How to Turn On Visual (Flash) Notifications Instead of Sound in Windows

Tap a step to see how it works.

  1. Open Accessibility > Audio in Settings

    In the Settings app, go to the Accessibility menu, then find Audio under the Hearing section.

  2. Find the flash-my-screen option

    Scroll down and you'll find a dropdown menu that controls whether your screen flashes when an audio notification plays.

  3. Choose the flash scope

    You can choose to flash just the active window's title bar, the entire active window, or the whole screen.

  4. Turn the option off

    If you don't need it, select "Off" in the dropdown and notifications will play as sound only, with no screen flash.

  5. When this feature is useful

    If you have a hearing difficulty or you're working somewhere sound has to stay off, a screen flash lets you catch the exact moment an error or notification sound would have played.

Never miss an alert where sound isn't an option

Working somewhere sound has to stay off β€” a library, a shared office, a meeting room β€” this feature flashes your screen the instant an error or notification sound would normally play, so you don't miss anything important.

Pair it with a quieter overall setup

If you're tuning your PC for quiet environments, it's also worth checking whether background apps can be muted individually in the volume mixer, so only the alerts you actually care about ever make noise β€” or a flash β€” in the first place.

Frequently Asked Questions

The screen flash is too distracting β€” what can I do?

Narrow the flash scope from the whole screen to just the active window's title bar; it's far less distracting while still catching your attention.

Does this setting apply to every sound?

It applies to system sounds and notification chimes Windows itself plays, not to sound you deliberately play yourself, like music or video.