How does Alarmy work? Does it need to stay open, or need Wi-Fi?

Alarmy works like a normal alarm with one difference: to turn it off, you have to complete a mission — take a photo of a specific object, scan a barcode, shake the phone, solve maths problems — instead of just tapping Stop. The idea is that by the time you've done the task, you're awake.

The two questions people actually search, though, are practical ones: does Alarmy need to stay open to go off, and does it need the internet? The answers changed with iOS 26, and most guides haven't caught up.

Quick answer: Alarmy doesn't need Wi-Fi or data — alarms work fully offline. On iOS 26 and later, with Alarmy's Alarm permission allowed, it rings even if the app was closed or force-quit, but only with a default sound and vibration rather than the one you picked. For your chosen sound and the full mission screen, leave Alarmy running in the background and don't swipe it away.

How Alarmy works

1. You set an alarm with a time, sound and repeat days, like any alarm app.
2. You attach a mission — the task you'll have to finish to turn it off. Options include photo, barcode/QR scan, shake, maths, typing and memory; the walking and squat missions, and chaining several missions together, need Premium.
3. The alarm rings until the mission is done.
4. Optional extras like Wake Up Check (Premium) prompt you again a few minutes later to catch you going back to sleep.

What's free and what needs a subscription is broken down in is Alarmy free.

Does Alarmy need to be open to work?

It depends on your iOS version and one permission.

On iOS 26 and later (with Alarmy updated): Alarmy uses Apple's new alarm system, AlarmKit. If you allowed Alarmy's Alarm permission, Alarmy's own help center says your alarm will still go off even if Alarmy isn't running in the background. The catch is in the same article: in that case it plays a default sound with vibration, not the sound you chose.

On older iOS versions, or if you declined the Alarm permission: Alarmy has to be running in the background. Its App Store listing is blunt about this — it's beyond their control for a third-party app to make sound once it's been terminated — and its help center tells you not to force-close the app, especially if you use Silent Mode.

So in practice, on any version:

• Don't swipe Alarmy away in the app switcher before bed. It's the single most common reason it fails or plays the wrong sound.
• On older iOS versions, open Alarmy once after restarting your phone, so it's running in the background again.
• Allow the Alarm permission if Alarmy asks for it on iOS 26 or later. If you declined it, check Alarmy's settings, or reinstall the app to get the prompt back.

Does Alarmy work without Wi-Fi or internet?

Yes. Alarmy says its alarm features work without an internet connection. Offline, you can only pick from the built-in sounds and wallpapers, and extras like the weather and morning quotes won't load — but the alarm and missions themselves don't need a connection.

That also covers airplane mode: it turns off radios, not alarms. The full answer, including the one mission type to be careful with, is in does Alarmy work on Do Not Disturb.

Does Alarmy work on silent and Do Not Disturb?

Usually, with conditions — notifications on, Alarmy allowed in your Focus, the app not force-quit, and the volume up. Each condition and a two-minute test are in does Alarmy work on Do Not Disturb. If it's already failed you, go straight to Alarmy alarm not going off.

Does Alarmy work if my phone is off?

No. Like every alarm on an iPhone, including Apple's own, nothing rings while the phone is switched off or the battery is dead. Charge it overnight.

Does it actually work for heavy sleepers?

For people who wake up but won't get up, missions help — a barcode on the bathroom sink means walking to the bathroom.

For people who switch alarms off without waking at all, they help less than you'd expect. Most missions happen on the phone in your hand, in bed: maths and shaking get done on autopilot surprisingly fast. And a photo or barcode target never changes, so once it's kept by the bed, the mission is one arm's length away.

That's the gap WakeUpBroo is built around. There's no mission and no dismiss button. It stops only when you type a rotating code from wakeupbroo.com/code, which you open on a laptop or another device across the room. The code changes every time, so it can't be photographed in advance. Compare the two in Alarmy vs WakeUpBroo, or see the other options in apps like Alarmy.