Beats Headphones Not Charging? (11 EASY Fixes) (2024)

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• Find Out What’s Stopping Your Beats From Charging
• Read About Solutions To Charging Issues
• Troubleshoot With A Few Easy Steps

Beats headphones not charging is a common issue and one that can be fixed easily more often than not. Whether it’s dirty charging pins, old firmware, or even the power source, read on and use our simple troubleshooting guide to find a fix.

What To Do If Beats Headphones won’t Charge?

1. Restart Your Beats

Let’s start with the basics–sometimes your charging issues can be fixed with a simple restart.

To restart your Beats:

1. Hold down the power button until the headphones power down.
2. Wait for a few seconds and turn them back on.

2. Reset To Default Factory Settings

If restarting your Beats didn’t work, you can try resetting to factory settings.

To do this:

1. Connect your Beats to a power source.
2. Hold the ‘Volume Down’ and ‘Power’ buttons until the lights flash.
3. Check if your headphones are now charging normally.

3. Switch From USB To A Power Outlet

You might find your Beats headphones won’t charge directly from a USB source, whether that be that the USB cable is faulty or that the USB source isn’t powerful enough to actually charge your headphones.

If you’ve changed the source recently and found that charging issues have arisen at the same time, it may well be the USB source. Try swapping out to a power outlet and see if this makes a difference, if so then it is likely the USB hub you have been using.

While Apple haven’t stated official power requirements for Beats headphones, it is widely acknowledged that they need a minimum of 5 watts for optimal charging. USB hubs or ports that output less than this will lead to charging issues.

4. Update Your Firmware

Updating the firmware is another option if you’ve completed a full wireless headphones reset and still have charging problems.

To update the firmware, follow these steps:

1. Ensure that your headphones are paired with your mobile device and open the Beats app (iOS and Android).
2. Tap on the “Device” icon at the screen’s bottom right corner.
3. Choose your Beats headphones from the list of available devices.
4. You will see a notification on the screen if a firmware update is available. Tap on “Update” to start the firmware update process.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the firmware update. Ensure that your headphones have enough battery life to complete the update.
6. Once the firmware update is complete, your Beats headphones will restart automatically.
7. You can check the firmware version of your Beats headphones by going to the “Device” screen in the Beats app and selecting your headphones. The firmware version will be displayed under the “Software Version” section.

5. Check The Charging Cable

Damaged USB cables can cause poor charging by not being able to deliver the necessary power to your Beats, resulting in slower charging times or intermittent charging.

In some cases, a faulty cable may also cause them to overheat. It’s important to replace any damaged or faulty cables to ensure safe and efficient charging of your headphones.

Signs of a faulty cable include:

1. Intermittent charging: The device may charge for a few seconds or minutes before disconnecting, or it may not charge at all.
2. Slow charging: The device may take longer than usual to charge, or the charging rate may be inconsistent.
3. Overheating: The cable may become hot to the touch during charging, which could indicate a short circuit or other electrical issue.
4. Frayed or damaged cable: The cable may be visibly damaged, with frayed or exposed wires, which can cause charging issues.

We’d recommend getting an official cable from Apple for best results. Alternatively, you can seek a third-party cable compatible for Beats from reputable sellers.

6. Clean The Charging Case

You’re going to get dirt and grime building up on your headphones, that’s just the nature of them.

Check to see if there is any build-up of gunk around the case and charging pins in particular. If there is, it could be this that is the root of your problem as the dirt could be causing a faulty connection.

Using a Q Tip and rubbing alcohol you should be able to remove the debris around the case and charging pins. Once you’ve done so, check to see if charging commences again.

7. Check The Temperature Of The Room

This might sound a little crazy, but some Beats wireless headphones have an in-built security system to stop charging if the room is above 40 degrees celsius (around 104 Fahrenheit) or below 5 degrees celsius (about 41 Fahrenheit).

The likelihood that this is the cause of your Beats headphones not charging is slim, but it’s worth checking. Similarly, if you’ve left them in hot sunlight, this might trigger the security protocol.

Remove them from the sun and let them cool down in this case, then try charging again.

8. Check The Charging Lights

The charging lights on your Beats can be a simple indicator as to what you need to do.

A solid red light indicates a low charge, but a flashing red light indicates that the headphones are nearly out of battery. The flashing light may also indicate a reset is needed, so if you know you’re battery level is low with a flashing light, try doing this.

Similarly, if the lights are all off, this usually represents that the headphones are off completely but it also means the battery isn’t charging.

9. Charge For At Least An Hour

If your Beats headphones won’t charge, it might just be that you haven’t charged them for long enough.

So if you normally put them down to charge for short periods, instead try leaving them for at least an hour. Try switching them on after this and see if they work.

10. Replace The Battery

Finally, you may just have a faulty battery!

Beats Studio and in fact the entire Beats range use Lithium-ion batteries. The benefit of this is that, although small, they can hold a large amount of charge.

The downside however is that they can only be charged for a limited amount of time. Each time you recharge them will slightly decrease the amount of charge they can hold.

Of course, it will take a while before you reach the point where the battery is no longer useful, but if you’re finding your Beats headphones won’t charge and you’ve had them a while, it could be time to replace the battery.

There are some pretty handy YouTube tutorials on how to do this, although we’d suggest checking the one you are watching is relevant to the model you have, and it’s pretty easy to do.

11. Service Your Beats At An Apple Store

You might not immediately think to do this, but you can actually book an appointment to have your Beats serviced at an Apple store.

Apple acquired Beats back in 2014 and so is able to help with technical assistance. If you’re finding you can’t resolve your charging issues (or any other problem with your Beats) then you can book in with a technician via the Apple website.

Need to know how to connect your Beats to your PC, iPhone or Android device? Here’s how!

Powerbeats Pro not charging on one side? Head over to our troubleshooting guide here!