Property a cleaved headphone plug, and wondering where the end is? Pulled the earphones too apace from your tablet or smartphone, only to detect a bit was left behind?

Sadly, earphone connectors aren't built for regular and repeated insertion and removal. Merely if a headphone jack has broken off in your phone, iPad, or MP3 player, the socket can't be used. You'll demand to remove it before you can use any replacement earphones.

These six methods should help you remove a broken headphone jack.

How to Remove a Broken Headphone Jack

All too ofttimes, the terminate of a broken headphone jack gets stuck in your phone or tablet. It turns out that these small metal cylinders are weak where the (usually) black plastic rings appear forth the length. This is the same for any wired earphones.

Earphone jacks

It's difficult, only several solutions have been discovered to remove a broken headphone jack:

  1. Within of a Biro
  2. Supergluing the rest of the connector plug
  3. Thumbtack with a bent point
  4. A toothpick with hot glue
  5. A heated paperclip
  6. A defended tool chosen the GripStick

When withdrawing the broken component, brand sure you lot're property your device with the earphone socket pointing downwards. Gravity always helps!

Also, before looking at these methods in more detail, note that these solutions are performed entirely at your own take chances. While less invasive than repairing headphone speakers, a wrong move could result in a broken phone or tablet.

1. Can a Biro Get a Broken Headphone Jack Out?

Fun fact: the tube running up the inside of your biro is almost the same bore as an earphone jack. With a scrap of force and adjustment, this can be used to remove the broken connector from your device.

To do this, remove the inner tube of the pen. This is the slice with the ink in it and is almost ever removed by pulling the bill of the pen.

At the bottom of the tube, the contrary end to the nib, you lot should find there is no ink. Yous can utilize this portion of the tube to remove the broken plug. But button it firmly into your earphone socket and remove the broken headphone jack. The tube should grip the broken part and pull it out.

If this doesn't piece of work offset time, yous take some options. The first is to slightly widen the tube with a nail, to ensure a snug fit for the plug. Alternatively, you could quickly heat the end of the tube to soften information technology, then push button information technology into the socket. Leave it for a moment, then withdraw.

Have a very steady paw? Try hot glue or superglue, in a very small quantity, on the end of the tube before insertion. The video above demonstrates a like approach, using chewing gum.

Finally, you might be missing some force per unit area. If you can, cut a 2-inch length of the tube (or find something of a like size, such every bit the tube from a can of lubricating oil), then insert into the earphone socket. Side by side, tap into identify with something firm (like a shoe or slipper) just to ensure the lost part is gripped. When you're happy information technology is held past the tube, remove from the phone.

2. Superglue the Other Cease of the Plug

If the pen cartridge doesn't work, or you prefer a different approach, so the answer could be superglue. Y'all probably know that when using superglue, you never bind two surfaces immediately after application.

Instead, you wait, until they have dried slightly and get tacky. This tackiness is central to removing the cleaved piece in this scenario.

Using a cocktail stick or another narrow applicator, place a tiny blob of superglue on the remaining terminate of the earphone plug. That's the piece that didn't interruption off in the telephone! Wait (every bit per the packet instructions) for it to become tacky, then slide into the socket. Later on pushing downward for 30 seconds or so, pull. If the cleaved headphone jack is fastened, you've solved the trouble.

It's important to utilize pocket-sized amounts of mucilage. Otherwise, residual gum might cause bug later. To resolve this, just apply a lilliputian rubbing booze to a Q-tip and swiftly clean inside the socket.

three. Remove a Cleaved Headphone Jack With a Thumbtack

If you desire a simpler arroyo, a bent thumbtack or drawing pin can be used. Grab a normal tack and hammer the indicate to form a sort of "L" shape.

With your telephone or tablet in i hand, take the thumbtack and push information technology into the earphone socket. Do this so that the bespeak of the thumbtack touches the plastic part of the connector, push firmly, and twist.

The bent bespeak should burrow slightly into the plug. When y'all're confident y'all have plenty purchase, pull the cleaved headphone jack out.

4. Toothpick and Hot Glue

Looking for some other object that is pocket-size plenty to fit into the socket and remove a cleaved headphone jack?

Endeavour a toothpick; plastic or wooden, either is fine. Just make sure it is narrow and long enough to reach into the socket and reach the broken earphone plug. And then, tab a tiny amount of hot glue onto the terminate and expect a moment for information technology to cool slightly.

Carefully insert into the earphone socket until it touches the debris. Look for the gum to absurd and dry out, then remove. If all has gone co-ordinate to program, the missing cleaved headphone jack will be removed!

5. Heated Paperclip

No glue to hand? Heat is a expert substitute, every bit the broken part of the connector is virtually always accompanied past band of plastic. To catch hold of this, take a paperclip, and unwind it, angle the main length out by 90 degrees.

Next, hold the paperclip with something heatproof, and estrus the end of the bent slice. With your phone in your other paw, insert the heated paper prune carefully into the socket, straight down the middle. Push button firmly and wait a few minutes for the plastic to absurd. If all has gone well, y'all should before long be able to remove the broken piece of the earphone connector.

If DIY fixes aren't working for you, it might be fourth dimension to consider the pro-level solution. GripStick is the consequence of a successful Kickstarter campaign, designed specifically for the job of removing broken off earphone plugs.

Although pricey, it'due south considerably less than paying a professional to remove the lost earphone connector. Similarly, if your phone is under warranty or smartphone insurance, it volition be inconvenient to ship information technology away for repairs. Buying a GripStick volition avert this beingness an issue.

Use of the GripStick is simple. Slide the cylinder into the earphone socket, push it into place, and pull it out once more using the ring. The cleaved headphone jack will be held by the GripStick.

Information technology'due south Time to Switch to Bluetooth Headphones

If for some reason you cannot get the cleaved earphone plug out of your device, don't panic. Information technology's possible that your device volume still works, so find out. Play some sound; if the device speaker is notwithstanding working, then you can consider another solution.

No audio? This is because the broken plug is telling your device that it is plugged in. Equally far as your telephone or tablet is concerned, it is sending audio to your earphones. You'll have a silent experience (frustrating for telephone calls) until yous tin dislodge the offending object.

It might be inconvenient and may crave you to rethink your audio options but switching to Bluetooth is the best way to avoid broken earphone connectors in the hereafter.

While y'all might employ ane of the fixes above, buying Bluetooth earphones is the all-time option. Need assistance? Check our Bluetooth earphones buying guide.

Cheaper Earphones Are More Probable to Intermission

Personally speaking, I've establish that cheaper earphones are likely to accept poorly made plugs. This has a dual risk: the plug may break, but it might also damage the socket. This tin can happen with standard apply if the connector is cheaply manufactured; the result is invariably frustration and disappointment.

Is your headphone jack alright, simply your iPhone is stuck in headphone mode? Have a look at our dedicated troubleshooting guide. And if your phone is damaged in other ways, check out how to recover data if your phone has a croaky screen.

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