Phone won’t charge? Try these first
Before you book a repair, a few quick checks often get a phone charging again. Most of them take less than five minutes.
When a phone stops charging, the problem is often the cable, the plug or fluff in the charging port rather than the phone itself. Work through these in order.
Quick checks
- Try a different cable and plug. Cables wear out much faster than phones. Check yours for fraying or bent ends.
- Look inside the charging port. Shine a torch in. Pocket fluff packs down over time and stops the cable going all the way in. You can gently loosen it with a wooden toothpick. Never use anything metal.
- Restart the phone. A software glitch can stop charging. If the phone is frozen, force restart it.
- Leave it on charge for 30 minutes. A completely flat battery can show a black screen for a while before anything appears.
- Let it cool down. Phones pause charging when they get too warm. Take it out of the case and move it somewhere cooler.
- Try wireless charging, if your phone supports it. If it charges wirelessly but not with a cable, the problem is likely the port or the cable.
Stuck at 80%?
That’s probably on purpose. iPhones have battery-saving features that can hold charging at 80% to protect the battery, and many Android phones have something similar. Check your battery settings before assuming it’s a fault.
When it needs a repair
- The cable only works at a certain angle, or the port feels loose
- It still won’t charge with a known working cable and plug
- The battery drains very quickly or the phone shuts off at 20–30%
- The back of the phone or the screen is lifting. This can be a swollen battery: stop using and charging it, and get it looked at
I can replace charging ports and batteries for most iPhone and Android phones.
Useful links
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