iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) Stuck in Headphone Mode. How to Fix?

It sounds like a rare situation: when you hit the Volume bar up, your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) displays "Headphones" volume indicator on the screen with non-existent headphones connection. However, it does exist. But even though it unfortunately happens to you, it's simple to troubleshoot the headphone mode error on iPhone 11 (Pro, Pro Max).

In most case, you can manually cancel the "Headphones" command via doing the following easy-and-quick instructions:

• Connect the headphones again, then disconnect it properly to turn off iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) headphone mode.
• Blow a can of compressed air into the headphone jack (lightning port) for cleaning purposes.
• Make an audio recording to unstuck the headphone mode.
• Turn off Bluetooth connection to take iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) off headphone mode. (Go to Settings > Bluetooth, then move the slider to OFF.)

Don't panic if none of the above fixes does the trick. We've also collected other workable solutions to assist you to get the bottom of the problem and then rectify the stuck headphone mode in iPhone 11 or iPhone 11 Pro (Max),.

Tips: Make sure that your iPhone's OS is running with latest released versions.

Solution 1. Attempt a restart on your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max)

The classic advice of powering off the computer and back on again when a problem strikes also does the trick on smartphone to iron out the potential problems. Follow the wizard below to do a fresh reboot for getting iPhone 11 or iPhone 11 Pro (Max) out of headphones mode.

See also: How to restart your iPhone 11 (Pro, Pro Max).

• Press and hold the Volume Up button and the Power button until you see the power off slider.
• Rest your finger on the slider, then swipe it to the right. Wait until the device is totally powered off.
• To fire up the device, hold down the Power button and release after the Apple logo appears.

Afterwards, try playing music media to see if your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) is still stuck on headphone mode. If your handset remains frozen or fails to respond, Apple suggests doing a force-restart on your device:

• Press and quickly release the Volume Up button.
• Press and quickly release the Volume Down button.
• Press and hold the Wake/ Sleep button until you see the Apple logo.

Solution 2. iOS Repair Tool

What if the headphone mode problem lies in iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) internal system? At this stage, iOS System Recovery can patch such issues swiftly. It devotes itself on getting numerous kinds of iOS system issues diagnosed within few seconds and then rolling devices back to their previous healthy state. Crucially, it keeps all your important data and files intact safely during the whole repairing process.

To get iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) off headphone mode, it's incredibly easy to set right. Simply connect your device to the computer, choose "Standard Mode", download the firmware and then it will automate fixing device by flashing the firmware onto it.

User's Tutorial

Step 1: Attach your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) to the computer

Download the software on your computer, then install and launch it.

Next, use an official lightning cable to connect your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) to the computer. Once it's detected, click "More tools" situated on the bottom left corner of the window.

In the next screen, choose "iOS System Recovery".

Then you're presented with a new window like the screenshot shown below. Click Start to move onto the next step.

Step 2: Choose repair type

The next step is to click the green Fix button. This will bring up a window where you need to select the repair type given for troubleshooting iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) stuck on headphone mode.

Here, go with "Standard Mode" highlighted, and press Confirm button.

Step 3: Download the latest firmware package

To fix iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) that is stuck on headphone mode, a corresponding firmware is must-have. The software has already included all the iOS firmware package, and all that's left is to select the latest version of firmware for your iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro or iPhone 11 Pro Max.

When you're satisfied with selection, browse to a location to keep the firmware package, and then hit Next button to download the chosen firmware package onto your computer.

Step 4: Get iPhone 11 or iPhone 11 Pro (Max) headphone mode unstuck

Once done with firmware download, you're pretty much ready for the fix. Now, simply move the mouse to click Fix to begin the repairing process.

You can check out the progress bar located on lower bottom of the main screen.

That's it! Now you've learned how to fix an iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) locked in headphone mode. The whole tutorial can be also applied to sort out other iOS system issues: black screen, stuck on spinning wheel, device won't turn on, stuck on boot loop, blue screen of death, stuck on recovery mode and so on.

Noted: The below techniques will execute a deeper restoration for iPhone 11 or iPhone 11 Pro (Max) stuck in headphone mode. To fix the issues without risking data loss, make sure you've got a recent iPhone backup first.

Solution 3. Reset all settings

Sometimes the buggy sound-related settings may mess up the output source in an device. If you suspect that iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) got stuck in headphone should be traced back to any aspect of audio function settings, reset all the settings on your device to rule out this possibility. This will not remove your device contents.

• Tap Settings > General > Reset on your iPhone device.
• Choose Reset All Settings.
• Enter the passcode when prompted.
• Confirm by tapping Reset All Settings. Wait few minutes for completing the reset and reboot process.

Solution 4. Erase all iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) data

If all the settings are function as normal but your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) still thinks headphones plugged in, there is still a way: erase all device data files and start over. This will obliterate a swath of annoying bugs, and then bring your device's Speaker function back to life.

• Open your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max), navigate to Settings > General > Reset.
• Tap Erase All Content and Settings.

Once the wiping process is complete, you can restore your phone from backup made before.

Solution 5. DFU Mode Restore

The headphone mode problems in your iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) also come down to a fault with the cracked operating system. To resolve it, restore your device using DFU mode. It will enable you to load an entirely functional factory-fresh version of the operating system into your device and rescue it from errors.

Tips: The process may take a while as it will rewrite every bit of the software and firmware.

• Attach iPhone 11 (Pro, Max) into your computer and run iTunes.
• Press and quickly release the Volume Up button, then press and quickly release the Volume Down button.
• Hold down the Power button until the screen turns black.
• Hold down the Volume Down button while keeping holding the Power button.
• After five seconds, let go of the Power button but continue to hold the Volume Down button until iTunes says "iTunes has detected an iPhone in recovery mode."
• Click OK to close the prompt.
• Choose Restore iPhone.

If the above steps are performed wrongly, the screen will show no visuals but black. And then you'll need to exit the black DFU mode screen first to try again:

• Quickly press and release the Volume Up button.
• Quickly press and release the Volume Down button.
• Press and keep holding the On/ Off button until the Apple logo appears.

Further Reading: How to Recover Text Messages on iPhone with/ without Backup

Solution 6. Contact tech support

If none of the above steps work on fixing the stuck headphone mode in iPhone 11(Pro, Pro Max) - and you're not experienced enough to deconstruct your device, your last resort is to take it to your nearest Apple Store or contact Apple tech support. Hopefully your iPhone device can work to order.