How to Buy Ringtones on the iPhone

Personalize your phone with your favorite ringtones

What to Know

  • To buy ringtones, open iTunes Store and tap More > Tones.
  • To search for ringtones, open iTunes Store, tap Search, enter search info, and tap Ringtone.
  • To buy and download, tap the price next to a ringtone, choose how to use it, and tap Done > OK.

This article explains how to buy ringtones for an iPhone. Instructions apply to iPhones with iOS 12 or iOS 11.

Go to the Ringtone Section of iTunes Store App

The iTunes Store sells ringtones just like it sells music. Buy a ringtone there, and you can start using it as soon as it's downloaded.

To buy ringtones from your iPhone:

  1. Open the iTunes Store app on your iPhone.

  2. Tap the More button (located in the lower-right corner).

  3. Tap Tones to go to the Ringtones section.

    Three iOS screens showing More and Tones button in the iTunes Store app

The main screen of the Ringtones section looks similar to the main screen of the Music section. To find ringtones:

  • Swipe through the featured ringtones at the top of the screen.
  • Tap Charts to view the most popular ringtones in various categories.
  • Browse the collections of ringtones.
  • Tap Genres to browse ringtones by genre.
  • Tap a ringtone when you find a ringtone or category you're interested in.

Search for Ringtones

If you prefer to search for ringtones instead of browse, follow these steps:

  1. Open the iTunes Store app.

  2. Tap the Search button.

  3. In the Search text box, enter the music, artist, or show you want for a ringtone.

  4. In the search results screen, tap the Ringtone entry. The screen repopulates with the results for that specific ringtone.

    Finding ringtone options for a specific search term
  5. Tap the album art to the left of any ringtone to hear it.

  6. Tap the ringtone name to display an information screen.

Buy, Download, and Use a New Ringtone

To buy a ringtone:

  1. Tap the price next to the ringtone.

  2. Choose to make this ringtone the phone's default ringtone, to make it the default text tone (the alert that plays for text messages), or assign it to a specific person. If you don't want to do any of these, tap Done to continue buying it.

  3. If prompted for your Apple ID password (or to authorize via Touch ID or Face ID), enter it and tap OK.

  4. When the purchase is complete, the ringtone downloads to the iPhone.

    Three iOS screens showing $1.29 ringtone, Done button, and Ringtone "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up
  5. To find the ringtone, open the Settings app and go to the Sounds & Haptics section.

Get Creative With Ringtones

Adding new ringtones is an easy and fun way to customize your iPhone. Whether you want to change the default tone used for all calls or assign a different ringtone to everyone in your address book, the iPhone makes it easy. Every iPhone comes with dozens of standard ringtones. If you want something more specific such as a catchphrase from your favorite TV show or the chorus of your favorite song, there are apps that create ringtones from songs you own. If you don't want to create a ringtone, go to the iTunes Store and download one, or more.

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