How to Make the Text Bigger on Your iPhone
By Joe ·
If you find yourself squinting at your iPhone, holding it at arm’s length, or asking someone to read something for you, the text is probably just set too small. This is easy to fix, and you can always change it back.
Here are the main ways to make things bigger, from a quick tweak to a full-screen overhaul.
Method 1: The quick fix, drag the text size slider
This takes about ten seconds.
- Open Settings
- Tap Display & Brightness
- Tap Text Size
- Drag the slider to the right to make text bigger
This affects most apps, Messages, Mail, Notes, Safari, and others. It changes the text only, not the size of icons or buttons.
Method 2: Go even bigger with Larger Accessibility Sizes
The standard slider only goes so far. If you need text larger than that:
- Open Settings
- Tap Accessibility
- Tap Display & Text Size
- Turn on Larger Text
- A bigger slider will appear, drag it to your preferred size
This unlocks significantly larger text than the default range. Well worth trying if Method 1 still felt too small.
Method 3: Bold Text
Bold text is heavier and easier to read without changing the size at all. Many people find it makes a real difference.
- Open Settings
- Tap Accessibility
- Tap Display & Text Size
- Turn on Bold Text
The change applies immediately, no restart needed.
Method 4: Display Zoom, make everything bigger
This is different from the text size settings. Display Zoom enlarges the entire screen, text, icons, buttons, everything.
- Open Settings
- Tap Display & Brightness
- Tap Display Zoom
- Choose Larger Text
- Tap Set to confirm
Your phone will restart briefly. Once it does, everything on screen will be a little larger, not just words, but app icons, the dock, and buttons too. This is the best option if you want an all-round easier experience.
Method 5: Per-app adjustments
- Safari: Tap the aA button in the address bar to increase text size on a webpage
- Any webpage or photo: Pinch outward with two fingers to zoom in
None of these settings will cause any harm. If you try one and don’t like it, just go back and change it again. The right size is whatever feels comfortable to you.
If you’d like hands-on help with any of these settings, we run one-to-one sessions in Hebden Bridge. Get in touch and we’ll sort it out together.