If your iPad screen is completely unresponsive to touch, an app has frozen the entire system, or the physical buttons aren’t working as expected, a standard restart won’t be possible. When the software completely locks up, your only option is to perform a hardware-level force restart. This cuts power to the components and forces the iPadOS operating system to boot from scratch, without deleting any of your personal data.
How to Force Restart an iPad Without a Home Button
If you own a modern iPad Pro, iPad Air, iPad mini, or the base-model iPad (10th generation), your device does not have a circular Home button on the front bezel. To force restart these models, you must press a specific sequence of buttons very quickly.
- Press and rapidly release the Volume Up button.
- Press and rapidly release the Volume Down button.
- Press and hold the Top power button (do not let go).
- Ignore the “Slide to power off” slider if it appears on the screen. Keep holding the Top button until the screen goes completely black.
- Continue holding the Top button until the white Apple logo appears on the screen, then release it.
How to Force Restart an iPad With a Home Button
If you own an older iPad, such as a 9th generation (or earlier) base model, or an older iPad mini with a physical Home button on the front bezel, the process is much simpler because it only involves two buttons.
- Press and hold the Top power button and the circular Home button at the exact same time.
- Keep holding both buttons as the screen goes black.
- Release both buttons the moment you see the white Apple logo appear in the center of the screen.
If your iPad does not turn back on after attempting a force restart, plug it into a wall charger using an official Apple cable for at least one hour before trying the button sequence again. The battery may be completely depleted.