With smartphones, it can feel like we carry the world in our pockets. This can be really convenient when we need information or want to contact someone, but it can also be disruptive to have our day interrupted by constant notifications. Fortunately, all modern smartphones have Do Not Disturb features.

There are several different ways to set up Do Not Disturb on your phone, and the kind of phone you have will affect this feature. You may wonder, though, if you can specifically set certain contacts to DND, and if you do, will they be able to see that you have?

Do Not Disturb: Android vs iPhone

In the world of smart devices, nothing is more polarizing than whether you have an Android device or an IPhone. Fortunately, whatever your tech preferences are, there are DND options for both.

You can turn on Do Not Disturb for everyone, or specific contacts. If you’re receiving calls from an unknown caller, not in your contact list, there are ways to deal with them as well.

Blocking vs DND

To permanently stop receiving calls and texts from a contact, you can block them. They will not get any sort of notification that you’ve blocked them, but if they have read receipts enabled, they may get the hint when none of their messages are marked as delivered. There are many times when blocking is the best option, especially when dealing with creeps.

Of course, sometimes you don’t need to take such a dramatic action. Maybe you just need some peace and quiet while you get some work done. In that case, you can set your phone to Do Not Disturb mode by swiping down on the home screen and selecting that option from the menu. You can also turn it on from the Settings menu. This is the same process on Android and iPhone.

There are a few different ways to set other DND modes on your phone, depending on which kind you use.

Do Not Disturb on iPhone

If you use an IPhone, you can go to your IMessages and choose a contact. Swipe left on the conversation for the contact you’d like to mute and two options will appear. You can select the trashcan to delete notifications, or the bell to silence notifications.

If you choose the bell, you won’t receive notifications from that contact until you swipe left again and deselect the bell icon. You will still receive their messages but will not be notified. They will not be able to tell that you’ve muted their notifications since the messages will be delivered normally.

IPhones also have a Focus Mode feature. If you go into your settings, you can select from different “focuses” such as work, sleep, or personal. You can set up each setting to adjust what level of available you are when you turn on these modes. You can allow or disallow certain contacts to reach you depending on which mode you’re in.

In IMessages, your contacts will be able to see what your focus currently is, which may deter them from reaching out or will explain why you may not be answering.

Do Not Disturb on Android

If you use an Android phone, there are several ways to set up Do Not Disturb mode. You can set general DND, but Android also has settings to allow you to choose specific contacts to include or exclude from DND.

In your settings menu, select “Sound and Vibration,” and go to the ‘Do Not Disturb’ section. You can set up DND schedules to repeat at certain times every week, and you can also select to prioritize contacts that you always allow calls and texts from, even if DND is on. If you only want to silence notifications from one or more specific contacts, you can choose “From Only” in your DND settings and pick specific contacts you don’t wish to hear from.

You can also differentiate between receiving calls and receiving texts from certain people. So, if you don't want to receive calls, but text messages are okay, you can set that up.

When your phone is on DND, calls will go to voicemail, and messages will be delivered, but you won’t be notified. Your contacts will not be able to see that your Do Not Disturb mode is on or that their contact is being specifically targeted if that’s the case.

Keep Work and Play Separate

Do Not Disturb mode is essential to help you keep your work and life balanced and help you stay focused when you need to. Unless you’re using the iPhone focus feature, no one will be able to see that your phone is in DND mode.

If you are receiving calls and texts from unknown numbers, you can also use free people search sites to find out who is getting in touch. Then, you can make an informed decision about whether you’d like to respond or block them.