Fix Cellular Data Not Working on iPhone X or iPhone with iOS 11

Fix Cellular Data Not Working on iPhone X or iPhone with iOS 11

Some iPhone users may find that cellular data is suddenly not working. The inability to transmit cellular data can seemingly happen spontaneously, and while you can typically still make or receive a phone call when this happens, you just cant send or receive any data transmission for things like using the web, imessage, social media, or use online apps. Obviously a cellphone is most useful when it has the capability of connecting to and using a cellular network, so if youre experiencing an inability to use cellular data youd be understandably perturbed. The good news is that the vast majority of cellular data connection problems on an iPhone are easy to fix, and most incidents are just the result of accidentally toggling a setting or two (or someone else accidentally doing so, like a kid fidgeting with a parents iPhone). Lets jump right to it and troubleshoot non-functioning iPhone cellular data. Were covering six main tips to get an iPhone cellular data connection working as intended. The first steps are going to apply to most people, particularly if all of a sudden the iPhone doesnt seem to transmit cellular data. The first thing youll want to do is make sure that Cellular Data is enabled on the iPhone. This may sound odd and even annoying as a recommendation, but disabling cellular data or toggling AirPlane Mode on happens more often than youd think. This is particularly true now with how the Cellular Data toggle is presented in the customizable Control Center of newer iOS releases, where it is fairly easy to hit the toggles and not realize it. First lets check Cellular Data: Dont be surprised if you open Control Center to discover the cellular data logo is grey rather than green, meaning that cellular data was turned off. Wait! While youre in Control Center youll also want to make sure that AirPlane Mode is . AirPlane Mode will disable all networking capabilities on an iPhone, including cellular data, and so if you have no data access as well as an inability to make or receive phone calls on an iPhone then AirPlane mode is the likely culprit and a good place to look. If AirPlane Mode is enabled, turn it off. You can also check that Cellular Data is enabled through the iOS Settings app on iPhone, and check that AirPlane Mode is off too. These two settings are the most common reason why an iPhone is not able to connect to a cellular network, transmit any cellular data, not use any networking, or if you end up with an iPhone that can make and receive phone calls but wont use data when youre out and about. So check for AirPlane Mode and Cellular Data settings, for the vast majority of iPhone cellular connection issues one or the other is the reason why. The optional but recommended step above is also important for not only making sure apps you do want are able to use cellular data, but also apps you may not want. Denying some apps cellular data access can be a , but of course you wouldnt want to turn that access off for apps you do want connecting to the internet. Some network related issues can be resolved by and rebooting. The primary downside to this is that you will lose custom network settings (like DNS entries) and wi-fi networks, meaning youll have to enter wifi network passwords and any network customizations again. Once the iPhone has booted back up again, open an app like Safari and try to use cellular data again. It should work, assuming cellular data is turned on anyway. Cell network providers will occasionally offer carrier updates, and though its unlikely that avoiding these updates would cause a network issue, it wont hurt to if theyre available. A generic but worthwhile troubleshooting step is to check for an install any iOS system software updates if theyre available for the iPhone. When you update iOS there are various system maintenance tasks performed under the hood, and sometimes that can resolve quirky issues. And its good practice to install the latest iOS release on most iPhone models anyway: Alway be sure to backup an iPhone before installing any iOS software update. If you have tried all the trouble shooting steps possible but the iPhone is still not able to connect to a cellular network, you may have an issue with your cellular provider. Maybe the network is down, maybe you forgot to pay the bill, maybe some other issue is preventing your iPhone from joining the cell network. Did these tips work to resolve your iPhone cellular data issues? Let us know in the comments what worked for you!