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Device guide

Keep your iPhone screen on in Safari

Safari 16.4 and later can keep your iPhone screen on while the AwakeTab tab is in front. Tap Keep awake once, because Safari only grants a wake lock after a tap. Switch apps and the lock is released until you come back.

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

Set it up on your iPhone

Four steps. The screenshots are placeholders until real-device captures are recorded.

  1. Step 1: Check your iOS version

    Settings › General › About

    Look at the iOS Version row. Safari gained the wake lock in iOS 16.4 (March 2023). On anything older, AwakeTab offers a video fallback after one tap instead.

  2. Step 2: Open AwakeTab in Safari and tap Keep awake

    Safari › awaketab.com

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

  3. Step 3: Keep the tab in front

    No app switching while it runs

    Going to the Home Screen, opening another app or pressing the side button hides the page. The pill changes to "Paused — tab hidden". Come back and AwakeTab asks Safari again by itself.

  4. Step 4: Optional: add it to your Home Screen

    Share › Add to Home Screen

    From iOS 18.4 the Home Screen web app can hold the wake lock too, and it opens without the Safari toolbar. On iOS 26, sites you add open as web apps by default.

Which iPhone setups keep the screen on

Support claims come from browser documentation and automated tests. Real-device results appear in the matrix once recorded. Sources checked 26 September 2026.

Safari 16.4 or later, tab in frontResult: SupportedWhat to know: Tap Keep awake once. Safari needs that tap before it grants 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.
Another app, another tab or the lock screenResult: PausesWhat to know: The lock is released. It comes back when you return to the tab.
Low Power Mode onResult: Not yet testedWhat to know: Low Power Mode sets Auto-Lock to 30 seconds (Apple support article 101604).
Home Screen web app, iOS 18.4 or laterResult: SupportedWhat to know: Same rules as Safari. The fix shipped in WebKit for iOS 18.4.
Home Screen web app before iOS 18.4Result: Not supportedWhat to know: Open AwakeTab in Safari instead.
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.
Safari before 16.4Result: Video fallbackWhat to know: Tap once to start it. It needs this tab visible and uses a little more battery.
AwakeTab browser extensionResult: Not availableWhat to know: The extension is for desktop Chrome and Edge. There is no iPhone version.

What turns the screen off anyway

If the screen still dims, one of these is usually the reason. Each has its own fix.

  • 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 a reload or a restored tab, Safari waits for a fresh tap before it grants the lock again.
  • An old Home Screen web appBefore iOS 18.4, web apps opened from the Home Screen cannot hold a wake lock.Home Screen web apps
Try it hereTry itStart a session, switch tabs, then come back and watch the pill. Ends at … if you start now.Start a 30-minute session

Questions

Low Power Mode is probably on. It sets Auto-Lock to 30 seconds, and once AwakeTab is not in front, Auto-Lock is in charge again. Turn Low Power Mode off in Settings › Battery if you need longer outside the tab.

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