5 Easy Methods to Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen 2024

User Concern

“I dropped my iPhone 12 and smashed the screen, however, the touch screen function will no longer work... So the problem I now face is how to unlock my iPhone with broken screen? Thanks!”

This issue has cropped up a lot for most iPhone and iPad users. The iPhone is dropped on the floor and the screen is broken. The bad result is that the screen is not responsive so you cannot enter the password to unlock the broken iPhone.

Basically, the question is how to unlock iPhone with broken screen. Don't fret, it is not hard to deal with this issue. You shall be able to have access to the iPhone again and get data from the broken device after learning the tips in this article.

How to Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen

This part covers 5 possible methods to unlock your iPhone with broken screen. Let's read the details now.

Method 1: The Most Helpful Approach - FoneGeek iPhone Passcode Unlocker

You are not the only person whose iPhone is locked with broken screen. Statistically, there are nearly hundreds of users encounter this issue everyday. Since the screen is broken and not responsive any longer, you will need to use some 3rd-party software to help you unlock the device. If you are looking for such an unlock tool, then FoneGeek iPhone Passcode Unlocker will be your good assistant.

FoneGeek: Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen Instantly

• Quickly unlock iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch even though the screen is broken, disabled or locked.
• Bypass Face ID, Touch ID and 4-digit/6-digit screen passcode in one click.
• Remove Apple account from iPhone/iPad/iPod when you forgot the Apple ID password.
• Fully supports all iOS devices and iOS versions, such as iPhone 15/14 running iOS 17/16.

How to Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen Through FoneGeek

Step 1. Download the free trial of FoneGeek iPhone Passcode Unlocker on a computer that you have access to. After the download and installation, choose the mode of "Unlock Screen Passcode".

Step 2. Plug the iPhone with broken screen into the computer using Apple's original USB cable.

Step 3. If the device is not successfully connected, then follow the instructions to put the device into DFU mode and the program will detect the broken device.

Step 4. After the device is detected, click on "Download" button and the unlock tool will start to download the firmware package to unlock the device.

After the download process is completed, tap on "Start Unlock" and the device will be unlocked. You can now use another tool to get data off the iPhone.

Note

Using FoneGeek iPhone Passcode Unlocker will erase all of your iPhone data and settings, and the iPhone will be upgraded to the newest version. To recover the previous data, you can restore the device from iTunes or iCloud backup.

Method 2: Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen Using iTunes

For iOS users, iTunes is a reliable tool provided by Apple to backup or restore the device data. If your iPhone screen is broken, you might want to check if iTunes can be used to unlock your broken iPhone. Thankfully, iTunes can absolutely be used to unlock and restore the iOS devices.

iTunes can restore iPhone and install the new iOS system to unlock the device. Here is how to unlock iPhone with broken screen via iTunes.

Step 1. Connect the iPhone with broken screen to the computer which installed the iTunes that you have synced with your iPhone before.

Step 2. Generally, iTunes will run automatically when the device is plugged. You will not be asked to enter the passcode or trust the computer.

Step 3. If the feature of "Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPads from syncing automatically" is not ticked, the iTunes will automatically back up your iPhone data.

Step 4. After the backup process is finished, tap "Restore iPhone" and select the latest backup to restore to your disabled iPhone.

Step 5. After that, the device will reboot and be reset as a new one. You can now have access to the device again and follow the guides on the screen to reset your iPhone.

Note

Using iTunes to unlock disabled iPhone will wipe all the data on the device, so it is highly recommended for us to backup your iPhone in advance. And in some circumstances, you will be required to hit on some options on your iPhone screen.

Method 3: Get Back into Broken iPhone via Recovery Mode

However, some users may also complain that they have never trusted their broken devices with a computer before. Then you can use this approach to unlock iPhone with iTunes.

Step 1. Connect your device with computer and then launch iTunes.

Step 2. Now force restart the device. The steps to restart an iPhone vary from different device models.

• For iPhone 8 and later models: Hold the Volume up button and instantly release it. Hold the Volume down button and instantly release it. Next, hold and press the side button until "Connect to iTunes" icon disappearing on the screen.
• For iPhone 7 (Plus): Keep pressing the Power button and Volume down button at the same time until you see the "Connect to iTunes" icon appears.
• For iPhone 6s and easier models: Press and hold the Power button and the Home button at the same time until the device is entering the recovery mode.

Step 3. When the device is connected with iTunes, a window will pop up. Click "Restore" and iTunes will restore the newest backup to your iPhone.

After the restoring, the device will be reset to default settings.

Method 4: Remotely Unlock Broken iPhone via iCloud

When you sign into iCloud account on your iPhone, your iPhone features can be viewed on the iCloud website, which allowing you to remotely control your iPhone.

This powerful feature on iCloud website is called "Find My iPhone". If your iPhone is lost or broken, you can remotely unlock the broken iPhone via Find My iPhone feature. However, Find My iPhone must be enabled on your iPhone before the screen is broken, or this method will not be feasible for you.

The steps below will guide you to unlock iPhone with broken screen via this feature.

1. Log into the iCloud website with your iCloud account on a computer or another accessible iOS devices.
2. After logging in, tap on "Find iPhone" option and choose your iPhone from the list of all devices.
3. After selecting the device, click "Erase iPhone" and the data and password will all be erased at once.

Method 5: Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen with Siri

This method will not always allow you to gain access to your iPhone with broken screen and is only compatible with iPhone XR/XS and earlier models. Yet, it’s still worth trying.

Step 1. Activate Siri by keep pressing the power button. Ask Siri to Turn on VoiceOver and press the power button twice to go back to the unlock screen.

Step 2. You can swipe right or left until Slide to Unlock is selected. Then move this option to different numbers until the passcode interface appears.

Step 3. Highlight the correct numbers and double click them to enter the each one. Then swipe to enter option to submit the passcode.

Comparison of the 5 Unlocking Methods

You can take a look at the comparison form of the 5 methods to choose the best method.

	Works for all iPhone models	"Find My iPhone" can be enabled	Success rate	Operation difficulty
FoneGeek iPhone Passcode Unlocker			Very high success rate	Easy
iTunes			Only work when the device has been syned with iTunes before the screen is broken.	Easy
Recovery Mode			Always fail when you couldn't put the device into recovery mode	Very complex
iCloud			Works when your iPhone is connected to stable network	Medium
Siri	Works only for iPhone XR/XS and earlier models		The success rate is not that high	Easy

FAQs about How to Unlock iPhone with Broken Screen

We're certainly that you are interested in the FAQs below before exploring methods to unlock disabled iPhone.

Q1. Can I unlock iPhone with Siri when the screen is broken?

YES. You can use Siri to submit the passcode and unlock your iPhone when the screen is broken. But it is not 100% useful for all iOS users.

Q2. Can I remotely unlock my iPhone without using iTunes?

YES. As long as you have turned off Find My iPhone, you can erase all data (including password) with iCloud.

Conclusion

The 5 methods above are all the possible ways to unlock iPhone with broken screen. The 1st solution guarantees the 100% success rate to unlock iPhone without requiring any security information while the other solutions are not 100% useful and ask you to enter some password information.

That's also the reason why we recommend FoneGeek iPhone Passcode Unlocker most. If your iPhone screen is broken and not responsive for hardware issues, you are best to take the device to official Apple store to have it repaired.