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iPhone screen keeps dimming? The off switch is hiding in Accessibility

How to turn off Auto-Brightness on iPhone

Go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size, scroll to the bottom and turn off Auto-Brightness. The screen then stays at whatever level you set with the slider in Control Center.

How to do it

  1. Open Settings > Accessibility.

  2. Tap Display & Text Size.

  3. Scroll all the way down and turn off Auto-Brightness.

  4. Set the brightness you want with the slider in Control Center. It stays there until you move it.

Auto-Brightness reads the light sensor at the top of the screen. In a dim room it pulls the brightness down, often further than you want, and it keeps nudging it while you read.

The switch sits in Accessibility, not in Display & Brightness, which is why so many people never find it. Once it's off, the slider in Control Center is the only thing that changes the level.

I still drag it down at night. A screen left at full brightness all day eats battery, and nothing will lower it for you now.

Other ways to do it

  • Attention Aware Features Built in

    Pick it if you have a Face ID iPhone and the screen dims while you're still looking at it. It's in Settings > Face ID & Passcode.

    Stick with this tip if the brightness follows the light in the room and you want it to stop doing that.

  • A longer Auto-Lock Built in

    Pick it if the screen goes dark and locks in the middle of a recipe. Set a longer time in Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock.

    Stick with this tip if the screen stays on but keeps getting dimmer.

Questions people ask

Why isn't Auto-Brightness under Display & Brightness?

Apple moved it to Accessibility years ago. Display & Brightness still has the slider, True Tone and Night Shift, but the on/off switch only lives under Accessibility > Display & Text Size.

Does turning it off use more battery?

It can. The screen is one of the biggest power users, so if you leave the slider high all day the battery goes faster. Turn it down yourself when you don't need it bright.

My screen still dims with it off. Why?

Other things dim it too. Low Power Mode lowers the brightness, a hot iPhone dims itself to cool down, and the screen fades a few seconds before Auto-Lock kicks in.

What does Attention Aware Features do?

On iPhones with Face ID it checks whether you're looking before it dims the screen. Leave it on in Settings > Face ID & Passcode and the screen stays bright while you read.

Is True Tone the same thing?

No. True Tone changes the color of the screen to match the light in the room. It doesn't change the brightness, so you can leave it on.

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