How to Make Your Phone Charge Faster? (18 Easy Tips!)

Charging your phone faster allows you to spend less time tethered to a charger and more time using your device. With phones powering more resource-intensive apps and services, charging speed has become an important consideration when shopping for a new phone. 

Lucky for us, there are tricks to juice up our phones faster—using tips and gadgets. This guide's got 18 ways to speed up charging for Androids and iPhones, helping you max out your phone's charging speed and battery life.

Here's the scoop on how to charge your phone faster:

To take advantage of your phone's fastest charging speeds, you need a compatible fast charger. Most modern Android phones support USB Power Delivery (USB PD), while iPhones support USB PD or Apple's proprietary fast charging standard.

PD (Power Delivery) is an open, universal protocol that provides faster charging speeds by dynamically negotiating increased power levels with compatible devices. Rather than being limited to traditional 5V/2A (10W) charging, USB PD chargers can supply up to 100W to quickly charge phones, tablets, and even laptops.

We recommend Ugreen's line of GaN II PD chargers, which leverage gallium nitride technology to create incredibly compact yet powerful chargers. Their 45W charger can charge a 3000 mAh phone battery from 0 to 70% in just 30 minutes. Being able to quickly top up your phone when you're short on time is a game changer.

If you're trying to figure out how to get your phone to charge like lightning, listen up. Always hook up with a wall charger for the fastest charge times, not just plugging into your computer's USB port. Those computer USB ports are like slowpoke tortoises when it comes to charging. Dropping some cash on a solid wall charger is a smart move—you'll see faster charging times in no time. Take UGREEN's 2024 wall charger series, for example; it's packing a serious 100W punch. It can power up your MacBook Pro, iPhone, and other Apple gear in a flash. It's so fast, it can get your iPhone 15 Pro from zero to sixty (as in 60%) in just half an hour.

Leaving your phone fully on while charging generates excess heat and uses battery power faster than it can charge. Turn off your phone before plugging it in to eliminate activity that interferes with charging. This forces your phone to focus all its resources solely on charging the battery.

It's best to use the charger and USB cable that came with your phone for optimal safety and charging speed. These components have been tested and engineered specifically for your make and model. Mixing and matching charging accessories from different brands often results in slower charging.

Enabling airplane mode turns off power-draining connectivity features like mobile data, WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS. With these disabled, more power goes directly towards charging the battery rather than powering antennae and radios.

Many Android phones have a dedicated "Charge Mode" or "Super Charge" mode to temporarily disable battery-draining apps and services when charging. Check your device's settings to turn this on and enjoy uninterrupted fast charging.

To safely fast charge your iPhone at peak speeds, use an Apple-certified MFi (Made for iPhone/iPad/iPod) Lightning cable. Avoid cheap, knockoff cables that often sacrifice safety and charging speed.

We recommend Ugreen's line of MFi-certified iPhone charging cables, which feature toughened military-grade connectors to withstand over 30,000 bends. Their USB-C to Lightning cable provides the fastest charging speeds for the latest iPhones.

It may be tempting to use your phone while it's charging, but this generates heat, consumes more battery power, and slows down charging. Avoid using resource-intensive apps, playing graphics-heavy games, or streaming videos.

Heat is the enemy of rapid charging. High internal temperatures force phones to dynamically throttle charging speeds to protect the battery's long-term health. 

Keep your phone away from heat sources and direct sunlight to maximize charging performance. Consider charging in a cool, well-ventilated location.

Consider keeping a portable power bank handy for convenient charging on the go. Due to size constraints, most power banks don't offer the highest charging wattages, so choose carefully. If you're curious about the ins and outs of power banks, including whether you can take them on a plane, check out my blog post Can You Take a Power Bank on a Plane? It's got all the answers to your power bank questions.

Once your phone is fully charged, continuing to charge overnight exposes the battery to prolonged high-voltage conditions that accelerate its deterioration. Consider charging only 80% before going to sleep. Then power off and plug in your phone once you wake up to quickly top it off.

Enabling Airplane Mode, closing power-hungry apps, and disabling Bluetooth/GPS reduces system activity that interferes with charging current. Try closing apps you aren't using and toggling off unneeded radios before plugging in your phone. Every bit spared goes towards charging the battery.

A dirty charging port clogged with lint can block positive electrical contact between your cable's connector and the port terminals. This leads to intermittent charging connections or overly high electrical resistance that impedes current flow.

Carefully clean your phone's charging port using a toothpick or soft-bristled brush to gently dislodge debris. Avoid using metal tools to prevent scratching the port. Finish by using compressed air to dislodge stubborn dust. Cleaning your port periodically prevents charging issues down the road.

If your phone's battery is several years old, its overall capacity and charging speeds gradually degrade over time. An aging battery struggles to keep up with the current demands of power-hungry apps and fast charging. Replacing an old battery restores your phone's stamina and charging capabilities.

Updating to your phone's latest OS version and device drivers ensures compatibility with the newest fast charging standards. Updated software also patches bugs that may interfere with power management and charging. Perform regular system updates to guarantee optimal performance.

Over time, cached data and temporary files accumulate, consuming storage space meant for apps and system processes essential to quickly charge your phone. Periodically clearing your cache, cookies, and temporary files frees up precious internal storage and maintains your phone's charging capabilities.

The display is one of the most power-hungry components. Lowering your screen brightness while charging reduces the load on the battery, allowing more current to flow directly into charging it instead of powering the display. Dim your screen before charging for faster charging.

Phone cases add valuable drop protection, but insulating materials like plastic or silicone can retain internal heat that builds up during charging. Allow your phone to cool better by periodically removing its case while charging to maximize charging speed and battery lifespan.

Charging your phone faster allows you to spend less time anchored to a charger and more time being productive. Follow these tips to optimize both charging speed and long-term battery lifespan. Invest in quality cables, chargers, power banks, and other accessories specifically engineered for fast charging of your make and model phone. 

Supplement smart charging habits by disabling background processes, reducing screen brightness, updating software, and cleaning debris from ports. Put these tips into practice to keep your phone's battery in its best form.