How to Fix Auto Rotation Not Working on an iPhone

The ability to automatically rotate your iPhone screen is a feature you may take for granted. Only when the automatic rotation does not work is its perfect functioning appreciated. Unfortunately, auto-rotate doesn’t work too when you see how frustrating it can be when your iPhone doesn’t do what you expect it to do.

Whether you’re reorienting the screen to watch a video or trying to get it back to portrait view, auto-rotate not working can be a huge annoyance. Fortunately, there are several solutions you can try to get your iPhone auto-rotate working again.

Solution #1: Disable Screen Rotation Lock

In addition to the auto-rotate feature, your iPhone allows you to lock the screen in place. This ensures that the screen orientation does not change, no matter how much you rotate the phone.

The screen lock is useful if you are watching a long video or playing a game. You don’t want to deal with the screen rotating in the middle of your activity, which makes the screen lock essential. However, you may forget to turn off the screen lock or turn it on inadvertently.

You can disable the screen lock quite easily, although the method varies depending on whether your iPhone has a Home button.

Follow these steps if your phone does not have a Home button:

1. Swipe down from the top right of your iPhone screen to access “Control Center.”
   
2. Tap the “Rotation Lock” icon. This is a lock that has a circle with an arrow drawn around it.
   
3. Check the “Portrait Orientation Lock” text that appears at the top of the “Control Center.” Tap this text so it says “Portrait orientation lock: Off.”
   
4. Exit “Control Center” and try rotating the screen.

If your iPhone has a Home button, do the following:

1. Swipe up from the bottom of your phone to open the “Control Center.”
   
2. Locate the “Portrait Orientation Lock” button and tap it if it is activated.
   
3. Exit “Control Center” and rotate your iPhone to check if the solution worked.
   

Solution number 2: restart your application

You may find that an app you’re using doesn’t rotate automatically even if you’ve checked to turn off the screen lock. This can happen if the app crashes, meaning you need to restart it to reactivate auto-rotate.

Use this method if your iPhone does not have a Home button:

1. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open the “Home Bar.”
   
2. Press and hold the “Home Bar” for a couple of seconds to bring up the “App Switcher” function.
3. Locate the app you want to restart and swipe up on its preview to close the app.
   
4. Find the app icon on your home screen and tap it to restart.
   
5. Rotate your phone as necessary to see if auto-rotate has been reactivated.
   

The method is similar if your phone has a Home button:

1. Double-tap the Home button and select “App Switcher.”
   
2. Find the app you want to exit and swipe up on its preview.
   
3. Return to your home screen and tap the app to restart it.
   
4. Turn your phone over to check if the solution worked.
   

Solution #3: Check Screen Rotation Functionality

Some apps don’t support screen rotation, which may surprise you if you don’t know beforehand. Additionally, the app may not inform you about the lack of rotation support, leaving you wondering about the problem.

There is an easy way to check if your app supports auto-rotate. Simply open an app that you know is compatible and rotate the screen. If auto-rotate works for the supported app, chances are the app you were trying to use does not support auto-rotate.

If that is the case, you will not be able to rotate the screen at any time when using the incompatible app. But at least you will know the reason.

Solution number 4 –

Often, a reboot is all you need to fix your iPhone’s glitches. When it comes to auto-rotate, a reset may fix your issue if you’ve verified that the screen lock is off but auto-rotate still isn’t working.

1. Press and hold the side button on your iPhone until you are given the option to “Slide to power off.”
   
   • You must press and hold the side button, volume up button, and volume down button together on iPhone X and later models.
2. Drag the “Slide to Power Off” slider to the right to turn off your phone.
   
3. Press and hold the side button to turn your iPhone back on.
   
4. Check the auto-rotate functionality when your iPhone is working.
   

Solution number 5: Disable display zoom

Larger versions of the iPhone, like the iPhone Max, allow you to rotate the home screen layout and offer auto-rotate in your apps. If your home screen layout doesn’t rotate, you may have an issue with your phone’s Display Zoom feature.

Display Zoom enlarges text and icons, allowing you to read them more easily. However, using Display Zoom can also prevent your phone from fully using the auto-rotate feature. Disabling Display Zoom solves this problem:

1. Launch the “Settings” app and navigate to “Display & Brightness.”
   
2. Scroll to “Show Zoom” and tap “View.”
   
3. Change the “Display Zoom” to “Standard” and tap the “Set” button, located in the upper right corner.
   

Your iPhone will reboot as part of the process of applying your new Zoom settings. When it turns back on, navigate to the home screen layout and check the auto-rotate feature. You should also see that the text and icons are smaller because Display Zoom is in “Standard” mode.

Solution number 6: update iOS

In some cases, using an older version of iOS can create compatibility issues that cause auto-rotate to stop working. For example, you can use a version of an app that is updated to run on a newer version of iOS than the one you have. Although the app may still work at the basic level, compatibility issues may cause auto-rotate to stop working.

Updating to the latest version of iOS can solve this problem:

1. Open the “Settings” app and tap “General.”
   
2. Select “Software Update” and wait for your iPhone to check for an available update.
   
3. If there is an update for a new version of iOS, select the “Download and install” option.
   

You may have to wait several minutes for your iPhone to complete the installation. The device may also reboot during this process. Wait until your phone turns back on and the new version of iOS is installed before trying its automatic rotation.

Solution number 7: Reset your settings

If no other solution manages to restore the auto-rotate functionality of your iPhone, you can try resetting the device to restore it to its original functionality. Consider this option as a last resort. Resetting your iPhone erases all your preferences, passwords, and Wi-Fi settings. Fortunately, your phone saves most of your personal data, such as contacts and photos.

Follow these steps to reset your iPhone:

1. Launch the “Settings” app and tap “General.”
   
2. Select “Reset” from the list of options.
   
3. Choose “Reset All Settings” and enter your iPhone passcode when prompted.
   
4. Wait for your iPhone to complete the reset. It may reboot during this process.
5. Try the auto rotate feature.
   

Solution number 8: Visit an Apple store

Your iPhone uses a sensor called an accelerometer for its auto-rotate functionality. That sensor is quite sensitive, meaning it can break if you drop your iPhone or if something untoward happens to the device’s electronics.

If you have tried all the solutions related to the device software, you may have a problem with your accelerometer. Unfortunately, this is not an easy problem to fix yourself, as you would have to get a replacement sensor and potentially void any warranty you have on the phone.

Visit your local Apple Store if you suspect a damaged accelerometer is causing your auto-rotate issues. The Apple Genius at the store can take your phone in for repair, especially if the solutions they try don’t work.

Please note that you may have to pay for repairs, depending on the status of your warranty and the cause of the sensor malfunction.

Bring back auto-rotation with simple solutions

A variety of software issues, as well as a major hardware issue, could be the cause of auto-rotate not working on your iPhone. Identifying the cause of the problem can help you quickly implement a solution that restores functionality. But if you don’t know what caused the problem, analyzing the solutions in this article will help you troubleshoot your device and quickly restore auto rotation.