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How to Enable or Disable Developer Mode on iOS

If you are developing apps for iOS or testing apps outside the App Store, you will need to enable Developer Mode on your iOS device. In this guide, we will explain how this feature can be toggled on or off from your iPhone.

Starting with iOS 16, Apple introduced Developer Mode as a security measure. It ensures only users who explicitly enable it, can run apps directly from Xcode or other development tools. The goal is to prevent malicious apps from being sideloaded without user awareness.

Enabling Developer Mode

  1. Open the Settings app, scroll down and navigate to Privacy & Settings > Developer Mode.

    Open Settings and navigate

  2. Enable the Developer Mode options. Tap Restart when prompted.

    Open Settings and navigate

  3. Unlock your phone once the device restart is completed. Then the device shows an alert confirming that you want to enable Developer Mode. This is just to ensure that you are aware of the security risk associated with installing a development-signed software.

    Confirm Developer Mode

  4. Tap Turn On and Developer Mode is now enabled.

Disabling Developer Mode

To disable Developer Mode at any time, again to go Settings > Privacy & Security > Developer Mode and toggle Developer Mode off. Keep in mind that once you disable Developer Mode, you cant run apps from Xcode on your device until you enable Developer Mode again.