iPhone 11 Won't Turn Off? Here's The Fix!

David Lynch

OCTOBER 7, 2019

Your iPhone 11 isn't turning off and you're not sure why. You're pressing the side button and either volume button, but slide to power off isn't appearing on the screen. In this article, I'll show you how to fix the problem when your iPhone 11 won't turn off!

Is My iPhone 11 Broken?

It's more likely than not that a software problem is preventing you from turning off your iPhone 11. A lot of the time, the software crashes and freezes your iPhone 11, making it appear as if it won't turn off.

Our step-by-step guide will show you how to troubleshoot potential software problems, then recommend a couple of repair options if your iPhone 11 still won't turn off.

How To Fix An iPhone 11 That Won't Turn Off

5 Steps Total
1.

Hard Reset Your iPhone 11

A hard reset can temporarily fix minor software glitches and crashes.

How Do I Hard Reset My iPhone 11?

  1. Press and release the volume up button.
  2. Press and release the volume down button.
  3. Press and hold the side button. Keep holding until the Apple logo appears on the display.
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2.

Back Up Your iPhone

It's important to back up your iPhone before doing any major restores (such as a DFU restore). If something goes wrong while you're trying to fix your iPhone, having a back up means you won't lose any of your data (such as contacts, photos, apps, and more). Restoring from a back up is a lot more convenient than having to go and reenter all the information that was saved on your iPhone.

How Do I Back Up My iPhone?

There are a few different ways to back up your iPhone:

Backup Your iPhone Using iCloud

  1. If you have a WiFi connection, you can back up your iPhone using iCloud.
  2. Open the Settings app.
  3. Tap on Your Name at the top of the screen.
  4. Tap iCloud.
  5. Scroll down and tap on iCloud Backup.
  6. Make sure the switch next to iCloud Backup is on. You'll know the switch is on when the switch is green.
  7. Tap Back Up Now.
  8. A status bar will appear to tell you how much time is remaining.

Backup Your iPhone Using iTunes

  1. Plug the Lightning connector on your Lightning cable (charging cable) into the Lightning port on your iPhone.
  2. Plug the other end of your Lightning cable into a USB port on your computer.
  3. Open iTunes on your computer.
  4. Click on the iPhone icon in the upper left hand corner of iTunes.
  5. Click the circle next to "iCloud" or "This computer" to select whether you want to backup your iPhone to iCloud or your computer.
  6. Click Back Up Now to backup your iPhone.
  7. When the backup is complete, you'll see the time and date updated under Latest Backup.

Backup Your iPhone Using Finder (Macs Running Catalina 10.15 or newer)

  1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac using a charging cable.
  2. Open Finder.
  3. Click on your iPhone under Locations.
  4. Click the circle next to Back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac.
  5. Click Back Up Now.
  6. When the backup is complete, you'll see the time and date updated under Latest Backup.
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3.

Reset All Settings

Many iPhone problems are caused when Settings isn't set up correctly or by corruption within individual Settings app files. Restoring the Settings app back to factory defaults doesn't fix every iPhone software problem, but it is a go-to fix for Apple technicians because it does solve a lot of problems that would be very difficult to to track down by hand.

How Do I Reset All Settings?

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap General.
  3. Scroll down and tap Transfer Or Reset iPhone.
  4. Tap Reset.
  5. Tap Reset All Settings.
  6. Enter your passcode, if prompted.
  7. Tap Reset All Settings again to confirm your decision.
  8. Your iPhone will shut down, complete the reset, and turn itself on again will automatically turn back on when the reset finishes.
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4.

Put Your iPhone In DFU Mode

A DFU restore is the last troubleshooting step you can take to rule out a software problem on your iPhone.

Watch our step-by-step DFU restore guide on YouTube, or follow the steps below:

  1. Plug your iPhone in a computer.
  2. Open iTunes (on PCs or Macs running macOS Mojave 10.14 or earlier) or Finder (Macs running macOS Catalina 10.15 or newer).
  3. Press and release the volume up button.
  4. Press and release the volume down button.
  5. Press and hold the side button until your iPhone's display goes black.
  6. When the screen turns black, press and hold the volume down button while continuing to hold the side button.
  7. Hold both buttons for five seconds.
  8. After five seconds, release the side button, but continue to hold the volume down button.
  9. Release the volume down button when your iPhone appears in iTunes or Finder.
  10. Your iPhone appears in iTunes or Finder, it's in DFU mode!
  11. Click Restore and follow the on-screen prompts to DFU restore your iPhone.
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5.

Repair Your iPhone With Apple

Apple repairs iPhones at the Genius Bar in Apple Stores and through their online mail-in repair service. Apple repairs are high-quality, but out-of-warranty repairs can be much more expensive than third-party solutions. If you're looking to save some money you're not covered by Apple's warranty, you may want to check out our other recommendations.

How Do I Repair My iPhone With Apple?

How To Repair Your iPhone With Apple's Mail-In Service

  1. Visit Apple's support website to begin the online mail-in repair process.
  2. Alternatively, call 1-800-MY-APPLE (1-800-692-7753) to set up a repair.

How To Repair Your iPhone At The Genius Bar Inside Your Local Apple Store

  1. Visit Apple's website to make a Genius Bar appointment before you go into the store. Apple Stores are extremely busy, and if you don't have an appointment, you may have to wait for hours or end up being turned away. (Editor's note: I'm a former Apple tech and we're not exaggerating — please, do yourself a favor and make an appointment first!)
  2. When you arrive, go to the Genius Bar to check in for your appointment.
  3. Genius Bar appointments always include free diagnosis. If you're under warranty, many repairs can be done on the spot, but it all depends upon which parts are in stock. If you're not under warranty, the Genius will give you a quote for the cost of a repair.
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Shutting It Down

You've successfully turned off your iPhone 11! We hope you'll share this article on social media to teach your family, friends, and followers, what to do when their iPhone 11 won't turn off. Feel free to contact us in the comments section below if you have any other questions.

AUTHOR

David Lynch

David Lynch is an expert on cell phones, cell phone plans, and other tech. After using a flip phone into his early 20s, he learned the ropes about iPhones and Androids from a former Apple employee. Today, his articles and videos are read and viewed by millions, and he has been cited by major publications including Reader's Digest, Wired, CMSWire, Consumers Advocate, and more.

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Michaela Snyder
Michaela Snyder
1 year ago

Helped me so much it fixed my problem just like that! I was looking up way to restart my phone because it was frozen and nothing was worded the right way until I cam to this page and it was perfect so thank you for giving clear instructions

Cheryl k Denny
Cheryl k Denny
2 years ago

My iPhone is doing nothing. I can’t open any apps.

saurabh singh
saurabh singh
2 years ago

Hi, I have updated my iPhone 11 with latest version but the problem is that my iPhone 11 power button is working fine for turning the screen off and on, and it even works when I switch on my iPhone. However, when i go to switch off my iPhone using the power button it doesn’t turn off and I don’t see the Slide To Power Off screen when i press and hold power button. Why is this happening? I do not know, i bought this iPhone 3 days back it’s new and at the time of buying it the power… Read more »

Colin Boyd
Editor
2 years ago
Reply to  saurabh singh

Hi Saurabh, I’m sorry to hear your new phone is giving you so much trouble! When you try to turn your iPhone off, do you only press and hold the side button? If so, that might be the reason you’re having trouble. To power off an iPhone 11, you need to press and hold the side button and the volume down button simultaneously. Keep holding both of these buttons until the Slide To Power Off screen appears, then swipe the power icon to the right to turn your device off. Hope this helps!

Jim
Jim
3 years ago

IPhone 11 Pro Max will not turn off and Apps will not open

Liam Shotwell
3 years ago
Reply to  Jim

Have you tried a hard reset?

stargate
stargate
3 years ago

was helpful thx