How to Clean a Charger Port

Written by Mitch Harris | Edited by Nicole Levine, MFA

Smartphones, tablets, and laptops are meant to be portable. As a result, these devices spend a lot of time in our hands, in pockets, in purses, on dirty tables, outside, and other places where they can get dirty. If it's harder to insert your charging cable into the port, the cable pops out, or charging is taking longer than usual, it's likely that dust and/or other debris has made its way inside the port. This wikiHow teaches you how to safely clean debris from your phone, tablet, or laptop's USB-C or Lightning charging port.

Steps

1
Gather your materials. You can usually clean your charging port with materials you already have in your house. Anything you don't have can be found easily at department stores and online retailers. Here's what you'll need:
- A can of compressed air. These cans come with thin straws that attaches to their nozzles, making it easy to spray controlled bursts into small spaces.
- A thin wooden toothpick or the sharp end of a plastic dental pick.^{[1]
  X
  Research source}
- A cotton ball or pad.
- Isopropyl alcohol (if there's gunk inside the port that can't be sprayed away or loosened). ^{[2]
  X
  Expert Source
  
  Mitch Harris
  Consumer Technology Expert
  Expert Interview. 31 August 31 2021.} You could also use quick-drying contact cleaner, which you can spray directly into your port.
- A flat, dust-free table or desk in a well-lit area.
2
Wrap a small bit of cotton around your toothpick. The idea is to turn your toothpick into somewhat of a cotton swab, but with less cotton so it fits inside of the port. Start by laying a round cotton pad or cotton ball onto a flat surface. Then, insert your toothpick into a very thin layer of the cotton at a 20-degree angle. Holding the cotton down with one hand, twist the toothpick until a small amount of cotton wraps around its tip.^{[3]
X
Research source} Do this to both ends of the toothpick, if possible.
- You could try a cotton swab, but they are usually too thick to fit inside of a charging port. If all you have is a cotton swab, remove some of the cotton so that only a small amount remains around each tip. ^{[4]
  X
  Expert Source
  
  Mitch Harris
  Consumer Technology Expert
  Expert Interview. 31 August 31 2021.}
- If you're cleaning the charging port of a PC laptop that has a DC power port instead of USB-C, use a flashlight to look inside the port first. Sometimes these ports have pins at their centers that can be easy to break. If you can't fit a toothpick inside of the port without touching the pin, take your PC to a service center for cleaning instead.
Advertisement
3
Turn off your phone, tablet, or laptop. Always shut down your phone or tablet before cleaning it to avoid damage or injury. If your device has a removable battery, remove it as an extra precaution.
4
Blow compressed air into the charger port in 1 to 2-second bursts. Position the straw to the left or right side of the charging port. Press down onto the port and hold the straw steady. Press down on the nozzle for 1 to 2 seconds to blow air into the port while holding the straw steady.
- To avoid damaging the port, don't hold down the nozzle for more than 2 seconds. Too much air pressure can disrupt the phone or tablet's delicate internal structures.
- Resist the urge to blow into the port with your mouth! This could add moisture to the port and potentially break your phone or tablet.^{[5]
  X
  Research source}
5
Drag the cotton-lined toothpick along the inner wall of the port.^{[6]
X
Expert Source

Mitch Harris
Consumer Technology Expert
Expert Interview. 31 August 31 2021.} When inserting the tip of the toothpick or swab, lean it against any side of the port's internal wall—don't just jab it in there. Then, drag the end of the swab or toothpick along all sides of the inner wall until you've effectively loosened all debris. If there's a bunch of gunk inside of the port, you'll probably have to do this several times.
- Be gentle, but firm—just firm enough to remove stuck-on debris.
- If there is gunk inside of the port, you could dampen the cotton with a very small amount of rubbing alcohol and repeat the process. Make sure the cotton isn't wet, just damp—you don't want to introduce any liquids into the port.^{[7]
  X
  Research source}
6
Spray away loosened debris with more compressed air. Hold the phone, tablet, or laptop so that the charging port tilts downward toward your working surface—this will allow the dirt to fall freely from the port to the surface instead of getting stuck inside. Spray a few quick bursts inside the port again until it is clear of debris.
- If it's difficult to get the remaining dirt out of the port, you could try wrapping double-sided tape around the end of a sewing or a syringe needle and gently nudging it free.
- If there is visible debris that you can't remove using these methods, take your device to a service center.
- If you are still having trouble with your charging port, check your charging cable—it could be dirty or damaged. If you have another charging cable, give that one a try.