On your iOS device, you can use the App Store and iTunes store to make purchases on Apps, Movies, Music, and Books. You can even use this for in-app purchase after you’ve already downloaded an app from the App Store.
Before you can make these purchases, you’ll need to have an Apple ID that’s linked with a credit or debit card. This allows Apple to charge you for things you buy in their stores such as In-App purchases and Music.
As soon as there’s a problem with your credit card or debit card, you’re going to have a problem with the App Store and iTunes store. This is because Apple doesn’t want you to access their stores without having a valid card because they won’t be able to charge you.
Why Does It Say Please Contact iTunes Support to Complete This Transaction?
1. It’s Taking A While To Verify Your Card Details
The reason you’re seeing, “Please Contact iTunes Support to Complete This Transaction,” is that your credit or debit card information hasn’t been verified with Apple yet. It’s likely that you’ve just updated your credit card information with Apple and they’re taking a while to verify it.
It takes a while for them to verify this information but if you’ve already been waiting for a while or you haven’t changed your card details at all, then you’ll need to troubleshoot the problem.
2. You Entered The Wrong Card Information
Another reason why this error message can occur is that you’ve entered the wrong card information compared to the details you provided your bank. To check if the details are correct, you need to contact your bank to see if the information you have matches with the one you’ve given to Apple.
Incorrect information can lead to the purchase not being complete.
3. Software Problem
In rare situations, a software problem can cause the Please Contact iTunes Support to Complete This Transaction error message. Bugs and glitches are known to cause all types of problems on iPhones and usually, they’re temporary problems within your iPhone’s software that causes random problems with one of them being the Please Contact iTunes Support to Complete This Transaction pop up.
If the cause of this notification is down to a software problem, count yourself lucky because software problems are relatively easy to fix and it means that you won’t have to contact iTunes support to complete the transaction pop-up. There’s no way to know if the problem is down to a software error on your iPhone which is why you need to try the software-related solutions to see if your iPhone stops asking you to contact iTunes support to complete your transaction.
How to Fix Contact iTunes Support to Complete This Transaction
1. Make Sure Payment Information is Correct
You’ll need to check if the payment information that you’ve provided to Apple is correct because if you’ve entered the wrong information by mistake, then you’ll need to correct it. You’re given the chance to provide the correct payment info when you create your Apple ID.
To correct payment info:
- Go to Settings.
- Click on your name at the top.
- Go to Apple ID.
- Tap on Media & Purchases.
- Tap on View Account
- Tap on Manage Payments. From here, you’ll need to check if your billing info is correct. Make sure that your address corresponds to the one you provided to your bank.
After you’ve checked this, you’ll need to go to the App Store and check if you’re able to purchase an app. You should also notice that the error message is gone if you’ve now provided the correct information.
2. Sign Out of App Store
If you’ve checked your payment information and it’s all correct, then this problem may not be related to your payment information. This problem could be caused by the App Store itself and you’ll need to troubleshoot to get rid of the error.
To do this, you’ll need to sign out of the App Store. There may be a glitch that’s causing the error to show up so the best way to troubleshoot it is by signing out then back in.
To sign out of the App Store:
- Open the App Store app.
- Click the Today tab.
- Tap the profile picture.
- Choose Sign Out.
- Enter your Apple ID and password.
- Tap Sign In. Go to the App Store and check if you’re able to download an app.
3. Force Restart your iPhone
If you’re still getting this error when trying to purchase apps in the App Store, then hard restarting your iPhone or iPad might help. If your iPhone has a software problem that’s causing the error in the App Store, force restarting it can get rid of the problem.
If you have an iPhone 7 or above:
- Hold the sleep/wake key and the volume down key.
- Wait for the Apple logo to appear
If you have an iPhone X or 8:
- Quickly press the release the volume up button.
- Quickly press the release the volume down button.
- Press and hold the Power button until you see the Apple logo.
4. Check to Ensure iCloud Services is Disabled
The next step to take when you’re unable to make in-app purchases or download anything from the iTunes/App store is to check if the iCloud service is disabled. Apple does routine maintenances occasionally and this can cause the iCloud service to be disabled and not your Apple ID.
If you cannot download an app and you’re getting your purchase could not be completed error, this may be the reason why. To check if this is really the case, you can visit their website to check whether their services are operating normally.
If you find that their systems aren’t operating normally, wait for a few hours before you try and make the purchase again. After a few hours, you can go back and check if their services are back up again so you can make the download or purchase.
5. Log Out & Sign Back Into Your Apple ID
If you found that their systems were operating normally, the next step to take is to log out of your Apple ID and sign back in.
This is a basic step, but it can clear up some errors or bugs that are preventing you from being able to download anything from the App Store or iTunes
In order to do this:
- Go to Settings
- Tap on your name in the top section
- Scroll right to the bottom and click the ‘Sign Out Button’
When you receive this message, you’ll be asked if you want to keep a copy of your data on the iPhone before you sign out. This feature should help you save your settings. Once you’ve done this, go home. Go back to your Apple ID and log in with your email and password.
You may receive a message asking if you want to merge the data with your iCloud before you try to sign in to your account, click yes to ensure that all your data isn’t lost. Once you’ve done this, try and download the app or item and check if you can do it without the error.
6. Restart your iPhone
Restarting your iPhone will refresh the software it’s running on. If there’s a bug or glitch that’s causing the please contact iTunes support to complete this transaction, then restarting your iPhone may get rid of it which could fix the problem you’re experiencing.
7. Force Close Settings
Since this notification only arises in the App store or an app when trying to make an in-app purchase, force closing the app might get rid of the issue and allow you to download the app or make the in-app purchase. To force close the app, you need to open the multitasking view by swiping up from the bottom of your screen, then closing the app by swiping the app up.
8. Update Apple ID Information Like Shipping, Payment, etc.
If your Apple ID information has expired, then it can stop you from making in-app purchases as well and tell you to update your apple id settings. There are details in there such as credit card, debit card, and other information that could’ve expired which means that you need to update it in order to keep your Apple ID settings up to date so that you can download apps and make purchases.
To update your Apple ID card info:
- Open the iPhone Settings app and tap your name at the top
- Tap Payment & Shipping
- Enter your Apple ID password and update all the details if they’re expired. If you have no payment details in here, then you don’t have to enter them, you can choose the option ‘None’.
9. Check Your Internet Connection
If you haven’t got an internet connection, then there’s no way that you’ll be able to sign in to your Apple ID account when trying to download an app. Since your details are trying to be matched with a database, there needs to be an internet connection there for it to find the database and match your records. Check that both your WIFI and data is enabled so that your iPhone can find a stable connection.
10. Update Your Software
Apple iPhone is continually being improved and enhanced. The software is undoubtedly new on the latest iPhone models, but so are new features on the latest iOS versions as a result. When it comes to glitches or problems, it is always a good idea to upgrade your software to the most recent version available on the market. This has been known to stop the please contact itunes support to complete this transaction error.
11. Reset All Settings
The next thing that you should do to try and get rid of any glitches that could be causing the please contact iTunes support to complete this transaction message.
To wipe all settings:
- From the home screen, tap Settings
- Scroll down to, then tap General
- Scroll down to, then tap Reset
- Tap Reset All Settings
- Tap Reset All Settings to confirm
- After doing this, call someone and check if you can hear them properly.
12. DFU Restore Your iPhone
The next thing you need to do in this situation is to restore your iPhone from DFU mode. This is the last step an Apple tech will take when there’s a hardware or software issue going on within your device.
The problem you’re experiencing is persisting then restoring from DFU mode is the best way to try and get the software to refresh and get rid of whatever glitch is causing the problem.
When you put your device in DFU mode and restore it, it’s going to wipe all of the code off the device, update the firmware, and put the code back on. During this process, you’re going to lose all of your data, so you do need to back up your iOS device.
13. Factory Reset
A factory reset will be needed if a force restart doesn’t work. A factory reset involves wiping your device clean and restoring it back to its normal settings. For this to work, you’ll need to be willing to lose all of your data in the process, but if it’s backed up, then you’ll get it back. There are two ways to factory reset your iPhone but the easier way is through the settings app.
To revert to factory settings:
- Open Settings.
- Select General.
- Go to Reset and choose to Erase All Content and Settings
- You will be prompted to backup your data at this point. Tap Back Up Then Erase.
- Enter your passcode to confirm the factory reset. Once you have entered the passcode and hit OK, then your iPhone will start erasing.
- Once the reset is complete, then check to see if you can download apps with the Your purchase could not be completed error.
14. Contact Apple Support
If you have tried all the steps and you still can’t download apps or make purchases in iTunes, then it looks like there’s a deeper issue that can’t be resolved with troubleshooting steps. In this case, you’ll need to contact Apple support to get this fixed. You can speak to their live chat via the Apple Support website.