With iOS 26, Apple is adding a new AlarmKit framework for developers that offer apps with alarm clocks and timers. AlarmKit provides system-level access to alarm functionality, which was previously reserved only for Apple’s Clock app.
Developers will now be able to create apps that have the same feature set and permissions as Apple’s built-in alarm functionality, including alerts that always activate even if Silent mode or a Focus mode is enabled, full-screen snooze and stop display options, and access to the Lock Screen, Dynamic Island, and Apple Watch.
In iOS 18 and before, developers used time sensitive alerts for alarms, and critical alerts when given the entitlement from Apple, but there was no option for an alert that can’t be missed like the alerts that comes from the Clock app. There was also no Lock Screen overlay, and there were limits on the number of alarms that could be set.
Alarms from third-party apps could fail to trigger if the iPhone restarted or if the app updated, which was problematic, and alerts could be silenced with Focuses.
The new framework will support unlimited alarms and repeating options, so there won’t be the same limitations there were before, and alarm alerts won’t be simple notifications. In the coming months, we should see much more full-featured alarm apps and apps with timers that are able to better compete with Apple’s built-in options.
Apple’s own alarm feature in the Clock app has a new look in iOS 26, with a larger time display and larger stop and snooze buttons. Apple also now allows users to customize snooze length, choosing a length of time between 1 minute and 15 minutes. Previously, tapping snooze always snoozed an alarm for nine minutes.
This article, “iOS 26 Makes Third-Party Alarm and Timer Apps Better” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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