iPhone Cannot Download or Update Apps? Check 9 Fixes Here

1. Check Apple ID

There are times when updates will appear on your iPhone that will require you to download them. Once you start to download your iPhone cannot download apps. You need to check if the Apple ID you are using is the right one. Every downloaded app has a specific Apple ID that is associated with it. Meaning that the only way you can use a particular app on your iPhone is by being logged in with its original Apple ID. You can check using your iPhone the Apple ID that was originally used to get the app by following these steps:

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Step 1: On your iPhone click the Apple store app.

Step 2: Click on Updates.

Step 3: Then tap on Purchased tab.

Step 4: Check if you can find the app you want to download is listed. If you cannot find it means it was downloaded using another Apple ID.



If you are using iTunes you can get the Apple ID that was used to download an app by following these steps:

Step 1: On your iPhone go to Your list of apps.

Step 2: Then click the File button.

Step 3: On the Purchased by tab check the Apple ID.
2. Sign Out and Sign In To Apple Store

If you are having problems where your iPhone cannot update apps then you need to make sure you are using the right Apple ID from Apple store. If it is the right Apple ID you can solve this issue by signing out and signing in again on Apple store. Follow these steps:

Step 1: On your iPhone go to Settings.

Step 2: Click on the iTunes & app store tab.

Step 3: Then click on the Apple ID tab.

Step 4: In the pop up click on the Sign out tab.

Step 5: Click on the Apple ID again and sign in with your Apple ID.


3. Restart Apple Store app

Sometimes your apps do not work properly or your Apple store has stopped functioning properly. This means your iPhone cannot download apps or even update. For you to rectify this problem you can force quit the app then launch it again with the following steps:

step 1: Click twice on the Home button. You will get a preview of all recently used apps.

Step 2: Find the App store app by swiping right or left.

Step 3: Close it by swiping up.

Step 4: Go to your iPhone’s Home screen and launch the App store.


4. Free up Storage on iPhone

You need to have enough free storage space on your iPhone or iPad for you to be able to update or download the apps. You can delete some of the apps you are not using like in your photos, videos or music but first back them up then delete them. Follow these steps:

Step 1: On your device’s Home screen find the app’s icon you want to delete.

Step 2: Click and hold the app’s icon till it jiggles.

Step 3: Then click on the X.

Step 4: Click on delete for the app to be deleted.


5. Check Internet Connection

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If you are having issues updating or downloading app on your iPhone or iPad, you need to check if your internet connection is working properly.

Follow these steps to turn on/off the Airplane mode:

Step 1: On your iOS device click on Settings.

Step 2: Turn on the Airplane mode.

Step 3: Wait a while then turn it off.



Then turn on/off Wi-Fi

Step 1: Go to your device Settings and turn off the Wi-Fi switch.

Step 2: Wait for a while then turn it on.

Then forget the Wi-Fi network and reconnect your device

Step 1: Go to Settings and click on Wi-Fi.

Step 2: Click on the ‘i’ button next to Wi-Fi network.

Step 3: Click on Forget this network then confirm. Then reconnect Wi-Fi.



Then allow App store to use your cellular data

Step 1: Go to Settings and click on Cellular/mobile data.

Step 2: Scroll to the App store tab and make sure it is On.

Lastly reset all network settings to factory default settings if network is still poor.

Step 1: Go to Settings, click on General then tap on Reset.

Step 2: Click Reset network settings and confirm.


6. Reconnect Wi-Fi

You can try disconnecting then reconnecting to your wireless network if your iPhone cannot update apps or download apps directly using your iPhone’s wireless connection. You can try turning your Wi-Fi on and off which usually helps to rectify the network problems on your device.
7. Clear App Store Cache

You might find that in some cases your cache may prevent you from updating of downloading apps on your device. You need to clear your App store cache by following these steps:

Step 1: Go to your device’s App store app and open it.

Step 2: Touch 10 times any icon on the down bar of the app.

Step 3: The app will restart then click the Finish button to empty the cache.


8. Change Data and Time settings

Your iPhone’s settings on the date and time can give you problems when you are trying to update or download in iOS 12.

Step 1: Go to your device’s Settings.

Step 2: Click on the General tab.

Step 3: Click on Date & time.

Sep 4: Turn on the Set automatically tab.


9. Restore iPhone System without Data Loss

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How to Fix iTunes Error 21 2019

1. Solutions

Following are some other solutions you can try:
a. Restart iTunes

One of the first things you should do when you encounter iTunes errors such as error 21 is close iTunes and launch it again. Sometimes a simple iTunes restart is all you need to fix such issues. It doesn’t take long to restart iTunes and it could solve the problem, so it is definitely worth a try.
b. Update iTunes

If restarting iTunes doesn’t fix the problem, then the next thing you should do is check whether you are using the latest version of iTunes. If you are not using the latest version, then it is recommended that you update iTunes via the Help section. iTunes updates often fix issues such as iTunes error 21.

Follow these instructions:

1. Launch iTunes.

2. Navigate to Help > Check for Updates.

3. If an update is available, then follow the on-screen instructions to update iTunes.


c. Turn Off Your Antivirus

As mentioned above, your antivirus software could cause conflicts with iTunes and prevent it from downloading restore files from Apple’s servers, hence leading to error 21. So, turning off antivirus is recommended as it could solve the problem. Simply launch your antivirus software and follow the on-screen instructions to turn it off.
d. Remove Hosts File

A corrupted Windows Hosts file could prevent iTunes from connecting to Apple’s servers and cause error 21. So, it would be a good idea to remove Hosts file and then try the restore process.

Follow these instructions:

1. On your Windows PC, navigate to C:/Windows/System32/Drivers/etc/hosts and cut and paste the Hosts file to desktop or some other folder.



2. After moving the Hosts file, try to restore your iDevice via iTunes again.

3. Once the restore process is completed successfully, put the Hosts file back to its original location.
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