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How to Unlock iPhone without Passcode or Face ID [Updated]

If you forget your iPhone passcode or your Face ID doesn't work anymore, don't panic, keep reading and try the methods in this post to unlock your iPhone without your passcode or Face ID.

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Alice Estelle
Updated on Oct 14, 2024

You can unlock an iPhone without passcode and Face ID by factory resetting it.

Since iPhone X, Apple users can add a Face ID to unlock iPhone after setting a lock screen passcode. It's really more convenient to unlock and authenticate iPhone by recognizing user's facial features. But when you forget the iPhone passcode and Face ID doesn't work, how to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID is the problem you have to solve.

Don't panic, when you can't unlock an iPhone with a passcode or Face ID and get yourself locked out of the iPhone, this post will take you through the ways to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID, letting you regain access to the important iPhone's data and content.

For tech-novices, there's no better way to save time and hassle than using iPhone Unlocker to quickly unlock your iPhone without passcode and Face ID in a few steps. Let's get started.

Table of Contents

Can I unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID without data loss?

Mostly, unlocking iPhone without passcode requires erasing all data and settings, including photos, videos, contacts, messages, etc., resetting iPhone to factory settings. Then during the process of setting up iPhone, you can restore your erased data from the backup if you have created a backup before.

Luckily, with the upgrade of iOS, it becomes possible to unlock the iPhone without a passcode or Face ID without losing data. When the iPhone is updated to iOS 17 or later, you will get a new feature called Passcode Reset, which allows you to use your old passcode to re-access iPhone without losing your data once you forget the new password.

But it only works if you change your passcode within 72 hours, then you can unlock iPhone using the previous passcode and you need to set a new lock screen passcode immediately.

For iPhone running iOS 17 or above, if you have changed iPhone passcode within 72 hours and remember the previous one, you can use Passcode Reset to unlock iPhone passcode without Face ID and losing data:

1. Repeatedly enter incorrect passcodes on your lock screen until the iPhone Unavailable or Security Lockout screen appears with a Forgot Passcode? option in the lower right corner.

2. Tap Forgot Passcode? to use the Passcode Reset feature.

3. Select Enter Previous Passcode to go on.

4. Enter your old passcode to access the iPhone and create a new passcode once more.

How to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID (recommended)

As a reliable and professional solution for iPhone/iPad passcode problems, iPhone Unlocker can unlock your iPhone lock screen passcode or Face ID without Apple ID, allowing you to get back into your iPhone. And the whole unlocking process is simple and fast, easily bypassing all kinds of iPhone passcodes, Screen Time passcode, activation lock and Apple ID password. Besides that, it's highly secure and won't leak your private information!

Win Download Mac Download

Key features:

  • Remove 4-digit / 6-digit screen passcode, Face ID or Touch ID, Screen Time passcode on iPhone/iPad.
  • Bypass iPhone passcode without Apple ID or iTunes.
  • Support iPhone 16/15/14/13/12/11 and latest iOS.
  • User-friendly interface and easy to use.

Step 1. Choose Wipe Passcode.

Download and install iPhone Unlocker on your desktop, then launch it and select "Wipe Passcode" from the menu.

Step 2. Make connection between the iPhone and software.

Plug your iPhone into the computer through a compatible cable and make it enter recovery mode following the tutorial in the "Device connected but not recognized" link.

Step 3. Check the iPhone information and download the firmware package.

After the iPhone is detected, check if the displayed information is correct, and then click "Start." It will automatically download the iOS firmware package for your iPhone.

Step 4. Unlock your iPhone without passcode or Face ID.

Once the download is complete, type in "0000" and then click the "Unlock" button to factory reset your iPhone

After unlocking, your iPhone will restart with the Hello screen. You can get into the iPhone without verifying the passcode or Face ID and choose to restore iPhone from the backup.

A video tutorial for you to unlock an iPhone without passcode or Face ID:

How to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID or computer

If you don't have a computer or lack a suitable cable to connect iPhone to computer, here's how you can unlock your unavailable iPhone without passcode or Face ID or computer.

Forgot Passcode? / Erase iPhone

For users using iOS 15.2 to iOS 16, when your iPhone shows iPhone Unavailable or Security Lockout, an Erase iPhone option will appear. And for iPhones upgraded to iOS 17 or later, this option will become Forgot Passcode?. These two built-in options on the iPhone allow you to use the Apple ID password to remove the iPhone passcode and Face ID without a computer.

Note: This method has requirements for the iOS version, and your iPhone must be connected to a cellular or Wi-Fi network, otherwise, you will not trigger these two options.

Here's how to unlock an iPhone without a passcode or Face ID or computer via Forgot Passcode?(iOS 17)

1. Tap the Forgot Passcode? option in the bottom right corner of your lock screen.

2. Choose Start iPhone Reset on the next screen.

3. Enter your Apple ID password to sign out of your Apple account.

4. Tap Erase iPhone to reset your device without computer.

Tips:

  • If you see the Erase iPhone option, tap the Erase iPhone option twice and then enter the password for Apple ID.
  • Depending on how you previously set up your iPhone, a self-erasing setting will let you restore your iPhone to its default settings automatically after ten incorrect passcode attempts.

Find My app

Although the Find My app is primarily designed to help users find and locate their Apple devices and belongings, it can also remotely wipe all data on a device. To do this, you need an additional iPhone or iPad that uses the same Apple ID as the locked iPhone:

1. Open Find My app and tap Devices at the bottom of the screen.

2. Choose the iPhone that is unavailable.

3. Tap Erase This Device and follow the prompts to confirm the erase.

How to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID via recovery mode

Using recovery mode is one of the traditional ways to fix your forgotten iPhone passcode. You can unlock your iPhone without using passcode or Face ID by putting your iPhone into recovery mode with the help of iTunes or Finder. But the disadvantage of this method is that it takes a long time, even up to an hour.

Step 1. Connect iPhone with computer and run iTunes/Finder.

Connect your iPhone to your Mac or PC with a USB charging cable. If you have a Mac running macOS Catalina or newer, open a Finder window. If you have a Windows PC or Mac running macOS Mojave or older, open the latest version of iTunes.

Step 2. Make your iPhone enter recovery mode.

  • For iPhone 8 or newer models: quickly press the Volume Up button, then the Volume Down button, and then press and hold the Side button until the recovery mode screen appears.
  • For iPhone 7 series: long press the Side button and the Volume Down button together until the recovery mode screen appears.
  • For iPhone 6s or earlier: press and hold the Power button and Home button at the same time until the recovery mode screen appears.

Step 3. Locate your iPhone in iTunes or Finder.

In Finder, find your iPhone from the left menu. In iTunes, click the iPhone icon in the upper left corner and navigate to the Summary tab. If necessary, make sure you trust your Mac/PC.

Step 4. Restore your iPhone.

When you see a pop-up window asking whether to Update or Restore, select Restore. If there is no pop-up window in iTunes, manually select Restore iPhone > Restore.

Step 5. Set up your iPhone.

Once you see the Hello screen, disconnect and set up your iPhone like a new one. When you follow the instructions and reach the Transfer Your Apps & Data screen, choose to get back your existing data from iCloud or computer based on the available backups you created previously. If you don't have a backup, skip this step and continue with the rest of the steps.

Note: If the iPhone exits recovery mode because the restore time is too long, follow step 2 to start over.

How to unlock iPhone without Face ID or passcode via iCloud

If your iPhone passcode and face ID fail to unlock your iPhone, you can also restore your iPhone to outgoing settings through the iCloud official website, giving you access to your iPhone again without a passcode or Face ID.

But to use this method, you must have enabled Find My before the iPhone became unavailable and you have an Internet connection. If you have, try this method.

1. Use your Apple ID credentials to visit iCloud.com on a browser.

2. Select Find My and click All Devices at the top of the map.

3. Select the iPhone you want to erase from the list of devices associated with your Apple ID.

4. Click on Erase This Device.

5. Select Erase and follow the onscreen instructions.

Bonus: How to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID with calculator

There are several popular tricks on TikTok to bypass iPhone passcode and Face ID without computer, such as using calculator and Siri. But actually these tricks are not effective to help you unlock the disabled iPhone without needing passcode or Face ID, its success rate is extremely low. But if you are still curious and want to try it, here are the steps to unlock the iPhone without Face ID or passcode via calculator:

  • Swipe down the iPhone screen to access the Control Center.
  • Turn on Airplane mode and disable Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and cellular data.
  • Open the calculator and turn iPhone sideways to enter Scientific Calculator mode.
  • Tap IN and Rand and then swipe up your screen to unlock the iPhone.

Final thoughts

Unlocking iPhone by facial recognition does save a lot of time, but when Face ID is malfunctioning and you don't remember the lock screen password, the methods listed in this post can save you. Besides, remember to enable iPhone automatic backup or manually backup your data regularly, so that even if you want to unlock your locked iPhone without Face ID or passcode, you don't have to worry about losing your data and hesitate about which method to choose.

FAQs

Can I unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID with calculator?
Maybe you would have seen on TikTok that people use calculator to unlock their iPhones without password and Face ID. But the fact is that this method doesn't work. It may work on Android phones but not on iOS devices.
How to unlock iPhone without passcode or Face ID without losing data?
If you use iPhone with iOS 17 or later, Passcode Reset will enable you to unlock your iPhone passcode or Face ID without losing your existing data. After you've entered the wrong passcode several times, you'll see the Forgot Passcode? option on the lock screen, which lets you use your old passcode to reset passcode on the device without the need for a computer.
Remember, this is the only practical way to remove your iPhone passcode without restoring it, all other bypass the iPhone lock screen without password will factory reset your device!
Can someone unlock Face ID with a photo?
Don't worry, people can't unlock your iPhone with just a photo. Because iPhone's face ID technology is designed to capture your facial features and then map them in three dimensions, which helps to secure the data on your iPhone. A 2D photo can't match this in-depth information and can't fool Apple's security system.
About Alice Estelle
Alice Estelle has been a newspaper editor and a book editor with extensive writing experience. She also has deep research in the field of mobile software and is keen on exploring and solving various problems of iOS and Android systems.
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