Steps to Turn Safe Mode On and Off on Android

If you do not already know, your Android phone comes with several modes to help you deal with various situations. While you might be aware of the other two modes which are normal and recovery modes, safe mode might not be that familiar as it is rarely used. However, this mode can actually really help you out if you are facing certain issues on your phone.

Safe mode is available on nearly all Android devices out there. You need to press a certain key combination or choose an option on your phone to get into this mode. This guide focuses on what this mode can do for you, how you can reboot your phone into this mode, and how you can finally get out of safe mode on your Android device.

What Does Safe Mode Do on Android

Safe mode can be useful in quite a few scenarios. Usually, these scenarios are the ones where you are experiencing certain problems on your phone and normal mode will not help you resolve those problems.

That is where you use safe mode to troubleshoot issues on your device. The following are two of the common issues where safe mode can help you.

1. Troubleshoot App Issues

One of the major reasons for a lot of issues on Android devices is your apps. If you ever end-up loading a bad app on your phone, you will find that the app causes issues not just within itself but all across your system. Sometimes, this renders your phone completely useless as you cannot even other apps and features on the phone.

This is where you can use safe mode to troubleshoot and potentially fix the issue. What safe mode does is it only loads the essential files required to boot-up your device. It does not load your apps which means your bad app will not load and you can delete it before it gets into action.

2. Troubleshoot Widgets

Some apps offer widgets and sometimes these widgets are why your phone crashes or you experience other issues on your phone. If you believe a widget is what is causing an issue but you are unable to remove it, safe mode can help you there.

Safe mode will not load widgets from third-party apps. This means your faulty widgets will remain unloaded and you can get rid of them before you boot your phone in normal mode. You can remove as many widgets and apps as you want and those will not appear or load the next time you reboot your device into normal mode.

So that is what safe mode does on an Android device.

Steps to Reboot Android Into Safe Mode

If you ever find yourself in any of the above scenarios, or you have a different issue but you think safe mode can resolve it, then you might be interested in learning how to reboot your phone into safe mode.

It is actually fairly easy to bring your phone into safe mode and all you need to do is tap on an option or press a key combination. The following shows the steps to access safe mode on various popular Android devices.

Reboot Into Android Safe Mode on OnePlus Phones

If you use a OnePlus device running the Android operating system, you can reboot your device into safe mode right from the power menu. You do not even need to turn off your phone and then press certain keys to access safe mode.

On almost all OnePlus phones, you can follow the following steps to get your phone into safe mode.

Step 1. Save your work and close all apps on your phone.

Step 2. Press and hold down the Power button for a few seconds to view the power menu. If this does not work, try pressing and holding down the Volume Up and Power keys together.

Step 3. When the power menu appears, tap and hold on the Power off option.

Step 4. Your phone will ask if you want to enable safe mode. Tap OK and your phone will reboot into safe mode.

For as long as safe mode is enabled on your device, you will see the text saying Safe mode in one of the corners of your screen.

Enter Safe Mode on Samsung Android Phones

Getting access to safe mode on Samsung phones is as easy as tapping an option in the power menu. There are slight changes in the names of menu items compared to OnePlus phones but it is equally easy.

Here is how you get your Samsung Android phone into safe mode.

Step 1. Press and hold the Power button for a few seconds.

Step 2. Tap and hold the Power off icon for a couple of seconds.

Step 3. Tap the Safe Mode icon and your phone will reboot into safe mode.

Use Safe Mode on Google’s Pixel Phones

Rebooting Google’s very own Pixel phones into safe mode are as easy as rebooting any other phones in this mode. Just use the power menu, tap an option, and your phone will go straight into safe mode.

Here we show how to do that.

Step 1. Press and hold down the Power key to access the power menu.

Step 2.Tap and hold the Power off option and you will see Reboot to safe mode.

Step 3. Select OK in the prompt and your Pixel phone will reboot into safe mode.

Part 3. Steps to Turn Off Safe Mode

Once you have uninstalled your apps, removed widgets, and fixed the issues you were experiencing with your phone in safe mode, you might want to come out of this mode.

There are a few ways to turn off safe mode and reboot into normal mode on an Android device. The following are those ways.

Method 1. Restart Your Android Device

The quickest and easiest way to disable safe mode is to reboot your device. When you do this, your phone boots back into normal mode and safe mode disappears.

You can do that as follows on your phone.

Step 1. While your phone is still in safe mode, press and hold down the Power key for a few seconds.

Step 2. Tap Restart to reboot your phone into normal mode.

You are now in normal mode.

Method 2. Fix Stuck Buttons on Your Phone

If you find that your phone constantly goes into safe mode when you restart it, one of your Volume keys might be stuck. When these keys are stuck, your phone thinks you are pressing those keys and so it reboots into safe mode.

Press both your Volume keys a few times and ensure they are not stuck. If they require any fixing, then get that done to resolve the issue.

Method 3. Turn Off the Mode from Notifications Panel

On some phones, you will find the option to exit safe mode in the notifications panel. To find if you have this option, pull down from the top bar and see if you see something that says safe mode.

If you do find the option, tap it and that will reboot your phone into normal mode.

Method 4. Reset Your Android Device

If restarting or fixing the Volume buttons did not help, you might want to reset your phone to the factory settings to come out of safe mode. Use this option with caution as this will delete all your data and settings.

Your phone will be clean slate after you have reset it. You can reset your device as follows.

Step 1. Head into Settings > System > Reset options on your phone.

Step 2. Tap Erase all data (factory reset) and follow the on-screen instructions.

When your phone is reset, it will not reboot into safe mode.

The Bottom Line

If you are wondering what safe mode is on your phone and what it can do on your Android device, the above guide should give you a pretty good idea of what this mode does. We hope the mode helps you resolve any issues you might be facing on your device.