Your iPhone charges slowly and you don’t know why. This issue could be caused by your iPhone’s charging port, charging cable, charger, or software — the four components of the charging process. In this article, I’ll explain why your iPhone is charging slowly and show you how to fix the problem for good!
Why Is My iPhone Charging Slowly?
Most of the time, an iPhone charges slowly for one of two reasons:
- Your iPhone is charging slowly because you’re using a low amperage charging source. Imagine a fire hose: If voltage is the speed water flows through the hose, then amperage is the width of the hose, or how much water can flow through at once. iPhones can only charge at 5 volts, but the amperage varies from charger to charger — usually from 500mA (milliamps) to 2.1 amps, which equates to 2100 milliamps. The more amperage the charger has, the faster your iPhone will charge.
- Your iPhone is charging slowly because there is some sort of gunk or debris stuck inside the Lightning port (charging port) of your iPhone. The Lightning cable (charging cable) you use to charge your iPhone has 8 pins, and if any of those pins gets obstructed by debris, it may cause your iPhone to charge slowly or not charge at all.
A Word Of Warning About High Amperage “Fast” Chargers
Apple’s iPad charger is 2.1 amps, and that’s the maximum amperage Apple says you should put into your iPhone. Many fast chargers are higher than 2.1 amps, because other devices can handle it safely — iPhones can’t.
How Do I Charge My iPhone Faster? Our Safe Charging Product Recommendations
We’ve hand-selected three chargers for the Payette Forward Amazon Storefront that will give you maximum charging speed without damaging your iPhone.
For your car
We’ve selected a car charger with two USB charging ports. One is 3.1 amps for charging your iPhone as fast as possible, and the other is 1 amp for everyday use.
For your home
We’ve chosen a wall charger with two USB charging ports. Both ports are 2.1 amps for maximum iPhone charging speed.
For when you’re out and about
We’ve selected a portable power bank with two 2.4 amp USB charging ports, so you’ll be able to charge your iPhone as fast as possible.
How Many Amps Is My Charger?
Although there is no “standard” amperage for a wall or car charger, here are the most typical examples:
- Laptop or car charger: 500mAh
- iPhone wall charger: 1 amp (1000 mAh)
- iPad wall charger and “fast charge” power banks: 2.1 amps (2100 mAh)
Why Does My iPhone Charge Slowly In The Car?
As a quick aside, let’s address why your iPhone charges slowly in the car (maybe that’s the reason why you searched for this article in the first place!). As we discussed, the dock or cigarette lighter adapter you use to charge your iPhone in the car is often low amperage. The lower the amperage, the slower the charge.
If you want to be able to charge your iPhone more quickly in your car, check out the car charger above. Your iPhone will charge much faster than it does when it’s connected to the dock connector in your car.
Clean Out Your iPhone’s Lightning Port
First, try cleaning out your iPhone’s Lightning port to remove any gunk or debris. We recommend using an anti-static brush, the same tool techs and Geniuses use at the Apple Store. If you don’t have an anti-static brush handy, a brand new toothbrush makes a good replacement.
Stick your brush inside the Lightning port and gently scoop out any lint, gunk, or debris inside. You may be surprised by how dirty it is!
After cleaning out the Lightning port, try charging your iPhone again. Is it charging at a normal rate? If not, you may want to give cleaning out the Lightning port another try. It’s possible that the debris has become deeply compacted in the Lightning port. Afterwards, if your iPhone is still charging slowly, keep reading!
Inspect Your iPhone’s Lightning Cable
The next important part of the charging process is your Lightning cable. If the cable is damaged or frayed in any way, it could be the reason why your iPhone is charging slowly.
Take a close look at your Lightning cable and inspect it for any damage. In the image below, you’ll see an example of a damaged Lightning cable.
If you think your Lightning cable is damaged, try charging your iPhone with a few different cables. If you need to replace your Lightning cable, we highly recommend one of our hand-selected MFi-certified cables in our Amazon Storefront.
Try A Few Different Chargers
Not all power sources are created equal! Charging your iPhone with a power source that has a low amperage could result in your iPhone charging slowly.
If you don’t know how many amps your power source has, try charging your iPhone while plugged into multiple different sources. If you usually charge your iPhone using the USB port on your laptop, try plugging your iPhone into a wall charger (and vice versa).
Troubleshooting Software Problems
The often-overlooked component of the charging process is the software of your iPhone. Every time you plug a charging cable into your iPhone, it’s the software that decides if the battery will be charged. So, if there’s an issue with your iPhone’s software, your iPhone may charge slowly even if there’s nothing wrong with your Lightning port, Lightning cable, or power source.
Update Your iPhone
Apple regularly releases software updates to patch bugs and introduce new features. It’s a good idea to update your iPhone when new updates become available so your iPhone runs as efficiently as possible.
Open Settings and tap General -> Software Update. Tap Download and Install or Install Now if a new iOS update is available.
DFU Restore Your iPhone
The DFU (Device Firmware Update) restore is the most in-depth restore you can perform on an iPhone. Every line of code on your iPhone is erased and reloaded.
Before you do, make sure you back up your iPhone. Without a backup, you’ll lose all the data on your iPhone, including your photos, videos, and contacts.
When you’re ready, check out our article to learn more about the DFU restore and how to perform one on your iPhone.
Repair Options
If your iPhone is still charging slowly, or if your iPhone won’t charge at all, you may need to get it repaired. If your iPhone is still covered under warranty, take it into your local Apple Store and see what they can do for you. We recommend scheduling an appointment before you go, just to make sure an Apple tech or Genius has time to help you out.
Charging Faster!
Your iPhone is charging normally again and now you don’t have to wait all day to have full battery life. Now that you know why your iPhone charges slowly, we hope you’ll share this article on social media with your friends and family! If you have any other questions, feel free to ask them in the comments section below.
everything was fine . one day i updated to iphone 15.7 there onwards issue started
my phone won’t charge I bought a new charger and I’ve cleaned it and got it fixed it only charges with the charger raped around it and is very slow
Hi David, I have read many of your articles and they have helped me in the past. My iPhone has been acting weirdly since yesterday. First of it started as Face ID not working. I restarted hoping it would fix it. Not only it did not fix it, its now not charging and not connecting to mobile network. When the battery died, I plugged it on for charging overnight and it was charged 100% in the morning. But as soon as I unlocked it, it went into continuous restart loop. I was able to overcome that when I plugged in… Read more »
Hey there, Sdfdsjkj! (I hope I’m pronouncing that correctly ?) Have you tried a hard reset on your device? If that doesn’t work, maybe you should consider a DFU restore. You can also try and attempt a backup using Finder if iTunes isn’t working. I hope this helps!
Lol I’m buying a android, iPhone 2 complicated, especially 6s +.
I don’t know why my iPhone 6 plus takes 5 hrs to charge 🙁
I just bought a new lighting cable and after a few days I noticed junk on it. And now my iPhone is charging very slowly then how it use to how do I clean it
There is a little bit junk on my charging cable how do I clean it??
I have a usb receptacle the USB ports are 3.1 amp. When I charge my iPhone it charges very slow. It takes 5 minutes per 1%. Can you tell me what’s wrong? Thanks.
voltage is the water pressure, amperage is the current – at least get the metaphor correct 😉
When i first bought my iphone, it charged slowly and it fetl like the battery lasted longer but now it charges fast and the battery percentage goes down faster. and this change happens randomly.I prefer my phone to charge slower than faster because of that reason. It also sometimes vary with the charger.I have 2 lightning cables. The first one is connect to my computer and the other one is connect to a wall socket. the cable that is connected to the wall was originaly slow but with time it started to charge fast so now i switched to my… Read more »
I just bought me a iPhone I hadn’t had only in forever I the phone was dead when I got it and then I’m using one of my old charges when it’s charging I hold the volume button down and hold home button they e a lightning that comes up on my phone anybody know what could be the problem I appreciate it thanks.
probably a little late lol but that means your phone isn’t charging