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Device guide

Keep an iOS Home Screen app awake

From iOS 18.4, AwakeTab added to your Home Screen can keep the iPhone screen on while the app is open in front. Tap Start once, because iOS only grants a wake lock after a tap. On iOS 26, sites you add to the Home Screen open as web apps by default. Before iOS 18.4, web apps cannot hold the lock, so use AwakeTab in Safari instead.

Sources checked Saturday, 26 September 20264 min readBy Soubhik Biswas
Open AwakeTab

Set it up on your Home Screen

Four steps. The first tells you whether the Home Screen app can hold the lock at all.

  1. Step 1: Check your iOS version

    Settings › General › About

    Look at the iOS Version row. Home Screen web apps gained the wake lock in iOS 18.4, through a WebKit fix. On anything older, skip the Home Screen and use Safari.

  2. Step 2: Add AwakeTab to your Home Screen

    Safari › Share › Add to Home Screen

    Open awaketab.com in Safari first. The icon opens AwakeTab without the Safari toolbar, and on iOS 26 it opens as a web app by default.

  3. Step 3: Open the app and tap Start

    Home Screen › AwakeTab

    iOS will not grant a wake lock until you touch the page, so the session always starts from your tap. The pill says "Screen awake" only once iOS has agreed.

  4. Step 4: Keep the app in front

    No app switching while it runs

    Going Home, opening another app or pressing the side button releases the lock, and the pill changes to "Paused — tab hidden". Open the app again and AwakeTab asks again by itself.

Which Home Screen setups keep the screen on

These results come from WebKit's release notes and bug tracker and Apple's support pages, checked 26 September 2026. Real-device results appear once recorded.

Home Screen web app, iOS 18.4 or later, app in frontResult: SupportedWhat to know: Tap Start once. The same rules as Safari apply.
Site added to the Home Screen on iOS 26Result: SupportedWhat to know: iOS 26 opens it as a web app by default, so the web app rules apply.
Home Screen web app before iOS 18.4Result: Not supportedWhat to know: Open AwakeTab in Safari instead. Safari 16.4 or later holds the lock.
Session started without a tap, for example after a reloadResult: BlockedWhat to know: The pill says "Blocked — here's the fix". Tap Retry.
Home Screen, another app or the lock screenResult: PausesWhat to know: The lock is released. It comes back when you return to the app.
Low Power Mode onResult: Not yet testedWhat to know: WebKit has no check for it. It sets Auto-Lock to 30 seconds, which takes over once you leave the app.
iPad Home Screen web app, iPadOS 18.4 or laterResult: SupportedWhat to know: The same rules. See keep an iPad display awake.

What turns the screen off anyway

If the screen still dims with the app open, one of these is usually the reason.

  • Low Power ModeIt sets Auto-Lock to 30 seconds and greys out the longer choices, including Never.Fix a greyed-out Auto-Lock
  • A work or school profileA management profile can set a maximum Auto-Lock time that you cannot change.Check for a profile
  • No tap yetAfter iOS reloads the app, it waits for a fresh tap before it grants the lock again.
  • An iOS version before 18.4The web app opens, but it cannot hold a wake lock. Safari can.Keep your iPhone screen on in Safari
Try it hereTry itStart a session, switch tabs, then come back and watch the pill. No end time: it keeps the screen on until you stop it.Start this session

Questions

Either works on iOS 18.4 or later. The Home Screen app opens without the Safari toolbar, which suits a bedside clock. On older iOS, only Safari can keep the screen on.

Soubhik Biswas · Builds AwakeTab. Sources checked Saturday, 26 September 2026. About AwakeTab