Field studies · Cochrane
Ten studies found no evidence of fewer landings.
The review found no evidence that the electronic mosquito repellents it assessed reduced mosquito landings. It did not test every possible sound or phone.
A practical question · What does the evidence say?
Can an iPhone deter mosquitoes?
I wondered whether a phone could play a sound that keeps mosquitoes away. The evidence I found does not support relying on electronic tones for bite protection. A phone can play a tone; that alone does not make it a repellent.
What the studies tested
The results are narrower than the claims.
Laboratory · 2024
Four ultrasonic devices showed no significant effect in the test.
The researchers tested four devices on two mosquito species. Their measured approach-to-attractant behaviour did not significantly differ with the devices on or off.
Field trial · Mali · 2026
One oscillating-frequency device showed little or no measurable effect.
The field study used CO₂-baited traps and a non-human test method at urban and rural sites. It did not test an iPhone or every device, species or sound.
What this means for a phone
No iPhone test establishes a protective tone.
The studies above do not establish what a particular iPhone model can emit acoustically, or that any sound it can play will deter mosquitoes. None tested the iPhone in the original question. Don’t treat an app’s tone or a high-pitched sound as proven protection.
Practical protection
Use measures recommended for your location.
Australian healthdirect recommends using an approved insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus, and following its label. It also recommends covering exposed skin with loose-fitting clothing and reducing exposure when mosquitoes are active. Advice can vary with location, age and health circumstances.
Sources and limits
What I relied on
- Enayati A, Hemingway J, Garner P. Electronic mosquito repellents for preventing mosquito bites and malaria infection. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. The review reports no evidence of repelling effect in the field studies assessed.
- Toma L et al. Evaluation of four common electronic mosquito repellers on Aedes albopictus and Culex pipiens. Annali dell’Istituto Superiore di Sanità (2024). A laboratory test of four devices and two species.
- Revay EE et al. Performance of different spatial repellents (spatial emanators) against vector mosquito species in Mali, West Africa. Frontiers in Insect Science (2026). The tested ultrasonic device had minimal or no measurable effect under the study’s trap-based conditions.
- healthdirect Australia: Mosquito bites — practical bite-prevention guidance.
Evidence boundary: these findings do not test an iPhone or every frequency, device, species or setting. They support not relying on phone-generated sound as bite protection; they do not prove that every imaginable sound has been tested.