The Samsung Galaxy A55 is a solid mid-range Android phone, but software glitches, frozen screens, and stuck updates happen. A reset is the standard fix — and the standard prep before selling or handing it off. This guide walks through all three reset paths, in order of how much data they destroy.
Watch the procedure (video tutorial)
Method 1: Force restart (no data loss)
Try this first if the screen is frozen or unresponsive but the phone is otherwise working — no data is lost.
- Press and hold the **Side button** and **Volume Down** at the same time.
- Keep holding both for about 7-10 seconds until the screen goes black.
- Release both buttons when the Samsung logo appears. The phone will boot normally.
Method 2: Factory reset from Settings (when Galaxy A55 works normally)
Use this when the phone works normally and you want to wipe it — selling, gifting, or clearing a persistent software issue.
- Open **Settings**.
- Scroll to **General management**.
- Tap **Reset**.
- Tap **Factory data reset**.
- Scroll to the bottom and tap **Reset**. Enter your PIN, password, or pattern if prompted.
- Tap **Delete all** to confirm. The phone restarts and begins the wipe.
Method 3: Hard reset via Recovery Mode (when locked or won’t boot)
Use this when the phone is locked out, stuck on the Samsung logo, or won’t boot to Settings. Warning: this triggers Factory Reset Protection (FRP) — after the wipe, you must sign in with the Google account that was previously on the device.
- Power the phone off completely. If unresponsive, hold **Side + Volume Down** for 10+ seconds to force shutdown.
- Connect the phone to a computer or wall charger using a USB-C cable. Recent Galaxy phones require an active USB connection to enter Recovery.
- Press and hold **Volume Up + Side button** at the same time.
- Keep holding until the Android Recovery menu appears, then release both buttons.
- Use **Volume Down** to highlight **Wipe data/factory reset**, then press the **Side button** to select.
- Select **Factory data reset** to confirm. Wait for the wipe to finish.
- Select **Reboot system now**.
After the reset
The phone boots back to the Samsung Welcome screen. You’ll be required to sign into the Google account that was previously on the device — this is Factory Reset Protection, and there’s no legitimate way around it. Once you’re through setup, restore from Samsung Cloud or a Google backup, or set up as new. Note that end-to-end encrypted messages (Signal, WhatsApp without a chat backup) and some game progress are gone permanently.
Troubleshooting
I don’t remember the Google account that was signed in before the reset.
Go to accounts.google.com/signin/recovery on another device and recover the account using your recovery email or phone number. Samsung cannot bypass FRP. If the phone belonged to someone else, only they can remove it from their Google account.
The phone keeps booting normally instead of going into Recovery.
You’re likely releasing the buttons too early, or the USB cable isn’t delivering power. Use a known-good USB-C cable in a wall charger, then hold **Volume Up + Side** firmly and don’t release until the blue Android Recovery text appears.
The phone is stuck in a boot loop after the reset.
Re-enter Recovery (Method 3, steps 1-4), run **Wipe cache partition** first, then **Wipe data/factory reset** again. If it still loops, reflash the official firmware using Samsung Smart Switch on a PC — it will detect the phone in Download mode and reinstall the stock OS.
