iPhone XS Stuck on Black Screen After iOS Update? Here’s How to Fix It

If your iPhone XS suddenly went black and became unresponsive after updating to iOS 13 (or any version), you’re not alone. This is a frustrating issue, but in most cases, it’s caused by a software glitch—not a dead phone. Here’s how you can bring it back to life.

Force Restart Your iPhone

This is the first and easiest thing to try. A force restart helps clear out minor system glitches that might’ve frozen the screen.

Here’s how to do it:

Quickly press and release the Volume Up button.
Quickly press and release the Volume Down button.
Press and hold the Side button until you see the Apple logo.

If your iPhone boots up normally after this, awesome! Now go ahead and update your apps, just in case one of them caused the problem.

To update all apps:

Open the App Store.
Tap your profile icon in the top right.
Scroll down to the Available Updates section.
Tap Update All.

After that, restart your phone again to clear cache and refresh the system.

Plug It In — It Might Be Out of Battery

If your iPhone won’t force restart, it might be completely drained.

Here’s what to do:

Plug your iPhone into a wall charger using the original or a certified cable.
Leave it charging for at least 30 minutes.
While it’s charging, try the force restart steps again.

No response? Try a different charger and cable, just to rule out a faulty accessory.

Use Recovery Mode to Restore iOS

If your iPhone still won’t boot, it may be stuck in a system crash loop. Recovery Mode lets you reinstall iOS via iTunes or Finder without wiping everything.

You’ll need:

A Mac or PC with the latest version of iTunes (or Finder on macOS Catalina and later).
A Lightning cable.

Steps:

Connect your iPhone to the computer.
Quickly press and release Volume Up, then Volume Down.
Press and hold the Side button until the Recovery Mode screen appears (a cable pointing to a laptop).
On your computer, choose Update (not Restore) when prompted.

This will attempt to reinstall iOS without erasing your data. If it doesn’t work, repeat the steps but choose Restore to do a clean wipe and reinstall.

Try a DFU Restore (Advanced)

If Recovery Mode fails, DFU (Device Firmware Update) mode is your last resort before visiting Apple. This bypasses the standard bootloader and allows full firmware restoration.

⚠️ Don’t use this if your phone has water damage or physical trauma—it might get stuck permanently.

Here’s how:

Connect your iPhone to your computer and open iTunes or Finder.
Press and release Volume Up, then Volume Down.
Hold the Side button until the screen goes black.
Then press and hold the Volume Down button while still holding the Side button.
After 5 seconds, release the Side button but keep holding Volume Down.
If the screen stays black and iTunes/Finder detects a device in recovery, you’re in DFU mode.

Follow the on-screen steps to Restore your device.

To exit DFU mode without restoring, just force restart the phone.

Still Stuck? Try an iOS Repair Tool

There are third-party iOS system recovery tools like ReiBoot, iMyFone Fixppo, or Dr.Fone Repair. These are designed to fix black screen and boot loop issues without data loss.

Just be sure to:

Use only reputable tools.
Check that the software supports iPhone XS and your version of iOS.
Follow the software instructions carefully.

Visit an Apple Service Center

If nothing else works, it might be a hardware issue—especially if your phone was dropped or got wet. In that case, take your iPhone to the nearest Apple Store or authorized repair center for a professional diagnosis.