How to Restore iPhone with iTunes?

Restoring your iPhone with iTunes (or Finder on Mac / Apple Devices app on Windows) wipes the device and reinstalls iOS. Use this when your iPhone has serious issues or you want a clean start.

Before You Start:

✔ Back up your iPhone (Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup, or connect to a computer and back up).

✔ Disable Find My iPhone: Settings > [Your Name] > Find My > Find My iPhone → toggle Off.

✔ On Mac: use Finder (macOS Catalina or later) or iTunes (macOS Mojave or earlier).

✔ On Windows: use the Apple Devices app or iTunes.

Steps to Restore iPhone:

Connect your iPhone to your computer with a USB cable.
Open Finder, Apple Devices, or iTunes.
Locate and select your iPhone when it appears.
If prompted, tap Trust on your iPhone.
Click Restore iPhone… in the General tab.
Click Restore again to confirm. (This will erase all data and reinstall iOS.)
Wait for the process to finish. Your iPhone will restart.
Set up your iPhone as new, or restore from a backup.

Restore from Backup After Restoring:

Finder/iTunes backup: After the iPhone restarts, connect it again and click "Restore Backup" in Finder or iTunes.
iCloud backup: During setup, choose Restore from iCloud Backup and sign in.

When to Use This Method:

✔ iPhone is completely frozen or unresponsive

✔ You forgot your passcode

✔ Preparing to sell or give away your iPhone

✓ Avoid if you haven't backed up recently — all data will be lost

🤔 Protip:

Before restoring, use Dr.Fone - System Repair (iOS) Standard Mode to try fixing the issue without data loss. If restore is unavoidable, use Dr.Fone - Data Recovery (iOS) to selectively retrieve contacts, photos, and messages from your iTunes or iCloud backup.