How To Speed Up App Store Downloads and Updates on iPhone

Dealing with sluggish App Store downloads or updates on an iPhone can be maddening, especially when everything seems to be working fine except for that one app that’s stuck at 0%.Sometimes, it’s just a temporary glitch, but other times, there’s a little more going on with your settings or network. The goal here is to get apps downloading smoothly again, which can be surprisingly simple once you figure out what’s holding things back. Whether it’s a weird bug, a network hiccup, or storage issues, the following steps should help clear the bottleneck and get your downloads flowing again.

How to Fix Slow or Stuck App Store Downloads on iPhone

Relaunch the Apple App Store

This might sound trivial, but closing and reopening the App Store often irons out bugs or glitches that prevent downloads from kicking in properly. On iPhones, you can do this by swiping up to access the App Switcher, finding the App Store card, and swiping it away to close. After that, just tap the icon to reopen it. If an app’s download is stuck, stopping and restarting the App Store here can sometimes fix the issue, especially if the download seems frozen at 0%.On some setups, this can be hit-or-miss — it worked on one iPhone but not so much on another — but it’s a quick step worth trying because of course, Apple has to make it harder than necessary.

Restart Your iPhone

If relaunching the App Store didn’t do the trick, a full reboot might help. It clears out any lingering system bugs or cache that could be slowing things down. To do this, press and hold the side button + a volume button until the power slider appears; slide to power off. Wait a few seconds, then press and hold the side button again until the Apple logo appears. This process sometimes refreshes the network and system components behind downloads, making everything run a bit smoother afterward. On some newer models, this is especially worth a shot because unusual glitches can pop up unexpectedly.

Check Your Internet Speed

Slow or unstable WiFi can really mess with those downloads. Before diving into more complex fixes, verify your internet connection. Visit fast.com from Safari or your browser of choice. If it’s crawling or dropping out, switching to mobile data or connecting to a different WiFi network might do the trick. Sometimes, your router might be the culprit, especially if other devices are also experiencing slow speeds. A quick router restart or temporarily disabling WiFi and switching to mobile data could speed things up.

Sign Out and Sign Back Into the App Store

This fixes a weird sync thing that sometimes causes slow downloads. On your iPhone, open the App Store, tap your profile picture or the account icon at the top right, then tap Sign Out at the bottom. Wait a handful of seconds, then sign back in with your Apple ID credentials. Why does this sometimes work? Not sure, but resetting that session can fix hiccups with the download queue or the server’s info. On some setups, the sign-out process might require a stable internet connection, so make sure you’re online before trying again.

Prioritize Your Downloads

If you’re downloading or updating multiple apps, it’s good to focus on the one you need first. Long-press the app icon on your home screen that’s stuck or pending, then select Prioritize Download (this appears on some iOS versions).This tells the system to handle that specific app first, which can make the process quicker if you’re in a hurry. It’s kind of weird, but this feature is better than waiting for the entire queue to process, especially if you’re just trying to get a couple of critical apps up and running.

Free Up Storage Space

Not enough space can halt downloads pretty effectively. Head over to Settings > General > iPhone Storage. Check what’s taking up space — if your storage is close to full, it’s time to delete some unused apps, photos, or other files. Ideally, keep at least a couple of gigs free to give the system room to breathe during downloads and updates. Sometimes, deleting a few big apps or old photos is enough to jump-start stalled downloads.

Check the Apple System Status

This one’s simple but easy to overlook. If Apple’s servers are having issues, nothing local can fix the problem. Visit Apple’s system status webpage and see if the App Store is marked as affected. If yes, all you can do is wait until Apple sorts things out. This is especially common during large updates or outages — staying in the loop helps avoid wasting time troubleshooting when it’s not your fault.

Switch to Google DNS

Sometimes, your ISP’s DNS servers are a bit sluggish, and changing over to Google’s public DNS can help speed things up. Here’s how: go to Settings > WiFi, tap the (i) next to your connected network, then tap Configure DNS. Pick Manual, clear any existing entries, and add 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4. Save the settings, and that might give your downloads a little boost because Google DNS tends to be faster and more reliable in many regions. Not sure why it works, but on some networks, it noticeably improves download speeds.

Okay, that’s about it for the usual suspects. Usually, one or a combination of these fixes gets the downloads humming again. If nothing seems to work, checking for iOS updates or contacting Apple support might be your next step. Just remember, iPhone downloads are sometimes a dance — they rely on a bunch of moving parts. Hope this helps streamline your experience.

Summary

Try relaunching the App Store like a boss.
Restart your iPhone — sometimes system glitches need a quick reset.
Make sure your internet isn’t being a pain in the ass.
Sign out and back into your Apple ID, it can fix sync problems.
Prioritize crucial apps to cut the queue and speed things up.
Free up storage — apps won’t install if there’s no room.
Check Apple’s system status in case the servers are down.
Switch to Google DNS if your connection feels slow or unreliable.

Wrap-up

Most of the time, these steps do the trick, and it’s just a matter of patience or a tweak here and there. Sometimes, the whole process just requires a reboot or clearing some space. Fingers crossed, this saves someone a headache trying to figure out why their App Store won’t get apps downloading. Good luck, and hopefully, it gets you back to installing without waiting forever!