Boot any Android Device into Fastboot Mode

Fastboot mode is more or less similar for all Android Devices, figuring out how to enter it on your specific Android device is quite difficult to figure out, especially with a few brands that require a little extra effort to enter the mode.

Some manufacturers like to protect it with a locked OEM, while some like to employ a very specific and unusual combination to buttons to let users enter it. And we can’t really blame them for it. After all, a user who doesn’t know what they’re doing in there can wreak havoc in the phone. It is in place to protect the users themselves, not unlike many other features in most computer systems.

Luckily, entering the Fastboot Mode is specific to each manufacturer instead of being specific to each phone. As a result, we at Android Tutorials decided to help you out by making a guide about how to enter into it for your specific Android Device, no matter what it might be.

Brand-Specific Key Combinations to Boot into Fastboot Mode

Different phones have different ways of booting into fastboot mode. The steps vary from one manufacturer to the other. Select your device brand to get the steps for your manufacturer. Also, Make sure that the option named “Allow OEM Unlocking” is toggled on in the Developer Settings. Otherwise, the device might enter Download Mode instead of the Fastboot mode on some devices.

Is your device not manufacturer listed above? Comment down below with your manufacturer or consider booting into fastboot mode using ADB.

Samsung

Now, Samsung Devices always come with a hard home button without exception. Turns out, this feature has more to it than simply aesthetics. In order to enter the Fastboot Mode on your Samsung Device, you’ll need to do the following:

1. Turn off your Samsung Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button, the Volume Down Button, and the Home Button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the buttons now.

Xiaomi

Now Xiaomi encompasses a broad variety of devices which includes Mi, RedMi, and a few other lesser known brands. However, the way youf enter the Fastboot mode is common for all of these devices and is in fact, the most common way to enter the said mode. You’ll need to follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your Xiaomi Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the buttons now.

Huawei

Huawei Devices follow the same methodology which most other manufacturers follow to let their users into the mode. Follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your Huawei Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the buttons now.

Google Pixel

Accessing the Fastbot Mode is a little tricky for Google Pixel Devices and can require a fair few tries to be successful. Follow the steps below to enter Fastboot Mode:

1. Turn off your Google Pixel Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Volume Down button and hold it down for a few seconds.
3. Quickly press and release the Power Button while still holding the Volume Down Button.
4. The device should now reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the Volume Down button now. If it doesn’t, you’ll have to repeat the process again.

Google Nexus

Strangely enough, accessing the Fastboot Mode is vastly different for Google Pixel and Google Nexus devices. While the Pixel devices require some tricky manipulations of buttons, the Nexus devices are pretty straightforward in the way that they grant access to said mode. Follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your GoogleNexus Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press and hold the Power button, Volume Up button, and the Volume Down button.
3. The device should now reboot into it. You can let go of the buttons now. If it doesn’t, you’ll have to repeat the process again.

Motorola

Entering the Fastboot Mode in Motorola Devices is as simple as most other Android Devices out there. In order to enter this mode, follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your Moto Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into it. You can let go of the buttons now.

Nokia

Nokia Devices follow the same principles as most other manufacturers. The technique is pretty much the same as most phones out there. Follow the steps below to boot into fastboot mode:

1. Turn off your Nokia Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into it. You can let go of the buttons now.

ASUS

Asus Devices follow the same methodology as the masses do, making entering the Fastboot Mode on their Phones quite intuitive if you’ve done it before. Follow the steps below to access it:

1. Turn off your ASUS Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into it. You can let go of the buttons now.

OPPO

OPPO Devices enable access to the Fastboot mode a little differently than other devices. While it still remains a simple affair, it simply uses a different combination of buttons. Follow the steps below to access the mode:

1. Turn off your OPPO Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Up button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into it. You can let go of the buttons now.

OnePlus

Given how OPPO is the parent company to OnePlus, it should come as no surprise that OnePlus devices employ the same methodology as OPPO Devices. If you haven’t figured it out yet, follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your OnePlus Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Up button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into it. You can let go of the buttons now.

Vivo

Vivo Devices follow a similar approach to OPPO devices to enable access to the Fastboot mode. Follow the steps below to enter the aforementioned mode:

1. Turn off your Vivo Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Up button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the buttons now.

Lenovo

Entering the Fastboot Mode in Lenovo Devices is a little tricky. Instead of the conventional boot into it, Lenovo Devices instead show a boot menu where you can choose between booting into Recovery, Fastboot Mode, and the Normal Boot Sequence. Follow the steps below to enter the intended mode on your Lenovo Device.

1. Turn off your Lenovo Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Up button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. You’ll now see a menu with three booting options. You can let go of the buttons now.
4. Use the Volume Up key to scroll up to Fastboot Mode.
5. Press the Volume Down key to select said mode.
6. Your device should now boot into it.

LG

LG Devices are rather tricky in granting access to Fastboot mode. Even though you may have allowed OEM Unlocking, it will still take you to the Download Mode unless you connect the phone to a computer. In order to access the said mode on a device by this manufacturer, follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your LG Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Get your USB Cable ready and connect it to your PC.
3. Press and hold the Volume Down key on your LG Device for a few seconds.
4. Now while holding the Volume Down key, connect the device to the other end of the USB cable.
5. The device should now reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the button now.

Essential

Essential Phone uses the same method which most other manufacturers use, mostly for intuitive usage of the phone by developers who work on multiple devices. Follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your Essential Phone and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. The device will soon reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the buttons once you see the splash screen.

HTC

HTC Devices are similar to Lenovo Devices in the fact that they present a Boot Menu instead of directly booting into the Fastboot Mode. Hence, follow the steps below to access it:

1. Turn off your HTC Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Press the Power button and the Volume Down button and hold them down for a few seconds.
3. You’ll now see a menu with four options, FASTBOOT, RECOVERY, FACTORY RESET, and SIMLOCK. You can also find instructions on how to navigate in this boot menu. You can let go of the buttons now.
4. Volume Up takes you to the previous option. Volume Down takes you to the next option. Use them to scroll to the option named FASTBOOT.
5. Press the Power button to select the intended mode.
6. Your device should now boot into Fastboot mode.

Sony

Sony Devices enter Fastboot mode in a similar fashion to the LG Devices in the fact that you need to connect them to a PC for them to boot into Fastboot mode.

1. Turn off your Sony Device and wait until it vibrates to indicate a successful shutdown.
2. Get your USB Cable ready and connect it to your PC.
3. Press and hold the Volume Down key on your Sony Device for a few seconds.
4. Now while holding the Volume Down key, connect the device to the other end of the USB cable.
5. The device should now reboot into Fastboot Mode. You can let go of the button now.

And that is it. While this is not the complete list of all manufacturers around the world, this still does contain the most commonly found manufacturers. Hopefully, this article helped you find out more about how to enter the Fastboot Mode in your phone, especially if it was one of the trickier methods to go about it. There are a lot of ways to enter the mode depending upon your manufacturer and knowing just how to go about it is absolutely important if you wish to make changes to your Android Device.

Also Read: How to Boot Any Android Device into Recovery Mode

Booting into Fastboot Mode using ADB and CLI

In case you don’t really want to bother searching for how to enter Fastboot Mode for your specific device, you can simply rely on this universal method to enter it on any phone. No exceptions. This will work on every single Android Device out there. However, it does require a few prerequisites to pull off. In order to boot into it using this method, you’ll require:

1. The Android SDK Platform Tools. This is a package comprising of ADB and Fastboot and can be downloaded from the official Android Studio site. Simply download the software for your OS, follow the instructions on the screen and install this tool to use the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) and Fastboot from your PC.
2. The device drivers of your phone. While your Operating System should install the drivers specific to your Android Device automatically, you can always search the web for your device drivers in case it doesn’t. Once the drivers are installed, you’re good to proceed to the next step.
3. USB Debugging Enabled. In order to use this method, you’ll need to ensure that you have enabled USB Debugging enabled on your Android Device. You can find this under Developer Options. Check our guide to enabling the Android developer options if you don’t know how to enable it. The basic steps involves you to go into Settings > About Device > Tap on Build Number, until a notification pops up saying that you are a Developer, “You’re now a Developer.”
4. Allow OEM Unlocking:Most devices which have this option under Developer Options require this to be enabled in order for the phone to enter the Fastboot Mode. Otherwise, it enters another watered-down variant of the same with lesser privileges known as Download Mode. Just go to Developer Options and toggle Allow OEM Unlocking.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s move on to the process the process:

1. Ensure that you meet all three prerequisites as mentioned above.
2. Connect your Device to your PC using a USB cable.
3. Open your Command Line Interface. This can be Command Prompt or Powershell for Windows, the bash Shell for Mac OSX, or the Terminal for Linux based systems.
4. Now type in the command adb devices and it’ll show you the list of attached USB Debugging enabled devices. Your phone’s model number should pop up here in this list.
5. Once you’ve confirmed the presence of your phone, simply type in the command adb reboot fastboot and your phone will now reboot into Fastboot mode.

This method will work for all devices. However, if this seems like it requires too much preparation, or you’d rather just press the buttons on your phone than take this long but surer way around, then the method specific to your phone will be of greater importance to you.