How to Power Off, Power On & Hard Reset the iPhone X

There are three main methods for turning off your iPhone X or later iPhone. You can power down your iPhone inside the iOS Settings, reboot your iPhone with a hard reset, or shut down the device using the physical buttons on your iPhone XS.

If you need to reboot a slow or frozen iPhone X, this article will teach you how to recover from a blank screen or frozen Apple logo by performing a hard or soft restart on the iPhone XS.

Read on to learn how to power off your iPhone, how to perform a hard reset, and how to restart your iPhone X or later.

How to Power Off the iPhone X or Later (with Buttons)

As discussed later in this article, you can shut down your iPhone X or later using the Settings app. However, the fastest method for shutting down the iPhone is using the physical buttons on the device.

1. Simultaneously press and hold the Side button (formerly known as the Sleep/Wake button) and the Volume button—either up or down, it doesn’t matter which.
2. Release the buttons when the shutdown screen appears.
3. Slide to power off your iPhone.
4. That’s it! Make sure not to keep holding down those two buttons, or you’ll automatically engage Emergency SOS, which you don’t want to do if you’re only turning off your iPhone X.

How to Force a Hard Restart on the iPhone X or later (with Buttons)

This method is similar to the previous method, but should only be used when your iPhone is glitching.

If you have a frozen app, a blank or frozen home screen, or are experiencing lag, then a hard reset can solve a lot of problems. To perform a hard reset:

1. Click and release the Volume Up button.
2. Click and release the Volume Down button.
3. Press and continue holding the Side button until the screen shuts off. You do not need to slide Power Off to use this method.  
4.  If Siri engages, you haven’t clicked the Volume buttons correctly and should try again.
5. After approximately ten seconds, your device will power down and restart.

How to Power Off the iPhone in the Settings App

The physical buttons are a fast way to shut down the iPhone, but there’s an alternative method if you aren’t able to shut down the phone using the physical buttons. With iOS 11 and later, you can shut down your iPhone from within the Settings app.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Select General.
3. Scroll down to the bottom and tap Shut Down.
4. Slide to power off.

How to Turn on the iPhone X or later

Of course, eventually, you will need to restart your iPhone. Unless you perform a hard reset, you’ll need to turn your iPhone back on to your device.

Note that whenever you power up the iPhone X or later, whether via a hard reset or by shutting down the device, you will have to enter your passcode before Face ID can function.

1. Hold down the Side button until the Apple logo appears on the screen.
2. Once it restarts, swipe up from the bottom of your screen and enter your passcode.