A method, system, and computer program product for generating device input using vibrations from surface features are provided in the illustrative embodiments. In an electronic device (device), using a processor, a characteristic of a vibration is determined, the vibration being caused by motion of an object across the surface feature, the surface feature being a feature formed on an user-accessible surface of the device, the object makes a physical contact with the feature during the motion. A determination is made whether the characteristic is mapped to a command in the device. Responsive to the characteristic being mapped to the command, an instruction is generated to execute the command in the device. the instruction is sent to cause a function to be performed in the device.