How to Generate Alarms for Calendar Entries on the iPhone
November 2, 2025
- Why you need a shortcut for planning alarms more than 24 hours ahead
- How the shortcut works
- How to use the shortcut
Why you need a shortcut for planning alarms more than 24 hours ahead
On iOS, you can’t set alarms more than 24 hours in advance. If you create a calendar event or reminder, there’s also no option to be notified via an alarm when the event starts. So I came up with a solution using a custom iOS shortcut.
How the shortcut works
The shortcut first fetches the first 50 calendar entries from a specific calendar of yours. I created a dedicated calendar for all events that need an alarm. This way, I still have the option to decide whether or not an alarm should go off for each entry.
Next, the shortcut filters the calendar entries to include only those starting in less than 24 hours.
Finally, it creates an alarm for each of those entries, using the calendar entry’s title as the alarm title and setting the alarm time to the event’s start time.
How to use the shortcut
You can add the shortcut to your Shortcuts app by clicking the button:
To make it work, create an automation that runs the shortcut daily at a time that suits you best.
It’s also recommended to create a separate calendar specifically for events that should trigger an alarm. Choose this calendar in the shortcut and you’re ready to go!