How to Make Your Screen Stay on Longer (iPhone & Android)

By Jabin Manandhar Updated October 10, 2023

By default, your phone automatically turns off the screen and locks itself after a certain time of inactivity (usually 30 seconds).

On iOS devices, you can use the Auto-lock feature to keep the screen active for up to 5 minutes. Even better, you can turn on the screen indefinitely as well.

By default, the iPhone screen will stay on as long as you are looking at its front camera, even if it is set to a shorter screen timeout.

Nonetheless, you can specifically increase the screen timeout to prevent its screen from turning off when you look away. To do so,

Open the Settings app.
Tap on Display & Brightness.
Then, tap on Auto-lock.
Now, choose a longer screen timeout. Or, set the screen timeout option to Never if you want the screen to stay ON all the time.

Note: By default, the screen timeout will automatically revert back to 30 seconds if the Low Power Mode is enabled. To disable it, swipe down from the top right corner of the main screen and tap on its icon (looks like a battery).

How to Make Your Screen Stay Longer on Android?

Most Android phones have a dedicated “screen timeout” option to prevent your device screen from turning off.

However, such an option can vary according to the device model and the Android version. On some Android devices, the screen timeout option has a different name such as Sleep or Auto Screen Off.

Open the Settings app.
Tap on Display.
Scroll down and tap on the Screen timeout option.
Next, select the preferred screen timeout.

Note: The maximum screen timeout can range from 10 to 30 minutes depending on your specific Android device.

Along with the default screen timeout option, some Android phones like Samsung provide the Smart Stay and Stay Awake to make your screen stay longer in certain conditions.

Enable the Smart Stay Feature

Regardless of the screen timeout settings, you can use the Smart Stay feature to keep the screen on while you are looking at the screen.

However, note that it doesn’t work if you are in a dark environment or if the front camera fails to detect your face/eyes.

Open the Settings app.
Navigate to Advanced features > Motion and gestures.
Then, tap on Smart stay. Or, enable the similar “Keep screen on while viewing” option.

Enable the Stay Awake Feature

Stay Awake is a handy feature that allows you to prevent the screen from turning off while the device is charging.

This is helpful for people, especially gamers, who need to keep the screen on throughout the entire gameplay.

Open the Settings app.
Scroll down and look for Developer options.
If you don’t see it, go to About phone > Software information. Then, tap on the Build number until the developer mode is unlocked.
Tap the Developer options and toggle it on.
Next, enable the Stay awake option below.