Samsung Galaxy: How to Change Notification Sounds Per App

Quick summary: On a Samsung Galaxy phone you can give individual apps (and even specific kinds of notifications inside an app) their own sound. You just have to turn on one hidden setting first.

Step 1: Turn on notification categories

1. Swipe down from the top and tap the gear to open Settings.
2. Go to Notifications > Advanced settings.
3. Turn on Manage notification categories for each app. It’s off by default.

Step 2: Change the sound for an app

1. Go home and press and hold the app you want (I used the Play Store), then tap the i (app info).
2. Tap Notifications, scroll down and tap Notification categories.
3. Tap the category you want to change (apps have several; I picked the account one).
4. Make sure it’s set to Alert, not Silent.
5. Tap Sound and choose the notification sound you want. That’s it.

Example: Messages

In Messages, it’s the same path: app info > Notifications > Notification categories. Pick the category, keep it on Alert, tap Sound and choose one. You can do this for any of your apps.

My picks

• Galaxy S26 Ultra from Samsung
• Mint Mobile: $15 unlimited data, talk and text