How to record audio on your iPhone

An iPhone has a good microphone and no recording length limit worth worrying about — what decides whether a recording is usable is how it was set up before you pressed the button. This is the short version.

Make your first recording

1. Open Voice Recorder. The home screen shows a card for each mode — swipe to see them all.
2. Leave it on Standard for a normal note, or swipe to Meetings & lectures or Music & raw sound.
3. Tap Start recording, and allow the microphone the first time you're asked.
4. Watch the level meter while you talk. If the bars barely move, move the phone closer to whoever is speaking.
5. Tap the stop button, give the take a name, and save it. It appears at the top of your recordings list.

Where the microphone ends up mattering most

• Put the phone on the table with its bottom edge pointing at the speaker, not under a laptop or a notebook.
• A hard table reflects sound and helps; a soft bag or a coat absorbs it.
• Hands are noisy. Set the phone down rather than holding it for a long take.
• Turn the fan or the air conditioning down if you can — steady background noise is the hardest thing to remove afterwards.

If nothing is being recorded

iOS blocks the microphone until you allow it. Open Settings, tap Apps, tap Voice Recorder, and turn Microphone on. If another app is using the microphone — a call, a video app — close it and try again.