How do I downgrade from iOS 26 to iOS 18

timdavis130 wrote:

I upgraded to iOS 26 when it was released and hate it. Everything is worse. How can I go back to iOS 18? I have an iPad an iPhone and 2 Apple Watches that were upgraded.

You can't downgrade. It has never been supported. I think iOS 26 is pretty cool, but as with all Major iOS updates, there is a learning curve and once you get accustomed to things, you'll likely no longer even remember the previous iOS. That is until next September, when an all new iOS is released again.

timdavis130 wrote:

Since the OS update reboots the phone, it has to, the OS changes, you do a second reboot right after the reboot and think that makes all the difference?

The recommendation was to do a Force Restart, which is not the same on simply rebooting your phone. Follow the steps in the link provided in the post you replied to. I also do it after every update.

As for laggy performance, excessive heat, and battery draining immediately after the update, give it 3-4 days to finish indexing files that are being done in the background. It may even take a couple of days longer if you have a large photo library that is being optimized for object detection algorithms. Apple provided a Support Article just for those experiencing that after an update.

About Apple software updates - Apple Support

If it is just that you don't like the new software, then you are out of luck. There is obviously going to be changes every year and some will not like changes at all. If there never were any changes, then users would complain that Apple is stagnant and not innovating. It's a no win situation. For those that do not want to have their software updated, then they would need to turn off Automatic Updates. Not something I would recommend though.

Bob Terrell wrote:

Yeah, well, you're wrong. I used it for 5 minutes last night, and it annoyed me in three new ways:

It now takes *two* taps just to get to your list of tabs in Safari because there's just less information and control in the bowser window. "Changing tabs" is not something that needed to be harder.

The in-app browser in Apple News froze up because the button to close it disappears as you scroll, and this particular web page popped up an overlay that prevented scrolling.

It's no longer possible to see all your transactions on the Apple Card in the weekly/monthly "Activity" view, because the floating "Balance" window at the bottom covers one of them up.

It doesn't really matter what your complaints are here. You cannot downgrade. Period. If you're not happy with iOS 26, let Apple know, which you haven't done here. Use this link --> Product Feedback - Apple

I don't even have a clue what you're seeing with your Apple Card? I don't see any change in how my transactions look in the Wallet App for my Apple Card and I can see all of my purchases as I could before.

[Edited by Moderator]

Just so you know, if you update your iPhone, there’s no going back.

This update has caused allot of confusion and has been a steep adjustment for many users.

The new user interface is here to stay and has been thoroughly tested throughout the Beta program process.

You can adjust display preferences as well as Accessibility settings to better reflect your needs.

You have the option to provide ⇢ Product Feedback.

If enough requests are made, your feedback might help with future development, like a toggle in the settings.

Good luck! 👋🏼😉

bgride wrote:

What version of IOS will be on the Factory Reset? I checked the health a while ago and the health is good but the OS is killing it.

When you restore your phone, it will still be on iOS 26. You can't downgrade it.

Diegoiscooolz wrote:

Bro

iOS 26 is the worst I hate the liquid glass and I hate the new designs so Apple please.

Sign iOS 18 for users

Because none of us like iOS 26

Thank you!

No one on this user to user only forum, works for Apple. So no. We cannot sign iOS 18 and you have more chance of being struck by lightning and winning the lottery in the same day than you do of Apple ever permitting downgrading.

Read this if you don't like Liquid Glass ALL the way through and try the suggestion provided --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

pooya3d wrote:

Giving that a try. Thanks will let you know!

Giving what a try? You can't go back to iOS 18.

For the record, updates are a one way street. You cannot go backwards.

I was wondering if it’s possible to downgrade back to iOS 18

No you can't. If you had bothered reading the two pages of answers, you would know this.

Perhaps if you post the issues you are having, someone here could help.

Like they said, it’s the same OS, as you can’t downgrade. Factory Resetting won’t change the OS.

teytey178 wrote:

I want to downgrade my iOS 26 to iOS 18

So sorry. Not possible.

bgride wrote:

This is the worst update yet. My battery is near zero and I need to at least power this usage down as the IOS is sucking the life out of my phone. Does anyone have any ideas to help here? If I back everything up and do a factory reset will that work?

What is your Battery Health on your iPhone? Settings > Battery > Battery Health.

Sure, you can backup your iPhone (preferably using your computer) then restore your phone from the backup --> Restore all content to iPhone from a backup - Apple Support

Also, when you updated, did you do a Forced Restart after updating? I do this after EVERY iOS update and I've never had an issue with any update, ever --> Force restart iPhone - Apple Support

domster7 wrote:

Not if you restore to an 18.x ipsw, which is still being signed by Apple.

For a very short time window, yes. If history repeats itself, it will stop being signed in a matter of days. But either way, as lobsterghost1 said, doing so is not supported, even if it's possible for a short while.

>When you restore your phone, it will still be on iOS 26. You can't downgrade it.

Not if you restore to an 18.x ipsw, which is still being signed by Apple.

[Edited by Moderator]