100% Work! Downgrade iOS 15 to iOS 14 without Losing Data

Want to downgrade iOS 15 (Beta) to iOS 14.8 and keep the data? Read this tutorial to get the easy steps to downgrade iOS 15 (Beta) to iOS 14.8 without losing data.

Lora

By Lora / Updated on September 18, 2024

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When iOS 15 is launched, many Apple users choose to install it. However, because the upgrade was a beta version, individuals did not receive as much as they expected. As a consequence, they're curious about how to downgrade iOS 15 to iOS 14 without losing data. If you are one of those users, this article will assist you in getting out of this situation.

If you over-installed iOS 15 and then don't like it for any reason, you're probably wondering how to downgrade to iOS 14. A beta version of iOS is generally defective and has several bugs that impair device performance. That is why you require a step-by-step tutorial that explains how to downgrade from iOS 15 without losing data. Here are the detailed steps that will take you through the downgrading process.

Warning: If you've already loaded the watchOS 8 beta on an Apple Watch linked to an iPhone running the iOS 15 (beta), you won't be able to fully utilize your wearable after downgrading to iOS 14 because there is no way to go back to watchOS 7.

Part 1. Disable Find My iPhone & back up

To restore a previous iOS version, you must first disable the Find My iPhone function, and then only iPhone will allow you to downgrade from iOS 15 to iOS 14. Next, we must first back up the iPhone to keep your data safe in the case the downgrade process failed.  

Step 1. Go to the Settings and tap on your name.

Step 2. Select Find My and tap Find My iPhone.

Step 3. Disable Find My iPhone.

find-my-iphone

Step 4. Launch iTunes on your computer.

Step 5. Connect your iPhone to the computer. Click “Back Up Now”.

itunes-back-up-now

Part 2. Download iOS 14 firmware

After backing up your data, you'll need to obtain a computer and connect your phone to it. You may use Mac or iTunes on Windows to complete the following steps. Now, in order to downgrade to iOS 14, we'll need a signed version of iOS. Follow the steps below to do.

Step 1. Open a browser on your Mac or Windows and navigate to IPSW's website.

Step 2. Choose the model of your iOS device.

ipsw-website

Step 3. Click the latest iOS 14 version under Signed IPSWs, which is also indicated by a green tick under Apple Signing Status, and then click the Download button to begin downloading. This may take some time because the IPSW is generally approximately 6 GB in size.

choose-ios-14-version

Part 3. Put your iPhone into Recovery Mode

If you still want to proceed with the downgrade to iOS 14, you must first put your iPhone into recovery mode manually. For kinds of iPhone models, there are different steps to put your iPhone into Recovery Mode.

For iPhone 8 Plus or later

Press and hold the Volume Up and Volume Down buttons in fast succession, followed by the power button until you reach the recovery mode screen.

It is also how to enter recovery mode on an iPad without a Home button.

For iPhone 7/7 Plus

Hold down the Volume Down and Power button until the recovery mode screen appears.

For iPhone 6s and older

Hold down the Home and Power buttons until you get the recovery mode screen.

It is also how to enter recovery mode on an iPad with a Home button.

iphone-recovery-mode

After the recovery mode screen appears, you could connect your iPhone to iTunes. There will be a pop-up message to show the options to Restore or Update. Select “Update” at the same time hold down the Shift key on your Windows computer or Option Key on your Mac. You need to choose the ipsw you just downloaded.

itunes-update-note

Wait for the update process to complete. You'll be back on iOS 14 with all of your data intact at this point. But we're not done yet. Messages, App Store, and maybe others will be acting strangely. Let's put that right.

Part 4. Fix some errors

If you want to be certain that everything works properly, create a new backup of your 14.6 installation and then fully erase and reinstall the OS. Then, restore your backup. The more under-the-hood modifications a release introduces, the more likely it is that something will no longer operate as intended when you downgrade.

Step 1. Back up your iPhone with iOS 14.8 to your computer via iTunes.

Step 2. Erase all contents and settings on your iPhone and set up the iPhone as new. Go to “Settings” > “General” > “Reset” > “Erase All Contents and Settings”.

erase-all-contents

Step 3. Using Finder or iTunes to restore the iOS 14.8 backups you just made. Wait for the restore process to complete. You could run iOS 14.8 with all your data and all apps working properly.

Notes:✎...
Apps will be reinstalled once the iPhone restarts.
To get Messages to sync, you may need to log out of iCloud and then log back in.
Other tutorials on changing backup plist files should be avoided. Because it could fail to restore the backup.
Ignore other tips regarding installing some "downgrader" applications that force you to click on offers or ads.

Conclusion

Through the steps above, you could downgrade iPhone from iOS 15 to iOS 14. However, it’s not suggested to downgrade iOS. The iOS 15 Public Beta is by far one of Apple's most dependable iPhone test versions in recent years. Besides, the energy management in iOS 15 Public Beta 2 is better than that of the public iOS 14.6 release, which is notorious for its low battery life. If you insist, you could try the methods to downgrade the iPhone.

More important, here we recommend a kind of backup freeware-AOMEI FoneBackup to selectively back up your photos, videos, contacts, music, and messages.

Lora
Lora · Editor
Lora is an editor of AOMEI Technology. She is also a tester and editor of AOMEI Data Recovery Tools. -- "Keep testing, write the most useful tutorials for helping people recover the lost data for Windows and phones" is the most meaningful thing for her. Dedicated to creating helpful tutorials, she hopes her tutorial can assist users to effortlessly solve data loss problems on their personal computers and mobile phones.