Notification light
Notification Light on Samsung Galaxy: Edge Lighting, AOD and a Ring
By the llcloud team 5 min read
Quick answer
Samsung Galaxy phones have no notification LED, but One UI has a built-in Lighting effect (formerly Edge Lighting) under Settings > Notifications > Notification pop-up style, plus Always On Display icons. Both are free, but the lighting plays only while the pop-up shows. For a light that stays on until you read the notification, AuraDisplay draws a ring around the punch hole camera or a glow along the edge, on the lock screen and AOD.
If you came to Samsung from an older Galaxy, you probably miss the little LED that blinked when a message came in. One UI has a few built-in replacements, and a punch hole ring app can fill the gap they leave. Here is how to set up each one on a current Galaxy, and when the free option is enough.
How do I turn on Samsung's built-in notification lighting?
Samsung's Edge Lighting makes the edges of the screen glow when a notification pops up. In One UI 8 Samsung reworked it into a menu called Lighting effect. The path, according to Samsung's own guide:
- Open Settings > Notifications > Notification pop-up style.
- Tap Add lighting effect.
- Pick the effect style you like.
Samsung notes that some lighting effects are limited if you use the Detailed pop-up style, so choose Brief pop-up if an effect looks cut short. You can set the pop-up style per app under Settings > Notifications > App notifications.
On One UI 7 and earlier the same menu was labelled Edge lighting style, still inside Notification pop-up style. On much older Galaxy phones it lived under Settings > Display > Edge screen > Edge lighting, with an option to show it while the screen was off. The wording differs by version and region, so if your menus do not match, type "lighting" into the Settings search bar.
It is free, built in and needs no permissions. The limit is that it plays for a set duration when the notification arrives and then stops. If you were not looking at the phone at that moment, nothing remains to tell you.
Can Always On Display show my notifications?
Yes. AOD shows small icons of apps with waiting notifications under the clock. You turn it on under Settings > Lock screen and AOD > Always On Display on recent One UI versions, or Settings > Lock screen on older ones. Inside, the display mode controls when it shows: tap to show, always, on a schedule, or only for new notifications. The options differ by version, so check which ones your phone offers.
The icons are small and grey on many themes, which makes them hard to read from more than an arm's length away. They are the right tool for a quick look, and the wrong one for seeing from across the room that your partner wrote. Our guide to seeing notifications on Always On Display goes into what AOD can and cannot do, including the refresh rate and burn-in.
How do I get a light around the Samsung punch hole camera?
Almost every recent Galaxy S and A series phone has a round punch hole camera at the top of the screen. AuraDisplay turns it into a notification LED by drawing a glowing ring around it in each app's color. Phones without a cutout, or anyone who prefers it, can use edge mode, which runs a glow along the screen border.
- Install AuraDisplay and grant notification access.
- Turn on its accessibility service when asked. Samsung shows a warning screen for every accessibility app. AuraDisplay uses it only to draw over the lock screen and AOD, and reads app names and icon colors, never message content.
- Check the test ring lines up with your camera and nudge it if needed.
- Pick the apps you want. Each one takes its icon's color, so WhatsApp is green and Gmail is red.
- Make sure Always On Display is on if you want the light with the screen off.
The ring stays lit until you open or clear the notification, on the lock screen and on AOD. On AOD it holds a steady glow, because the panel refreshes about once a second, and animations play again when you wake the phone.
What about Flash notification on Samsung?
Galaxy phones also have a Flash notification setting that blinks the camera flash or tints the screen when a notification arrives. On most One UI versions it sits under Settings > Accessibility > Advanced settings > Flash notification, though the wording differs by version, so search Settings for "flash" if you cannot find it. It is useful when the phone is face down or you need a strong visual alert. Like Lighting effect, it flashes and then stops, and the camera flash can be harsh in a dark room.
Which Samsung option is right for me?
| Feature | Lighting effect (Edge Lighting) | AOD notification icons | AuraDisplay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free, built in | Free, built in | Free, Pro is a one-time purchase |
| Stays until read | No, plays for a set time | Yes, as small icons | Yes |
| Easy to see from a distance | Yes, while it plays | No | Yes |
| Color per app | Depends on version | No | Yes, from the app icon |
| Ring around the punch hole | No | No | Yes |
| Needs extra permissions | No | No | Notification access and accessibility |
Many people use both: Lighting effect for the moment a notification arrives, and AuraDisplay's ring for the minutes after. For a closer look at the differences, read AuraDisplay vs Samsung Edge Lighting. If you are weighing other third-party apps, we also compared AuraDisplay with aodNotify, which has a Samsung-specific version.
Why does my Samsung keep turning the light off?
Samsung is one of the more aggressive phone makers about closing background apps. Its "Put unused apps to sleep" feature and the sleeping apps lists can stop an app without telling you. When a notification light app is force-stopped, Android also switches off its accessibility service, and only you can turn it back on.
- Open the app's App info > Battery and choose Unrestricted.
- In Settings > Battery (or Device care > Battery on older versions), open Background usage limits and make sure the app is not on Sleeping apps or Deep sleeping apps. Add it to Never sleeping apps.
- In AuraDisplay, turn on Keep AuraDisplay Running.
Even with all of this, Device Care can still force-stop apps on some phones. AuraDisplay watches for that and sends a notification so you can switch the service back on in one tap. Our full guide to stop Samsung killing apps has the details for each One UI version, and why Android kills background apps explains the bigger picture.
Sources
Questions
Do Samsung phones have a notification LED?
Not anymore. Samsung dropped the small notification LED from its Galaxy S and Note lines around 2019, when the front of the phone became almost all screen. The replacements are Edge Lighting, now called Lighting effect in One UI 8, and the Always On Display, which shows small icons for waiting notifications. A punch hole ring from an app like AuraDisplay is the closest thing to the old LED.
Where is Edge Lighting in One UI 8?
In One UI 8 Samsung reworked Edge Lighting into Lighting effect. Open Settings, then Notifications, then Notification pop-up style, and choose Add lighting effect. Samsung notes that some effects are limited if you use the Detailed pop-up style. On older One UI versions the setting sat under the same Notification pop-up style menu as Edge lighting style, or under Display > Edge screen on much older phones.
Can Samsung Edge Lighting stay on until I read the notification?
No. Edge Lighting and Lighting effect play when a notification pops up and stop after a set duration. They are an alert, not a reminder. If you want the glow to stay until you open or clear the notification, the way the old LED did, you need an app that draws a persistent light on the lock screen and Always On Display, such as AuraDisplay.
Does AuraDisplay work on the Galaxy S25 and A series?
AuraDisplay works on any Galaxy running Android 8.0 or newer. Ring mode wraps the punch hole camera on models that have one, which is almost every recent S and A series phone, and edge mode works on every Galaxy. To see the light with the screen off you need Always On Display turned on, which needs an AMOLED screen.
Why does my notification light stop on Samsung?
Samsung's battery management puts apps to sleep, and a force-stop switches off the app's accessibility service, which is what draws the light. Set the app's battery use to Unrestricted, keep it off the sleeping apps list, and turn on Keep AuraDisplay Running in the app. If the service is switched off anyway, AuraDisplay sends a notification so you can turn it back on.
