Sony Headphones Not Charging? Causes and Fixes

This guide is for Sony headphones or earbuds with no charging light, an orange light that flashes, or a battery that won't fill. If they charge but run down quickly, the battery drain guide in Still not working? below is the better fit. Pairing, sound and other faults start at Sony headphones pairing, battery and sound fixes.

For other brands, or one earbud not charging on any pair, use the cross-brand guide.

Why Won't My Sony Headphones Charge?

Sony's Help Guides point to six kinds of cause, grouped here in the order this guide fixes them:

• The power source: a USB hub, a computer in sleep or hibernation, or an adapter below the output Sony specifies.
• The cable: "Charging may not be successful with cables other than the supplied USB Type-C cable."
• The seating: "If the headset units are floating in the charging case, the headset units may not be charged" (WF-1000XM5), or the WF-C500's eartips aren't attached properly.
• The port: dust or water in the USB-C port, or dirt on the charging ports of earbuds and their case.
• The room: too hot or too cold for the model's charging range.
• The battery: it sat unused for a long time, which makes charging slower, or its usage hours have dropped a lot.

How to Fix Sony Headphones That Won't Charge

These follow Sony's Help Guide checks; reset and initialize come last.

Fix 1: Use a Wall Adapter, Not a USB Hub

Charge from a USB wall adapter, or straight from a computer that's awake, never through a USB hub.

1. Plug the USB-C cable into a USB AC adaptor rated for your model (table below).
2. On a computer, connect directly, not through a hub, and keep it awake: Sony says the headset "cannot be charged when the computer goes into standby (sleep) or hibernation mode."
3. Leave it until the orange light turns off.

Model	USB AC adaptor, at least	Full charge from empty
WH-1000XM6	1.5 A	About 3.5 hours
WH-1000XM5	1.5 A	About 3.5 hours
WH-CH520	0.5 A (500 mA)	About 3 hours
WF-1000XM6, WF-1000XM5	0.5 A (500 mA)	About 2 hours (earbuds and case)
WF-C510	0.5 A (500 mA)	About 3 hours (earbuds and case)
WF-C500	0.5 A (500 mA)	About 3 hours (earbuds and case)

Fix 2: Use Sony's Cable

Use the USB-C cable Sony specifies for your model, and push it fully home:

• Supplied cable: the WH-1000XM6, WH-1000XM5, WH-CH520, WF-1000XM6, WF-1000XM5 and WF-C500 guides all say to use the supplied USB Type-C cable.
• WF-C510: Sony's guide says to use "a commercially available USB Type-C cable", one "compliant with USB standards".
• Connection: "check that the cable is firmly connected to the charging case" (WF-1000XM5, WF-C500).

Fix 3: Seat the Earbuds and Close the Case

Earbuds that float loose in the case may not charge, so seat them one by one:

1. Put the left earbud (the one with the tactile dot) in the left hole of the case and the right earbud in the right hole; magnets set them in position (WF-1000XM5, WF-C510).
2. Watch the case light: if the case still has charge, it lights orange or green for about 3 seconds (WF-1000XM5, WF-C510) or about 6 seconds (WF-1000XM6).
3. Close the lid. Sony: "Be sure to close the charging case lid to prevent the battery of the charging case from being consumed."

On the WF-C500, check the eartips too: Sony warns that "If earbud tips by other manufacturers are used, the headset may not be charged with the supplied charging case."

Fix 4: Clean and Dry the Port or Contacts

Clean the charging ports on earbuds and their case, and dry the USB-C port on the WH-1000XM6, before you try again:

1. Earbuds: "Clean the charging ports with a soft dry cloth" (WF-1000XM5, WF-C500). A routine for the whole case is in how to clean your earbuds and case.
2. WH-1000XM6: "Make sure the USB Type-C port is clear of any foreign objects", and "If water droplets are present on the charging port, allow it to dry completely before charging." On headset software Ver. 2.0.0 or later, the headset tells you by voice guidance and in the Sony | Sound Connect app when it detects water or foreign objects in the port.

Fix 5: Read the Charging Light

A steady orange light means the battery is charging; orange flashing means the headset has detected a problem while charging. The meanings differ by model.

WH-1000XM6 (USB Type-C port charging indicator):

Light	Meaning
Orange, steady	Charging
Off	Charging complete
Orange, repeatedly flashes twice	Abnormal temperature
Orange, repeatedly flashes slowly	Abnormal charging

WF-1000XM5 (charging case indicator):

Light	Meaning
Orange, steady	Charging
Orange for about 1 minute, then off	Battery was already full
Off	Fully charged
Orange, repeatedly flashes twice, about 1 second apart	Abnormal charging temperature
Orange, repeatedly flashes slowly, about 0.5 seconds apart	An error: charging can't be performed
Orange for about 3 seconds, then off, as you take the earbuds out	Case battery low
No light as you take the earbuds out	Case battery empty

After long storage, the light may not come on straight away. Sony's advice: "Please wait a moment until the indicator lights up."

Fix 6: Charge at Room Temperature

Move the headset somewhere within its charging range and try again. The WH-1000XM6, WH-1000XM5 and WH-CH520 guides give a charging temperature range of 5 °C to 35 °C (41 °F to 95 °F). For efficient charging, Sony recommends 15 °C to 35 °C (59 °F to 95 °F) for the WH-1000XM5, WF-C510 and WF-C500, and 15 °C to 30 °C (59 °F to 86 °F) for the WF-1000XM6 and WF-1000XM5. If the WF-C500's case light flashes orange on a USB adapter, Sony says to check the room temperature, then disconnect the cable and connect it again.

Fix 7 (Last): Reset, Then Initialize

Sony's charging troubleshooting pages for the WH-1000XM5, WF-1000XM5 and WF-C500 list the same two steps: "Reset the headset. Initialize the headset, and pair the headset and the device again." A reset keeps your pairing information; initializing deletes it, so you pair again afterwards. The buttons for each model are in How to Reset Sony Headphones.

Sony Earbuds, Wireless Charging and Headphones

Three model-specific cases explain a battery that charges slowly or stops short of full.

Sony Earbuds Not Charging Fully

On the WF-1000XM5, one earbud works as the "main headset unit", so it "consumes the rechargeable battery faster than the other unit" and the two sides take different times to charge; Sony says "this is not a malfunction". The WF-C500 guide says the same about left and right charging times. Keep the lid closed while charging so the case battery isn't wasted (WF-1000XM5, WF-C510). The earbuds alone take about 1.5 hours to fill on the WF-1000XM6, WF-1000XM5 and WF-C510, and about 2.5 hours on the WF-C500.

Wireless (Qi) Charging on the WF-1000XM5

The WF-1000XM5 and WF-1000XM6 cases charge on Qi wireless chargers. Close the lid and place the case on the charger with the SONY logo facing up. Charging may slow down or stop if the case is misaligned, or at high or low temperatures, depending on the charger. Move other wireless-charging devices 30 cm (11.81 in.) or more away from the charger. The WF-C510 charging page covers USB-C cable charging only.

Sony Headphones (Over-Ear) Not Charging Fully

Sony says the WH-1000XM6 battery "does not fully charge when the headset is on", and charging stops at approximately 80% if you use the headphones while they charge. The WH-1000XM5 and WH-CH520 turn off automatically if charging starts while they're on, and while plugged in they can't be turned on or play music.