iPhone not charging? Safe checks before a repair
13 November 2026 · Mac guides
You plug your iPhone in at night and wake up to find it on the same percentage, or with no charge at all. Or it only charges if you hold the cable at a certain angle. An iPhone that will not charge is one of the most common problems we see, and quite often the fix is simple and free. Here is how to narrow it down safely before you pay for a repair.
Is it actually not charging?
Some charging behaviour is deliberate. iPhones can hold the charge at 80% for a while to protect the battery. With Optimised Battery Charging, the phone learns your routine and finishes charging shortly before you usually unplug it. Recent models also let you set a charging limit. Check Settings, then Battery, then Charging (or Battery Health and Charging on older iOS versions). If the phone stops at 80% every night, that is probably a setting, not a fault.
The iPhone also pauses charging when it is too warm. If you see "Charging on hold" or the phone feels hot, take it out of its case, move it out of direct sun or off a warm surface, and let it cool.
Safe checks you can do at home
1. Try another cable and plug
Cables wear out, especially near the connector ends. Try a different cable and a different wall adapter, ideally ones you know work with another device. Plug straight into a wall socket rather than a laptop, a car or an extension with a USB socket. If you see a message saying the accessory is not supported, that usually points to the cable or adapter.
2. Look in the charging port
Pocket fluff is the single most common cause of an iPhone that will not charge. Over months it packs into the bottom of the port, so the cable no longer goes all the way in. Signs: the cable feels loose, does not click in firmly, or works only at an angle.
Switch the phone off and shine a torch into the port. If you can see lint, you can gently loosen it with a wooden or plastic toothpick. Do not use metal such as pins or paperclips, which can short the contacts or bend them. Do not blow into the port, and do not spray anything into it. If it does not come out easily, leave it for a technician rather than forcing it.
3. Try wireless charging
If your iPhone supports wireless or MagSafe charging, place it on a charger. If it charges wirelessly but not by cable, the battery is probably fine and the problem is the port, the cable or the charging circuit behind the port.
4. Restart the phone
A forced restart clears the odd software hang that stops charging. On most recent iPhones, press and release volume up, press and release volume down, then hold the side button until the Apple logo appears. Then try charging again for at least half an hour.
The "liquid detected" alert
Newer iPhones can warn you when they sense moisture in the charging port. If you see this alert, unplug the cable, tap the phone gently with the port facing down to remove water, and leave it somewhere dry with good airflow for at least 30 minutes before trying again. Apple advises against putting the phone in a bag of rice, using a hairdryer or pushing anything into the port. If the alert keeps coming back when the phone is clearly dry, or the phone was in salt water, a pool or a sugary drink, it is worth having it checked. Corrosion can start inside the port long before you notice anything else.
Port, battery or board?
When the simple checks do not work, the fault is usually in one of three places:
- The charging port. A worn, bent or corroded port is common, especially on phones that have been charged at an angle for a long time. The phone may charge wirelessly but not by cable.
- The battery. A worn battery can charge, but drain so fast that it feels as if it never charged. Check Settings, then Battery, then Battery Health. If the maximum capacity is low or a service message appears, a battery replacement is the likely fix.
- The charging circuit on the logic board. If the phone will not charge by cable or wirelessly, or gets hot while plugged in, there may be a fault on the board itself. This often follows liquid damage or a charger failure.
Our iPhone repairs page covers all three.
Protect your photos first
If the phone is on low charge and getting worse, do not wait. While it still turns on, make sure iCloud Backup has run recently (Settings, your name, iCloud, iCloud Backup), or back it up to a Mac or PC. If the phone has already gone flat and will not charge at all, the data is usually still on it. Don't keep plugging it in and out with different chargers. Get it looked at before anything else is tried, and tell us when you get in touch if the photos matter more than the phone.
If you are in London and would rather not travel with a dead phone, our bike collection can pick it up.
Get a quote
If your iPhone still will not charge after these checks, call 020 7394 2525 or bring it to 80 Willow Walk, London SE1 5SY. We are open 9am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday, with bike collection in London and courier collection across the UK.