Why There's an Orange Dot on Your iPhone

In this article, you’ll learn what the orange dot at the top of your iPhone means, why it activates, and how to customize it. This feature came with the update to iOS 14.

What Does the Orange Dot on iPhone Mean?

The orange dot at the top of your iPhone’s screen activates whenever an app on your phone uses the device’s microphone. The orange indicator light is one of a few new privacy features Apple introduced with iOS 14.

The iPhone’s orange dot will appear whenever you use apps like Voice Memo or third-party applications that require your microphone to be activated. You will also see the orange indicator whenever making phone calls or even using voice-to-text to dictate text messages to your friends and family.

You may also see a green dot appearing on your iPhone in the same place the orange dot appears. This colored dot lets you know an app is accessing your camera and will appear when using your phone’s camera app, Facetime, and other apps that record video.

Can You Disable the Orange Dot on the iPhone?

Because the orange dot and its green counterpart are part of Apple’s push to prioritize user privacy, you cannot disable the feature. However, those who have difficulty differentiating between colors can change how the orange dot appears on the iPhone’s notification bar by modifying its shape.

Follow the steps outlined below if you need to change how the iPhone’s orange dot appears.

1. Tap the Settings icon on your home screen and scroll down until you see Accessibility.

2. Tap the Accessibility options by tapping on the word in the Settings list.

3. Now, tap Display & Text Size.

4. Look for the Differentiate Without Color setting and press the slider to the right of it.

Turning this setting on will make the orange dot appear as an orange square. The green dot will remain the same shape and color.

How to Tell What Apps Are Using Your Phone’s Microphone

The main reason the orange dot exists on your iPhone is to let you know when an app uses your microphone, but how do you see which apps are using it?

Whenever you see the orange indicator appear at the top of your screen, you can swipe down from the top to reveal which apps are using your microphone. For example, swiping down when using the phone app will include an orange circle with a microphone in the middle at the top with the app’s name to the right.