A problem with your iPhone’s always-on display can easily be fixed

iPhone’s Always-On Display is a nifty feature that lets you see important information at a glance without unlocking your phone. It keeps your custom lock screen grayed out but still visible, so you can quickly check the time, your notifications, or other widgets. This isn’t a feature enjoyed by all iPhone users, depending on what level of privacy you prefer and whether you’re OK with its impact on battery. But for many, it’s a simple way to avoid picking up your phone every time you want to check something.

If you want to use the always-on display but your lock screen keeps turning off completely, there are several potential causes, fortunately coupled with simple solutions. First, note that not all iPhones are capable of Always-On Display; the following models are:

• iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max

• iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max

• iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max

• iPhone 17, 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max

• iPhoneAir

• iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max

Always-on display is enabled by default, but you can enable it by going to Settings > Display & brightness > Always-on display. Make sure it is enabled before continuing.

Some situations that cause the always-on display to turn off will inevitably occur throughout the day, but these are largely cases where you don’t want to use the screen anyway. If your iPhone is face down, hidden, or not near a paired Apple Watch (usually because you’ve left the room), the feature will be disabled. Make sure you’ve cleaned your iPhone’s front camera so it can see you clearly. It may also turn off if you don’t interact with your phone for long periods of time.

Other situations may be a little more disruptive, but still understandable: the screen turns off when connecting your iPhone to a CarPlay session to minimize driver distractions, and when using the continuity camera (presumably to save battery).

Although the causes of Always-On being dark cannot be fixed, two other common causes can: low power mode and focus modes. You can use the Control Center toggle to switch to low power mode, or on an iPhone 15 and later:

1. Open Settings.

2. Select Battery > Power mode.

3. Turn Low power mode disabled.

On an iPhone 14 or older, the setting is under the main tab Battery menu. On newer models it may also be helpful to turn off Adaptive power in the same Power Mode menu, as this can automatically re-enable Low Power Mode when you drop below 20% battery. It depends on whether you value the convenience of AOD more or maximum battery life.

By design, the Always-On Display will not work when your iPhone is in Sleep Focus mode. To make sure Sleep Focus is turned off:

1. Open Control center.

2. Faucet To focusthen choose Sleep if it appears selected.

The Health app may automatically activate Sleep Focus at the bedtime you set. To disable this:

1. Open Control center and press To focus.

2. Press the three points next to Sleepthen select Settings.

3. Scroll down to the section titled Calendar and select Next program.

4. Turn the knob next to Calendar disabled, or choose Calendar and options to adjust your schedule if you prefer.

Other iPhone Focus modes let you choose whether you want AOD to stay on. To enable this:

1. Open the settings for the desired focus mode by following the steps above.

2. Scroll to Focus filters and select Add a filter

3. Below System filtersselect Always visible and make sure it is turned on.

Otherwise, it is worth switching the Get up to wake up functionality under Settings > Display & Brightness if your phone screen wakes up too aggressively when you touch it to check the always-on display. Otherwise, restart your iPhone to fix any temporary issues.