After updating my iPhone, my Face ID suddenly stopped working. I’ve tried a few basic troubleshooting steps, but nothing seems to help. Has anyone else run into this with a new iOS update? Looking for proven solutions or tips on how to get Face ID working again. Any advice would be appreciated.
Face ID Busted After iOS Update? Here’s What Actually Fixed Mine
Alright, so I wake up one morning after doing that “totally necessary” iOS update, and bam—Face ID just calls it quits. No joke, my iPhone stared at me like I was a total stranger. If you’re in this boat, let’s get you rowing again. Here’s how I got Face ID to work, with all the gory details and straight talk. Also: official sources are linked for anyone who likes receipts.
Step 1: Check for Updates (Yeah, Again)
Before you panic, check if there’s another update. Sometimes Apple drops a quick fix right after enough people start yelling.
- Open Settings
- Tap General > Software Update
- Install if you see one (might be the magic bullet).
More on Apple’s update game here: Apple: About iOS Updates
Step 2: Simple Restart—Don’t Roll Your Eyes
Look, you’ve heard it before. But sometimes, the classic “turn it off and on again” is what finally works.
- Press and hold the side and volume up buttons together until you see the power-off slider.
- Drag it, wait for 30 seconds, and turn the phone back on.
Seriously, this fixed it for some people. Worth a shot.
Step 3: Make Sure Your Face ID Sensors Aren’t Dirty
Had to throw this in because—lol—I found out my selfie lens was basically a fingerprint museum.
- Quick clean: Use a microfiber cloth to wipe the area up top (where the Face ID sensors live).
- Don’t go in with water or harsh stuff; keep it gentle.
If you want the science: Wikipedia - Face ID Technology
Step 4: Double-Check Your Settings
No one wants to admit they might’ve toggled something by accident.
- Go to Settings
- Hit Face ID & Passcode
- Make sure Face ID is set up for what you want (Unlock iPhone/Apple Pay/Apps).
- Might as well tap Reset Face ID here—sometimes the update scrambles stuff.
Apple’s own guide if you need a hand: Apple: If Face ID Isn’t Working
Step 5: Hard Reset? Yeah, Kinda Old School
If a regular reboot did nothing, try the “force restart.”
- Quickly press & release Volume Up
- Quickly press & release Volume Down
- Hold down the Side button until the Apple logo flashes
Step 6: Restore iPhone (Use Carefully)
This is where you back stuff up first, because it’ll erase your life.
- Backup to iCloud: Apple: Back Up iPhone
- Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone
- Select Erase All Content and Settings
- Set up your iPhone as new and check if Face ID’s alive again before restoring your backup
When All Else Fails: Apple Support Is Your Last Boss
Tried all the above and still nothing? Could be hardware—like that time my buddy dropped his phone face-down on concrete, Face ID was never the same.
- Book a support appointment: Apple Support
- Sometimes they’ll fix it, sometimes they’ll just shrug and hand you a replacement (if warranty’s friendly).
TL;DR Fix List:
- Check for iOS updates
- Restart (regular or hard)
- Clean those sensors
- Reset Face ID in settings
- Nuke and pave (factory reset)
- Hit up Apple Support
Pick your poison, and good luck. If you find a voodoo trick that works, drop it in the comments—future Face ID survivors salute you.
12 Likes
Honestly, after reading @mikeappsreviewer’s Face ID saga (solid tips there, even if a few are a bit melodramatic), I’ve got to say: not every Face ID fail after an update is a dirty sensor or missed reboot. Apple’s updates sometimes straight up break stuff behind the scenes—seen it a couple times since iOS 13. My last round, even after all the usual song and dance—resets, cleaning, toggling Face ID off/on—the trick was letting my battery run dead overnight, then fully charging and booting up. Super random, but Face ID suddenly woke up. Maybe just a weird state the Secure Enclave gets stuck in? Who knows, but it worked for me.
Also, be super careful about the “restore as new” solution—yeah, it wipes your phone, but sometimes the issue comes back after restoring your backup. I say, if you go nuclear with a full restore, test Face ID BEFORE you restore from backup. Annoying, but at least you know if it’s software or your actual face/phone hardware.
Oh, and one curveball: if you use Screen Time/Restrictions, double-check those. I’ve seen Face ID break when weird content restrictions or time limits get set post-update.
If it’s still busted after all that? Then yeah, book it to Apple and let them poke around. But hey, sometimes waiting a week solves it too, since emergency patches drop without much fanfare.
Curious: anyone else get Face ID resurrected by just… waiting it out? Or is that just my ‘haunted’ iPhone?
All this talk about sensor cleaning, restarts, and wild urban legends like letting your phone die and revive itself overnight… look, Face ID after updates is like playing Russian roulette with your convenience. True story: my Face ID totally ghosted me post-update last year. Tried most of the standard checklist (rebooted, toggled Face ID, reset settings, cursed a little), but none of it really fixed things long-term. I don’t buy that every problem is just “clean the sensor” territory, especially when the timing matches an update—seems more like Apple loves breaking stuff so you remember how “innovative” their updates are.
Here’s what actually made the difference for me, which I haven’t seen covered above: I hopped into Accessibility Settings (Settings > Accessibility > Face ID & Attention) and toggled OFF and then back ON both the “Require Attention” for Face ID and Attention Aware Features. Somehow, flipping those switches forced the TrueDepth camera to recalibrate—Face ID started working immediately. Evidentally, update process sometimes messes with attention settings, and the sensors don’t re-initialize unless you cycle these options.
Also—and this gets ignored—sometimes there’s a stuck background process post-update. If you have a dev account or know how to connect via Xcode, check for any Face ID authorization errors in the logs. Once, simply quitting every app (like, kill ‘em all from the app switcher) and leaving the phone alone for 5-10 minutes cleared something weird out.
I’ll also push back a little on the “restore and wipe” nuclear option. Unless Face ID is ruined for every user profile (have you even tried adding a new Face ID without wiping?), chances are it’s some weird user permission issue, not core hardware/software corruption.
Bottom line: Apple’s updates don’t always play nice with legacy user settings, especially with older devices, and most “fixes” you see are overkill—or flat out don’t work for the real root cause. Tweak the attention awareness, close all your apps, maybe create a new Face ID user profile before you bomb your phone with a restore. If you still get nothing, then yeah, time for hardware help—assuming you can stand the Genius Bar maze.
Curious if anyone else has luck cycling those attention settings specifically? Or is this just another one-off quirk in iOS purgatory…
Face ID borked post-update? Join the club. Right off the bat, I side-eye the standard “just restart” or “scrub your selfie cam” mantras—tried those, nothing. Apple’s OS updates have an uncanny ability to mess with TrueDepth, often on devices with a few years under their belt.
Let’s talk about something I rarely see covered: network and device trust. After an update, sometimes privacy protocols get twitchy. Go into Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings—not the scary full erase, just the network bit. This refreshes internal device registries Face ID occasionally pings (call it “digital mouthwash”). Downside: you’ll have to re-enter WiFi passwords and so on.
Another angle: test Face ID inside third-party apps (e.g., a banking app or password vault). If those apps recognize your face but the lock screen doesn’t, it hints at a permissions glitch rather than hardware doom. In that case, clearing the Face ID slots and re-registering helps more often than Apple admits, especially without a wipe.
Where I break from @mikeappsreviewer—“nuke and pave” approach tends to be major overkill unless everything else failed, and sometimes introduces new iCloud sync problems or forgotten 2FA headaches. And while @waldgeist brings up the golden “accessibility settings flip,” not everyone finds joy with the toggle-dance—depends on iOS build and device age, YMMV.
What about pros & cons of going through all this?
Pros:
- Sometimes (maybe 1 in 5?) resets and toggles honestly just “unstick” Face ID
- Network reset targets under-the-hood update bugs without blowing up your whole setup
- Re-registering Face ID avoids more radical wipes and preserve your settings
Cons:
- Re-entering WiFi and Bluetooth settings is a pain
- Backup and restore is time-consuming and sometimes overkill
- Diagnosis is usually “try everything but don’t expect miracles if hardware glitched”
I’d honestly try alternate biometric app-testing next, and if nothing gives, push for a hardware scan at Apple Support. Some modules just get fried in the update process (especially if the phone was already running hot). @jeff was spot on: cycling Face ID profiles before resetting entire phone is often your best shot. If Apple’s built-in voodoo fails, sometimes it’s just time for Genius Bar roulette. Good luck rejoining the living—post back if you find a fresh angle!