How to Downgrade iOS 15 Beta to iOS 14.x
If you have installed the iOS 15 beta but now decided you no longer want to run beta system software on your device, you’ll need to downgrade the iPhone back to an iOS 14.x release.
Whether you’re fed up with bugs, crashes, app incompatibilities, or just don’t want to deal with the beta anymore, you can remove the iOS 15 beta or iPadOS 15 beta by downgrading.
Requirements for Downgrading iOS 15 Beta / iPadOS 15 Beta
A few important requirements and notes to point out before beginning the downgrade process:
- Latest IPSW for the specific device that is actively signed by Apple (currently iOS 14.6)
- Lightning cable to connect the iPhone or iPad to a computer
- A computer running the latest macOS version (Big Sur or Monterey) or iTunes (Windows PC)
- An active internet connection
- A backup made prior to installing iOS 15 beta
- You can only downgrade iOS 15 beta back to signed iOS versions, and currently that is iOS 14.6
- You can only restore iOS 14 backups to iOS 14, in other words if you made a backup with iOS 15 beta you can not restore that to iOS 14
Downgrading is a technical procedure that has potential to result in data loss. It is important to have backups handy so that you can restore your device, without backups you may lose data permanently.
If you do not have an iOS 14 compatible backup available for iPhone, and your only backup is for iOS 15 beta, then your best bet is to stay on iOS 15 beta to avoid data loss.
How to Downgrade from iOS 15 Beta / iPadOS 15 Beta & Revert to iOS 14.x
Assuming you understand the requirements and backup situation, here’s how to downgrade iOS 15 beta or iPadOS 15 beta and remove it from your iPhone or iPad:
- Connect iPhone or iPad running iOS 15 / iPadOS 15 to a Mac or PC with a USB cable
- Open Finder (MacOS) or iTunes (Windows)
- Select the iPhone or iPad to downgrade within Finder or iTunes
- Hold down the OPTION key (Mac) or SHIFT key (Windows) then click on the “Restore iPhone / iPad” button
- Select the IPSW file for iOS 14.x or iPadOS 14.x for your specific device
- Finder or iTunes will request to install iOS 14, if approved it will begin the restore process of bringing iOS 14.x back to the iPhone or iPad, this may take a while and you want to be sure this process id not interrupted
- When restore is complete, the iPhone / iPad will boot back into iOS 14.x / iPadOS 14.x as if it were a brand new device – iOS 15 has been removed
- During the setup process, choose a compatible iOS 14.x / iPadOS 14.x backup to restore your data to the iPhone or iPad
Downgrading can be a bit of a hassle so it’s not something that should be taken lightly, you’ll only want to downgrade a device if it’s totally unusable or unworkable, for example if you bricked the iPhone or iPad during the iOS/iPadOS update.
If you can’t downgrade for whatever reason, like you don’t have a compatible backup available, and you’re stuck on iOS 15 beta / iPadOS 15 beta, then you’ll want to be sure to update to the latest iOS 15 beta build as it comes out. When iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 are finalized in the fall, you’ll be able to directly upgrade to that final version.
Did you downgrade from iOS 15 beta or iPadOS 15 beta? Why or why not? Did you use a different approach to downgrading iOS 15 and reverting back to a prior stable version? Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments.
