If your iPhone feels slow, laggy, or unresponsive, don’t worry. Over time, any device can become sluggish due to storage usage, background processes, and outdated settings. The good news is that there are some simple ways to improve your iPhone’s performance.
iPhones slow down as they age. This problem is often caused by a large number of junk files and insufficient free space, as well as outdated software and unnecessary background processes. So before you buy an expensive new device, it’s worth doing your best to fix those problems.
Can you speed up your iPhone? Yes. There’s a solution for whatever is causing your phone to slow down. And in this article, we’ll show you how to speed it up again.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to speed up your iPhone using easy and effective methods.
Restart your iPhone regularly
One of the simplest ways to improve performance is to restart your device. Restarting clears out temporary memory and stops unnecessary background processes.
Try restarting your iPhone at least once a week to keep it running smoothly.
Smarter charging settings
Path: Settings > Battery > Charging
Set: Charge limit to 90%
Consider disabling: Clean Energy Charging and Optimized Battery Charging (if they cause strange charging behavior)
Reason: Keeping your battery at 100% all the time can accelerate aging. A 90% limit can extend battery health.
Free up storage space
Low storage is a major cause of slow performance. When your iPhone’s storage is almost full, it struggles to run apps efficiently.
To check storage:
Go to Settings → General → iPhone Storage
Delete unused apps, old photos, and large videos to free up space.
Disable Background App Refresh
Apps running in the background can slow down your iPhone and drain your battery.
To turn it off:
Go to Settings → General → Background App Refresh
Turn it off for unnecessary apps or turn it off completely.
Reduce Motion Effects
Animations and visual effects can make your iPhone feel sluggish, especially on older devices.
To reduce motion:
Settings → Accessibility → Motion → Reduce Motion
This makes transitions faster and smoother.
Clear Safari Data
If your browser is feeling sluggish, clearing the Safari cache can help improve performance.
To do this:
Settings → Safari → Clear History and Website Data
This removes stored data that can slow down browsing.
Update to the latest iOS version
Apple regularly releases updates that improve performance and fix bugs.
To update:
Go to Settings → General → Software Update
For the best experience, always keep your iPhone up to date.
As of this writing, Apple’s current operating system for the iPhone is iOS 26. There are periodic small ‘point’ updates (iOS 26.0.1, iOS 26.1, etc.), and the next major new version (iOS 27) will arrive here in September 2026.
If you haven’t got the latest version of iOS, no matter what by the time you read this, you may want to update. You can check by opening the Settings app on your iPhone and going to General > Software Update. This screen will let you know if there’s an update waiting to be installed and will walk you through the installation process. For more information, check out our complete guide to updating iOS. You may find that you can’t run the latest version of iOS, but at least install the latest version on your iPhone.
Apple should fix this by only allowing iPhones that can handle an update to install it: you can find the list of supported devices for each version of iOS in our iOS Compatibility Checker. The most cautious approach would be to only install an annual update if your iPhone is comfortably within the compatibility zone. For example, iOS 26 is supported by the iPhone 11 and later, but that doesn’t mean the iPhone 11 will offer optimal performance. If you don’t have an iPhone 12 or later, it’s probably safer to stick with the previous version (iOS 18; there was a change in the numbering system!).
Updating to the latest version of iOS often fixes problems on your iPhone, as it provides access to the latest patches and fixes for known issues. For this reason, it’s always a good idea to install the latest point update. If you’re using iOS 26.1 and have iOS 26.1.1, get it. It can speed up your iPhone a bit and is much less likely to slow it down.
Big updates (iOS 27, iOS 28, etc.) are a more complicated case. They don’t just add patches; they also add visual tweaks and new features, all of which are designed for the latest hardware and can be overwhelming for older models. They can also take up a lot of space on your device, which is another issue we’ll discuss later in this article. You may experience slowdowns for the first few days after a big update while Spotlight re-indexes your iPhone, so if it’s working for you now, that’s probably the cause.
Turn off unnecessary widgets
Widgets on your home screen can consume too many resources.
Remove widgets that you don’t use to keep your device fast and clean.
Restore to Factory Settings
Now we’re getting to the hard part. We’re going to perform a full restore, which will erase all your data on your iPhone and return it to the state it was in when you bought it. (Except for the fact that the hardware components are still suffering from years of wear and tear.)
Since we’re going to erase all of your data, you’ll first want to back up your iPhone. You can then restore your iPhone to its factory settings by opening Settings and going to General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings. You’ll then need to enter your passcode and confirm.
After a few minutes, you’ll be presented with the welcome screen you saw when you first started your iPhone. You can now restore from the backup you made and see if the speed issues are gone. If they persist, something on your phone that you reintroduced is likely causing the problem, so as a last resort, erase everything again and set it up from scratch instead of using the backup this time.
Turn off automatic downloads
Automatic app and update downloads can run in the background and affect performance.
To disable:
Go to Settings → App Store → Automatic Downloads
Turn off unnecessary options.
Check Battery Health
A low battery can affect performance. iOS can slow down your device to prevent unexpected shutdowns.
To check battery health:
Go to Settings → Battery → Battery Health
If your battery health is low, consider replacing it.
Final Thoughts
It doesn’t take advanced tech skills to improve your iPhone’s performance. By freeing up storage, reducing background activity, and adjusting system settings, you can make your device faster and smoother.
These simple changes can significantly improve your daily experience and help your iPhone perform like new again.