If you are wondering how to clean earbuds then you have come to the right place. As a music aficionado, I have had all kinds of earbuds over the years, and I definitely know how easily it is that they can get dirty. With every pair that I owned, it truly didn’t take long at all for them to get dirty and gross. It’s not difficult to learn how to clean earbuds.

However, if you were like me and just looking for an easy way of how to clean earbuds, then I’ll save you some of the trial-and-error that I had to go through.

There is no question that cleaning your earbuds requires a gentle touch, so here are some considerations:

Make sure that the earbuds are completely disconnected first

There is no question that I certainly remember the first couple sets of earbuds that I had. I actually forgot to disconnect them before I tried to clean them! No, I didn’t electrocute them, but needless to say I have shorted out a pair or two just because of being this careless. So, please, before trying any cleaning, just disconnect them first.

Look closely at the damage

Naturally, your method of cleaning your earbuds is going to depend on what tye of damage it has. You will need to see just where the dirt, gunk, earwax, or whatever is located on your earbuds. Of course, often the problem will be dealing with earwax and dirt being built up on the grilles where you hear the sound.

Luckily for you, most earbuds will allow you to remove the silicone or foam eartip and get a better view of the damage. Of course, if most of the mess is on your mesh grille, you are going to have to be much more careful what cleaning method you choose than if that part is still clean for the most part.

Consider cleaning options

You also should keep all of your cleaning options in mind, and realize that whatever method you choose depends on the severity of the problem:

Soft Cloth

You definitely can utilize a soft cloth as long as you are working with the right type of earbuds. For example, for earbuds that don’t have any eartips, this is certainly the way to go, and it is definitely much better than trying to use shampoos, soaps, or other similar cleaning items.

For example, the earbuds in products such as the AirPod Pro will be sensitive, so the best thing you can do is just to dampen them with a moist lint-free cloth and lightly wipe them away. Of course, you should make sure they have been thoroughly dried before you put them back in the charging case.

Do not attempt to use them before they are dried, or you might short them out completely and make them unusable.

Soap and water

Soap and water on a cloth could be either a great method or a terrible method, depending on what area of the earbud you are using it for. If you try to use it on the little grilles, you could end up getting water inside of them and that could only lead to trouble. However, soap and water on the outer casings and wires will work wonderfully.

Rubbing Alcohol

Again, when it comes to how to clean earbuds rubbing alcohol is great for the wires and outer casings, but it would be a terrible choice for the grille.

Toothbrushes

This is actually one of the best methods for cleaning the grille of your earbud system, simply because these nylon bristles won’t break off and get lodged in your system. Moreover, it will only take about five minutes and your earbud grilles will be good as new again!