How to mute calls using your AirPods — use iOS 17’s biggest secret feature in 3 easy steps

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iOS 17 finally gives us a long overdue AirPods feature

AirPods Pro 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2
(Image credit: Alex Bracetti/Future)

Apple didn’t even talk about one of iOS 17’s biggest features, and it's one that’s going to be a lifesaver for the phone call lovers out there — the option to mute/unmute calls using your AirPods.

You see, while the highly reported features do expand the iOS experience (like the annoyingly good StandBy Mode), this one is a small but significant convenience, and it’ll dodge the anxiety of putting the phone down on people without saying a word when someone comes up to talk to you.

So, rather than me blathering on about how this is going to avoid so many arguments, let’s just get into showing you how to activate it. For context, I did this using my AirPods Pro 2, but this should work across the board (provided you’ve performed the firmware update).

How to mute/unmute calls with AirPods

How to Mute/Unmute calls using AirPods

(Image credit: Future)

Step 1: Connect your AirPods by opening the case, open the Settings app, and tap on your AirPods.

How to Mute/Unmute calls using AirPods

(Image credit: Future)

Step 2: Under Call Controls, tap Mute & Unmute.

How to Mute/Unmute calls using AirPods

(Image credit: Future)

Step 3: From here, you can choose whether this feature is activated with a single or double press. Personally, I selected Press Once for Mute/Unmute, and Press Twice for ending the call, as to eliminate the risk of just putting the phone down on someone.

And voila! While in a call, you can just do a single or double presson the stem/crown to mute/unmute your calls.

Jason England
Jason England
Content Editor

Jason brought a decade of tech and gaming journalism experience to his role as a writer at Laptop Mag, and he is now the Managing Editor of Computing at Tom's Guide. He takes a particular interest in writing articles and creating videos about laptops, headphones and games. He has previously written for Kotaku, Stuff and BBC Science Focus. In his spare time, you'll find Jason looking for good dogs to pet or thinking about eating pizza if he isn't already.