iPhone Lock Screen Shortcut: How to use

The iOS Shortcuts app offers countless ways to make automations. One handy option is to create an iPhone Lock Screen Shortcut that can be valuable for a number of use cases. Here’s how it works and what you can do with it.

All iPhone users can lock their iPhone screen with a custom automation, a Home Screen button, or with Siri (although the latter is available without the Shortcut but is not customizable).

After the iPhone Lock Screen Shortcut is run, the screen will remain lit for a few moments before going black or dimming to the always-on display on the iPhone 14 and 15 Pro/Max.

There are a variety of use cases that make this Shortcut convenient. It improves accessibility and is handy for people who like to leave the auto-lock timer to never (or several minutes) and want the flexibility to create different ways to lock their iPhone without having to press the side button.

How to set up an iPhone Lock Screen Shortcut

1. Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone (Lock Screen Shortcut available in iOS 16.4 and later)
2. Tap the + in the top right corner to add a new Shortcut
3. Tap Add Action > use the search bar to pull up Lock Screen
4. You can tap Done to add the basic Shortcut or customize it with conditions like a trigger or more actions
   • When editing the Shortcut you can tap the small dropdown arrow at the top to add it to your Home Screen
5. Press and hold on the Lock Screen Shortcut to rename it – e.g. maybe you want to give it a covert name for the Siri command
6. Check out Apple’s Shortcuts User Guide for more on the topic and the MacStories Shortcuts Archive for an amazing in-depth resource

Here’s how it looks to add the iPhone Lock Screen Shortcut:

You can get creative with the actions or automation options or just create a basic Shortcut for the Lock Screen:

Thanks for checking out our guide on how to create an iPhone Lock Screen Shortcut! Is it something you’re looking forward to using? What use cases are you thinking it will be handy for? Share your thoughts in the comments!

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