How to Use Back Tap on Your iPhone

Back Tap is one of the most overlooked features on iPhone. By double- or triple-tapping the back of your phone, you can trigger dozens of actions without pressing any buttons. It works on iPhone 8 and later running iOS 14 or newer.

You can set Back Tap to take a screenshot, go to the Home screen, open Control Center, turn on the flashlight, scroll up or down, or even launch a specific app through Shortcuts. It's especially helpful if you have difficulty pressing the side buttons or reaching the screen with one hand.

Once set up, you just lightly tap the back of the phone — not a hard knock, just a firm double tap. The phone recognizes it through the motion sensor. It does not trigger accidentally in a case or pocket because it requires a deliberate tapping motion.

This feature can also be set to run an accessibility action, like toggling AssistiveTouch or Zoom, which helps users who benefit from those tools. You can assign different actions to double-tap and triple-tap independently, giving you two separate shortcuts.

Back Tap works even when the screen is on or off, and it does not interfere with normal phone use. Try setting it to take screenshots first — that is one of the most popular uses.