You probably touch your phone's screen hundreds of times per day. Combined with its delicate glass build, it's thus no surprise that smartphone touchscreens are one of the most common components to run into issues.
But the touch screen not working on your Android phone isn't always the result of a hardware failure. If your phone touchscreen often isn't working or fails to respond, there's a lot you can do before getting professional help.
Here are a few fixes to try if your Android touchscreen is not working.
1. Is Your Phone's Touchscreen Really Broken?
First, you should rule out the possibility of a software bug. There are a handful of troubleshooting steps you can do to confirm this.
Reboot Your Phone
A good-old reboot might sound futile to fix such an advanced issue. However, it's often one of the most successful ways to fix an unresponsive touch screen on Android. Restarting your phone shuts down and refreshes all background services, which could have crashed and led to your issue.
Press and hold the Power button to display the power menu, then tap Restart if you're able.
If you're unable to touch the screen to select the option, on most devices you can hold down the Power button for several seconds to switch off your phone. In some cases, you may need to hold down the Power button and the Volume Up button at the same time.
Boot Into Safe Mode
If your touch screen is not working, but only intermittently, then you may be able to re-boot your phone into safe mode. Android's safe mode lets you use your phone with only the original software it shipped with, which strips out all services and apps you've installed. If your display works normally in safe mode, a third-party app is likely at fault here.
To enter safe mode on most new Android devices, press and hold the power button. In the resulting prompt, touch and hold the Power off button. Once you see the prompt to enter safe mode, tap OK and your phone will soon restart. To exit safe mode, just restart your phone normally.
Diagnose Your Display
If you're scratching your head wondering 'why is my phone touchscreen not working?', you'll find a range of apps on the Play Store that could help you to diagnose your display issues. These are designed to pinpoint what exactly is wrong with your phone's touchscreen. We recommend trying out one simply called Display Tester.
When you launch Display Tester, head into its Tests tab. Here, you have the option to test a whole bunch of aspects. The app can detect dead pixels, burn-in on OLED screens, whether the contrast and saturation are accurate, multi-touch status, and more.
If you got positive results in touch-based tests, you should review all recently installed apps or consider performing a factory reset. Since your touchscreen functioned as intended under special circumstances, a third-party app is most likely the root cause.
Download: Display Tester (Free) | Display Tester Pro Unlocker ($1.49)
2. Remove the Screen Protector
Many people apply a screen protector on their phones as an added safety against drops and scratches. But that same sheet of plastic or glass could prevent your touch signals from reaching the display panel.
If your phone's screen has been acting up lately, try removing the protector. Of course, this doesn't guarantee a fix. However, it could increase the response rate on an already weak screen.
3. Artificially Improve the Screen's Latency
For partially functioning displays, you may be able to enhance the screen latency with a third-party app.
Touchscreen Repair is a lightweight app that calibrates your screen to reduce response times. The app asks you to consecutively tap several sections of the touchscreen. Based on your phone's internals, it then artificially drops the latency as much as possible.
The effectiveness of Touchscreen Repair varies depending on your phone maker. Many OEMs ship their phones with optimal response rates. In those scenarios, Touchscreen Repair won't be able to do much. But it's worth a try if nothing else has worked yet.
Download: Touchscreen Repair (Free, premium version available)
4. Control Your Phone With Voice or Facial Movements
You don't have to rely on touch inputs to control your phone. To better serve users with accessibility needs, voice and facial-based interaction methods for Android have come a long way.
With the right apps, you can navigate on your phone entirely through your voice and facial movements. Of course, these solutions only apply if your phone's touchscreen works enough to install an app from the Play Store.
Else, you can try installing the app to your phone through the Play Store web interface. And you can disable touchscreen input on your phone until you get the screen fixed.
Voice Access
Google's Voice Access app proactively listens for your commands and assigns a number to every action available on the screen. Instead of touching an app icon or menu element, you just have to call out the assigned digit.
Voice Access links fundamental actions to fixed phrases. So you can say "screen down" for moving around pages and "go back" to return to the previous screen, for example.
Download: Voice Access (Free)
EVA Facial Mouse
This app does exactly what its name suggests. It adds a virtual cursor on your screen which you can manipulate with your face. To move the pointer, you simply have to move your head in the appropriate direction.
When the cursor is over the element you want to select, wait for a moment or two to input a single tap. You also have the option to switch on a dock for quickly accessing a handful of essential actions, including home and multitasking.
Download: EVA Facial Mouse (Free)
5. Pair an External Keyboard and Mouse
If you can't install any apps due to screen problems, connecting an external keyboard and mouse might do the trick. This assumes you can still see the screen, though.
Controlling an Android phone with an external keyboard and mouse is mostly straightforward. All you need to do is find the right cable and plug the accessories in. Since your phone has one USB input, you will need a dongle to pair both of them.
6. Water Accident? Let It Dry
It's important to understand the difference between water-resistant and waterproof. A water accident can permanently damage your phone's internals if you leave it on. Thus, in such scenarios, your best course of action is to shut down the device and wait for it to dry.
Believe it or not, putting your phone in rice is one of the best ways to dry it out if it has been accidentally dropped in water.
7. If All Else Fails, Visit a Service Center
With these possible fixes, you should hopefully be able to revive your phone's touchscreen if it's just a software bug. Failing that, the apps mentioned can grant you a temporary workaround.
Otherwise you will have to visit a service center for help. If you're lucky, a professional will be able to restore the touchscreen's functions, although depending on the device it may be a pricey repair. If not, you'll have to look at replacing your phone.
To save another trip to the service center, you should also ensure the rest of your phone's components are working well.
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