How to fix your iPhone when it has No Service

If your iPhone has no service, either because you see an error message or can’t make or receive phone calls, there are several potential problems. You may be experiencing service issues, such as a problem with the cellphone carrier’s service plan, a hardware issue with the phone, or a misconfigured setting.

Reasons Why Your iPhone Says ‘No Service’

There’s no single reason why an iPhone may report it has no service, so you need to troubleshoot the problem, trying the easiest and most likely solutions first.

Service interruptions may be caused by a simple setting change, such as Airplane Mode or carrier settings. In a few cases, the iPhone needs to have its cellular settings updated through a software update from your cellular service provider.

Less often, you need to reset or replace the phone’s SIM card. It’s also possible that there’s a problem with your cellular service plan.

How to fix your iPhone when it has No Service

Before changing any iPhone settings or performing more time-consuming troubleshooting tasks, some simple steps may quickly resolve the problem. If those don’t solve the problem, move on to more advanced potential fixes. In this tutorial, TheGhanaTech.com will be showing several ways to fix this issue.

Make sure the phone is not set to Airplane Mode

Airplane Mode disables cellular and Wi-Fi service. The phone is in Airplane Mode if you see an airplane icon in the upper-right corner of the iPhone screen, where the signal strength bars usually appear.

Toggle cellular data off and on again

Sometimes, especially when you are on the edge of a service area or you lost service and should be back in service, switching your cellular service off and then on again fixes the problem. Select Settings > Cellular and ensure Cellular Data is on. If it’s on, toggle it off and back on.

Restart the phone

Like toggling Airplane Mode, completely restarting the iPhone might wake your cellular service and return it to normal operation.

Check for a carrier settings update

Carriers occasionally release updates that affect the device’s ability to connect to the cellular network. It’s possible your service might be affected by a new update you installed on your iPhone.

Reset the network settings

The iPhone settings may have been corrupted in a way that prevents you from getting cellular service. Reset it back to the factory conditions.

Remove and replace the SIM card

It’s possible the SIM card is not working properly, either because it isn’t seated correctly or is damaged. Inspect it for damage and gently clean it by blowing on it or wiping it with a cotton swab or cloth, then replace it.