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How to Fix iPhone Headphones Not Detected

Posted by Brian Davis on Aug 22, 2022 3:00 PM • Category: Restore iPhone
5 mins read

"My iPhone can't detect my headphones all of a sudden, but I don't know what resulted in it. What can I do to fix my iPhone 7 not detecting headphones?"

how to fix iphone headphones not detected

As a convenient audio playback medium, headphones are more and more widely used in daily life, bringing a lot of convenience to users' lives. However, users often complain that their iPhones cannot detect the earbuds and play audio. What causes this? How can users solve this problem? If you have the same questions, you can read it on, and I'm sure you can learn something about fixing iPhone headphones not detected.

Part 1: The Causes of iPhone Headphones Not Detected

Before fixing your iPhone not recognizing headphones, you can try some simple things first, and find the possible reasons for your problem.

First, check if your iPhone is in silent mode. If not, press the Volume Up button on the top left-hand side to turn up the volume on your iPhone, and check if you can hear anything in your headphones.

Second, examine whether the audio is playing elsewhere. You may forget to change Airplay out when you connect your iPhone to headphones. Check to see if your iPhone has connected to other outputs.

Third, use other headphones to connect to your iPhone. If they can be detected, the headphones you used before may be out of order. You can change another pair of headphones to solve this problem. If not, there may be something wrong with the software of your iPhone. You can try figuring it out with the methods below.

Part 2: How to Fix iPhone Headphones Not Detected

Method 1: Hard reset your iPhone

When your iPhone not detecting earbuds is caused by a system error, the easiest way to fix it is to hard reset your iPhone. This method can erase your iPhone's memory and fix simple system problems. You can use the corresponding method for hard restart depending on the model of your iPhone.

If you want to conduct a hard reset on iPhone 6 and earlier, you need to hold the Power button as well as the Home button simultaneously until the iPhone screen turns black and the Apple logo pops up.

On iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, hold down the Power button and the Volume Down button when you want to hard reset it. Don't release them until the Apple logo comes out.

On iPhone 8 or later, you can press and loose the Volume Up button, then the Volume Down button. After that, hold down the Side button, and loose it when you see the Apple logo.

hard reset to fix iphone headphones not detected


Method 2: Enable and disable Airplane Mode

Sometimes, your iPhone not detecting headphones bluetooth when there is something wrong with the bluetooth connection on your iPhone. Therefore, you can turn Airplane Mode on, and then turn it off to reconnect your bluetooth. There are two ways you can use to enable and disable Airplane Mode.

1. Via Control Center: First, open Control Center on your iPhone, and then click on the Airplane Mode icon. Then, wait for a while and click on it again to disable the Airplane Mode.

2. Via Settings: Navigate to the Settings app, and then tap on the Airplane Mode slider to turn it on, then off.

use airplane mode to fix iphone headphones not detected


Method 3: Update your iOS system

The problem of iPhone headphones not detected may also result from the outdated iOS system. Many users think it unnecessary to update their iOS systems, because of useless new functions and large memory footprint. However, if the system is not updated for too long, the small errors on your device cannot be solved, which will affect your use experience. Detailed steps to fix your iPhone not detecting headphones bluetooth are shown in the following.

Step 1. Tap the Settings app and then click on the General option.

Step 2. Hit on Software Update to check if there is any update.

Step 3. Click on the Download and Install option to update your system.

update ios service to fix iphone headphones not detected


Method 4: Restore your iPhone via iTunes

In addition, restoring your iPhone via iTunes is an alternative way for you to fix iPhone not recognizing headphones. However, you will lose all your data stored on your iPhone with this method. If you don't mind data loss, or you have backed them up before, you can fix your iPhone by restoring it via iTunes.

Step 1. Open iTunes on your PC, and then get your iPhone connected to it.

Step 2. Click on the Summary tab, and then tap the Restore iPhone button on the interface of iTunes.

use itunes to fix iphone headphones not detected


Method 5: Use a viable system recovery tool

If your matter can't be settled down by the methods mentioned above, or you don't want to lose your data, the optimal choice for you is using TunesKit iOS System Recovery to fix your iPhone not detecting earbuds. With two alternative modes, including Standard Mode and Advanced Mode, this software can assist you to fix your iPhone/iPad/iPod touch, no matter if you meet the problem of white/black lines on screen, device stuck on headphone mode/Recovery mode, or restore failure. Due to its user-friendly interface, you can fix your iPhone according to the guidance easily in 4 simple steps. Even if you are a person who knows very little about the iOS system, you can successfully repair your iPhone without asking anyone else for help.

tuneskit ios system recovery

Features of TunesKit iOS System Recovery:

  • Fix iPhone headphones not detected issue without data loss
  • Repair 150+ iOS system problems on iOS devices
  • Support iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Apple TV
  • Available for Windows and Mac systems
Try It Free 600,000+ Downloads
Try It Free 600,000+ Downloads

Let's see the specific steps to fix your iPhone headphones not detected.

Step 1. The first thing you need to do is to launch TunesKit iOS System Recovery on your PC. Then, get your iPhone connected to it with a lightning cable.

connect iphone to pc

Step 2. Choose Standard Mode or Advanced Mode according to your own needs. Then, follow the steps on the interface to put your iPhone into DFU mode.

select a repair mode to fix iphone headphones not detected

Step 3. Inspect the device info of your iPhone detected by the software. After that, tap the Download button to start downloading the firmware.

download iphone corresponding firmware

Step 4. After downloading the firmware, click on the Repair option and wait for the software to fix your device.

fix iphone headphones not detected

Part 3. Conclusion

In conclusion, this post has shown you the possible reasons for iPhone not recognizing headphones, and five methods to figure it out. I think you must have a deeper understanding of this problem and find some good ways to deal with it. In my opinion, using TunesKit iOS System Recovery to fix your iPhone is the best solution for you. You can have a try and leave your comments below.

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