If your Android device is running slow, or it freezes or crashes, you can diagnose and isolate the root cause by putting it in Safe Mode.
Safe mode lets you identify if a third-party app is the source of your problems, because, occasionally, these apps can unintentionally run in the background or have critical bugs that need to be addressed by their developers. Booting your Android smartphone and Android tablets in this Mode temporarily deactivates your installed third-party apps.
This is an excellent first step toward getting your device back to normal.
While the feature may come in handy when diagnosing issues on your phone or tablet, it makes all third-party apps useless unless deactivated. And while it is not very hard to put your phone in Safe Mode, it’s not always clear how to get your device out of it. That can be very frustrating, particularly for those who aren’t intimately familiar with their devices.
If you accidentally turned on Safe Mode or you want to know how to turn on Safe Mode, we will show you how in the guide below.
But how exactly do you turn off Safe Mode on a Samsung phone or tablet?
What Is Safe Mode on a Samsung Device?
Safe Mode temporarily disables any third-party apps you’ve downloaded to your device. If your phone or tablet is misbehaving, this is a way of pinpointing the issue.
For example, if your phone battery drains quickly or you can’t maintain a network connection during normal use, you can boot into Safe Mode to see if the issue continues there. If it doesn’t, you can assume an app is the problem.
How to turn off Safe Mode feature
There’s no need to panic if you find yourself stuck in Safe Mode on your phone or tablet. The apps on your home screen may be grayed out, and your app drawer may be empty, but your data is safe. Once you turn off Safe Mode, your device returns to normal, just as it was before.
Turn off Safe Mode by restarting your phone or tablet
The easiest way to turn off Safe Mode on your Android smartphone is to use the power menu. In most cases, restarting your device and booting out of Safe Mode takes only a few seconds.
To restart your device and turn off Safe Mode, do the following:
- For Samsung and Google Pixel 5a and earlier devices, press and hold the Power button until you see the power menu options.
- If you have a OnePlus phone or a Google Pixel 6 or newer device, press and hold the Power and Volume up buttons for a few seconds.
- Tap the Restart button to restart your phone.
If you don’t see a Restart button, press and hold the Power button (or Power and Volume up) for about 30 seconds. Your phone either automatically restarts or shuts down. You can turn it back on by holding the Power button.
Use the Android Notification Panel to turn off Safe Mode
Since Android is built to be customizable by default, there are different experiences and features across various Android device manufacturers. For example, Samsung smartphones let you turn off Safe Mode using the notification panel.
If you own a Samsung device and want to turn Safe Mode off, check out the following:
- Pull down the notification panel.
- If your Android device supports this feature, you’ll see a persistent notification that Safe Mode is activated.
- Tap the notification and choose the “Turn off” option.
Turn off Safe Mode with a factory reset
If the two methods above don’t work, something else may prevent you from leaving Safe Mode. In these instances, a factory reset may be the only option.
A factory reset wipes out your entire user data and removes all accounts. We recommend this as a last resort if nothing else works on your device. Before continuing with the method outlined below, create a backup of your Android device to ensure your data stays safe.
In the section below, we cover a step-by-step guide for factory resetting an Android phone. The steps to reset any Android phone are almost the same but vary depending on the device manufacturer. Not all features or settings are found in the same place, but they are similar.
To factory reset an Android smartphone, do the following:
- Launch the Settings app on your phone and go to the System section.
- Tap Reset options and choose the Erase all data (factory reset) option.
- When prompted, tap the Erase all data button and confirm with your password, pattern, or PIN.
How to use Safe Mode to troubleshoot your Android
You can boot into Safe Mode to help troubleshoot some issues with your device.
If you boot into it using one of the methods above and you are not experiencing the issues you were before, one of your installed third-party apps is likely the culprit. You will need to remove or turn off each app individually to find the problem app.
Even though you can’t use third-party apps while in Safe Mode, the cache and app data aren’t blocked off within your device’s settings. This is good since there is a chance that an app is causing issues with your device. In that case, it is best to deal with the app itself instead of constantly restarting your phone.
If your issue is recent, begin with the newest third-party apps you installed and go from there. First, list the apps you recently installed on your device. While in Safe Mode, you can delete an app’s cache and storage, and restart your phone to turn off Safe Mode.
To delete an app’s cache and storage, go to Settings > Apps, choose an app, and tap Storage & Data.
To delete an app’s storage to get out of Safe Mode:
- Open Settings.
- Tap Apps, then tap See all apps.
- Select the offending app.
- Tap Storage & cache.
- Hit Clear storage.
If the issues are fixed after removing an app, that specific app is responsible for the errors. You should delete and reinstall the app or report any issue to the developers to inform them of your problems.
However, if the issues persist, repeat the steps with the other apps until you find the culprit. It is a slow process, so you will need to be patient as you work through the list of third-party apps. But once you find the app creating all your problems, you can reinstall the other apps and boot back into your device’s regular mode.
Why should I launch Safe Mode?
Safe Mode is commonly used as a troubleshooting method. If your phone is running into issues, you can use Safe Mode to see if it operates correctly with most other elements turned off. If it does, chances are the problem is a rogue app.
Why is my Android phone stuck in Safe Mode?
An Android device shouldn’t boot into Safe Mode unless requested to. If your phone is, there is a bigger problem to deal with. The most common one is stuck buttons, which could be triggering a press you’re not performing.
Safe Mode is an excellent feature that can help you fix problems on your Android devices. It allows you to deactivate all third-party apps, allowing you to figure out which one is responsible for causing the issues you have with your smartphone or tablet.
Whether you accidentally turned on Safe Mode or are looking for a rogue third-party app, there are multiple ways to get out of Safe Mode. At the same time, you can return your device to its usual working state without losing your data.
Why is Safe Mode not turning off?
If your phone starts in Safe mode, uninstall all recently downloaded apps. Restart your phone. Note: If your phone starts normally, the issue was with an app.
Why Is My Phone Stuck in Safe Mode?
If your phone is stuck in safe mode and you can’t turn it off, there are several reasons why this could be happening. Here are some of the most common reasons for this issue:
Malware or a bug
Sometimes, an app can become corrupted and cause problems with other apps or the operating system itself. If this happens, it won’t be able to launch normally, so it will automatically try to boot into safe mode instead.
Corrupted or damaged partition table or boot sector
A corrupted partition table or boot sector may cause the safe mode to appear every time you turn on your phone. It could be caused by accidentally rooting your device and messing up its partitions.
Corrupted system software or firmware
If you experience this problem after flashing an update for your device’s operating system, then it could mean that the update was corrupted.
If your phone is stuck on safe mode, it is possible that one or more buttons are stuck down. Try taking off the button case and starting the phone again if you are using one. If you’re not using a case, try pressing the power button for about 30 seconds to see if it fixes the issue.
If not, continue reading for other possible solutions.
Incompatible apps
A phone stuck in safe mode could be due to incompatible apps installed on your device. You can check which apps are causing this by going to Settings > General > Device Management > All Apps and finding any apps with an exclamation mark next to them.
To remove these apps, tap Uninstall Updates and then tap Uninstall.
Defective hardware
If you’ve recently dropped your phone, or it hasn’t been working properly for any other reason, then the problem might be hardware related. For example, if you have a cracked screen or faulty battery, then the phone might not be able to boot normally and will go into safe mode automatically.
How to Fix Phone Stuck in Safe Mode
If your phone is stuck in safe mode, it can be a bit tricky to get out of it. However, there is a simple way to fix your phone and get it back to normal.
Restart your phone
The first thing you will want to do is restart the phone. Hold down the power button on your phone until it vibrates and turns off. Once it does, wait a few seconds before turning it back on.
Most modern smartphones have physical buttons such as Home, Back, and Power. If one of these buttons is stuck, then it could be preventing you from accessing the normal interface. To check for this problem, press the Power button for 10 seconds (or until the screen turns off) then release it and try again.
If the device doesn’t turn off when you do this, then there might be a hardware issue at play here.
Update your software
Outdated software can cause a variety of problems. It can make your phone stuck in safe mode, not charging, run slowly, and so on. As a result, always ensure that you update your phone’s software whenever an update is available.
To update Android software, go to Settings > About Phone > System Updates > Check for Update. If you’re using an iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > General > Software Update and follow the prompts on the screen.
Uninstall recently installed apps
If you recently installed an app and now your Android phone is stuck in safe mode, the first thing to do is uninstall the app. This may solve the problem if the new app had some kind of conflict with your phone’s software.
Clear the cache partition
A cache partition is where your phone stores temporary data. Sometimes, if you’ve downloaded a lot of apps or updated your phone in the past few days, clearing the cache can help resolve issues with the operating system.
To do this on your phone, press and hold Power + Volume down for about 7 seconds. When you see the Android logo, release both buttons. You’ll see a list of options; choose “wipe cache partition.” Wait for it to complete and then reboot your device to see if that helped fix your problem.
Factory reset your device
Factory resetting your device will erase everything on your phone and return it to its default state — just like when you first took it out of the box — but it may also solve whatever issue caused it to freeze up in safe mode in the first place.
To do so, go into Settings > Backup & reset > Factory data reset > Reset device > Erase everything (if available)
Visit a technician
If your Samsung phone is stuck on safe mode and none of these steps worked for you, there’s one more thing you can try: Visiting a technician. These are properly trained experts who have the right tools and equipment needed to get your device out of safe mode in no time at all.
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