If you are like most iPhone users, you likely spend a significant amount of time tapping through menus, opening the same apps every morning, and repeating the same series of swipes to get things done. We love our iPhones for their simplicity, but sometimes, the repetitive tasks can feel a bit tedious. Enter the Shortcuts app.
Buried on your home screen—or perhaps hidden in a folder you haven't opened in months—is an app with a colorful, overlapping squares icon. This is the Shortcuts app, and it is arguably the most powerful, underutilized tool in the Apple ecosystem. It allows you to automate daily tasks, turning complex multi-step processes into a single tap or a voice command to Siri. The best part? You do not need to be a computer programmer or a tech wizard to use it.
Let’s dive into how you can reclaim your time and make your iPhone work harder for you.
What Exactly is a Shortcut?
Think of a Shortcut as a digital recipe. When you cook dinner, you follow a set of steps: chop vegetables, heat the pan, add oil, and cook. In the iOS world, a Shortcut tells your phone to follow a specific recipe of actions. For example, instead of opening your Camera, taking a photo, opening the Photos app, hitting share, and selecting your spouse to send it, a single Shortcut could do all of that instantly.
Shortcuts can be triggered in three main ways:
- A Tap: By placing a widget or icon on your Home Screen.
- A Voice Command: By saying "Hey Siri, [Name of Shortcut]."
- Automation: Things that happen automatically based on time of day, location, or battery level.
Pro Tip: Don't worry about building these from scratch yet. The Shortcuts app comes with a "Gallery" tab at the bottom, which is essentially an App Store for free automations created by Apple and the community.
The "Morning Briefing" Routine
Mornings are often the most chaotic part of the day. You wake up, check the weather, look at your calendar, and maybe skim the news. Switching between three or four different apps while you are still groggy isn't efficient. One of the most popular starter shortcuts is the "Morning Briefing."
With a single tap (or by asking Siri "What's my update?"), you can program your phone to:
- Turn off "Do Not Disturb" mode.
- Read your first calendar appointment out loud.
- Tell you the current weather forecast.
- Start playing your favorite "Wake Up" playlist on Apple Music or Spotify.
To set this up, go to the Gallery tab in the Shortcuts app and search for "Morning." You will find several pre-made options. When you add them, the app will ask you a few simple questions to customize the experience, such as which playlist you want to hear.
Commuting Made Simple: The "ETA" Text
Whether you are driving home from work or heading to meet friends for dinner, sending a text message while driving is dangerous and illegal. However, letting people know when you will arrive is polite and often necessary. The "Share ETA" shortcut is a lifesaver for the daily commuter.
This shortcut looks at your current location and your destination, calculates the traffic using Apple Maps, and sends a pre-written text message to a specific contact. It might say, "I'm on my way! Maps says I'll be there in 14 minutes."
Here is how to set it up easily:
- Open the Shortcuts app and tap the + symbol to create a new one.
- Tap "Add Action" and search for "Get Travel Time."
- Next, search for the "Send Message" action.
- Link the travel time to the message body and select your spouse or roommate as the recipient.
- Name the shortcut "Heading Home."
Now, as you get into your car, you just say, "Siri, Heading Home," and your partner gets an accurate update without you ever touching the screen.
Focus Mode Automations
Apple introduced "Focus Modes" (like Work, Sleep, and Personal) to help us manage notifications. However, remembering to turn them on is a hassle. Shortcuts allows you to automate this based on your physical location or app usage.
Imagine this scenario: You walk into your office building (or your home office), and your phone automatically silences social media notifications, turns the ringer volume down, and opens your To-Do list app. This is entirely possible using the Automation tab within the Shortcuts app.
Did you know? You can trigger automations simply by tapping an NFC tag! You can buy cheap NFC stickers online, stick one to your desk, and set your iPhone to enter "Work Mode" just by tapping the phone against the sticker.
Instant Utilities: Wi-Fi and Photos
Sometimes, the most useful shortcuts are the ones that solve minor social annoyances. Two of the best examples are sharing Wi-Fi and cleaning up photos.
The Wi-Fi QR Code: We have all been there. A friend comes over and asks for the Wi-Fi password. You have to go find the router, squint at the tiny sticker, and read out a string of random numbers and letters. Instead, search the Gallery for "Wi-Fi QR Code." This shortcut converts your network name and password into a QR code that appears on your screen. Your friend just points their camera at your phone, and voila—they are connected instantly.
Photo Grids and GIFs: If you love sharing photos, the built-in editing tools can be a bit slow for combining images. There are excellent shortcuts available in the Gallery like "Make GIF" or "Photo Grid." These allow you to select five or six photos from your camera roll and instantly stitch them into a collage or an animated GIF to text to your group chat, all in seconds.
Battery Saver Automation
While the iPhone has a "Low Power Mode," many users forget to turn it on until their phone is already in the red zone. You can create a "Personal Automation" that acts as a safety net for your battery life.
This is a great first automation to build yourself because it is impossible to mess up:
- Go to the Automation tab and select "Create Personal Automation."
- Scroll down and select Battery Level.
- Move the slider to 30% (or whatever level makes you nervous) and select "Falls Below 30%."
- Tap Next, and search for the action "Set Low Power Mode."
- Ensure it is set to "On."
- Tap Done.
Now, you never have to worry about manually saving battery life. Your phone will automatically hunker down and conserve energy once it hits that threshold, giving you that extra time to find a charger.
Start Small and Experiment
The world of iOS Shortcuts can seem overwhelming if you look at the complex creations some tech enthusiasts build. However, for the everyday user, the goal is not complexity—it is convenience. Start with one or two of the examples above. Add the "Home" shortcut to your home screen or set up the battery automation.
Once you realize how satisfying it is to have your phone handle the boring stuff for you, you will likely find yourself browsing the Gallery for more ways to automate your life. Your iPhone is a powerful computer; it’s time to let it do the heavy lifting.