How to Fix It When Your iPhone Screen Turns Black and White

It's almost certainly an Accessibility setting. And that's easy to fix

By
Matthew S. Smith
Matthew S. Smith - biopic
Matthew S. Smith
Writer
  • Beloit College
Matthew S. Smith has been writing about consumer tech since 2007. Formerly the Lead Editor at Digital Trends, he's also written for PC Mag, TechHive, and others.
lifewire's editorial guidelines
Updated on July 13, 2023
iPhone & iOS

This article will step you through possible fixes for when your iPhone screen turns black and white.

Possible Causes of an iPhone Screen That's Turned Black and White

The most common cause of an iPhone screen that turns black and white is changing the iPhone's software settings. The iPhone supports several ways to make the display black and white via the accessibility settings. These are helpful for people who have trouble seeing (or can't see) all or any color or have difficulty with low-contrast images.

A black and white iPhone screen.

An iPhone screen may turn black and white due to a hardware issue. A problem with the display, or the connection between the display and the mainboard, could cause this issue. It's rare, however, so odds are the problem is in the iPhone's settings.

How to Fix an iPhone Screen That's Turned Black and White

The cause of an iPhone screen being black and white is likely a system software issue, so most solutions involve changing settings in the iPhone's Settings app. While other software you are using might be in black and white, no apps other than the Settings app can change the entire phone experience to black and white. The steps below are ordered from easiest and most likely to solve the issue. Once the issue is fixed, you don't have to follow any further steps.

  1. In the Settings app of your iPhone, go to: Accessibility > Display & Text Size > Colors Fitler > slide the toggle to on (it will turn green).

    The Color Filters section of Accessibility in the Settings App on an iPhone.
    Your screens will be appear black and white, but when you take screenshots, they are in color.

  2. Open your iPhone's Zoom settings to turn off Zoom if it's on.

    The iPhone's Zoom setting has a Grayscale color filter under Zoom Filter in the Zoom settings menu. This filter will turn the iPhone screen black and white when the Zoom feature is on.

    In this case, Zoom doesn't refer to the Zoom video service. Zoom is a function inside iOS's accessibility settings: Settings > Accessibility > Zoom.

  3. Press your iPhone's Lock Screen button three times in rapid succession. If you have an iPhone with a Home button, tap it three times instead. This action activates the iPhone's accessibility shortcut if you set it up.

    You can configure this shortcut to switch an iPhone into grayscale mode, which may cause your issue.

  4. Reset All Settings on your iPhone to return all settings to default.

    It will turn off any iOS feature responsible for turning your iPhone screen black and white.

    However, it will reset all other settings, so this is the last resort.

    While this resets all settings on your iPhone, it does not delete your content.

If the steps above fail, you may have a hardware issue with the display or mainboard. Contact Apple to have the iPhone repaired.

FAQ
  • Why is my iPhone screen so dark?

    If your iPhone screen is too dark, you likely need to adjust your brightness settings. To adjust screen brightness manually, open Control Center and drag the brightness level up. It's also possible that Dark Mode is turned on.

  • Why is my iPhone screen glitching?

    If your iPhone screen is glitching or flickering, you may be seeing symptoms of software crashes, water damage, or damage from a dropped iPhone. To fix the problem, try restarting your iPhone, updating your operating system, updating your iPhone apps, and check your charging cable for damage. You can also try turning off iPhone auto-brightness and disabling any blue light filter apps.

  • Why is my iPhone stuck on the loading screen?

    If your iPhone is stuck on the Apple logo on the loading screen, there might be a problem with the iPhone's operating system or hardware. To troubleshoot the problem, restart the iPhone, put the iPhone in Recovery Mode, or use DFU Mode. DFU Mode halts the iPhone startup process and lets you restore the iPhone, load a backup, or start fresh. 

Was this page helpful?