How to factory reset your iPhone with or without your password

• To reset your iPhone and wipe all data, tap "Erase All Content and Settings" in the Settings app.
• Before resetting your iPhone, make sure you back it up to iCloud and sign out of your Apple ID.
• After you reset your iPhone, you can restore it with your backup to retrieve data. 

If you're experiencing issues with your iPhone, like if it's freezing or glitching, resetting the device to its factory settings may solve the problem. Or, if you're selling or giving away your iPhone, you'll want to reset it so all your personal information is wiped from the device.

Resetting your iPhone to its factory settings will take it back to the basics it came with: no contacts, playlists, pictures, password memory, or anything else you've added since the day you bought it.

But before you begin the process of resetting your iPhone, it's important to back up all your data so you don't lose your important information. After your iPhone has been reset, you can then restore it with your backup.

Here's how to factory reset your iPhone with or without a password and make sure your data is backed up.

How to reset your iPhone 

When you factory reset an iPhone, it's important to back up your data and sign out of your Apple ID before wiping it.

Back up your iPhone to iCloud

First, back up your iPhone to iCloud so you don't lose any unsaved data.

1. Open the Settings app and tap your name and Apple ID at the top of the page.

2. On your Apple ID page, tap iCloud.

3. Tap iCloud Backup. 

4. Tap the toggle for Back Up This iPhone to turn it on – it will have a green background when it's on. 

5. Tap Back Up Now to back up all your information to iCloud immediately.

Sign out of your Apple ID

It's important to sign out of your Apple ID if you're getting rid of your phone, so no one else can access your account.

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone, and tap your name and Apple ID at the top of the screen.

3. You may be asked to enter your password. If so, enter your password, and then tap Turn Off in the top right corner – this will turn off Find My.

4. Tap Sign Out in the top right corner.

5. Confirm your decision by tapping Sign Out again in the prompt.

Factory reset your iPhone

Before you factory reset your iPhone, make sure you back up your iPhone first so you can restore your data later.

1. Open the Settings app, scroll down and tap General.

2. At the bottom of the General page, tap Transfer and Reset iPhone.

3. To factory reset your iPhone, tap Erase All Content and Settings.

4. Tap Continue to confirm you want to erase the iPhone.

5. On the next screen, enter your passcode.

6. Your iPhone will then create an iCloud backup. If you've already made a backup, tap Skip Backup at the bottom.

7. Enter your Apple ID password and then tap Turn Off in the top right corner – this will turn off Find My and Activation Lock.

8. Finally, tap Erase iPhone to delete all content and settings. This could take a few minutes, depending on how much you have stored on your iPhone, but once the deletion is completed, your device will restart as new.

How to reset your iPhone without your password using iTunes

As you can see from the previous instructions, you'll need to enter your password when factory resetting your iPhone. 

If you have forgotten it, however, you can bypass this problem using iTunes. Here's how. 

1. Connect your iPhone to a computer with iTunes.

2. Open iTunes, and then click the phone icon in the top left corner of the window.

3. Click Summary in the left side menu.

4. Click Restore iPhone.

5. iTunes will ask if you want to back up your iPhone's settings before restoring the phone. Depending on what you want to do, click either Back Up or Don't Back Up.

6. Click Restore and Update to confirm your decision. 

iTunes will erase your iPhone and then install the latest version of iOS.