Troubleshoot an iPhone that’s freezing and lagging

Why is my iPhone freezing and lagging?

Your iPhone may keep on freezing if you have overused it and it has become hot. In this case, stop using it when it becomes overheated. Your iPhone may also have battery issues, so you need to check the battery’s health; if it is below the bar, you need to replace it.

Moreover, there might be any glitches, the software may have bugs, or the apps are the reason why your iPhone keeps freezing. Also, it might be facing storage problems.

How do I get my iPhone to stop freezing?

We have researched the most effective methods that can fix your iPhone if it keeps freezing. Let’s dive into the details!

1. Restart Your iPhone

Restarting your iPhone is one of the easiest and fastest ways to fix the freezing issue on the iPhone. Restarting a device at least once a week is extremely helpful to fix various problems, including avoiding any software crashes and making it run more smoothly than before. In addition, it improves battery life. Therefore, if you are facing an iPhone freezing issue, restart it first.

How to Restart iPhone SE ( 2nd or 3rd Generation), 6, 7, or 8

1. Press the side button and keep holding it until the power-off slider shows on your iPhone.

   

2. Next, drag the slider to turn it off and wait for around 30 seconds.
3. Lastly, turn on your device by pressing the side button and holding it till the Apple logo appears.

How to Restart iPhone X or later version

1. Press the volume up or down button, along with the side button, until the power-off slider shows on the screen.
2. After this, drag the slider to turn off your iPhone and wait for around 30 seconds.
3. Press the side button until the apple logo appears on your screen to turn it on.

   

If your device can not shut down because it keeps freezing in between the process, do a force restart instead. He re is how to do a force restart:

1. Press the volume up button and release it instantly.
2. Press the volume down button and release it instantly.
3. Next, press the side button and hold it until the Apple logo appears on the screen.
4. Release the side button.

2. Reset Network Settings

Sometimes your iPhone may freeze due to a VPN service that you have installed on your device. So, a network reset will help in this case.

Resetting network settings not only fixes the trouble that your device faces while connecting to wifi or cellular connections but also helps in fixing other glitches that it has been facing. Thus, attempting a network reset would not do any harm.

Nevertheless, if you are planning to do it, ensure to back up or note down your network-related data, as it will remove it all. You have to save your wifi passwords, VPN details, Bluetooth connections, etc. Other than the network data, it would not delete any other data.

1. Go to Settings and click on General.

   

2. Next, scroll down and tap on Transfer or Reset iPhone.

   

3. Click on Reset.

   

4. Lastly, select Reset Network Settings.

   

3. Clean Your iPhone’s Storage

Your iPhone may be having low storage, due to which it has been freezing. If your device has low storage, it might slow down, which eventually leads to freezing. Apple suggests having no less than 1 GB of storage on your Apple devices for better performance. The device will make room for additional content if you have less than 1 GB of storage on your iPhone.

Here’s how you can check your iPhone’s storage:

1. Go to Settings and click on General.
2. Then, tap on iPhone Storage.

   

From here, you will see your iPhone’s storage and delete any unused apps by tapping on the app and then on Delete App. You can also tap on Offload App to free up the storage used by the app without deleting the data.

Apart from this, you can delete any unimportant text messages, photos, and videos. Also, do not open several apps at the same time, as it also takes up RAM. Lastly, clear your safari data; here’s how to do it:

1. Go to Settings, scroll down, and click on Safari.
2. Again scroll down and tap on Clear History and Website Data.
3. Lastly, select Clear History and Data.
4. After doing all the mentioned steps, restart your phone once, and check if this method worked.

Moreover, you can also trying clearing the cache data of iPhone.

4. Update Your iPhone Using a PC

If your iPhone is completely stuck when you turn it on, the screen has frozen, and only the Apple logo is showing on the screen, you need to update it using a PC. If this is the case with your iPhone, you can not try any other method because the screen is unresponsive. Thus, using a PC is the only option that will help you.

Updating your device will make it run faster and more smoothly, as it will fix bugs and update security. It will also have more useful features on your iPhone, which may also contribute to improved performance.

1. Connect your device to a PC. If you are using a Mac which has macOS Catalina, go to the Finder. Go to iTunes if you have a Mac with macOS Mojave or another earlier OS. Do the same on a Windows PC.
2. Next, choose the device on your PC.

• If you are using the Finder (macOS Catalina or the latest OS), you will see your device name in the sidebar.
• If you are using iTunes (macOS Mojave, previous OS, or a Windows PC), an icon of your iPhone will show in the left corner (upper side).

3. As your device is now connected to your PC, here are the steps that you need to follow:

• On iPhone 6s or previous versions, press the home and side buttons/ top buttons and hold them.
• On iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, press the side and volume down buttons and hold them.
• On iPhone 8 or later versions, press the volume up button and release it immediately. After this, press the volume down button and release it quickly. Lastly, press the side button and hold it.

4. While you are holding the button, you will see that the recovery mode has appeared on your screen.

5. Next, you will get a pop–up notification on your PC or Mac regarding restoration or update. At this point, you have to select Update.
6. Now the PC will download the software for your iPhone. Nevertheless, if the process takes more than 15 – 18 minutes, you need to repeat the mentioned steps, as your iPhone will exit the recovery mode.

5. Reset Your iPhone

If your iPhone still freezes after updating it, you may need to reset it, as there might be some files that are not compatible with your device. A reset will get your phone back to the factory setting, thus, making it a new one.
Also, it will solve any software-related or app-crashing issues. However, if you reset your iPhone, it will clear all the data stored in it. Therefore, you need to back up all your important data before a reset. Here is how you can reset your device:

1. Go to Settings > General.
2. Scroll down and tap on Transfer or Erase iPhone.

   

3. Next, tap on Erase All Content and Settings.
4. Hit the Continue button.

   

5. Enter the password that you use to unlock your device.
6. Choose Erase iPhone. With this, the process of erasing all your data will start.

When setting up your iPhone, you have to restore the data. However, if your iPhone starts to freeze again, reset it again, but this time do not back up your data, as there might be some corrupt files that are causing the freezing issue. You can download the apps after a few days.

If you have tried all the methods and your iPhone still freezes and does not work properly, you need to call Apple support and ask them to solve the issue or to replace your device if it is still under warranty.