How to Fix Cellular Not Working on iPhone After iOS 18 Update

If cellular isn’t working on your iPhone after iOS 18 update, this article offers some troubleshooting steps that may help.

There are few things more frustrating than experiencing a cellular problems on your iPhone. When cellular is not working on your iOS 18 device, you may experience several problems:

• No Signal or Searching: The iPhone shows “No Service” on the status bar or is constantly “Searching” for a network.
• Cannot Make or Receive Calls: Calls are not going through, or you cannot receive incoming calls on your iPhone.
• No Internet Connection: Cellular data is not working, and you cannot access the internet without a Wi-Fi connection.
• Dropped Calls: Calls may frequently drop due to weak or no cellular signal.
• Messages Not Sending: SMS or iMessages are not being sent or received without a Wi-Fi connection.

How to fix iPhone Cellular problems after iOS 18 update

To fix iPhone cellular problems on iOS 18, follow these steps:

1. Toggle Airplane Mode: head to Settings > Airplane Mode and toggle it on, wait for about 10 seconds, and then turn it back off.
2. Check for Carrier Settings Updates: Sometimes, after a major iOS update like iOS 18, carriers release updates that need to be installed to ensure proper cellular connectivity. Head to Settings > General > About. If there’s an available carrier settings update, you’ll see a prompt to install it.
3. Check the SIM Card: A damaged or improperly inserted SIM card can cause cellular problems if your iPhone uses a physical SIM card. Take off the SIM card using a SIM eject tool, check for any visible damage or dust, and reinsert it properly. You can also try using a different SIM card to see if the issue is with the card itself. Your cellular provider can provide you with a replacement SIM card.
4. Update iOS: Ensure that your iPhone is running the latest version of iOS 18. Head to Settings > General > Software Update to check for updates. If your iPhone is running a beta version of iOS 18, this may also cause this issue. You can wait to update to a stable version or downgrade.
5. Remove your phone case: Your phone case could be interfering with your cellular signal. This could be especially true if you are using a rugged case with metal, or a battery case. Try taking off the phone case to see if that solves your cellular issue, and if your problem is solved, consider getting a thinner case for everyday use, and reserve the rugged case for when it’s really needed, like if you go hiking.
6. Change your location: If you have poor reception inside your home or office, but it drastically improves whenever you go outside, there’s a good chance the building is blocking your signal. Try moving away from tall buildings, trees, and anything else that could impede the cellular signal. If you’re in a rural area, try moving to a higher ground.
7. Check for coverage issues in your area: Of course, it could be nothing to do with iOS 18 at all. So before you drive yourself crazy trying all these steps, contact your cellular service provider and ask if there are any coverage issues such as a downed tower or one under maintenance in your immediate area. You could also try your carrier’s Twitter account to see if others are having similar cellular problems after iOS 18 update.

If you are still facing this problem, it is time to do more advanced fixes.

• Reset Network Settings: head to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Network Settings. Note that doing this will also reset your Wi-Fi networks and passwords so you’ll have to set them up again.
• Reset All Settings: If resetting network settings didn’t solve your iOS 18 cellular problem, it is time to reset all iPhone settings. As the name implies, resetting all settings restores your iPhone’s settings to the factory defaults. However, this does not erase your data. To reset all settings, head to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset All Settings.