How to Use Reminders with Siri

The Apple Reminders app is a great way to keep track of all your important tasks and events.

You can create shopping lists, checklists for moving home and even set reminders based on a specific location or time of day. Reminders can sync between the iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, Macs, and HomePods connected to the same iCloud account.

But just like Alarms and Timers, its simplicity can often make it one of the most overlooked Siri-enabled apps.

Entering reminders using your iPhone’s keyboard and assigning locations, dates, and times can be tiresome and fiddly. So using Siri to speak reminders instead brings extra speed and convenience.

In this article, we’ll show you how to:

Add a reminder with Siri.
Create and use lists to organize reminders.
Add multiple reminders with Siri.
Set reminders using time and location.
Attach a flag to a reminder.
Use reminders with Messages, Mail, and Safari.
Ask Siri to read reminders to you.
Change and delete reminders.

How to use Siri with the Reminders app

To begin, activate Siri on your device by using one of these options:

iPhone/iPad

Press and hold the Side/Home button until Siri appears.
By saying “Hey Siri”.

Apple Watch

By saying “Hey Siri”.
By pressing and holding the Digital Crown.
By using Raise to Speak.

Mac

Say “Hey Siri”.
Press the Siri button.
Use a keyboard shortcut.
Use Type to Siri.

How to ask Siri to add a reminder

You can easily add items to your lists using reminder voice commands in natural language:

Hey Siri, add a reminder…

Hey Siri, remind me…

If you don’t say anything else, Siri will ask you to provide further details of the reminder you want to create.

Siri will ask what you want the reminder to say

How to create and use lists in Reminders

If you intend to keep your reminders organized, it’s worth creating separate lists. For example, you could create different lists for work, home, shopping, and vacations.

To add a new list, open the Reminders app and tap on ‘Add List’ at the bottom of the screen, then enter a name. Siri will recognize the list by the name you give it.

Now, rather than taking several steps to create a reminder, you can give Siri the information it needs in one phrase and specify a preferred list as you speak.

Hey Siri, add milk to my shopping list.

It used to be possible to create a list using Siri, but this feature appears to have been removed.

How to choose a default List

If you ask Siri to create a reminder without specifying a list, it will automatically add it to your default list. To choose or change your default list:

On the iPhone and iPad

Open Settings.
Scroll down to Reminders.
Tap Default List and select your preference.

On a Mac

Open Reminders.
Open Preferences.
Select your preference from the dropdown list.

Ask Siri to add multiple reminders at once

It’s easy to add multiple reminders simultaneously.

Hey Siri, add bananas, coffee, beer, and bread to my shopping list.

Setting reminders using time and date

You can create reminders based on time and date. So, if you need to remember to pick up the dry cleaning at 4:00 pm, ask Siri to remind you.

Hey Siri, remind me to pick up the dry cleaning at 4 pm.

Remind me to book my vacation tomorrow.

Remind me to buy coffee in 2 hours.

Setting reminders using location

Reminders can also be location-based. This is useful if you need to remember to do something at a specific place. For example, you could ask Siri to remind you to pick up milk when you get to the grocery store.

You can specify a location name, such as a supermarket, if it exists in the Siri database.

Hey Siri, remind me to buy coffee when I arrive at Whole Foods.

If there are multiple possible locations with the same name, Siri will ask you to choose one.

If you have locations for ‘home’ and ‘work’ defined in your contact card, you can say:

Hey Siri, remind me to check my reports when I get to work.

Next time I leave home, remind me to get gas.

When a reminder is linked to a location, the entry in the app will show the place name.

A location reminder as its shown in the app

Create a ‘flagged’ reminder with Siri

Flagged reminders are a great way to keep track of important to-dos. You can use flags to bring greater visual attention to a task.

Hey Siri, create a flagged reminder to buy coffee.

Once you’ve flagged a reminder, it will appear in the Flagged list, located beneath the Today and Scheduled sections in the app.

If you need to flag an existing reminder while you’re on the go, you can also ask Siri to do it for you. Just say “Flag this reminder” followed by the task you want to flag.

For example, you could say:

Hey Siri, flag this reminder ‘call Grandma tomorrow’.

Siri will then add a flag to the reminder, so you’ll be sure not to forget it.

The 'Call grandma' reminder has been flagged — The ‘Call grandma’ reminder has been flagged

You can also ask Siri to show you your flagged reminders by saying:

Hey Siri, show me my flagged reminders.

Ask for a list of your flagged reminders

How to use reminders with the Messages app

One overlooked feature of Reminders is the ability to link tasks to a contact in the Messages app. For example:

Hey Siri, remind me when I text Jason to ask about our vacation plans.

The next time I send Jason a text message, I’ll receive a reminder to ask him about the vacation. If you have multiple contacts with the same name, Siri will ask you to select which one you mean.

If a reminder is connected to a message, the contact’s name is displayed underneath the task name in the app. You can also check if a reminder is linked to a message by opening it on your iPhone or iPad. When Messaging will be toggled on, with the related contact’s name underneath.

'Jason Harper' has been linked to a message using Reminders — ‘Jason Harper’ has been linked to a message using Reminders

Ask Siri to remind you about an email

You can ask Siri to remind you about an email while you’re reading it by saying:

Hey Siri, remind me about this email.

Remind me about this email tomorrow at 9 am.

Siri will then create a new reminder with the email subject as the name, and remind you about it.

The Mail icon denotes a reminder linked to an email

This feature will only work in the Apple Mail app.

Ask Siri to remind you about a website

Siri can also add a website URL to your reminders. While the web page is open on screen, just say:

Hey Siri, remember this website.

This feature will only work with Safari, Apple’s default browser.

Ask Siri to read out your reminders

You can ask Siri to read out your reminders. This can be helpful when you’re driving, cooking, or otherwise occupied and can’t look at your iPhone, Watch, or Mac.

Hey Siri, read my reminders.

You can pick a list you want Siri to read reminders from, or say a date or time.

Read my ‘Work’ list.

Do I have any reminders this week?

Siri will prompt you to unlock your device, then read the top five results.

Changing reminders using Siri

If you want to change the reminder, say its name and the change you wish to make:

Hey Siri, change my ‘pick up the dry cleaning’ reminder to 2 pm.

Hey Siri, change the title of my ‘pick up the dry cleaning’ reminder to ‘pick up everybody’s dry cleaning’.

Deleting lists and reminders with Siri

It’s currently not possible to delete reminders and lists using Siri. If you ask, it prompts you to open the Reminders app and remove it manually.

Want to discover more about using Siri, Apple’s popular virtual assistant? We’ve written a helpful collection of tutorials full of techniques for using apps, dictation, using Siri Shortcuts, and a comprehensive beginner’s guide to activating and using Siri.