When you need your phone juiced up in a hurry, knowing how to make your iPhone charge faster is vital.
Charging your phone is usually a straightforward task, but there are times when you might not have a couple of hours to wait around for your phone’s battery percentage to slowly creep back to 100%. In these situations, there are a few methods you can try to speed up the charging process.
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Older models of iPhone are particularly susceptible to slow charging speeds, as the battery naturally ages with continued use. If you’ve yet to upgrade to one of the latest iPhone models, then it’s especially important to give your device a little extra help when it comes to charging.
It should be noted that, even with the advice outlined below, charging your phone will still require at least some form of time commitment. Unfortunately, there isn’t a way to make your iPhone instantly replenish its battery. However, if every second counts then there are ways to make your phone charge quicker.
These 10 tips will help make your iPhone charge faster so even if you only have a few moments to spare, you can at least give it some extra power.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Use a wall charger
Let’s start with a fairly obvious one, you should always use a wall charger with your iPhone. Plugging your phone into a PC or gaming console with a USB cable will almost always result in a longer charging time.
However, not all wall chargers are the same. The general rule is the higher the wattage the faster it can power up a device. If you find your phone charges very slow even when connected to a wall charger it’s worth investing in a charger with a higher wattage to speed the process up, just make sure it’s compatible with your iPhone first.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Use a fast charger (if you can)
The more recent models of iPhone (such as the iPhone 8, iPhone X and later) include fast charging support. With the correct wall charger, your phone can go from empty to 50% charge in just half an hour.
Apple doesn’t supply a fast charger in the box (the default phone charger is a measly 5W) but it does sell a 30W USB-C Power Adapter separately. You will also need a USB-C to Lightning Cable in order to connect your phone.
If you’d rather go for a third-party option, as Apple’s own products come with a fairly substantial markup, the Anker Nano II is a great pick.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Don’t use your phone
This is another fairly obvious one, but it’s worth noting nevertheless. While your iPhone is charging, avoid using it.
Don’t watch videos, browse the web, check your emails, or anything else that involves your phone being active, because these all take a toll on the battery. Let your iPhone charge in peace and it’ll do so much faster.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Don’t use wireless charging
Sure, using wireless charging makes you feel like you’re in a science-fiction movie but there's a high cost to this convenience.
If you have a newer iPhone that supports wireless charging, you should only use it when you’ve got time to spare and don’t need your device to replenish as much power as possible in the shortest time. Wireless charging is much slower than good old-fashioned cable charging.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Fully switch your phone off
Your phone will charge more slowly if it’s still switched on. This is because it’ll still be performing battery-draining functions in the background such as checking for new messages or potential even auto-downloading updates.
For this reason, it’s recommended that you fully power down your iPhone before you begin charging it.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Turn on Airplane Mode
If you don’t want to fully switch your phone off, then the next best thing is to put it in Airplane Mode. This state restricts several of your iPhone’s core functions, such as connecting to Wi-Fi or searching for a cellular signal.
Doing this won’t speed up your charging as much as fully powering off your phone, but it’ll still be somewhat faster.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Turn on Low Power Mode
If fully switching your phone off or putting it in Airplane Mode aren’t viable options, as you still need to use your iPhone while it’s charging, then Low Power Mode is the next best thing.
This reduces the workload on your phone, turning off non-essential background functions and dimming the screen brightness to manage battery level. It can be easily switched on from the Battery tab in the Settings menu.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Keep it cool
Keeping your iPhone cool while charging is extremely important. If your device gets too hot it will impact its ability to charge, so you need to make sure it’s not getting too warm.
The easiest way to do this is to take off your iPhone’s case if you have one. A case can actually trap heat which will result in your phone getting warmer. Also, ensure that you don’t place your phone in direct sunlight while charging and ideally set it down in a cool location if possible.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Cycle the battery
As part of standard iPhone maintenance, you should be regularly cycling the battery. Doing this will keep your device’s battery in good health, which will mean it not only charges faster but also holds charge for longer.
For the unaware, cycling the battery is when you let your device run from 100% fully charged all the way down to zero, until it shuts itself down due to lack of power. You don’t have to be doing this daily, but you should be doing it at least once a month.
How to make your iPhone charge faster: Have a portable charger ready
As a last resort, it’s always useful to have a portable charger to hand. This way, even if you don’t have time to wait around while your iPhone gets some juice from a wall charger you can keep it charging on the move.
You definitely get what you pay for when it comes to these accessories so we strongly advise picking up one of the best portable chargers and power banks instead of a discount alternative.
