - (minus) next to the Announce Messages.

Screenshots showing how to disable Announce Messages with Siri on the iPhone.

Once you remove it from the Control Center, Siri will not announce any incoming messages. The only way to use Announce Messages with Siri is to re-enable it again using the same steps.

Alternatively, you can temporarily disable the Announce Messages feature using the Control Panel on your iPhone. Swipe down from the screen's upper-right corner to open the control panel and then tap the Announce Messages icon to disable it. It will stay disabled until you turn it back on.

If you prefer, you can also disable it for a specified amount of time. Tap and hold the Announce Messages icon until a menu appears. From there you can choose Mute for 1 hour or Off for the day. If you select either option, it will reactivate the Announce Messages feature after the specified amount of time.

Screenshot showing how to disable the Announce Messages with Siri option on iPhone using the Control Center.

How to Turn Off Message Reading on Airpods Using Your Apple Watch

One convenient feature of AirPods is using them with your Apple Watch, even when your iPhone isn't nearby. Fortunately, you can also disable the Announce Messages with Siri feature from your Apple Watch too, and it works just like using the Control Center on the iPhone.

If you're using compatible headphones other than Apple AirPods, these instructions may not work for turning off Announce Message through your watch. You may have to use the steps listed above using your iPhone.

To access the Control Center on your Apple Watch, swipe up from the bottom. Then, tap the Announce Messages with Siri icon to turn the feature off. Alternatively, you can tap and hold the icon to open a menu that allows you to choose whether you want to disable Announce Messages for 1 hour or the whole day. Whichever option you select, Announce Messages will automatically turn back on when that time is expired.

Screenshots showing how to disable Announce Messages with Siri from the Apple Watch.
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