How to Fix iPhone Stuck in Headphone Mode

Sometimes your iPhone can get stuck in headphone mode even after you have disconnected the actual headphones. This guide tells why your iPhone is stuck in headphone mode and what you can do to get your phone out of it.

Author Avatar Joy Taylor Last Updated: Jun. 28, 2021

Apple products are usually considered to be stable products that hardly get any issues. However, there is one issue you could face with your iPhone. It is an issue where your iPhone gets stuck in the headphone mode. Your iPhone thinks your headphones are still connected to your device and it routes all your audio to it.

As a result, whatever calls or music files you play on your iPhone, you will hear nothing as all the audio is routed to your headphones, which in fact are not connected to your device at all. There are a few ways to fix the issue where the iPhone says headphones are plugged-in but that is not the case. This guide discusses the reasons why you face this issue and how you can resolve it.

Why is My iPhone Stuck in Headphone Mode?

One of the reasons why your iPhone is stuck in headphone mode is because there is an issue with the software of your device. There may be a glitch somewhere in the software that is causing your iPhone to think your headphones are connected to it.

Another possible reason could be that your headphone port is full of debris or dust and this is making your iPhone believe your headphones are connected to it.

Now that you are aware of the possible reasons why your iPhone could get stuck in the headphone mode, the following are some of the fixes you can apply to get rid of the issue from your iPhone.

Connect and Disconnect Your Headphones

One of the basic things you can do to fix the issue is to connect your headphones to your iPhone and then quickly disconnect them.

When you connect your headphones, your iPhone will remain in the headphone mode. However, when you disconnect your headphones, you will find that your iPhone now gets out of the headphone mode. This should fix the issue for you.

Toggle the Airplane Mode on Your iPhone

Another thing you can do is to enable the airplane mode and then disable it. This should work to fix an iPhone that is stuck in the headphone mode.

Step 1. Swipe up from the bottom of your iPhone to open Control Center.

Step 2. Tap on the icon for airplane mode and the mode will be activated.

Enable Airplane Mode on Your iPhone

Enable Airplane Mode on Your iPhone

Step 3. Wait for about a minute and then disable the airplane mode.

You will find your iPhone is no longer stuck in headphone mode.

Restart Your iPhone

Restarting your iPhone can fix many minor issues on it and this is pretty easy to do. Most likely, this should fix the issue for you as rebooting the iPhone refreshes all the audio sources on it.

Step 1. Press the Power button for a few seconds on your iPhone.

Step 2. Drag the slider to turn off your iPhone.

Reboot Your iPhone

Reboot Your iPhone

Step 3. Press the Power button again for a few seconds and your iPhone will turn on.

The headphone mode issue should now be resolved on your device.

Clean the Headphone Port to Get Rid of Dust

If your headphone port has not been cleaned for a long time, it is time you clean it as the debris inside may be causing your iPhone to believe your headphones are connected to it.

Get a clean cloth and use it to gently wipe the headphone port on your iPhone.

Remove Your iPhone Case

Some of the third-party iPhone cases are not fully compatible with the iPhone. You may want to try removing your case and then see if your iPhone is still in headphone mode.

Remove the Case from Your iPhone

Remove the Case from Your iPhone

If yours is a cheap case and removing it brings your iPhone out of headphone mode, you need to get rid of that case and get a new and compatible one for your device.

Fix iPhone Stuck in Headphone Mode with A Few Clicks

If the mentioned methods fail to work, don’t feel upset. AnyFix—iOS System Recovery is here to help you get out of iPhone stuck in headphone mode with simple clicks. With the help of AnyFix, you don’t need to worry about iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/iTunes issues. AnyFix can provide iOS users with the most effective solutions to address fix  more than 130 system issues for iPhone/iPad/iPod touch/Apple TV issues and more than 200 iTunes errors with no data loss and no data required. You are available to access the tool by clicking the following links. After that, you can follow the detailed steps to fix iPhone stuck in headphone mode issue in a few minutes.

Free Download

Free Download

* 100% Clean & Safe

Free Download * 100% Clean & Safe

Step 1. Download and install AnyFix on your computer. Select System Repair mode to help you address iPhone related issues.

Tap on System Repair

Tap on System Repair

Step 2. Connect your iPhone to the computer and tap on 50+ iPhone Problems under the interface of System Repair. You can find that the common iPhone issues is listed on the right side. Then click Start Now to repair your iPhone problem.

Choose iPhone Problems and Click on Start Now

Choose iPhone Problems and Click on Start Now

Step 3. Then you will see three repair modes. Choose one mode to get your iPhone repaired.

Choose Standard Repair

Choose Standard Repair

Step 4. Then AnyFix will check your iPhone model and download firmware in accordance with your model.

Download the Firmware

Download the Firmware

Step 5. Once the firmware is prepared, you can click Fix Now to get your iPhone out of the dilemma. Then this tool will automatically start repairing as bellow.

Repairing the System

Repairing the System

Step 6. Take a few minutes, you will see the following Completed Page.

System Repair Completed

System Repair Completed

Connect to a Bluetooth Speaker

There is a workaround where connecting to a Bluetooth speaker helps fix an iPhone that is stuck in headphone mode. You will need a Bluetooth speaker to do this method.

Step 1. Go to Settings > Bluetooth and connect to your Bluetooth speaker.

Turn on Bluetooth from Settings

Turn on Bluetooth from Settings

Step 2. Play a music file on your iPhone and let the audio come through your Bluetooth speaker.

Step 3. While the music is still playing, disable Bluetooth on your iPhone.

Your iPhone will then come out of headphone mode and your issue should be fixed.

Reset Your iPhone Settings

Lastly, you can reset all settings on your iPhone to fix the headphone mode issue. This will then require you to reconfigure the settings on your iPhone.

Step 1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.

Step 2. Tap on General and then tap on Reset.

Access iPhone Reset Settings

Access iPhone Reset Settings

Step 3. Select the Reset All Settings option to reset all settings on your iPhone.

Reset All Settings on the iPhone

Reset All Settings on the iPhone

When the settings are reset, your iPhone will be out of the headphone mode.

The Bottom Line

If your iPhone ever gets stuck in headphone mode, you now know how to fix the issue on your device. There are multiple ways to get around this headphone mode issue on your iPhone and you can try your luck with all these methods.

Author Avatar
Joy Taylor Twitter Share Facebook Share

Member of iMobie team as well as an Apple fan, love to help more users solve various types of iOS & Android related issues.

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