What do the icons on your windows phone mean?

The top of the screen on your Windows Phone instantly provides you with information about network connectivity, signal strength, battery power, the time and much more.

Note

This topic is about Windows Phone 8.1. If your phone is running Windows Phone 8, some options and icons may look a little different, and some features may not be available. Check to see which software version you have and find out if an update is available.

The following picture shows the icons you'll see most often on the status bar.

Mobile signal strength

	Very strong signal
	Strong signal
	Medium signal
	Weak signal
	Very weak signal
	Extremely weak signal
	No signal because your phone isn't connected to a mobile network.
	Your phone is in Flight mode. Mobile network, WiFi, FM radio and Bluetooth connections, and NFC sharing are all turned off simultaneously when you turn Flight mode on. (You can still turn on WiFi, FM radio and Bluetooth connections, and NFC sharing separately.)
	SIM card is missing.
	SIM card is locked. For more info, see Using a PIN to lock your SIM card.

Mobile data connection

	GPRS
	EDGE
	UMTS
	4G
	LTE
	HSPA+/DC-HSDPA
	HSDPA/HSUPA
	RTT
	EVDO
	EVDV

Notes

The mobile data connection icons and types of connections they represent can vary by mobile operator.

The icon may be used for a variety of mobile data connections, including LTE and HSPA+.

For an LTE connection, you might see an icon instead of an or icon.

When your mobile data connection is being used to transfer data, you may see the icon, depending on your mobile operator. This icon only appears on phones that have Windows Phone software version 8.0.10501.127 or later. See How do I update my phone software? for more info on updating your phone.

Call forwarding

The Call forwarding (

) icon appears when call forwarding is turned on. To learn how to forward calls, see Calling options.

Quiet hours

The Quiet hours (

) icon appears when Quiet hours is turned on in Cortana's settings. To learn more about Cortana, see Meet Cortana.

Note

Cortana is only on Windows Phone 8.1 and is only available in some countries/regions.

Roaming

The Roaming (

) icon lets you know that your phone is roaming and not using your home mobile network.

Notes

The Roaming () icon might look different on your phone and can vary by mobile operator.

Depending on your mobile operator, you might see this icon () when your phone is roaming domestically.

You might see this icon () when your phone has domestic call forwarding and roaming turned on, or you might see this icon () when your phone has international call forwarding and roaming turned on.

See Mobile network and SIM settings or What's data roaming? for more info about roaming.

WiFi connection

	Connected to a WiFi network with full signal strength. For info about setting up a WiFi connection, see Connecting to a WiFi network.
	Connected to a WiFi network; strong signal.
	Connected to a WiFi network; medium signal.
	Connected to a WiFi network; weak signal.
	Mobile data connection is shared with other devices over WiFi.
	WiFi connection is being used to transfer data. Depending on your mobile operator, you might not see this icon when a WiFi connection is being used to transfer data. This icon only appears on phones that have Windows Phone software version 8.0.10501.127 or later. See How do I update my phone software? for more info on updating your phone.

Bluetooth

The Bluetooth (

) icon appears when your phone is connected to a Bluetooth device.

To learn more, see Pairing your phone with a Bluetooth accessory.

Notifications

The Notifications (

) icon appears when you have new notifications available. For more info, see Notifications and quick actions.

Driving Mode

The Driving Mode (

) icon appears when Driving Mode is turned on. For more info, see Using Driving Mode.

To use Driving Mode, your phone needs to have Windows Phone software version 8.0.10501.127 or later. See How do I update my phone software? for more information on updating your phone.

Ringer

	Ringer is off, and vibrate is on.
	Ringer is off, and vibrate is off.

For more info about changing these settings, see Ringtones, sounds and volume.

Location

The Location (

) icon appears when an app is accessing your phone's current location information. For more info about location awareness and services, see Location awareness and your phone.

Battery

	Battery is charging.
	Phone is plugged in and battery is fully charged.
	Full battery power
	High battery power
	Medium battery power
	Low battery power
	Critically low battery power – battery needs to be charged.
	Battery power or state of the battery isn't currently known.
	Battery Saver is on.