You most likely touch the buttons on the side of your iPhone if you want to adjust the volume while listening to music or a podcast without unlocking it. You may be forced to choose between a level that is a little too loud or a little too quiet by those buttons, which may change your volume by a predetermined amount. Keeping your iPhone updated with the most recent iOS versions allows you to manage the volume more precisely without unlocking your device by bringing the volume bar back to the Lock Screen.

When Apple introduced iOS 16 in 2022, the volume bar was taken off of your lock screen. However, the company’s December release of iOS 18.2 made it possible to restore the volume bar on the Lock Screen of your iPhone. You may bring the volume bar back to your lock screen if you choose to use it.

Here are some simple techniques to get the volume bar back to your lock screen.

How to access your iPhone’s volume bar

1. Go to Settings.
2. Select “Accessibility.”
3. Under Hearing, choose Audio & Visual.
4. Press the Always Show Volume Control toggle.

You can now use the slider on your lock screen to adjust the volume the next time you’re listening to music or a podcast at the gym or on the bus.

See our iOS 18 cheat sheet and what you need to know about iOS 18.6 and iOS 18.5 for additional information about iOS 18. You may also read my first thoughts on the iOS upgrade and what you should know about iOS 26.