iPhone Swipe Up Not Working? Here’s What to Try

You must be very frustrated if your iPhone swipe-up feature doesn’t work or it lags because you might be unable to unlock your phone and use it without this function. Fortunately, there is a solution to this problem. In this article, we’ll discuss the various causes and walk you through some steps that can enable you to swipe up with ease.

What usually causes this issue

In many cases, your iPhone can become unresponsive when you’re trying to swipe up because of the following issues:

• The wrong settings
• Software problems
• Touch screen issues, including filth, broken screen, or a screen protector blocking it

Fixes recommended by users

Since your phone won’t swipe up, you’ll have to use Siri or assistive touch to perform some of the following steps and resolve the problem.

1. Restart the device

The easiest way is to force-restart your iPhone, which closes unresponsive apps running in the background and refreshes the phone.

• Press and quickly release the volume up button, and the volume down button
• Press and hold the side button until you see the Apple logo
• After your iPhone is restarted, try swiping up your screen again

2. Make sure it’s allowed on lock screen

If your Control Centre cannot work while on the lock screen, you could have a problem swiping.

• Open “Settings”
• Tap on “Face ID & Passcode”
• Enter your passcode on the prompt
• Scroll down to “Allow access on locked section”
• Tap “Control Center” to toggle it on

NOTE: If the other swipe gestures work, but you can’t swipe from the bottom to the top, try locking the screen by pressing the side button. Proceed to unlock the phone, and the swipe function should be working.

3. Let apps access Control Center

Another situation is the swipe-up function not working while you’re active on a specific app.

• Go to “Settings”
• Select “Control Centre”
• Enable “Access Within Apps”

4. Get the latest iOS update

Before you proceed to update your phone, make sure your Wi-Fi connection is fast. You cannot update via cellular hotspot or data.

• Open “Settings”
• Select “General”
• Choose “Software Update” (all updates available will be listed there)

NOTE: Ensure your battery charge is 50% or above and there is no active VPN connection. Also, check that you have 8GB or more of available storage space before proceeding with this fix.

5. Reset system settings

This fix will erase any changes you made that could cause the phone to stop swiping up.

• Open “Settings” and then select “General”
• Choose “Transfer or reset iPhone”
• Tap on the “Reset” button and then “Reset All Settings”
• Enter your passcode and confirm by clicking “Reset”
• Tap “Reset All Settings” on the prompt

6. Fully reset the phone

If you can’t swipe up after updating your iOS, consider a factory reset to remove all software glitches. Keep in mind that all your files will be deleted.

• From the home screen, tap “Settings”
• Find and select “General”
• Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and choose “Reset”
• Tap “Erase All Content and Settings”
• Select “Erase Now” on the pop-up
• Enter your passcode when prompted
• Tap “Erase iPhone” at the bottom of the screen

7. Use ReiBoot to repair the OS

You should consider fixing software issues first if you’ve updated to the latest iOS 16. We recommend using Tenorshare ReiBoot to run a quick test to find the cause of the problem and fix it without losing data.

• Download and install Tenorshare ReiBoot from Apple Store
• Connect your iPhone to the computer using a USB cable
• Click “Start” on Tenorshare ReiBoot
• Choose “Standard Repair” (which can protect your data)
• Wait as ReiBoot matches the latest program
• Click “Download” to download the firmware package
• When it’s done, check whether your phone is back to normal

8. Unplug any cables

Sometimes, an iPhone can hang when connected to another device through a USB cable. If your phone can’t swipe in this instance, do the following:

• Disconnect the USB cable from the other device
• Disconnect the USB cable from the iPhone
• Check whether you can now swipe up

9. Take off the screen protector

Aftermarket screen protectors might interfere with the swipe-up function, therefore:

• Carefully remove the screen protector
• Wipe any dirt traces using a wet microfiber cloth
• Check whether the phone can now swipe up

10. Turn off VoiceOver

This inbuilt feature describes aloud what appears on the computer when your iPhone is connected to it.

• Go to “Settings” > “General”
• Tap “Accessibility”
• Find “VoiceOver” and toggle the switch off

11. Remove case and plug in charger

After trying many of the above fixes without success, some users realize that the back cover of the phone is blocking the bottom pixels.

• Remove the back cover of the iPhone
• Plug in the charger
• Try swiping up again

12. Reconfigure gesture settings

You can reset the swipe-up feature by following the steps below:

• Go to “Settings”
• Select “Control Centre”
• Click “Customize Controls”
• Tap the “Remove” button to disable the feature

13. Delete the current lock screen wallpaper

If the swipe-up feature is working but lagging, it could be that the wallpaper setup is interfering with the function.

• Long press your “Lock Screen”
• Swipe up and select the “Lock Screen” you want to delete
• Tap the “Little bin” icon
• Check whether the lag has disappeared

14. Reinstall iOS from scratch

This fix will set up the iPhone as new, so don’t restore a backup because you might be restoring the glitch that caused your phone not to swipe up in the first place.

• Use a USB cable to connect your iPhone to a computer
• Launch the “iTunes” app
• Scroll down to “Devices” and click the name of your iPhone
• Click on “Summary”
• Click on the “Restore iPhone” button
• Click “Restore” on the dialog box that pops up
• Read the license agreement that appears and click “Agree”
• Wait as the iOS downloads and installs
• After the phone restarts, launch the “Setup Assistant” and toggle the “Slide to Set Up” bar
• Follow the instructions that appear to finish setting up your iPhone

NOTE: After trying all these fixes and you still can’t swipe up, take your iPhone to an Apple store near you for professional assistance.