Apple's New Ambient Music App in iOS 18.4 Gives You Quick Access to Relaxing Soundscapes

With iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, Apple introduces a new Ambient Music feature designed to enhance user well-being through curated soundscapes. This feature offers four distinct categories — Chill, Productivity, Sleep, and Wellbeing — each providing a tailored auditory experience to suit various moods and activities.

While iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 won’t be released to the general public until April, you can test the new Ambient Music app as a beta user if you’re comfortable running beta software on your devices.

Currently, the Ambient Music app cannot be found on the Home Screen, in the App Library, or via Spotlight Search, and there are no actions for it yet in the Shortcuts app. Instead, you need to add one or more Ambient Music controls to your Control Center to use the app. You can also replace the two shortcuts for Flashlight and Camera on the Lock Screen with Ambient Music controls. And you can even assign an Ambient Music control to your iPhone’s Action button.

Adding Ambient Music controls to your Control Center

To incorporate Ambient Music into your Control Center for quick access, swipe down from the top-right edge on any screen to open Control Center. Next, touch and hold the background to bring up the Control Center editor. Then, tap Add a Control and browse or search for Ambient Music.

Ambient Music gives you four categories to choose from: Chill, Productivity, Sleep, and Wellbeing. Tap one to add it to the Control Center page you were on. If you want it somewhere else, you can drag and drop it from there onto another page.

The controls can be used as 1-by-1 circular icons or larger 2-by-2 icons. To change the size, pull the drag handle on the control to expand or shrink it. When done, tap the background again to save the layout.

Once added, you can access these controls by swiping down from the top-right corner of your screen. This allows you to start ambient soundscapes with a single tap.

In Control Center, you can add new Ambient Music controls for Chill, Productivity, Sleep, and Wellbeing.

While customizing your Control Center, tap an Ambient Music control, then Playlist, to select a different playlist for the control. You can use one of Apple’s suggestions or something from your own Music library.

When editing your Control Center, you can tap an Ambient Music control to choose a different playlist.

Adding Ambient Music controls to your Lock Screen

For even quicker access on an iPhone, you can replace the default Flashlight and Camera controls on your Lock Screen with Ambient Music controls. First, enter Lock Screen editing mode by long-pressing the wallpaper on your Lock Screen or Notification Center. Next, choose the Lock Screen you want, hit Customize under it, and tap on the Lock Screen preview on the left side.

Opening the Lock Screen editor, tapping Customize, and choosing Lock Screen.

Alternatively, you can go to Wallpaper in the Settings app, find the wallpaper set you want, and tap Customize on the Lock Screen preview.

In the Settings app, go to Wallpaper, pick the wallpaper pair, and tap Customize on the Lock Screen preview.

Then, select a control — the Flashlight, Camera, or a custom one you already replaced them with. From the picker, browse or search for Ambient Music, and choose between the Chill, Productivity, Sleep, and Wellbeing categories.

Select Done to save your Lock Screen configuration, then tap the Lock Screen to exit the editor.

Tap the Plus button on the Lock Screen, choose an Ambient Music control from the picker, and save your changes to see the new control on the Lock Screen.

When customizing your Lock Screen, tap the Ambient Music control, then Playlist, to select a different playlist for the Lock Screen shortcut. It could be one of Apple’s suggestions or something from your own Music library.

When customizing your Lock Screen, if you have an Ambient Music control set as a shortcut, tap it to bring up the playlist selector.

This setup lets you initiate your preferred ambient sound directly from the Lock Screen, enhancing convenience and accessibility.

Adding Ambient Music controls to your Action button

If you have an iPhone with an Action button, you can go to Settings » Action Button, then swipe over until you hit the Controls option. Tap Choose a Control, then browse or search for Ambient Music. Next, choose between the Chill, Productivity, Sleep, and Wellbeing categories and exit the settings.

In the Action Button settings, you can choose Control, then choose an Ambient Music playlist.

When you set one, you can tap Configure under it in the Action Button settings to select a different playlist for the shortcut, whether it’s one of Apple’s suggestions or something from your own Music library.

You configure Ambient Music playlists when choosing one as an Action button shortcut.

While controls are not yet supported by Back Tap, you can set an Ambient Music playlist to play whenever you double-tap or triple-tap the back of your iPhone. However, you do need to set the playlist to your Action button. To do it, go to Settings » Accessibility » Touch » Back Tap, choose between Double Tap or Triple Tap, and then assign Action Button to the gesture.

Exploring Ambient Music categories

When you tap an Ambient Music control from your Control Center or Lock Screen or use your iPhone’s Action button shortcut, the Ambient Music app will immediately start playing a track from your selected category. You can control the music and soundscapes from the Now Playing control and Live Activity as well as your Dynamic Island, just like any other audio you would play on your device.

Playing the Sleep Ambient Music control from Control Center and then opening the player in Dynamic Island and Lock Screen.

Each Ambient Music category offers a unique selection of sounds:

Chill: Offers relaxed tunes suitable for unwinding and stress relief.
Productivity: Provides focused, instrumental tracks to aid concentration during work or study sessions.
Sleep: Features calming sounds designed to promote restful sleep.
Wellbeing: Includes uplifting melodies aimed at enhancing overall mood and well-being.

You won’t see the Ambient Sounds app appear in your App Switcher until you tap the player on the Now Playing control, Live Activity, or Dynamic Island. If you open another app, Ambient Music will continue playing, but the app itself will disappear from the App Switcher.

Ambient Music seen in the Now Playing screen, the Ambient Music app, and in the App Switcher.

Integrating these ambient soundscapes into your daily life allows you to create a more personalized and supportive auditory environment tailored to your specific needs and activities.