Useful iOS Shortcuts: A Complete Guide to Getting the Most Out of Your iPhone

If you have a iPhone Or if you have an iPad and you're still not getting the most out of the Shortcuts app, you're missing out on a lot of hidden functions and automations that can make your life much easier. From opening your COVID passport or boarding pass in seconds to spraying water from the speaker or recording an emergency with a tap, shortcuts turn your phone into a true Swiss Army knife.

The good news is that you don't need to be a programmer: with the Shortcuts app and a few well-explained examples you can Automate repetitive tasks, save time, battery, and frustration.And you'll also have fun creating your own workflows. In this guide, you'll find the most useful shortcuts for iOS, how to use them, how to create your own, and what to do when they fail—all in a clear and easy-to-understand way, designed for everyday use.

What is an iOS shortcut and how do actions work?

An iOS shortcut is, basically, a small program that chains together several actions so they run automatically on your iPhone, iPad, or even your Mac with macOS. They are managed from the Shortcuts app, which comes pre-installed on iOS and iPadOS and is also available in modern versions of macOS.

With this tool you can create shortcuts to perform tasks quicklyOpen an app with a specific setting, check information, process photos, manage music, automate messages, control connectivity, etc. It's like telling the iPhone: "do this, then this, and then this" with a single tap or a voice command to siri.

The Shortcuts app not only allows you to create your own automations from scratch, but also Run shortcuts already prepared by Apple or other userswhich you can download from the official gallery or from shared links (usually via iCloud).

At the heart of every shortcut are the calls actions, which are the basic building blocks that make it up. Each action does something very specific: open an app, get the location, send a message, convert a file, change a system setting, play a playlist, etc. By logically chaining several actions together, the complete flow is achieved.

An important detail is that many of these actions They need specific permissions (access to contacts, calendar, photos, location, files, etc.). The first time you run a shortcut that accesses that data, iOS will ask for your permission.

How to allow the use of external or unreliable shortcuts

In addition to the official gallery, it is very common to install shortcuts that Other advanced users have created and shared via iCloud.By default, Apple blocks the execution of shortcuts categorized as "untrusted" (i.e., those not from the official gallery), so you have to activate an option in the settings.

To use these third-party shortcuts you need to Go to Settings > Shortcuts and enable the option to allow untrusted shortcuts.iOS may require you to have previously opened and run a gallery shortcut for that switch to become available.

By enabling this feature, you are telling the system that You trust in shortcuts that you yourself importEven so, it's wise to use common sense: only install shortcuts from known sources and, if possible, review the list of actions to see exactly what it does before using it with your sensitive data.

When you run a newly installed shortcut for the first time, the system will display several alerts asking you to access permissions to photos, contacts, location, files, or online servicesIf you deny any permissions that the shortcut needs, it may stop working correctly.

The best useful shortcuts for everyday use on iOS

There are hundreds of shortcuts circulating on the internet, but one group stands out because It solves very common problems or automates repetitive tasks that almost all of us do with the iPhone. We're going to look at an extensive collection, grouping together several of the most popular ones from iOS 15, iOS 16, and iOS 17, many of which are equally valid on iPad.

Shortcuts for productivity, calendar, and personal reminders

A classic among advanced users is the shortcut that It automatically generates a list of birthdays coming up next week.It's usually called "Remember birthdays" and pulls the information from the Contacts app, so you'll need to give it permission to access them.

This flow can be adjusted so that It will only show you a maximum number of birthdays per notification.the order in which they appear or the text of the notice. It is especially useful if you want to organize the purchase of a gift in advance or prepare a greeting without missing the date.

Another very practical shortcut for everyday life is "Days Between", which takes care of Calculate how many days there are between two datesIt may seem trivial, but when you have to coordinate travel schedules, bookings, or projects, having the calculation done instantly saves you a lot of trouble.

If you tend to be right on time for appointments, there are several very interesting automations. For example, "I'm late" takes care of calculate There that you have until a specific address Based on your current location, insert that data into a predefined message and send it to a contact to quickly notify them.

Related to this, the shortcut "Send Travel Time" does something similar when You already have a route open in MapsIt takes the information from that route and allows you to send it by message to the contact you choose, indicating the estimated time of arrival and the remaining time.

Navigation and travel shortcuts for iPhone

If you're someone who's always in your car or spends half the year traveling, there's a set of shortcuts designed to make your iPhone your personal assistant. personal assistant for routes, flights and locations.

One of the best known is "Directions to Next Event" or its equivalent in Spanish. This shortcut Read your next appointment on the calendarIt checks if you have a defined location and, with that information, calculates the route to that place using Maps. All in one tap, without having to manually open the calendar, search for the appointment, copy the address, and paste it into Maps.

For those traveling by car, the combination of shortcuts like "Find Gas" or "Search for nearby gas stations" is very popular, as they take care of Locate the gas stations closest to your locationIdeal when the fuel gauge is already red and you're not up for manually searching the map.

Another gem designed to make getting home hassle-free is the shortcut known as "Take Me Home." When activated, the iPhone automatically starts navigation to your home addressIt shows you the estimated travel time and, in many cases, even plays your favorite music in the background while you drive. However, having the right device is key. Good mobile data connection so that maps and traffic are updated in real time.

For more advanced experiences, there are authentic travel "packs" like "Travelmate" or "On My Way" that combine several functions: saving where you parked your car, Get directions to the next calendar eventSend a map thumbnail with your route to a contact or record refueling via shortcuts like "Refill Tracker" to calculate how much you spend on the road.

If you frequently fly, some specialized shortcuts allow Track your flight status by simply entering the number and dateWhile others help assess alternatives when a cancellation occurs. You can also ask Siri, through commands personalized, that "shows you the boarding pass" and directly opens the Wallet with the next available pass.

Shortcuts for photos, images, and multimedia content

The Shortcuts app shines especially when it comes to process photos without having to install extra applicationsOne of the most basic and useful shortcuts is "Delete Last Photo," which does exactly that: removes the most recent image from your camera roll. It's perfect for undoing screenshots, blurry photos, or pictures you took by mistake.

The best thing is that before executing the deletion, this flow It shows a preview of the photo for you to confirm. which is the correct one, avoiding any surprises. Although it may seem silly, it ends up saving quite a few touches throughout the day.

If you create a lot of compositions for social media, "Combine Images" is a shortcut that replaces several collage apps. It allows you to Choose several photos and decide if you want to combine them into a grid, in vertical or horizontal format.The result is a single image with all of them separated by a thin white line.

Another highly valued workflow is "Convert Image," which focuses on changing the format of photos or graphics stored on your device. With it, you can transform images to HEIF, JPG, PNG, PDFGIF or TIFF, and even compress them In just a couple of steps. The shortcut creates a copy in the new format that you can save, send, or upload wherever you need.

iOS 17 introduced automations designed to enhance the appearance of your portraits. For example, there's a shortcut like "Add Portrait Effect" that allows you to Add portrait effect (blurred background) to any image you already haveEven if the photo was taken with a different phone or without portrait mode. Just select the photo and adjust the intensity of the effect.

If you're one of those people who takes photos in rapid succession, "Photos Deduper" or its variants can help you. Locate duplicate photos and delete them to free up spaceThese shortcuts compare files to detect exact matches; they don't identify similar takes, but they do identify literal copies downloaded multiple times.

Shortcuts for managing documents, certificates, and QR codes

In recent years, a workflow for having COVID certificates or similar documents readily available has become very popular. The idea is to create a shortcut that Open the PDF version of your passport stored in iCloud directly.The process involves uploading the file to Files, sharing it with a public link, and using that link in a "URL" action within Shortcuts, followed by "Open URL".

Once saved, you can ask Siri to "show me my passport" or whatever name you gave it And the document will appear instantly, ready to be shown, without having to search through Files, email, or messaging apps.

There are also automations designed to create and use QR codes more easily. For example, "QR Code Maker" generates a QR code from the text or web address you provideThis is useful for sharing links without having to dictate them. You simply type the content, the shortcut returns the QR code image, and then you can save or send it.

On the other hand, shortcuts like "Share WiFi" take care of Create a QR code with your WiFi network detailsWhen your guests scan it, their devices connect automatically without you having to dictate the password or touch anything on their phones.

In the realm of passwords, there's a very curious workflow called "Password" that acts as a DIY alternative to the iCloud keychain generator. Through a series of actions, Create secure 21-character keys by combining uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols, ready to stick wherever you want and save in your password manager Favourite.

Shortcuts for music, Spotify, Apple Music, and audio

If you're a music lover, you'll appreciate not having to dive into your music apps every time. A common shortcut for Apple Music, often called "Play Playlist," lets you configure multiple favorite playlists within the flow itselfWhen you open it, the three lists you've assigned are displayed, and you just have to tap the one you want to start playing.

In the case of SpotifyiOS 17 has enhanced the "App Shortcuts" that appear in Siri settings. From Settings > Siri & Search > App Shortcuts > Spotify, you can create shortcuts to specific playlistsso that simply saying something like "Hey Siri, open my favorite playlist" is enough to start that selection without touching the screen.

There are even more advanced shortcuts, such as "Search Song Lyrics", which deals with automatically search for the lyrics of the song you choose Adding the word "lyrics" to the search is a quick way to go directly to the lyrics without having to open your browser and type anything.

In the audio realm, more specialized workflows like "Emergency Recording" also stand out. Upon its launch, the iPhone Start a five-minute recording, save it to Dropbox, and send a link via message. to the person you've set up. Very useful if you need to record a sensitive situation and quickly document it.

If you often get bored searching for podcasts or songs, there are even shortcuts that combine music with route automation, like that "Take me Home" one that Start browsing while your favorite music plays in the background.all integrated into the same flow of actions.

iPhone security shortcuts, emergencies, and protection

One of the areas where shortcuts make a difference is the personal safety and protection of the device itselfSeveral streams have become very popular precisely because of this.

The "Emergency Recording" shortcut we mentioned earlier is a clear example: it allows to document a potentially dangerous situation and notify a trusted contact almost invisibly, just by activating the shortcut.

Another very striking feature is the so-called "Anti-Theft Mode." When you activate it, the iPhone It freezes, only showing the Calculator app.Using guided access, the thief was prevented from closing the application or turning off the device. The would-be thief was trapped inside the calculator, unable to easily exit or power down the phone.

Meanwhile, you can configure the mobile phone to stay in that state. Display a message on the screen with information on how to contact you. If someone finds it. Before using this shortcut, you need to have guided access properly configured in accessibility settings.

On a different but also related level to the integrity of the device, "Water Eject" is a well-known shortcut that It emits sounds at specific frequencies and high volume. to expel water and moisture from the speaker. This way you can clean the speaker without using external apps or waiting for it to dry on its own.

There are other interesting utilities like "Morse Code", which converts text you type into light signals using a flashlight and Morse codeIt's not something you'll use every day, but it can come in handy in very specific situations or simply as a technical curiosity.

Battery shortcuts, connectivity, and energy savings

Another area where shortcuts are very useful is in the battery management and connectivityThis avoids having to constantly go into Settings to touch the same switches over and over again.

With iOS 17, the "Super Power Saving Mode" shortcut has become popular; when activated, it can modify multiple settings at onceActivate low power mode, lower brightness, disable background services, stop updates, etc. Additionally, it can be scheduled to activate automatically when the battery level drops below a specific percentage, such as 30%.

Other flows, such as "WiFi and Bluetooth" or "WiFi and Mobile Data," focus on controlling multiple connectivity elements simultaneously. For example, they can Turn off WiFi and Bluetooth permanently with one tap (not just temporarily like the Control Center does) or switch between WiFi and mobile data to save battery.

There's also the idea of ​​a "Siri SpeedLimit" that allows Siri to find out the speed limit of the road you are driving on Based on information from Maps. This way you can keep an eye on the limits without taking your eyes off the road as much.

All these shortcuts can be placed as widgets on the home screen or invoked with voice commands, making it much more convenient to change several settings at once without wasting time navigating through menus.

Shortcuts for WhatsApp, messaging, and ChatGPT

Messaging is not left out of the world of Shortcuts. There are very popular shortcuts for send messages WhatsApp to numbers you don't have in your address booksomething that the official app does not directly allow.

The idea is simple: you create a shortcut that opens the URL "wa.me" followed by the number you want to text. The flow is configured so that the iPhone It will ask you for the number every time you run it.It automatically adds the international prefix. When you run it, the conversation opens directly in WhatsApp without having to create a new contact.

If this is too complicated, there are handy shortcuts like "Open in WhatsApp" that perform the exact same function: you run them, they ask for your number, and they open the chat in the app. Add to that others like "Send message with WhatsApp," which automatically sends a predefined text (for example, a "Good morning" or a notification that you have arrived) to the contact list you have set up.

With the advent of language models, a shortcut called "S-GPT" and its variants has gained traction, connecting with ChatGPT for you can ask it questions directly as if it were just another function of the systemBasically, you open the shortcut, type or dictate your question, and receive the answer without opening a specific app.

These types of integrations make the iPhone almost a conversational assistant integrated within the Shortcuts flowsallowing things like translating texts, writing responses, or generating summaries semi-automatically.

Interesting shortcuts and extra utilities for iOS

Beyond "serious" uses, there are shortcuts that add convenience and even a touch of geekiness to daily iPhone use. One highly requested shortcut is "Di Patata," designed for Take a photo instantly without opening the Camera appYou can configure it to use the front or rear camera and save the photo to a specific album.

This shortcut works especially well with Siri: just say "Hey Siri, shortcut Say Potato" and the phone will have it open. Take the photo automatically, perfect when your hands are busy Or you want to capture a quick moment.

If you're someone who constantly changes their wallpaper, "WallCreator" (or similar "Wallcreator" versions) will take care of it. generate custom wallpapersThe shortcut can work with random colors or let you choose your own palette, and it adapts the background size to the exact iPhone model you have.

There are also flows like "Video to GIF", which deal with Convert video clips into short GIFsThis is ideal for sharing specific moments without sending the entire clip. Internally, it does many things: it locates the video, allows you to trim the section you want, and exports it as a lightweight GIF.

Following the line of downloads and content, shortcuts like "Pritam Download", "Social Media Downloader" or "Save Video From Safari" specialize in Download videos from YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or other websitesInstead of going page by page copying links, the shortcut unifies everything and detects the video to save it in Files or Photos.

Another great little classic is "What Is My IP?", which does something as silly as it is valuable: obtain your public IP address and copy it directly to clipboardThis way you don't have to go to specific websites or manually copy the address; you simply paste it where needed.

Finally, there are shortcuts designed for comfortable reading, such as "Safari Auto Scroll," which take care of Automatically scroll the content of a web page in Safari So you can read without moving your finger. They allow you to adjust the scrolling speed to suit your pace.

How to create your own custom shortcut in iOS

Once you grasp the logic behind the actions, create your own shortcuts It goes from seeming like witchcraft to being quite accessible. The first thing to do is open the Shortcuts app and, in the "My Shortcuts" tab, Tap the "+" button to start from scratch.

Once inside the editor, you need to click on "Add action." You'll see a search bar and several categories. This is where You begin selecting the actions that will make up your flow: open an app, request a text, get the location, process a file, etc.

Each time you add an action, Shortcuts will show you its configurable parameters: which app to use, what text to enter, which file to play, which number to dial… You can Add as many actions as you need and rearrange them by dragging until the flow makes sense.

Once you've set it up, tap the shortcut settings button (the three-dot icon) to name it, add an icon, and decide how you want to run it: from Siri, as a widget, from the share menu, or even automatically based on a time, location, or change in device status.

Finally, press "OK" to save. From that moment on, you can invoke it by the name you gave it or by clicking on its entry in "My Shortcuts." If later you find that something isn't working as it should, you can go back into the actions list and adjust the steps or add new conditions.

What to do if shortcuts aren't working on your iPhone

Not everything was going to be perfect: there are times when a shortcut stops working or It's not behaving as you expected.Most of the time the problem lies in permissions, settings, or the shortcut has become outdated with respect to iOS changes.

One of the typical problems is that the shortcut works fine within the Shortcuts app but does not appear or does not work in the Share menu of other appsTo resolve this, go to Shortcuts, tap the three-dot icon of the flow in question, go to its settings (top right icon) and activate the "Show when sharing" option.

Another common problem is that the shortcut needs a permission you haven't granted. To check this, go to Settings > Shortcuts and in the "Advanced" section Make sure to enable the necessary accessYou should also check in Settings > Privacy the location, photo, contact, and similar permissions used by the shortcut.

If you suspect that the flow has broken internally or is no longer compatible with your iOS version, a good strategy is Delete it and download it again from its original linkOften, developers update their shortcuts to adapt them to new versions of the system.

If it still fails, open the shortcut and carefully review the list of actions. See if the order still makes sense. There are steps marked with errors or actions that now raise a warningBy adjusting those points, it is usually possible to revive it without having to do without it.

Your iPhone goes from being a simple mobile phone to becoming a personal automation center capable of saving you time, money, and more than one headacheAnd the best part is that you can start by using pre-made shortcuts and gradually customize them to your liking until your experience fits perfectly with your daily routine.