If you’ve ever asked yourself, ‘’why won’t my iPhone 16 turn off?’’ you’re not alone. Even if you’re a professional iOS tinkerer, things could occasionally go beyond your skill level and you may find yourself wondering what to do with an iPhone 16 that won’t turn off. In this article, I’ll explain why your iPhone 16 won’t turn off and how to fix the problem.
This article will help you if:
- Your iPhone 16 doesn’t respond when the buttons (volume and side buttons) are pressed when you want to turn it off.
- The power-off slider is unresponsive.
- Your iPhone 16 has a black or frozen screen.
It can be a worst nightmare if your iPhone 16 won’t turn off. If you leave an iPhone switched on permanently, this will have a negative effect on the battery capacity in the long term. With extreme states of charge as well as with higher states of charge, the electrodes in the battery can oxidize, whereby they lose their ability to absorb the lithium ions and thus ensure the flow of current. So the battery loses its capacity. It is therefore recommended that the smartphone be switched off every now and then.
Why Won’t My iPhone 16 Turn Off?
In most cases, your iPhone 16 won’t turn off because there is either a problem with the software on your iPhone or the screen or power button isn’t working correctly.
Whatever the case, this nifty guide will walk you through how to fix an iPhone 16 that won’t turn off.
Note: information in this article applied to iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max.
How to fix iPhone 16 not turning off issue
1. Try To Turn Off Your iPhone
Before trying any other fix on this guide, try to shut down your iPhone. You can power off your iPhone 16 in four ways:
Using hardware buttons
This is the standard way to switch off an iPhone 16 without using the screen. It comes in handy when you need to turn off your iPhone 16 when the screen is broken or not working.
- Press and hold the Side button and Volume Up or Down button until you see the power off slider.
- Drag the slider that says “slide to power off” to the right.
- Your iPhone will now turn off.
Using the Settings app
There is a hidden setting in iOS to shut down an iPhone 16 without the physical buttons. This way you can easily shut down your iPhone without using the combo of Side and Volume buttons. It is helpful when the Side button isn’t working or when you are using the device with one hand. Surprisingly, not many iPhone users are aware of the virtual Shut Down option.
To turn off your iPhone 16 without the power button,
- Go to Settings > General.
- Under General, scroll down to the bottom and tap “Shut Down“.
- Slide to power off the device.
Using the Control Center
Swipe down from the top right corner of the screen to open the Control Center and press and hold (then release) the power button for a second. Then, you can simply drag the familiar power slider to turn off your iPhone.
Using Siri
Another way to shut down your iPhone 16 is via Siri. All you need to do is say, "Hey Siri, turn off my iPhone." Siri should respond with a confirmation, asking, "Just to confirm, you want to power off this device?" Then, tapping on the turn-off button shuts down your iPhone right away.
2. Force restart your iPhone
If your iPhone isn’t responding to your taps or button presses, you may need to force it to restart. This will help clear out errors that are causing your iPhone 16 not to shut down without erasing your apps or data. You can do this even when your screen seems frozen or not responding when you touch it. Here’s how:
- Quickly press and release the Volume Up button.
- Quickly press and release the Volume Down button.
- Press and hold the Side button. When the Apple logo appears, release the button.
3. Enable AssistiveTouch And Turn Your iPhone 16 Off Using A Software Power Button
You’re iPhone 16 won’t turn off after trying the above methods? Well, you can shut down your iOS device using just your software that’s built into Settings app.
To reboot your iPhone 16 if the power button doesn’t work,
- Go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch.
- Tap on “AssistiveTouch” at the top and turn on the toggle for AssistiveTouch.
- The AssistiveTouch virtual button will now appear on your screen.
- To turn off your iPhone 16 with AssistiveTouch, choose Device and then tap and hold the Lock Screen icon. This will take you to a screen that says “slide to power off.” Drag the red power icon from left to right to turn off your iPhone
4. iPhone 16 not powering off still?
If your iPhone 16 won’t shut down after trying the above steps, then you may want to determine what is causing this:
- Make sure that your iPhone is running the latest version of iOS. You can update your phone by heading to Settings > General > Software Update. You can also turn on and customize Automatic Updates.
- Ensure that all of your apps are up to date. You can update your apps by going to the App Store app on your iPhone. Again you may want to turn on Automatic Updates.
- If a certain app is causing this issue, for example, when you want to launch the app, your iPhone becomes unresponsive, then ensure that the app is updated to the latest version, if this does not fix it, you can contact its developer for further help or you can uninstall it.
5. Contact Apple Support
Please contact Apple Support, if you have one of the following issues:
- Your Volume, or Side buttons are stuck or broken. So you cannot force restart your iPhone.
- Your iPhone shows a black screen but you know it is working because you hear notifications or sounds.
These issues may indicate a hardware problem. You can make a Genius Bar appointment. Your device may still have warranty coverage, including AppleCare.
Fixed iPhone 16 Not Turning off Issue!
You’ve successfully fixed the problem and your iPhone 16 is turning off again. Now that you know why your iPhone 16 won’t turn off, make sure you share this information on social media with your family and friends. If you have any other questions about your iPhone 16, feel free to ask them in the comments section below!