How to Fix Notifications Not Working
on Samsung Phones [2025] 💥
Are you missing important notifications on your Samsung phone? WhatsApp messages not coming through? Emails disappearing? I'm gonna show you exactly how to fix this problem because I was dealing with the same bullshit.
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I tested all these steps on my Samsung Galaxy A15 but they work on pretty much any Samsung phone. Let's get your notifications working again!
Check Your App Notification Settings First
Alright, first thing you need to do is make sure notifications are actually turned ON for your apps. I know this sounds obvious but you'd be surprised how often this is the problem.
Open your Settings app and scroll down to Notifications. Tap on App notifications and find the app that's not sending you stuff. Let's use WhatsApp as an example. Tap on it and make sure Allow notifications is switched ON.
Pretty straightforward right? But here's where it gets annoying...
The Battery Optimization Problem (This Is The Big One!)
This is where Samsung screws everyone over. They're super aggressive about saving battery and they KILL your notifications in the background. I'm not playing, this is the main reason you're missing notifications.
Here's the fix and pay attention because this one actually matters. Go back to Settings, then tap Battery. Now tap Background usage limits and then Never sleeping apps. See that little plus button at the top? Tap that motherfucker.
Now find your app, could be WhatsApp, Gmail, whatever you need notifications from, and add it to this list. What you're doing is telling Samsung "DO NOT put these apps to sleep EVER." This way they can run in the background and actually send you notifcations like they're supposed to.
Do this for every app where you need reliable notifications. Yeah it'll use a tiny bit more battery but at least you'll GET your notifications! What's the point of saving 2% battery if you miss important messages?
So frustrating...
Make Sure Do Not Disturb Isn't Screwing You
Quick check here. Open Settings and tap the search bar at the top. Type "disturb" and tap Do not disturb when it shows up. Make sure it's turned OFF unless you actually use it.
If you DO use Do Not Disturb check the settings to make sure your important apps can still send notifications through it. Otherwise you're blocking everything and wondering why nothing comes through :(
App Specific Battery Settings (Yes, More Battery Stuff)
Samsung gives you like three different places to control battery optimization because apparently one wasn't enough. These assholes love making things complicated.
Go to Settings, tap Apps, find your app and tap on it. Now tap Battery and make sure Allow background activity is turned ON. Also set Optimize battery usage to OFF for this app.
I'm not going to lie to you, Samsung's obsession with battery optimization is what causes 90% of notification problems. You gotta tell it to back off and let your apps work properly.
Why Does This Even Happen?
Samsung phones are obsessed with battery life. They'll aggressively shut down apps in the background to save power. Great for battery, terrible for actually using your phone like a normal person.
By following these steps you're basically saying "I WANT these apps to work properly stop killing them to save battery." It's ridiculous that we have to do this but here we are...
Do This For All Your Important Apps
You need to do this battery optimization stuff for ALL your important apps. Messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal. Email like Gmail and Outlook. Banking apps. Any app where missing a notification is actually a problem.
Don't worry about battery life. Modern Samsung phones have huge batteries, letting 5 or 10 apps run properly in the background isn't gonna kill your phone. What WILL kill your phone is you smashing it against a wall because you keep missing important notifications!
How about that :)
Still Not Working?
If you followed all these steps and STILL not getting notifactions try restarting your phone. Sometimes Android just needs a fresh start. Also check if the app itself has notification settings because some apps have their own controls inside the app.
Make sure you're not in Airplane mode or have Data Saver turned on. Update the app to the latest version too.
Bottom Line
Samsung notification problems are almost ALWAYS caused by aggressive battery optimization. The fix is telling Samsung to stop being so damn aggressive with the apps you actually care about.
Follow these steps and your notifications should work. No more missing important messages, no more wondering why your phone isn't doing its job.
Trust me on this one...
Works on all Samsung Galaxy phones (A series, S series, Note, Fold, Flip) with recent versions of One UI. Takes about 5 minutes to fix all your important apps. Easy difficulty, just navigating settings menus.
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