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How to Disable Cellular Data Usage on iPhone: When Wi-Fi is available, your iPhone will always use it. However, when there’s no Wi-Fi network to connect to, your phone can use up your mobile data quickly. Apple gives you a number of ways to control how much data you use so you don’t go over your monthly limit and have to pay extra.
You can turn off all data service on your iPhone by using the Settings app, or you can choose to turn it off for only certain apps. You can also turn on Airplane Mode if you want to turn off data quickly for a short time. Below we will mentioned some ways to disable cellular data usage on iPhone.
How to Disable Cellular Data Usage on iPhone
Enable Low Data Mode
Low Data Mode is a feature that reduces data consumption on devices running iOS 13 or newer. The feature achieves this by temporarily suspending data-heavy processes like automatic updates & downloads, data synchronization, and other background tasks.
- Go to Settings and tap Cellular (or Mobile Data).
- Select Cellular Data Options (or Mobile Data Options).
- Toggle on Low Data Mode.
If your iPhone and cellular carrier support 5G connectivity, go to Settings > Cellular (or Mobile Data) > Cellular Data Options (or Mobile Data Options) > Data Mode and toggle on Low Data Mode.
Disable Cellular Data for Unneeded Apps
- Go to Settings > Cellular (or Mobile Data) and scroll to the “Cellular Data” section.
- iOS lists apps in descending order of data consumption (i.e., from highest to the lowest). Peruse the data usage statistics and toggle off cellular or mobile data for apps that work perfectly offline without internet access.
Disable Wi-Fi Assist
Wi-Fi Assist is a feature of iOS that keeps your iPhone connected to the internet even when your Wi-Fi connection is weak or slow. If your iPhone can’t load pages or play music when it’s connected to a Wi-Fi network, iOS will switch to cellular data automatically.
This is a great feature, but it could mean that your iPhone uses more cellular data than usual. In iOS, Wi-Fi Assist is turned on by default. If you have a limited or capped cell data plan, go to your iPhone’s settings menu and turn off the feature. Go to Settings > Cellular (or Mobile Data), scroll to the bottom of the page, and turn off Wi-Fi Assist. You should see a preview of how much cellular data Wi-Fi Assist has used.
Disable Automatic App Updates & Downloads for Cellular Data
- Check the App Store settings and make sure these activities use Wi-Fi, not cellular data.
- Go to Settings > App Store and toggle off Automatic Downloads in the “Cellular Data” section.
- Next, stop App Store from automatically playing app preview videos using cellular data. Tap Video Autoplay and select Wi-Fi Only.
Configure Your Apps to Use Less Data
- In WhatsApp, for instance, go to Settings > Storage and Data and make sure “Media Auto-Download” is set to Wi-Fi for all media types.
- We also recommend toggling on Use Less Data for Calls. It’s an option that reduces data consumption for voice and video calls.
- In Facebook, tap the menu icon, go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Media, and select Data Saver in the “Video Quality” settings. Additionally, set the app to autopay videos On Wi-Fi only.
FAQs
When cellular data is off, apps will use only Wi-Fi for data. To see the cellular data usage for individual System Services, go to Settings > Cellular or Settings > Mobile Data. Then tap System Services, in the list under Cellular Data. Cellular data can’t be turned on or off for individual System Services.
To put true parental controls on a child’s phone, download the free Google Family Link app onto your own phone from the Google Play store. The app will walk you through the process for creating a Google account—linked to your own—for your child to use.
Airplane mode disables all wireless functions of your phone or laptop, including: Cellular connection: You can’t make calls, send text messages, or use mobile data to access the internet. Wi-Fi: Your device will disconnect from any existing Wi-Fi connections and won’t connect to any new ones.