[4 Ways] How to Wipe iPhone for Trade In

How do I wipe my iPhone before selling it?

My old iPhone 14 is going to be shipped to its buyer and I would like to delete everything on it. How to wipe iPhone? Is there any to quickly erase my iPhone clean?

- Question from Apple Community

After you have transferred data to a new iPhone, it's time to deal with the old iPhone. If you are going to sell or give away the device, your data should be definitely erased so that the new device owner has no way to view your sensitive information. Depending on the situation, there are different methods to wipe an iPhone.

✓ If you want to wipe iPhone to factory settings, you can find the option in Settings to factory reset iPhone.
✓ If you have forgotten Apple ID/screen passcode, you can erase iPhone without password with iTunes/iCloud.
✓ If you are planning to erase iPhone for trade in, you can rely on professional tools to completely delete everything to ensure that the data cannot be recovered.

In this guide, we will show you all the ways to wipe iPhone clean to 100% disconnect another person from stealing your private information on your old device.

Here is the quick guide:

• ✍ Section 1 is the way to factory reset iPhone via iPhone Settings app

• ✍ Section 2 shows you how to erase iPhone with iTunes

• ✍ Section 3 helps you to clean iPhone by iCloud

• ✍ Section 4 is the best to permanently wipe iPhone before trade in

Section 1. How to Wipe iPhone to Factory Settings

There is an option to reset the iPhone in Settings. It helps you to factory reset iPhone. After the reset, the device needs to be activated again before you can use it.

Attention: Once you erase iPhone and send the device away, your data disappear forever. It's recommended to backup iPhone before you clear everything. We provide the best way to backup iPhone in the Bonus Tip.

How to Factory Reset iPhone via Settings App

Step 1. Connect iPhone to the Internet.

Step 2. Open Settings app on your old iPhone.

Step 3. Select General at the bottom of the screen.

Step 4. Select Reset then.

Step 5. Select Erase All Content and Settings and enter your passcode to erase the device.

(iPhone running on iOS 15 and later, go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings.)

It won't let you erase all content and settings? You can read this erase all content and settings not working guide to get solutions.

Section 2. How to Wipe iPhone Clean with iTunes

iTunes is a powerful tool to import and export iPhone data. As a PC application, it could wipe your iPhone in a stable process.

Steps to Wipe iPhone with iTunes

Step 1. Download the latest iTunes and connect iPhone to computer with USB cable.

Step 2. If your iPhone could be recognized by iTunes, there would be a device icon appearing below the option Account. Click it then.

Step 3. Click the button Restore iPhone (not Restore Backup) to wipe your iPhone.

Besides, iTunes can help you erase iPhone without passcode. It's also possible to make it if you haven’t connected iPhone to this computer before and computer can’t read the device. All you have to do is to put your iPhone into Recovery Mode.

Section 3. How to Wipe iPhone Clean with iCloud

The worst thing for an iPhone user is losing the device. To minimize the loss and stop letting the bad guys seeing your notifications on the screen, users could wipe iPhone from iCloud. If the device is not connected to the Internet now, it would be erased once it is online next time. It's also a way to erase iPhone without password.

How to Erase iPhone before Trade in Remotely with iCloud

Step 1. On your computer, open a browser and go to www.icloud.com.

Step 2. Sign in the Apple ID of the device. The verification code from the lost iPhone or other device is required. You could also choose to receive the verification code from text message.

Step 3. Select Find iPhone.

Step 4. Select Devices on the top of the window and then select the lost device. Click Erase iPhone then.

Section 4. How to Erase iPhone for Trade in Completely

If you want to learn how to wipe iPhone for trade in, two issues need to be noted:

► You have backed up the iPhone. In this way, you will not lose important data. You have backed up the iPhone. In this way, you will not lose important data. If you need backup your iPhone data, you can go to next part to backup iPhone with one click.
► The iPhone should be completely wiped so that no data recovery tool can find your data.

The most professional software would bring you the best experience. FoneTool would let you easily save all the useful items and erase everything on iPhone with 1 click. You can also let it help you transfer data from old iPhone to new iPhone without effort.

Simple Steps to Erase iPhone before Selling

Step 1. Get FoneTool and connect iPhone to PC with USB cable. Supports all iPhone models.

Step 2. Click Toolbox > Select Data Eraser.

Step 3. Go to Erase all data.

Step 4. Check options as per your needs. If you want to backup iPhone first, click Backup Now > Then Click Erase Data.

Bonus Tip: How to Prepare iPhone for Trade in

Backing up your iPhone data can ensure your data is safe. Before you sell your phone, if you still want to keep the data on your old iPhone, you can use FoneTool to easily back it up with one click.

Just connect your iPhone to the PC > Phone Backup > Full Backup. Then follow the on-screen guide you can back up iPhone quickly.

Conclusion

iPhone data is important and your private information should not be exposed to others in an improper way. This guide has told you how to wipe iPhone completely in every way to protect your data. If you want to wipe iPhone for trade-in, FoneTool is highly recommended. The tool will erase data multiple times, making data recovery impossible.