How to Fix Home Button Not Working on iPhone 8/7/6

iPhone 8 Home Button Not Working

Suddenly the home button doesn’t respond or work as a home button. Any help??? I’ve tried restarting the phone multiple times and I don’t know what else to do.

- Question from Reddit

Problem: Home Button Not Working iPhone 8/7/6

Have you also encountered the same problem as this user? When you press the home button, it does not work as before, or the response speed becomes slower. How frustrating!

Home button is a core button of the iPhone. Although it’s a single button, it has multiple functions, making your iPhone very convenient to use. You can put your finger on it to wake up the device, in addition to that, it also allows you to easily return to the home screen, quickly switch applications, summon Siri, and so on.

When iPhone home button not working, some functions of iPhone are challenging or impossible for you to use. But don’t be too worry, there are some quick fixes you can try to make your home button work again. Keep reading to learn more.

Why Is My Home Button Not Working?

Before we get to the solutions, let us first look at the possible causes of this problem. Knowing the cause of the problem will make it easier to solve the problem. In addition, you will also know how to prevent iPhone home button not working problems from happening again.

> General Wear and Tear

No matter how carefully you protect your iPhone, the home button may eventually not working due to normal wear and tear.

> Software Problems

When iPhone’s software becomes corrupted or overloaded, you may find that the home button does not respond properly as before.

> Hardware Problems

Physical or liquid damage will cause home button not working issue. Your iPhone gets wet; the home button is physically displaced, the connection cable between the home button and the logic board is damaged, etc.

How to Fix iPhone Home Button Not Working?

Here are some possible solutions that can help you fix the iPhone home button not working problem. Try them in turn to restore the feature on your device. Those methods work for every iPhone model that has a home button, including iPhone 8/8 Plus, iPhone 7/7 Plus, iPhone 6s/6s Plus, iPhone 6/6 Plus.

Tip 1. Software Workaround

Actually, in addition to the physical home button, Apple also provides an on-screen home button. It’s one hidden feature called Assistive Touch. When you find that the iPhone home button not working but you need to use it, you can turn on the Assistive Touch as a temporary solution.

Go to Settings app > Tap General > Tap Accessibility > Tap Assistive Touch > Turn on Assistive Touch. Then a small circle will appear on your iPhone screen. When you tap the circle, you will see several options like Home, Siri, Favorites, Device, etc. You can now use it for all your home button functions.

Tip 2. Calibrate Home Button

When iPhone home button not working because of a software glitch, you can try to calibrate your home button. It’s not clear why this method works but it indeed helps some users make the Home button more responsive than before.

1. Launch a stock app like Weather, Notes, Calendar.

2. Now press and hold the Power button until the Slide to power off screen appears.

3. Release the Power button and press the Home button for about 5-10 seconds.

4. Press the Home button until the Slide to power off screen appears and the app quits.

You can try a few more times to see if your home button works again. If it does not work for you, please move on to other methods.

Tip 3. Restore Your iPhone

Another way to fix software problems is to restore your iPhone. DFU is a deep restore that is comprehensive and used to solve difficult and serious problems. It will eliminate all faults in the software or firmware that caused the iPhone home button not working problem.

1. Before restoring your iPhone to troubleshoot the problem, let FoneTool help you backup your important data.

Compared to iTunes or iCloud, this backup tool provides more flexible backup options. It allows you to back up what you really want instead of all the data, helping you save time and storage space. Click the download button to get it and backup your iPhone in a few clicks.

2. Make sure you have installed the latest version of iTunes on computer > Plug in your iPhone and run iTunes.

3. Put your device in DFU Mode.

● For iPhone 6s/6s Plus

Press and hold the Power button and Home button together for 8-10 seconds > Release the Power button but continue to hold the Home button until your device appears in iTunes > Release the Home button.

● For iPhone 7/7 Plus

Press and hold the Power button and Volume Down button together for 8-10 seconds > Release the Power button but continue to hold the Volume Down button until your device appears in iTunes > Release the Home button.

● For iPhone 8/8 Plus

Quickly press and release the Volume Up button > Then quickly press and release the Volume Down button > Then press and hold the Side button until the screen goes black.

When the screen turns black, press and hold the Volume Down button while continuing to hold the Side button > After 5 seconds, release the Side button but continue to hold the Volume Down button until your device appears in iTunes.

Your iPhone screen display will be completely black if you have successfully entered DFU Mode. Try again if it’s not.

4. Follow the on-screen instructions to restore your device.

Tip 4. Realign the Docking Port

Because of normal wear and tear, the docking port may be misaligned, causing the home button to not be in the correct position. In this case, you can try to realign the docking port.

1. Plug in USB cable into your iPhone.

2. Gently press the 30-pin connector so that it reaches the back of the home button.

3. As you apply the pressure, click the home button a couple of times.

4. Unplug the USB cable and see if the problem is resolved.

Tip 5. Clean the Home Button

You can try to clean up the dust, dirt and small particles that enter the gap of the home button. But please be careful.

1. Using a cotton swab, eye dropper or paper towel, put 2-3 drops of isopropyl alcohol directly on the home button. Please avoid the screen.

2. Tap the home button with something so that the alcohol will seep into the frame.

3. Wait for about 10-15 minutes and see if this fixed the iPhone home button not working problem.

If none of the above methods work, you may need to go to the store to get the home button repaired. You can go to the nearest Apple Store to have them repair your Home button for free if your iPhone is less than a year. Or you can pay for a repair from Apple or from a third-party service provider.

Conclusion

No matter how careful you are about keeping your iPhone safe and sound, there is still a chance of your home button on iPhone not working eventually due to the effects of normal wear and tear. Hope one of the methods can help fix home button not working on iPhone 8/7/6.

If you cannot repair it by yourself, you may use the on-screen home button or pay for a repair. However, the repair can be expensive - maybe it's better to spend more to get a new device.