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This handy new Android feature saves me from notification overload – how to try it
Have you ever been relaxing when, out of nowhere, your phone blows up with notifications?
I’ve been there too many times, leading me to keep my phone on silent mode 24/7. But then Google introduced a new feature in Android 15 called Notification Cooldown that changed everything.
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Notification Cooldown manages how often notifications can be posted by an application over time. This new feature is designed specifically to prevent apps from overwhelming users with too many notifications at once.
What I like about Notification Cooldown is that it helps ensure I don’t miss important notifications because my phone was on silent (which has happened quite a bit).
The new feature arrived with the March 2025 update and does a great job of minimizing the interruptions that often accompany notifications. Once this feature is enabled, it will automatically lower the volume and minimize alerts (for up to 2 minutes) when several notifications arrive in a short amount of time.
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For example, a friend of yours discovers a new diner you must try and starts texting you repeatedly to rave about how good it is. With Notification Cooldown enabled, that barrage of texts will happen silently, so you don’t have to either suffer through the “dings” or put your phone on silent mode.
Even when Notification Cooldown is activated, you can still pull down the Notification Shade and view that deluge of texts.
The caveat to using Notification Cooldown is that it cannot be customized (so far). You can enable or disable the feature, and that’s it. Also, the feature first appeared for Pixel devices but should trickle down to others over time.
Notification Cooldown will also not apply to alarms, emergency alerts, and priority conversations.
How to enable Notification Cooldown
What you need: To use Notification Cooldown, you’ll need an Android Pixel phone running (at least) the March 2025 update. Hopefully, the feature will arrive on other devices soon.
The first thing to do is open the Settings app by either pulling down the Notification Shade twice and tapping the gear icon or opening the App Drawer and tapping the Settings launcher.
From within Settings, locate the Notifications entry and tap it.
Under the General category, you’ll see a listing for Notification Cooldown. Tap that entry.
You can also enable/disable flash notifications, which will flash the phone’s LED when a notification comes in.
Jack Wallen/ZDNET
Tap the On/Off slider until it’s in the On position to enable Notification Cooldown. You might discover that the feature is enabled by default. If so, you’re already enjoying Notification Cooldown, so you can unmute your device.
You might find the feature is enabled by default.
Jack Wallen/ZDNET
It was originally thought that Notification Cooldown wouldn’t arrive until Android 16. I guess this is just another reason why I opt to stick with Pixel phones — because features tend to arrive early.
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And that, my Android-loving friends, is all there is to Notification Cooldown. Enjoy that newfound peace.
