iPhone motion sickness setting: how to turn on Vehicle Motion Cues
Yes, your iPhone has one, on iOS 18 or later. It is called Vehicle Motion Cues, and it draws small animated dots at the edges of the screen that move with the car. Open Settings, tap Accessibility, tap Motion, tap Vehicle Motion Cues, then choose Automatic so the dots appear on their own once the iPhone senses you are riding in a vehicle. It is free, it is not a download, and it takes about four taps.
Two things the menu will not tell you. On Automatic the dots stay hidden until the phone detects on-road vehicle motion, which is why people report the setting doing nothing. And the dots only work while you are looking at the screen, so they do nothing once you put the phone down or close your eyes.
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Key facts
- Vehicle Motion Cues is Apple's built-in motion sickness feature, added in iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, at Settings > Accessibility > Motion > Vehicle Motion Cues.
- It has three states: On, Automatic and Off. On Automatic the animated dots appear only when the device detects a car or other on-road vehicle, and hide when the motion stops.
- Every iPhone that runs iOS 18 or later has it, which means iPhone XS, iPhone XR, iPhone SE (2nd generation) and every model since.
- Apple says not to use Vehicle Motion Cues while operating a moving vehicle. It is built for passengers.
- The dots only help while you are looking at the screen, and they are prevention rather than rescue: they do little once nausea has started.
Turn it on, four taps
- Open Settings.
- Tap Accessibility.
- Tap Motion.
- Tap Vehicle Motion Cues, then choose Automatic.
The three options do different jobs. Automatic is the one most people want: the dots show up when your iPhone senses that you are riding in a car or another on-road vehicle, and disappear when the motion stops. On keeps them visible until you switch them off, which is the setting to use when you want to see what the feature actually looks like. Off is the default. If your iOS version offers Customize Appearance under the same screen, it changes the dot pattern between a steady one and a livelier one; it does not change what the feature does.
Add the Control Center toggle
Digging through Accessibility before every drive gets old. Put the switch one swipe away instead:
- Open Control Center: swipe down from the top right corner, or up from the bottom edge on an iPhone with a home button.
- Press and hold an empty area, then tap Add a Control.
- Find Vehicle Motion Cues under the accessibility controls and tap it.
- Tap an empty area to finish, and the control stays there.
From then on the dots are one tap away, which also makes the feature easy to test while you are sitting still.
Which iPhones and iPads have it
Apple gates this one on the software, not the chip, so the list is simply every device that can run iOS 18 or later:
- iPhone: iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, iPhone SE (2nd generation) and every model released since, including the whole iPhone 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 lines.
- iPad: any iPad running iPadOS 18 or later, at the same menu path.
- Older iPhones: if your iPhone cannot update to iOS 18, there is no way to add the built-in dots. Check under Settings, General, then Software Update before you give up on the menu.
When the setting is missing, or the dots never appear
Two different problems get reported as the same thing, and they have different fixes.
The menu item is not there
Almost always the iOS version. Vehicle Motion Cues arrived with iOS 18, so on anything earlier the row does not exist: check Settings > General > Software Update. If you are on iOS 18 or later and still cannot see it, check you are in Accessibility > Motion and not in Display & Text Size, which is the menu most people land in by mistake. The Control Center route above is the other way in.
It is on, but nothing shows up
This is usually Automatic doing what it says. It waits for the iPhone to detect a car or other on-road vehicle, so nothing appears while you are parked, and it can stay quiet on transport the sensors read differently. Set it to On for a minute: if the dots appear, the feature works and the setting was simply waiting. If they appear and you still feel sick, the feature is at its limit rather than broken, and the next section is the honest version of what to do.
What the dots cannot do
Vehicle Motion Cues is free, built in and worth switching on, and it has two hard limits that no setting will move. It only helps while you are looking at the screen, so it does nothing once you put the phone down, close your eyes or look out of the window. And it is prevention rather than rescue: it reduces the sensory conflict that builds nausea, but once you already feel sick, dots on a screen rarely bring you back. Apple also asks you not to use it while driving. It is built for passengers.
That leaves a set of situations the feature was never built for: a boat, a plane, a coach with your eyes shut, a headset or a screen that moves on its own, and the ten minutes after nausea has already started.
What helps when the dots are not enough
Dizzout is one option, and it works on the part the setting cannot reach. It is a drug-free app that plays precisely calibrated audio through any headphones, wired or Bluetooth, so it works with your eyes open or closed, in any vehicle, and once symptoms have already started. Most people feel better in about 90 seconds. It is free to download on iPhone, with a subscription for full access.
None of that is iPhone-specific. Our guide to how to stop motion sickness ranks nine methods by how fast each one works once symptoms start, from the seat you pick to the medicine aisle.
The setting and an app, side by side
| Vehicle Motion Cues (iPhone) | Dizzout (iOS and Android) | |
|---|---|---|
| Built into the OS? | Yes, iOS 18 and later | No, a free-to-try app |
| On-screen dots? | Yes | No, sound based |
| Works with your eyes closed? | No | Yes |
| Works after symptoms start? | No, prevention | Designed to |
| Works on a boat or plane? | Built for on-road vehicles | Yes |
| Cost | Free | Free to download, subscription for full access |
Dots on, still queasy?
Try Dizzout free
Dizzout is a free-to-try, drug-free app for iPhone that uses precisely calibrated audio on any headphones. Unlike the on-screen dots, it works with your eyes closed, in any vehicle, and once you already feel sick, usually in about 90 seconds.
Free to try, no card needed. Or go straight to the App Store or Google Play.
Scan to open on your phoneOn a computer? Dizzout installs on your phone. Scan the code, or open dizzout.com/get on your phone and it'll take you straight to the right store.
On an Android phone instead?
The answer flips. Most Android phones have nothing to switch on: Vehicle Motion Cues on Android covers Google's Motion Assist rollout and the brands that went ahead of it, the Samsung page has the Galaxy answer and the ten-second menu check, and the motion sickness dots table puts every brand side by side.
Frequently asked questions
Does the iPhone have a motion sickness setting?+
Yes. It is called Vehicle Motion Cues and Apple added it in iOS 18. It draws small animated dots along the edges of the screen that move with the vehicle, so your eyes get a motion signal that matches what your inner ear feels while you read or scroll. It is free, built in, and lives at Settings, then Accessibility, then Motion, then Vehicle Motion Cues.
How do I turn on Vehicle Motion Cues on my iPhone?+
Open Settings, tap Accessibility, tap Motion, then tap Vehicle Motion Cues and choose Automatic or On. Automatic shows the dots only when the iPhone senses that you are riding in a car or other on-road vehicle, and hides them when the motion stops. On keeps them showing until you turn them off. You can also add a Vehicle Motion Cues control to Control Center for a one-tap switch before a journey.
Which iPhones have Vehicle Motion Cues?+
Every iPhone that can run iOS 18 or later, which means iPhone XS, iPhone XR, iPhone SE (2nd generation) and every model released since. Apple gates this feature on the software rather than the chip, so an older supported iPhone gets it once it is updated. iPads have the same feature on iPadOS 18 and later. If your iPhone cannot update that far, there is no way to add the built-in dots to it.
Why can't I find Vehicle Motion Cues on my iPhone?+
The usual reason is the iOS version: the menu item does not exist before iOS 18, so check Settings, then General, then Software Update first. If you are on iOS 18 or later and the row is still missing, make sure you are in Accessibility, then Motion, rather than in Display and Text Size, which is the menu people usually land in by mistake. Apple has also shipped the control in Control Center, so you can add it there from Control Center's customise mode under Vision Accessibility.
Why is Vehicle Motion Cues not working?+
Most often it is set to Automatic and the iPhone has not decided you are in a moving vehicle. Automatic waits for the sensors to detect a car or other on-road vehicle, so the dots will not appear while you are stationary, and they can be slow to start or absent on transport the phone reads differently. Switch the setting to On to confirm the feature itself works: the dots should appear straight away. If they appear and you still feel sick, the feature is working and reaching its limit, which is a different problem.
Does Vehicle Motion Cues work on iPad?+
Yes, on iPadOS 18 and later, at the same place: Settings, then Accessibility, then Motion, then Vehicle Motion Cues. The behaviour is the same, including the Automatic option that waits until the device senses vehicle motion.
Do the iPhone dots help on a boat or a plane?+
Not reliably. Apple built the feature around on-road vehicle motion, and Automatic waits for that kind of motion before it shows anything. Beyond that, the dots only help while you are looking at the screen, which is rarely what you are doing when you feel sick on a boat or during turbulence. For those, the things that help are a forward view or the horizon, cool air, slow breathing, and a sound-based option that works with your eyes closed.
Is there an Android version of Vehicle Motion Cues?+
Not under that name, and not on most phones. Google's version is called Motion Assist and it began a limited, staged rollout through Play services around August 25, 2026 on Android 17 devices, Pixels first, so most Android phones including most Pixels do not have it. Recent OnePlus, OPPO and vivo flagships ship a motion cues style setting of their own, and Samsung Galaxy has nothing built in as of September 2026.
Related
- Vehicle Motion Cues, explainedWhat the feature actually does, why dots on a screen help at all, and whether it works.
- Which phones have the motion sickness dots?Every brand in one table: the feature name, the software version, and where the toggle lives.
- Which phones have a motion sickness setting?iPhone, Galaxy, Pixel, OnePlus, OPPO and vivo compared, including what the built-ins cannot do.
- Check your phone modelThe dots answer model by model, across 40 phones.
- Vehicle Motion Cues on AndroidThe other side of this page: who has it, who does not, and what to use meanwhile.
- Best motion sickness app for iPhoneThe App Store options compared, for when the built-in setting is not enough.
Apple, iPhone, iPad, iOS, iPadOS and Vehicle Motion Cues are trademarks of Apple; Google, Android, Pixel and Motion Assist are trademarks of Google; Samsung, Galaxy and One UI are trademarks of Samsung. Dizzout is not affiliated with or endorsed by them. Menu paths and supported models were checked against Apple's own guides in September 2026 and change with software updates, so your own Settings app is the final word. This page is informational and is not a substitute for medical advice.