How to Change iPhone Rotation Lock Without Opening Control Center - MacRumors
Skip to Content

How to Change iPhone Rotation Lock Without Opening Control Center

by

On iPhone, Apple includes a Rotation Lock feature that when enabled locks the screen orientation so that it doesn't change when you rotate the device. Rotation Lock is usually enabled or disabled by invoking Control Center and then tapping the Lock Orientation button, but you can actually turn it on and off a lot quicker without even touching your iPhone's screen.

control center
The method uses something called Back Tap, an accessibility feature that lets you assign an action to be triggered when you double-tap or triple-tap the back of your iPhone. One of the optional actions that Apple lets you assign to Back Tap is Rotation Lock, and once you've set it up, there's a good chance you won't use the button in Control Center ever again.

To control Rotation Lock using a double-tap or triple-tap of the back of your ‌iPhone‌, follow the steps below. Note that Back Tap requires an ‌iPhone‌ 8 or newer model running iOS 14 or later.

  1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
  2. Tap Accessibility.
  3. Under "Physical and Motor," tap Touch.
    settings

  4. Scroll down and tap Back Tap.
  5. Tap Double Tap or Triple Tap to set an action to trigger.
  6. Select Lock Rotation from the list.
    settings

After assigning an action to a Back Tap using the above steps, the Back Tap is immediately ready to use, so go ahead and give it a go.

There are numerous actions that you can assign to a Back Tap on iPhone. You could use it for quick access to something –- launching a specific app or Control Center, for example. You can set a Back Tap to turn activate Zoom, bring up the Camera, or even trigger a shortcut.

Popular Stories

iPhone 18 Pro Deep Red Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching in Two Months With These 12 New Features

Friday July 17, 2026 10:39 am PDT by
It is now mid-July, and that means the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are now just two months away. The devices are expected to look similar to the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, but there will still be many year-over-year changes, with rumored features including a smaller Dynamic Island, 5G via satellite, and more. Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, ...
iCloud General Feature Redux

Apple Raises iCloud+ Prices in 8 Countries

Friday July 17, 2026 11:56 am PDT by
Apple has increased the price of iCloud+ in Nigeria, Türkiye, Vietnam, Japan, Egypt, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Indonesia, according to an updated version of its iCloud support document. Price increases range from 11 percent to 55 percent depending on the plan and the country. Nigeria saw the biggest hike, and a 50GB plan is now ₦1,300, up from ₦900. Türkiye saw the next largest...
Apple AppleCare One Feature

'AppleCare One' is Now Even More Valuable

Saturday July 18, 2026 6:25 am PDT by
While the monthly and annual prices of AppleCare+ plans for Macs and iPads received a slight increase this week, AppleCare One continues to start at $19.99 per month in the U.S., making the multi-device plan even more valuable. Launched in July 2025, AppleCare One allows you to cover up to three devices as part of a single subscription for $19.99 per month, and additional devices can be...