The best thing to do if you’ve forgotten your passcode on iPhone, iPad or iPod then don’t worry because Apple has a way of recovering your device. You’ll need your device, a cable and a computer.

While the method is simple, you will need to have a backup of your device to get it back to normal. There’s simply no way around this if you don’t have the passcode unless Face ID is enabled.

All is not lost if you don’t have a backup saved, as you can still set up your device as new. This will be like you’ve just switched it on for the first time so you’ll need to reinstall all your apps and things like photos will be lost if they’re not in iCloud or other online storage.

Note that resetting your iPhone or iOS device will still require the original Apple ID and password – that’s the password for your Apple account, not the passcode to unlock it.

First, you’ll need to put your iPhone, iPad or iPod into recovery mode. We’ve got details on how to do that below – it varies depending on what model you have. For any product, make sure it’s not connected to a computer while you do this then jump to the step to recover it.

iPhone recovery mode - 1

Reset passcode on iPhone X or later, iPhone SE 2, iPhone 8/Plus

  1. Press and hold the Side button and either volume button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPhone.
  2. Connect your iPhone to your computer while holding the Side button. Continue holding the Side button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPhone (click to skip to instructions)

Reset passcode on iPhone 7/Plus

  1. Press and hold the Side button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPhone.
  2. Connect your iPhone to your computer while holding the Volume down button. Continue holding the Volume down button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPhone (click to skip to instructions)

Reset passcode on iPhone SE (1st-gen), iPhone 6S or earlier

  1. Press and hold the Side (or Top) button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPhone.
  2. Connect your iPhone to your computer while holding the Home button. Continue holding the Home button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPhone (click to skip to instructions)
iPad recovery mode - 2

Reset passcode on iPad with Face ID

  1. Press and hold the Top button and either volume button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPad.
  2. Connect your iPad to your computer while holding the Top button. Continue holding the Top button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPad (click to skip to instructions)

Reset passcode on iPad with Home button

  1. Press and hold the Top button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPad.
  2. Connect your iPad to your computer while holding the Home button. Continue holding the Home button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPad (click to skip to instructions)
iPod touch recovery mode - 3

Reset passcode on iPod touch (7th-gen)

  1. Press and hold the Top button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPod touch.
  2. Connect your iPod touch to your computer while holding the Volume down button. Continue holding the Volume down button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPod (click to skip to instructions)

Reset passcode on iPod touch (6th-gen)

  1. Press and hold the Top button until the power off slider appears. Drag the slider to turn off your iPod touch.
  2. Connect your iPod touch to your computer while holding the Home button. Continue holding the Home button until you see the recovery mode screen.
  3. Now restore your iPod (instructions below)
iPhone recovery mode - 4

Restore your iPhone, iPad or iPod

There are only a few steps to get it reset, solving your forgotten passcode problem.

  1. Connect your device to your computer with the supplied cable
  2. Open Finder and click on your device under ‘locations’
  3. A message will appear saying “There is a problem with the iPhone that requires it to be updated or restored”
  4. Click the Restore option and wait for the device to be reset
  5. Now set up the device with your backup

Author: Chris Martin, Managing Editor, Tech Advisor

How to reset passcode on iPhone, iPad or iPod - 5

Tech Advisor Managing Editor Chris got his break as a reporter at infamous site The Inquirer and has been with us for more than 12 years. With a BA degree in Music Technology, audio is his specialism, but over the years he has reviewed all kinds of gadgets, from smartwatches to mesh Wi-Fi to coffee machines.

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