Wheel, buttons & Hold

iPod buttons not working

Menu, Play/Pause, Next or Previous not working, or a button stuck? Pick what happens and your model to see the free checks first, then the likely causes and what each fix costs.

What exactly happens?

Buttons not working
Center button not working
Hold button not working
Power button not working
Button stuck
Started after a repair or part swap
Not sure — free diagnostic

Which iPod do you have?

Not sure which one? Identify your iPod

Most common causes, by model

Also searched as button not working · menu button not working · play button not working · play pause button not working · click wheel buttons not working · skip button not working

Apple's checks first: the Hold switch off (with an iPod Remote, its Hold switch too), then reset it. On the 4th Gen, Photo and Mini, Menu, Play/Pause, Next and Previous are part of the click wheel; on the iPod Classic (6th and 7th Gen) and the iPod Video they are small switches on the logic board, read through the click wheel and its cable. Fix order: the click wheel cable, then a new click wheel, then the logic board. On the 3rd Gen the four buttons above the touch wheel: the touch wheel cable, then the front panel, then the logic board.

Free checks first

Put the Hold switch firmly in the unlocked position. A locked iPod ignores every button.
Using an iPod Remote? Its own Hold switch must be off too: Apple says the iPod's and the remote's Hold switches work separately.
A lock icon at the top of the screen means the Hold switch is on: slide it to the unlocked position.
3rd Gen: if a lock shows on the screen and the buttons and wheel do nothing, it is most likely a torn or unseated headphone jack cable (stuck on Hold even with the switch off).
Reset it: press and hold Menu and the center (Select) button for 8 seconds, or until the Apple logo appears. If that fails, put the iPod on a table and press the center button without touching the wheel.
Reset the 3rd Gen: hold Menu and Play/Pause until the Apple logo appears.