Why is My AirPods Case Not Charging? And How to Fix It

AirPods are great, aren’t they? Whoever came up with the idea for them deserves a knighthood, purely for removing the risk of catching a cable on your wristwatch and accidentally pulling your wired headphones out mid-song. We’ve got a few music lovers at the Ghostek office, and AirPods have become a must-have accessory. 

But what do you do when they refuse to charge? If we’ve had a bad night, good music is almost as important as strong coffee, and a dead AirPod case will make getting through the day a real slog. So, when your wireless headphones run dry, and the case turns into a glorified paperweight, there is a way to fix them. Several actually. 

Before we go any further, here’s a quick disclaimer: yes, we’re primarily focusing on AirPods in this article. However, if you’re not an Apple fan and prefer Samsung or Google devices, please don’t disappear for a good sulk. Most of these solutions work on all wireless headphones, regardless of which manufacturer’s logo is on the case. 

Why Your AirPods Don’t Work

When your AirPods decide they’re going to take an extended break and refuse to charge, it’s usually because of one of these reasons:

• The charging cable for the case is damaged

• The case itself has been compromised 

• The case battery has deteriorated

• There’s a manufacturing defect

The first of those is the easiest to fix. Try using a different charging cable on your case and see what happens. Nine times out of ten, it should resolve the problem. Your AirPod case is remarkably sturdy, particularly if you choose one that’s been military-grade drop-tested and features shock-absorbing technology like the Covert case. 

But, naturally, tend to twist and coil, and so are more likely to be damaged. On the rare occasions where swapping the cable doesn’t work, you might have to replace the case itself. Sorry! 

A Damaged Case

AirPod cases are not invulnerable. We’ve seen them dropped from tremendous heights without receiving a scratch, but it only takes a single bit of bad luck for them to stop working. If you’ve knocked your case off the kitchen counter and it’s hit the floor at the wrong angle, you’ll need a replacement if it won’t charge the buds anymore. 

Bumps and falls aside, it’s also possible that the charging port is damaged or dirty. If there are no visible dents or obvious breaks on the rest of the case, check the port. Cleaning the charge port to remove dirt and debris will help, but a damaged prong is more problematic. 

The good news here is that there is a temporary fix. You can use a wireless charger instead and thus bypass the problem. We’d still recommend getting a replacement case, but with a MagSafe charger, you can put that off until the weekend. 

Battery Deterioration

AirPod cases are fitted with Lithium-ion batteries and have a lifespan of about two years. As such, if you’ve owned them for a while, you might notice signs of battery degradation: 

• It runs out of charge faster 

• It loses charge overnight or when not being used

• You can see minor physical deformities, such as gaps between the seams

Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do about this. When you find yourself having to reach for the charging port more, it’s time to get a new one. 

It’s All Apple’s Fault! 

The final reason is that there’s been a mistake in the manufacturing process. This is when you’ve done nothing wrong, but one of the production team has had an off day, and you’re the unlucky recipient of a defective case. 

The good news is that it shouldn’t take long before you notice the problem. If you’ve only just bought a set of wireless headphones and they’re already refusing to charge, pop down to your local Apple store and tell the staff. You should be able to get it replaced there and then. 

Are AirPod Cases Vulnerable to Water Damage?

There’s one glaring issue we haven’t mentioned yet: water damage. It’s only too easy to leave an AirPod case in your pocket and put it through the washing machine. 

Apple thought of this ahead of time, though, and designed them to be water-resistant. Your AirPod case should survive any water-related mishaps, so long as you respond quickly.

• Open the case and remove both earbuds

• Wipe everything down with a microfiber cloth

• Leave them somewhere with good air flow for 24 hours

Unless you’ve just recovered them from being submerged at the bottom of a lake, they should be fine. The only thing to remember is not to try speeding up the process with a hairdryer, as the heat can damage the internal components..

Oh, and don’t cover them in rice either. The idea that rice will help electrical products dry out is a myth, and can actually make things worse (starch and phone accessories don’t mix).  

But my Charging Case is Fine? It’s the AirPods that are Faulty? 

Granted, sometimes the fault lies with the AirPods themselves. The case has been getting all the blame so far, but if it’s the headphones that are the problem, try this: 

• Clean the case: there might be dirt blocking the connection. 

• Check the firmware: Look at your AirPods in the Bluetooth settings and make sure the firmware version number matches the one on the Apple website. 

• Examine the connections: there should be a magnetic snap when you put the headphones in the case. If that doesn’t happen, check the contact points and try again.

You’ll see an amber light come on when the charging connection works. 

A Few Helpful Points About AirPod Charging

And just to round things off nicely, we should probably address a couple of frequently asked questions about AirPods. They’re one of the most popular accessories for iPhones, so it’s worth knowing a few things, namely:

• Yes, you can safely charge them overnight

• Yes, you can charge the case without the headphones in it

• No, they won’t charge if the lid is open

• The case takes an hour to fully charge, whereas the AirPods take about 30 minutes

So, there you have it. You might have noticed that aside from cleaning and drying your case or trying out a different cable, there aren’t that many quick fixes. Sadly, AirPod cases are complicated gadgets, and unless you’ve got specialist knowledge, most of the time you’re better off getting a replacement. 

Getting some extra protection for the case can help too…which is a nice segue for a call-to-action! We have a collection of reasonably priced (and dare we say, attractive) AirPod case covers available. Why not have a look and see if any catch your eye?