How to Fix iOS 15 Performance Problems

As we push away from the latest iOS 15 firmware release we’re hearing about a variety of performance issues plaguing iPhone users.

While many iPhone users are having a great experience on Apple’s latest iOS 15 software, others are complaining about bugs and performance problems.

The current list of iOS 15 performance issues includes UI lag, freezes, lock ups, and random reboots. These are extremely common, particularly on aging iPhone models. Newer devices like the iPhone 13 series aren’t immune to performance problems though.

Performance issues can be difficult to fix. And while you might be able to fix them on your own, others may require a fix from Apple.

In some cases, you may need to contact Apple customer support or, in more extreme instances, bring your iPhone into an Apple Store.

If you can’t wait for a new version of iOS 15 and/or you don’t have time to get in touch with Apple support, we have some fixes that could help fix the issue(s) you’ve encountered on your phone.

Restart Your Phone

If you start noticing UI lag or another performance issue after install the latest version of iOS 15, try restarting it. Power it down, leave it off for a minute, and the turn it back on. This has resolved many issues for us in the past.

Update Your iPhone

Apple will occasionally push new iOS 15 software to your iPhone. The company might not call out performance fixes in an iOS 15 update’s change log, but new software always has the potential to help (or, in some cases, hurt) your iPhone’s overall performance.

For more on the latest version of iOS 15, take a look at our guide.

Update Your Apps

If you haven’t done so already, make sure you update your applications to the latest version.

App developers are currently rolling out support updates and they could help stabilize iOS 15’s performance on your iPhone.

Before you install the latest version of an app you’ll want to go into the App Store and read reviews from other iOS 15 users. If the reviews are mostly good, download the latest version.

Cleanup Your iPhone’s Storage

If you’ve had your iPhone for awhile you might have a ton of clutter taking up space on its internal storage. Deleting this clutter could help speed up your iPhone. This is especially true if you’re almost out of space.

To start, you’ll want to check and see how much space is free on your iPhone. Here’s how to do that:

• Head into Settings.
• Tap General.
• Tap iPhone Storage.

Apple will make some recommendations based on your utilization of your iPhone’s storage, but you can also just go through each section manually delete files you don’t need.

Stop Using Background App Refresh

Background App Refresh refreshes apps in the background to show you the latest data when you open them up. It also makes your phone work in the background. So, if you don’t need this, you might want to shut the feature off.

• Go into the Settings app.
• Tap General.
• Tap Background App Refresh.
• At the top of this screen tap Background App Refresh and toggle it off.

If you want to keep it on for some apps, leave it on and then go down your list of apps and manually turn it off for apps you don’t use.

Reset All Settings

If you’re still not getting the kind of performance you’d like out of your iPhone, try resetting your settings. Here’s how to do that on iOS 15:

• Go to Settings.
• Tap General.
• Tap Reset Transfer or Reset iPhone.
• Tap Reset.
• Tap Reset All Settings.
• Enter your passcode if you have one enabled.

This will restore your iPhone’s settings to their factory defaults so be sure you have your Wi-Fi passwords handy. You’ll need to re-enter them.

Downgrade iOS

If you can’t find a fix for your problem and/or don’t want to wait for Apple’s next iOS 15 update, you can try downgrading back to the previous version of iOS. Your downgrade options will change over time and sometimes downgrading won’t be available.

For more on the iOS downgrade process, take a look at our walkthrough.

Restore

If you can’t find a fix for your issue, and you want to avoid taking your iPhone into a store, you might want to restore your device. This should only be used as a last resort.

You can do this via Finder, iTunes, or iCloud.

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