How to replace a broken screen on an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus

The iPhone 7 Plus's screen is beautiful, to be sure — but that glass beauty can break if dropped, smashed, or otherwise chipped against similarly-hard surfaces. Some breaks are worse than others — I've gotten by with a slightly-chipped 7 Plus screen for a month — but if you completely smash your screen, you're probably in need of a screen repair. When you crack your screen, it also destroys your iPhone's water resistance; if you're used to keeping it near water, you'll definitely want to fix your device.

There are several ways to repair or replace a broken iPhone screen, depending on your monetary situation and free time. Here are a couple, in order of easiest (and cheapest) to most complicated.

Repair it yourself

In past years, I would have recommended this option above making an appointment with Apple, but as the iPhone screen has gotten more complicated — and expensive, a home-brew repair can often hinder your device from full operability. (You won't be able to re-calibrate your screen for water resistance, for instance.) It's also now pricier than either the AppleCare+ repair or out of warranty repair, with a screen replacement and toolset averaging around $230.

As the iPhone 7 ages and screen prices go down, this may change, but for now, I find it hard to recommend users go this route. If you're really curious about repairing an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, however, you can watch JerryRigEverything's how-to explainer below.