Emergency Calls on iPhone: SOS, Emergency Contacts and Medical ID

An emergency call on iPhone works even when your phone is locked. Tap Emergency on the passcode screen to dial 911, 112 or your local number without unlocking. Or use Emergency SOS: press and hold the side button and either volume button, and your iPhone calls the local emergency number for you. When the call ends, your iPhone texts your emergency contacts with your location. This guide shows each step with short animations, explains how emergency contacts and Medical ID work, and what changes when you're abroad.

What happens when you press Emergency on the iPhone lock screen

Tapping Emergency doesn't call anyone yet. It opens an emergency keypad. Your iPhone stays locked, and the keypad only calls emergency numbers.

1. Swipe up on the Lock Screen (or press the Home button on an iPhone with one) to open the passcode screen.
2. Tap Emergency in the bottom-left corner.
3. Dial the emergency number, for example 911 in the US, then tap the call button (Apple: Use SOS to contact emergency services).
4. If the owner has turned on Medical ID for the Lock Screen, a Medical ID button also shows on this keypad.

Pressed it by accident? Just tap Cancel. Nothing is dialled until you enter a number and tap the call button.

How to make an emergency call with Emergency SOS

Emergency SOS is the fastest way to call for help, without looking at the screen. It works on iPhones with Face ID and with a Home button.

Hold the side button and a volume button

1. Press and hold the side button and either volume button at the same time.
2. The sliders appear. Drag Emergency SOS to call right away.
3. Or keep holding. Your iPhone plays a warning sound and starts a countdown. When it ends, release the buttons and your iPhone calls the local emergency number.

Press the side button five times

You can also start Emergency SOS by quickly pressing the side button five times. Turn this on in Settings > Emergency SOS > Call with 5 Presses. In India, three quick presses of the side button start Emergency SOS.

Check your Emergency SOS settings

Go to Settings > Emergency SOS. There you'll find these switches. Your emergency contacts are managed in the Health app (see below).

• Call with Hold and Release: hold and release the side and volume buttons to start the countdown.
• Call with 5 Presses: rapidly press the side button five times to start the countdown.
• Call After Severe Crash: Crash Detection on iPhone 14 or later (more below).

Seeing "SOS" or "SOS only" in the status bar instead? That's a network issue, not this feature. Here's how to fix SOS only on iPhone.

How do emergency contacts work on iPhone?

Emergency contacts are people you choose in your Medical ID. Emergency SOS doesn't call them. It calls emergency services. Here's what your emergency contacts get:

• A text when your emergency call ends, unless you choose to cancel it.
• Your current location (if available), and updates for a while if your location changes.
• A message after Crash Detection or Fall Detection calls for help, with your location.

Two things to know. The text is sent with the Messages app, so contacts aren't notified automatically if Messages isn't your default texting app or you deleted it. And you can't set emergency services as an emergency contact (Apple: Crash Detection).

How to add an emergency contact on iPhone

1. Open the Health app and tap your profile picture on the Summary tab.
2. Tap Medical ID, then Edit.
3. Under Emergency Contacts, tap the plus button next to Add Emergency Contact.
4. Choose a contact and pick your relationship to them.
5. Turn on Show When Locked and Share During Emergency Call.
6. Tap Done.

To remove someone, tap Edit, tap the delete button next to their name, then tap Delete (Apple: Set up your Medical ID).

How to call someone's emergency contact on a locked iPhone

Found someone who needs help, or a lost iPhone? If the owner set up Medical ID with Show When Locked, you can see their emergency contacts without the passcode:

1. Swipe up (or press the Home button) and tap Emergency.
2. Tap Medical ID.
3. Look under Emergency Contacts for the name, relationship and phone number.

You can often tap the number to call it from there. If that doesn't work, call the number from your own phone. If there's no Medical ID button, the owner hasn't turned it on, and the keypad only calls emergency numbers.

Medical ID: what first responders can see

Medical ID shows details that matter in an emergency: medical conditions, allergies and reactions, medications, blood type and your emergency contacts. Two settings decide who sees it:

• Show When Locked: anyone helping you can open it from the Lock Screen, without your passcode.
• Share During Emergency Call: your iPhone or Apple Watch sends it to emergency services when you call or text them. This isn't available in every country or region.

For sharing to work, keep Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > System Services > Emergency Calls & SOS turned on. Apple says it can't read your Medical ID when it's shared with responders.

Called emergency services by accident?

• If the sliders appear by mistake, let go of the buttons and tap Cancel.
• If the call has started, don't hang up. Apple asks you to wait until a responder answers and explain that you don't need help.
• The text to your emergency contacts goes out after the call ends, unless you cancel it when your iPhone asks.
• Getting a lot of accidental calls? Turn off Call with 5 Presses in Settings > Emergency SOS.

After any emergency call, Do Not Disturb, Silence Unknown Callers and Screen Time limits can pause for a short time, so emergency services can call you back. In the US and some other places, you can also text 911. After you do, your iPhone stays in emergency mode for 30 minutes. Restart it to leave that mode (Apple: Make an emergency call or text).

Crash Detection and Fall Detection

Crash Detection works on iPhone 14 or later and on newer Apple Watch models. It's on by default. If your iPhone detects a severe car crash:

1. It sounds an alarm and shows an alert for 10 seconds. You can call emergency services or dismiss it.
2. If you don't respond, a 30-second countdown starts, with loud sounds.
3. When it ends, your iPhone calls emergency services, plays a recorded message with your location, and texts your emergency contacts.

To turn it off, go to Settings > Emergency SOS and turn off Call After Severe Crash (Apple: Use Crash Detection).

Fall Detection is an Apple Watch feature, not an iPhone one. If your watch detects a hard fall and you don't move for about a minute, it starts a 30-second countdown, calls emergency services and messages your emergency contacts (Apple: Use Fall Detection with Apple Watch).

Emergency SOS via satellite: when there's no signal

With iPhone 14 or later, you can text emergency services by satellite when there's no cellular or Wi-Fi coverage. It's free for two years after you activate your iPhone.

1. First, call the local emergency number. Your iPhone may still connect through another network.
2. If the call fails, tap Emergency Text via Satellite, then Report Emergency.
3. Answer the short questions. You can choose to notify your emergency contacts.
4. Go outside with a clear view of the sky and follow the on-screen steps to point your iPhone at a satellite.

Your iPhone shares your answers, your location (including elevation), your Medical ID and your battery level with the responders. Emergency contacts who don't use iMessage get a text, for example from 767911 in the US and Canada or SOS112 in Europe.

It's available in Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US. Visitors can use it there too, unless their iPhone was bought in a few excluded countries (Apple: Emergency SOS via satellite). Before you go off the grid, try the Satellite Connection Demo: open Control Center, tap the Cellular button, then Satellite.

Emergency calls abroad: 112, 911 and calling without a SIM

Travelling? Your iPhone handles a lot of this for you:

• Emergency SOS calls the local number of the country you're in. You don't need to know it.
• 112 and 911 work on any mobile phone. The mobile standard says phones must always treat both as emergency numbers (3GPP TS 22.101). 112 is the emergency number everywhere in the EU and works on mobile networks worldwide (European Commission: 112). In the UK, 999 and 112 both work (GOV.UK: 999 and 112). In Australia, the number is 000.
• Your own carrier doesn't need coverage. If its network isn't available, your iPhone tries to route the emergency call through other networks.
• No SIM or no service? Don't rely on it. Apple says some networks may not accept an emergency call from an iPhone that isn't activated, has no SIM, or has a PIN-locked SIM. Wi-Fi Calling has its own emergency limits, so check your carrier's details.

Look up the local emergency and non-emergency numbers before you fly. Our guides on handling emergencies abroad and getting sick abroad help you prepare.

Why a working line still matters

The emergency call itself goes through on any network. Most of what comes after needs your own line or data:

• The text to your emergency contacts is sent from your iPhone, so it needs cellular service.
• Emergency services may call you back on your number.
• You'll want to call family, your travel insurer or your hotel, and share your location on maps or WhatsApp.

A simple setup: keep your home line switched on for calls and texts, and add a travel eSIM for data. Both work side by side (see how to set up a dual eSIM). With data, you can also use Wi-Fi calling and apps to reach home.

Heading to Europe, the USA or Canada? A data eSIM keeps maps, messages and app calls working from the moment you land.

Data-only plans · Europe, United States and Canada · Europe eSIMs · Other countries? Find your destination

Need to call local numbers in Europe, like a doctor, a pharmacy or your rental host? Travel Basic+ from Bouygues Telecom comes with a French +33 number, with calls and SMS within Europe. More in our guide to Europe eSIMs with a phone number.

FAQs

What happens when you press Emergency on the iPhone lock screen?

An emergency keypad opens. Your iPhone stays locked and only emergency numbers can be dialled. Nothing is called until you dial a number and tap the call button. If the owner turned on Medical ID, you'll also see a Medical ID button.

Does Emergency SOS call my emergency contacts?

No. It calls emergency services. When the call ends, your iPhone sends your emergency contacts a text with your location, unless you cancel it.

Can you call an emergency contact without unlocking an iPhone?

You can see them. Tap Emergency on the passcode screen, then Medical ID, and the emergency contacts are listed with their numbers. This only works if the owner turned on Show When Locked.

Can an iPhone call 911 without a SIM card?

Sometimes. iPhone tries any available network, but Apple says some networks don't accept emergency calls from a phone without a SIM, or with a PIN-locked SIM. Keep an active line on your phone to be safe.

Does 911 work in Europe?

Mobile phones are built to treat 911 as an emergency number, so it usually connects. But 112 is the official number in the EU. Use Emergency SOS and your iPhone calls the right local number for you.

Can I turn off the Emergency button on the lock screen?

Apple doesn't offer a setting to hide it. You can turn off Show When Locked so your Medical ID doesn't show, and turn off Call with 5 Presses to avoid pocket calls.

What is Emergency Bypass?

It lets calls or texts from one contact ring even when your iPhone is silenced or in a Focus like Do Not Disturb. Open the contact in Contacts, tap Edit, tap Ringtone or Text Tone, and turn on Emergency Bypass. It's separate from your emergency contacts.