There are two very different scenarios hiding behind 'it will not turn on', and the first step is to tell them apart: is the phone completely without power, or is it running with the screen dark? Start with a forced restart, holding the power button together with volume down for around 20 seconds without letting go (Solution 1). That fixes most cases, including the black screen ones. If nothing happens, leave the phone charging from a wall socket for at least 30 minutes before trying again (Solution 2): a deeply drained battery needs a minimum time before it will accept the power command. If the flashlight lights up in the dark, the ringtone plays or a call connects, the phone is alive and the problem is the screen (Solution 4), which changes the repair quote completely. The factory reset from recovery mode (Solution 8) erases everything that is not backed up, so leave it for last and use it only when the phone starts but sticks on the brand screen.
What causes this problem
- A completely drained battery, at the point where the phone needs several minutes of charge before it can show anything on screen.
- A system freeze after an update or a misbehaving app, leaving the phone powered on but with a dark, unresponsive screen.
- A faulty cable, charger or socket, or a charging port packed with pocket lint, which is a far more common cause than it seems.
- A failure in the screen or the ribbon cable connecting it, usually after a drop: the phone works normally, you just cannot see anything.
- An update interrupted halfway, leaving the phone stuck on the screen with the brand name.
- Physical damage to the battery or the board from a drop, heat or liquid, the only scenario on this list that cannot be sorted out at home.
- Take the phone into a dark room and look closely at the screen for a few seconds. A very faint image or a dim glow means the system is working and the screen's backlight has failed, which is a different problem.
- Ask someone to call your number and hold the phone in your hand. If it rings, vibrates or connects the call, Android is running and the screen is to blame.
- Set aside a wall charger you know works, tested on another device, and a different cable. Charging from a computer's USB port or a car socket delivers little power and muddies the diagnosis.
- Think back to any drop, contact with water or recent update. Each of those points to a different cause and shortens the path.
- If you have automatic backup switched on, remind yourself when the last copy was made. It will matter a great deal if you reach Solution 8.
Solutions, in the order to try them
1Force a restart by holding the buttons
A forced restart cuts power at the hardware level, without depending on Android to respond. That is why it fixes both the phone frozen with a dark screen and the one that looks dead but has charge. The part most people get wrong is the timing: nearly everyone lets go of the buttons too early.
- Hold the power button and the volume down button at the same time.
- Do not let go for at least 20 seconds, even if nothing appears on screen. On some phones it takes more than 30 seconds.
- Release when the screen lights up or the phone vibrates. If nothing happens, try again holding only the power button for the same length of time.
- On models with a removable battery, opening the back and taking the battery out for a minute has the same effect.
- If the screen comes on and the phone returns to normal, the problem was a software freeze. Restarting the phone once a week helps keep it from happening again.
2Charge from a wall socket for 30 to 60 minutes without touching it
When the battery gets near absolute zero, the phone enters a protective state and will not even accept the power command until it builds up a minimum charge. In that state the screen can stay completely dark for many minutes, which makes anyone assume the phone has died. Patience here fixes more cases than anything else.
- Plug the phone into a wall charger. Avoid computer USB ports, extension leads and car chargers at this stage.
- Leave it charging for at least 30 minutes without pressing anything and without unplugging it to 'see if it turns on yet'.
- Watch for any sign: a battery icon, an indicator light, a vibration, or just the phone warming slightly near the connector. Any of those is good news.
- After the wait, and with the cable still plugged in, try the forced restart from Solution 1.
- If after an hour there is absolutely no sign of life and no warmth at all, move to Solution 3 before concluding anything.
3Swap the cable, charger and socket, and clean the charging port
A cable broken inside is the single most common failure, and it usually looks perfect from the outside. Right behind it comes a phone port packed with pocket lint, which stops the cable reaching the contacts properly. Rule those two out before imagining a battery fault.
- Test with another cable and another charger, ideally ones from a device you know charges fine.
- Test in another socket, in another room, to rule out an electrical problem.
- Look inside the phone's port with a flashlight. Finding a compact block of lint at the bottom is very common.
- With the phone off, clean it with a wooden or plastic toothpick, using gentle movements from the inside out. Do not use a needle, a paperclip, a pin or anything metal: the contacts are extremely fine and one scratch there ends the discussion.
- If the phone supports wireless charging, try that. Charging wirelessly but not by cable points straight at the port.
4Find out whether the screen died and the phone is alive
This is the most important fork in the diagnosis, and it changes everything: repair cost, urgency and the chance of getting your data back. A phone that works without showing an image is not a phone that will not turn on, and repeated restarts will get you nowhere. These tests take two minutes and give a clear answer.
- Ask someone to call your number. Ringing, vibrating or connecting the call means Android is running.
- In a dark room, tilt the screen against the light and look closely. If you can make out a very faint image, the system is working and what failed is the backlight.
- Connect the phone to a computer. If the computer recognises it and asks for access permission, Android is active.
- Try triggering the voice assistant by speaking the wake phrase and listen for a reply.
- If any of those tests is positive, stop trying to power it on and take it in for a screen replacement. Ask them to copy your data before the repair too.
5Remove the case, the memory card and the SIM
Accessories cause more trouble than people expect. A thick case can press the power button constantly and prevent startup. A faulty memory card freezes the phone midway through booting, leaving it stuck on the brand screen and never finishing the process.
- Take off the case and any film covering the lens or the buttons, and check that the power button is not stuck or sunken.
- Switch the phone off, if it responds at all, and remove the memory card and SIM tray with the little key from the box or an opened paperclip.
- Try turning it on with no card and no SIM. If that works, put them back one at a time to find out which one causes the freeze.
- Also remove any connected accessory: headphones, adapter, car mount or magnetic charger.
- If the memory card turns out to be the culprit, copy whatever you can from it on a computer and stop using it. A card that freezes a phone is at the end of its life.
6Get into recovery mode
Recovery mode is a menu that lives outside Android and keeps working even when the system will not start. Reaching it is already a valuable diagnosis: it means the battery charges, the screen works and the hardware is standing, and that the problem is in the software. The button combination varies from maker to maker, so you may need more than one attempt.
- Switch the phone off completely, or force it off by holding the power button.
- Hold volume up together with the power button until a screen with small text or the system logo appears. On some models the combination involves having the cable plugged in or a different button, and the maker's support page has the exact sequence.
- In that menu the touchscreen usually does not work: navigate with the volume keys and confirm with the power button.
- Choose the option to reboot the system now and see whether Android starts normally.
- If the phone cannot even reach that menu, the problem is hardware and the next software solutions will not help. Go to Solution 9.
7Wipe the cache partition from recovery mode
If the phone starts but sticks on the screen with the brand name, or restarts in a loop, the culprit is often system temporary files corrupted by an interrupted update. Clearing that area does not erase photos, messages, contacts or apps: the system rebuilds what it needs on the next startup, which will take longer than usual.
- Get into recovery mode as described in Solution 6.
- Use the volume keys to reach the option to wipe the cache partition and confirm with the power button.
- Confirm the warning as well, if one appears.
- When it finishes, choose to reboot the system now.
- The first startup afterwards can take several minutes. Leave the phone alone until it finishes, without switching it off partway.
8Run a factory reset from recovery mode
This is the last software resort, and it has a high cost: it erases photos, messages, apps and anything not copied to the cloud or somewhere else. It only makes sense when the phone powers on and reaches recovery mode but cannot load Android at all. Be aware, too, that after the reset the phone will ask for the password of the account that was set up on it, an anti-theft protection. Without that password the phone becomes unusable.
- Make sure you have tried everything above, especially the cache wipe in Solution 7.
- Confirm that you remember the email and password of the account set up on the phone. Without them there is no way to use it afterwards.
- Get into recovery mode and choose the option to wipe all data or factory reset.
- Confirm and wait. The process takes a few minutes and must not be interrupted, nor run with the phone nearly out of charge.
- When it restarts, go through the initial setup and restore whatever is in your account backup.
9Recognise the signs of physical damage and get it serviced
There is a point where pushing on makes things worse, particularly where liquid or a swollen battery is involved. A bulging battery is a genuine fire risk and must not be charged or punctured. In those cases a repair shop is not the end of the line, it is the first stop, and the sooner the better for the chance of recovering your data.
- Look at the phone edge-on, at eye level. If the screen or the back cover is separating from the frame, the battery has swollen: stop charging immediately and take it in.
- If the phone gets very hot near the connector while showing nothing on screen, unplug it and do not persist.
- If there was contact with water, do not try to power it on or charge it. Powering on a wet phone is what usually causes the permanent damage. Let it dry and take it in.
- If the phone cannot reach recovery mode and gives no sign at all after an hour plugged in, home diagnosis has run out.
- When you hand it over, ask first whether data recovery is possible and get the quote in writing, comparing it with the price of an equivalent phone.
Applies to
| System | Status |
|---|---|
| Android 11 to 15, on phones from any manufacturer | Confirmed |
| Devices with a removable battery | Taking the battery out for a minute replaces the forced restart and is usually more effective |
| Android tablets | Confirmed |
Menu names can change slightly between versions. If a step above does not match what you see on screen, the official support page from the manufacturer has the most current wording for your version.
Frequently asked questions
Last checked: Sep 25, 2026 · We review this guide whenever the manufacturer changes the process.