Android rooting is the ideal way to get more control over your smartphone, opening up a world of unknown possibilities, but it’s important to approach it with caution. Rooting isn’t without its risks — and if something goes wrong, it can void your warranty, leave you with a broken smartphone or tablet, or worse.

Before proceeding, it is important to understand that rooting is not always a straightforward process, and you may encounter hiccups along the way. If you decide that you absolutely need to root your Android device, continue below, but know that it isn’t for the faint of heart or technology-inexperienced.

Manufacturers and carriers will dissuade you from rooting, and they aren’t just scaremongering. If you don’t follow instructions properly, the worst-case scenario can irreparably damage your device, but many people feel that the potential benefits are well worth it. With a rooted phone, you can remove bloatware, speed up your processor, and customize every element of your phone software’s appearance.

This guide on how to root Android phones will walk you through the steps to root your device. While we can root some phones in minutes, others are going to take a little more research. But one thing is clear: rooting your phone is one of the best ways to tap into your Android device’s true potential.

Rooting an Android phone or tablet is akin to jailbreaking an iPhone — basically, it allows you to dive deeper into a phone’s sub-system. After rooting, you can access the entire operating system to customize just about anything on your Android device, and you can get around any restrictions that your manufacturer or carrier may have applied.

Rooting is best undertaken with caution. You must back up your phone’s software before installing — or “flash,” in rooting terms — a custom ROM (a modified version of Android).

One of the biggest incentives to root your Android phone is so you can strip away bloatware that’s impossible to uninstall otherwise (although you can sometimes disable it — check out our guide on disabling bloatware). On some devices, rooting will enable previously disabled settings, like wireless tethering. Additional benefits include the ability to install specialized tools and flash custom ROMs, each of which can add extra features and improve your phone or tablet’s performance.

There isn’t an overabundance of must-have root apps, but there are enough to make it worthwhile. Some apps will let you automatically back up all of your apps and data to the cloud, block web and in-app advertisements, create secure tunnels to the internet, overclock your processor, or make your device a wireless hot spot. Look at the best root apps for rooted devices for a better idea of what is possible.

There are essentially four potential cons to rooting your Android.

One of the easiest ways to root an Android device is by using an app, and several rooting apps have garnered attention over the years — Framaroot, Firmware.mobi, Kingo Root, BaiduRoot, One Click Root, SuperSU, and Root Master are among the most reliable. These services will usually root your device in the time you take to brush your teeth. But some of them only support devices running older versions of Android, so you may need to do some shopping around to find one that works for your device. If you’re looking to root an even older device, you may need to check Firmware.mobi.

It used to be that rooting Android versions from Android 7.0 Nougat upwards was more difficult. The verified boot service will check the device’s cryptographic integrity to detect if your device’s system files are compromised, inhibiting legitimate rooting apps. Thankfully, rooting apps have caught up with the curve, and rooting newer Android versions is much easier than it used to be.

If your phone isn’t compatible with a one-click rooting app, you must spend a little time researching alternatives on Android forums. The best place to start is XDA Developers Forum — look for a thread about your phone or tablet, and you’re likely to find a method.

Back up everything you cannot live without before you start. You should also always back up your phone’s current ROM before you flash a new one. You will also want to ensure that your device has a full charge before you begin.

You will need to turn on USB Debugging and OEM Unlocking. Do this by opening Settings on your device. If you do not see Developer Options toward the bottom of the Settings screen, follow these steps to activate it.

Rooting used to involve downloading Google’s entire Android development kit. Thankfully, that’s not the case anymore, and all you need is the Android SDK Platform Tools.

Download and install the Android SDK Platform Tools from Google’s developer site. There are choices for Windows, Mac, and Linux. These instructions are for Windows machines. Extract the zipped files. When asked what directory to install the software to, we recommend setting it to C:android-sdk. If you choose a different location, make sure you remember it.

To ensure your computer can properly communicate with your smartphone or tablet, you will need to install the appropriate USB driver.

Devices from some manufacturers come with the drivers included in the phone’s software, so all you need to do to install the appropriate USB driver is attach your phone to your PC by USB cable. OnePlus is an example of this, but it’s worth connecting your phone first to see whether USB drivers will automatically install.

Otherwise, here is a list of drivers from the most popular manufacturers:

Follow the installer’s instructions. Once the drivers are installed, proceed to the next step.

Before you get started, you need to unlock your device’s bootloader. The bootloader, simply put, is the program that loads the device’s operating system. It determines which applications run during your phone or tablet’s startup process.

Some manufacturers require you to get a key to unlock the bootloader. Motorola, HTC, and LG provide step-by-step instructions on how to do so, but a word of warning: They require you to register for a developer account.

Unfortunately for users of Huawei and Honor devices, those phones’ bootloaders can no longer be unlocked. Huawei rescinded the ability to request unlock codes in July 2018. If you still want to root your Huawei or Honor device, you must use a third-party service like DC-Unlocker.

Once you have taken those steps, you can embark on the unlocking process. You will need to put your device in fastboot mode. It’s different for every phone, but on most devices, rebooting the device and holding down the Power and Volume Down buttons for 10 seconds does the trick (HTC phones require that you hit the Volume Down key and press the Power button to select it).

Once you have booted into fastboot, head to the folder you previously unzipped your Android SDK files to. Then, open your computer’s command prompt by holding down Shift + Right Click and choosing Open a Command Prompt Here. If your device requires a code, you will get a long string of characters. Paste it into the box on your device manufacturer’s website, submit the form, and await an email with a key, a file, and further instructions.

Unlock your device’s bootloader by connecting it to your computer and placing it in fastboot mode again. Pull up the command prompt by typing cmd into your Start menu.

For Google Nexus and Pixel devices, the commands are easy:

It’s the same for Samsung devices:

Motorola’s command is a little different:

So is HTC’s:

Confirm the unlock, and you’re one step closer to rooting your Android device.

Some manufacturers and carriers don’t sanction bootloader unlocking, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done. Try searching the XDA Developers forum for workarounds and unofficial solutions.

There are a lot of different ways to root your phone or tablet. Here are a few of our favorites.

The XDA Developers forum mentions Root Master as one of the best one-click root methods — and it’s simple for beginners to use. It’s worth noting, though, that Root Master hasn’t updated since 2017. If you decide to use this app, here are the steps to follow:

Firmware.mobi, an unlocking utility by developer Chainfire, isn’t the easiest way to root your Android smartphone, but it is one of the most stable. It works on over 300 devices and provides step-by-step instructions that make the rooting process as seamless as it could be.

You will need to download the ZIP file intended for your device.

Once you have done that, follow these steps:

BaiduRoot, a software utility by Beijing-based Baidu Inc., supports over 6,000 Android devices. Still, since those only include devices running Android 2.2 up to Android 4.4, it’s going to have limited use for most. However, if you’ve got an ancient phone lying around, this is a great tool for rooting and repurposing that. It’s coded in Chinese, but a crafty translator has released an English version.

BaiduRoot is one of the more straightforward rooting applications. Once you’ve downloaded it on your computer, it’s a step-by-step affair.

First, you must unzip the file. Find Baidu_Root.RAR and extract its contents (if you’re using Windows, you might need a third-party application like 7-Zip).

Next, attach the device you want to root to your computer via USB and transfer the files. Once that’s done, unplug your phone.

You must install the BaiduRoot application manually. Follow these steps:

Now, switch to BaiduRoot:

Here’s a video showing the installation process.

One Click Root is a new rooting tool that aims to reduce the complicated nature out of rooting. The idea of One Click Root is right there in the name: One click, and you’re done. It charges $40 to root your phone and promises that the program won’t be able to brick your phone, except with user negligence. We can’t back up those claims, so we recommend taking all the same precautions you would take with any other rooting app.

The One Click Root procedure is simple:

Kingo Root can install on a Windows-based computer or directly to the device you want to root. First, check to see if your device is compatible with Kingo by checking the official list. Then, grab the Kingo Android Root for Windows program, and install it. Alternatively, download the Kingo Android Root APK to your device, check the Unknown Sources box (see above), and install it.

If you’ve opted to use the Windows client, ensure to enable USB Debugging mode on your phone.

From there, usage is pretty simple:

If you would rather root without a computer, follow these instructions:

Arguably no other mobile operating system parallels the diversity of Android OS. For this reason, there is no universal way to root your device. If the above options fail, do not fret. There is likely a guide on how to root your specific device available somewhere online — a few reliable resources include XDA Developers’ forum and the Android Forums.

Once you have found the right guide for your phone or tablet, it’s simply a matter of working through the listed steps methodically. It can get complicated, and it might take a while. But provided you follow the guide step by step, it should be a relatively pain-free process.

You will need to download an app to make sure your device has successfully rooted. There are several apps available on the Google Play store that, when downloaded, will tell you if you have super-user permission — a telltale sign you have succeeded. Root Checker is popular — simply installing and running it will tell you if your phone has super-user permissions.

Rooting will make your phone more vulnerable to security threats. Installing a root management app will give you more peace of mind. Normally, every app that requires rooted privileges will ask for your approval. This is where root management apps, such as Magisk Manager, come in. Magisk Manager is open-source software that allows you to manage your phone’s root permissions, granting or denying individual apps’ permission.

For all the benefits you can gain from rooting, you can go back to the way things were. Whichever method you attempt, always make sure you back up your data before changing your phone.

You can easily unroot your phone with Universal Unroot. It removes root privileges in most Android devices, but it’s not perfect. Most Samsung devices are not compatible, and LG devices will be unrooted but still show as rooted after the app has worked its magic. It used to be a dollar, but it’s now free since the developers are no longer updating it. But if you’ve got an older device that’s supported, it’s a good way to be sure.

One of the most thorough ways to remove root access is by flashing your device with factory firmware. This method will completely wipe your phone or tablet clean of any root traces, but a word of warning: It’s not for the faint of heart.

First, download the factory image for your device to your computer. Once again, XDA is a great resource.

Next, unzip the file. You will see another zipped file — unzip that one, too. The unzipped folder should contain a bootloader image, radio, various scripts, and one more zipped file. Again, unzip that.

The next step involves installing ADB and Fastboot on your computer.

Download and install the Android SDK Platform Tools from Google’s developer site. There are choices for Windows, Mac, and Linux. These instructions are for Windows machines. Extract the zipped files. When asked what directory to install the software to, we recommend setting it to C:android-sdk. If you choose a different location, make sure you remember it.

Make sure OEM Unlocking is enabled on your device. Open Settings. If you do not see Developer Options towards the bottom of the Settings screen on your device, follow these steps to activate them.

Switch back to your computer. Copy boot.img in the folder you unzipped and place it in your ADB folder, C:android-sdk.

Connect your phone to your computer via USB. Open your computer’s command prompt by holding down Shift + Right Click and choosing Open a Command Prompt Here. Then, enter these commands:

If your phone is running Android Lollipop or older, you can also unroot by deleting the files that granted the root. We recommend using a file explorer app such as File Manager or Cx File Explorer. Once downloaded, you’ll then need to turn on Root Explorer (or something similar) in the menu or settings of your file explorer app and grant root privileges if asked. Next, take the following steps, which may vary slightly (in terms of names used) depending on your file explorer:

Sometimes just installing an OTA update will break root. Look for a software update under Settings > About Device. Just be careful — it might prove impossible to recover from. In that case, you may need to flash the original firmware first.

None of the root methods or unrooting methods are without risk, so always back up your data, make sure your device is fully charged, read the instructions carefully, and take your time. Again, if you need additional support, we recommend reaching out to the XDA community for more help. There, you will find an active community looking to help.