Phone not charging? Try this before paying for a port repair
Here's something a repair business probably shouldn't tell you: a big share of the 'broken' charging ports we see don't need a repair at all. They need the pocket lint excavating. Every time you push the cable in, you compress a little more fluff into the bottom of the port — until one day the cable won't click home and the charging gets fussy.
So before you pay anyone: a two-minute diagnosis, what's safe to try yourself, and the signs it really is the port.
The two-minute diagnosis
First, swap the cable and the plug — a frayed cable mimics a bad port perfectly. Second, shine a torch into the port: a healthy one shows a visible pin bar with depth around it; a linted one looks shallow and matte. Third, the tell-tale: if the cable only works at an angle, or feels like it doesn't click as deep as it used to, that's lint or wear, not software.
One more: if the phone charges wirelessly but not by cable, the port (or its flex) is almost certainly the fault — wireless charging bypasses it entirely.
What's safe to try at home
Power the phone off. Use a wooden or plastic toothpick — never a pin, paperclip or anything metal — and gently scrape along the back wall of the port, away from the pins. You'll be surprised what comes out of a two-year-old phone. A short puff of air helps; compressed air is fine at a distance, but skip the vacuum cleaner and anything wet.
If that restores a solid click and reliable charging, you're done, and it cost nothing. If it doesn't — or you're not comfortable poking at a £500 phone — stop there. Bent pins turn a £0 clean into a port replacement.
When it genuinely needs repairing
Ports wear out mechanically: thousands of insertions loosen the connector's grip and can fracture its solder joints. If cleaning hasn't fixed it, charging still needs the cable held at an angle, or data transfer has died too, it's a repair — from £50 fixed, most done same day locally, with the exact price for your model on our charging port repair page.
Diagnosis with us is no-fix-no-fee, and it works the honest way round: if your 'broken port' turns out to be lint, you pay for a professional clean, not a replacement you didn't need.
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Get an instant repair quoteFrequently asked
Why does my phone only charge at an angle?+
Either compacted lint is stopping the cable seating fully, or the port's pins and solder joints are worn. Try the torch-and-toothpick check first — if cleaning doesn't fix it, it's a port repair, from £50 fixed.
Is it safe to clean a charging port myself?+
With the phone off and a wooden or plastic pick, gently, yes. Never use metal, never use liquids, and stop if anything resists — bent pins turn a free clean into a paid repair.
My phone charges wirelessly but not with a cable — what does that mean?+
That's the classic signature of a dead charging port or flex. Wireless charging bypasses the port, so the rest of the phone is fine — a port replacement fixes cable charging and data transfer together.