iPad User Guide

Make a recording in Voice Memos on iPad

You can use iPad as a portable recording device to record personal notes, classroom lectures, musical ideas, and more. You can fine-tune your recordings with editing tools like trim, replace, and resume.

Record voice memos using the built-in microphone, a supported headset, or an external microphone.

When Voice Memos is turned on in iCloud settings or iCloud preferences, your recordings appear and update automatically on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac where you’re signed in to the same Apple Account.

Make a basic recording

  1. Go to the Voice Memos app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Tap 👁 the Record button
    to begin recording.

    To adjust the recording level, move the microphone closer to or farther from what you’re recording.

  3. Tap Done to finish recording.

Your recording is saved with the name New Recording or the name of your location, if Location Services is turned on in Settings 👁 Image
 > Privacy & Security. To change the name, tap the recording, then tap the name and type a new one.

To fine-tune your recording, see Edit a recording.

Note: For your privacy, when you use Voice Memos to make recordings, an orange dot appears at the top of your screen to indicate your microphone is in use.

Filter out background sounds

You can include or exclude background sounds in your Mono and Stereo recordings.

  1. Go to the Voice Memos app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Open Control Center.

  3. Tap Voice Memos at the top of Control Center.

  4. To filter out background sounds and record only your voice, select Voice Isolation.

Record stereo or mono

The recording mode you select determines how the recording sounds when it’s played.

  1. Go to the Settings app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Tap Apps, then tap Voice Memos.

  3. Tap Recording Mode, then choose one of the following:

    • Mono: Audio playback is the same in both ears.

    • Stereo: Separates audio playback between the left and right ears.

    When Stereo is selected, Voice Memos records using multiple microphones on your iPad and with right and left audio channels. If you listen to a Stereo recording through headphones, you hear different sounds from different microphones; however, the waveform display still looks the same.

Use the advanced recording features

You can make a recording in parts, pausing and resuming as you record.

  1. Go to the Voice Memos app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Tap 👁 the Record button
    to begin a recording.

    To adjust the recording level, move the microphone closer to or farther away from what you’re recording.

    To see more details while you’re recording, swipe up from the top of the waveform.

  3. Tap 👁 the Pause button
    to stop recording; tap Resume to continue.

  4. To review your recording, tap 👁 the Play button
    .

    To change where playback begins, drag the playhead right or left across the small waveform at the bottom of the screen before you tap 👁 the Play button
    .

  5. To save the recording, tap Done.

Your recording is saved with the name New Recording or the name of your location, if Location Services is turned on in Settings 👁 Image
 > Privacy & Security. To change the name, tap the recording, then tap the name and type a new one.

To fine-tune your recording, see Edit or delete a recording.

Mute the start and stop tones

You can mute the start and stop tones by turning on Silent mode.

Open Control Center, then tap 👁 the Silent Mode Off button
to turn on Silent mode.

Use another app while recording

While you’re recording, you can use another app, as long as it doesn’t play audio on your iPad.

  1. Go to the Voice Memos app 👁 Image
    on your iPad.

  2. Tap 👁 the Record button
    to begin recording.

  3. While recording, you can go to the Home Screen and open another app.

    If the other app starts playing audio, Voice Memos stops recording.

  4. To return to Voice Memos, tap the orange icon at the top of the screen.

If Voice Memos is turned on in iCloud settings or preferences, your recording is saved in iCloud and appears automatically on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac where you’re signed in to the same Apple Account.

Recordings using the built-in microphone are in Mono, unless you turn on Stereo Recording in Settings. You can also use an external stereo microphone or audio interface that works with iPad to record in Stereo. Look for accessories marked with the Apple “Made for iPad” or “Works with iPad” logo.

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