A Fitbit not charging might cause you to miss tracking your health and few sessions of your fitness workout. It is a common problem, so don’t panic, we will help you figure out why your Fitbit is not charging and the possible ways how to resolve it. If your Fitbit won’t charge, it just takes a few simple but careful steps and tricks to fix it. Another problem that some Fitbit owners experience is that their Fitbit doesn’t turn on, even when charging. So why is my Fitbit not charging and how do I fix my Fitbit that won’t charge or turn on?
Fitbit is one of the many marvelous smart devices for fitness and health monitoring. Amongst the plenty of the best smartwatches in the market, Fitbit models have impressive features, with good accuracy and benefits. The first thing you will like about it is the flexible and durable bands, which are common only with sport watches.
Although some older Fitbit smart watches offer the best personalized workout monitoring and innovative coaching, they are constantly being replaced by the advanced Fitbit smartwatches.
Recently, many users are asking questions about if Fitbit tracks blood pressure. There’s no Fitbit blood pressure watch yet, but when it will come, health focused users won’t be hanging around again with old models.
At the moment, older Fitbit devices have not lost their place amongst Fitbit fans in health and fitness tracking, although they have some charging issues.
Shop on Amazon: Fitbit Alta Fitness Tracker, Silver/Teal, Small (5.5 – 6.7 Inch)
How Do I know there’s a Fitbit Not charging problem?
Besides just observing that the smartwatch has a failed charging, you can spot early signs of Fitbit not charging in the following ways.
1. Error message on the screen
Like a car dashboard, if you connect your Fitbit watch to charge, you may see an error message displayed, saying “Insufficient Power Source”. This message indicates not enough power supplied (normal voltage). The best solution when the “Insufficient Power Source” messages appear on the watch’s screen is to.
- Try a different charger.
- Disconnect any other electronics connected to the same power source with the watch
- If your apartment has low voltage, you risk damaging your Fitbit battery and charging component, if you force it to charge.
2. No Fitbit charging icon on the screen
Your Fitbit has a charging issue if you don’t see battery charging light or battery charging indicator on the watch’s screen.
3. Black screen
Some users have reported having a black screen on their Fitbit iconic watch. Sometimes, your Fitbit watch will show a black screen when it can’t charge, or when it stopped working. Don’t panic when you discover all these signs.
4. Fitbit won’t charge past 99%
If your Fitbit blaze, for example, is broken, the Fitbit won’t charge to 100% or won’t past 99% even if you leave it for plenty hours on charge. Sometimes, the percentage will not even reach 90%. You just have to observe this keenly.
Shop On Amazon : Fitbit Surge Fitness Superwatch, Black, Large (US Version)
5. Fitbit gets hot when charging
Is it normal for a battery to get hot when charging? It is not normal if you experience that your Fitbit Versa or Fitbit charge is overheating.
Heat generation during charging is not abnormal, but it is a problem if the Fitbit device concerned is gaining temperature.
High temperature can lower battery capacity to recharge. If the temperature gets too severe, the Fitbit watch may never works again, or the charger may fry out. Disconnect immediately if your Fitbit won’t charge, and gets hot
How can I tell if my Fitbit is charging?
It’s pretty easier to identity when your Fitbit battery is charging properly. You’ll know charging is ok when it charges up to 100% and when the battery icon is completely showing full charging status. The slowest of the Fitbit smartwatches would take about two hours max to charge.
Read more: How do you Measure Hand Size For Fitness, Sports And Gloves?
Why is my Fitbit not Charging?
Your Fitbit is not holding charge because:
1. Your Fitbit is dead
Does Fitbit die? Absolutely YES, A Fitbit watch, like any other electronic device, can die after years of operation. This can make them hard to power-on or difficult to hold any charge for sometimes. Months of inactivity or bangs against hard objects can be reasons Your Fitbit won’t charge at all.
Actually, if your Fitbit life expectancy is shorter, you don’t need to get surprised if it suddenly cannot work. According to the manufacturers, the average lifespan of most Fitbit watches is 2-3 years–it could die too early within 1-2 years or stay longer than 3 years. All depends on your maintenance and handling.
Technically, when the warranty period is over, the lifespan is over, apparently. This is common for all electronics.
2. Fitbit charger is broken
Actually, when it comes to Fitbit charging issues, the charger’s hardware is mostly the problem. They are easy to fix, however, but if I break the Fitbit charger beyond repairs, at least, I should get a replacement charger from online or from the manufacturer if the warranty is still valid. When you experience charging issues, it is the charger port is very dirty, cable is damaged or the whole charger got broken.
Shop On Amazon: Fitbit Charge 3 Fitness Activity Tracker watch
Fitbit charger Cable damage
Sometimes, could can receive a faulty charging USB cable from the seller or you must rats must have cut one wire when they were enjoying the cable rubber coating or plastic insulation.
If you have not used the Fitbit USB charged before and it’s not supplying power to the wearable Fitbit watch, it’s probably broken when they delivered it to you. Contact the company for replacement if you think you received a faulty Fitbit charger.
If you have used the USB charging cable before, and it suddenly can’t supply juice to the Fitbit smart watch, when connected to the wall outlet, plug the dongle to the PC USB port or outlet and see if it works.
If the Fitbit is not charging, the cable is probably bad – the wire may be frayed, or wiring is just broken. Order a new one in this case.
Read More : Benefits of Corporate Chair massage for employees at the workplace 2021
Damaged Fitbit Charger Connector
Another thing to look at is the connectors, if you find your Fitbit charge 4 not charging. A magnifying glass can make it easier to visually look into the contact pins. Remember that the metal pins are very delicate and irreplaceable if broken.
Most people make a mistake and rub the metal connectors on their cloth to clean them. According to most users experiencing Fitbit not charging issues, they mostly found damaged connectors in the charging cable, and not on the Fitbit smartwatch.
Contact the company if warranty is still valid, in case the pins on the watch are broken and you get the Fitbit battery not charging.
Shop on Amazon : Fitbit Versa 3 Health & Fitness Smartwatch with GPS, 24/7 Heart Rate, Alexa Built-in, 6+ Days Battery
3. Fitbit Watch or Charger is dirty or has rusted pins
Dirty pins could be the reason you got a smartwatch like Fitbit sense not charging. It is a common condition with pluggable electronics, so your Fitbit won’t charge if charging pins are corroded or dirty.
The pins on the Fitbit tracker watch itself or on the charger might have accumulated dirts (dust & debris) for long. Here, the pins need proper cleaning. Fitbit even recommends routine cleaning of your watch, and that includes the charging metal pins on the device and on the charger.
Read : How accurate is Fitbit Calorie burn?
4. Your Fitbit device got wet
Water resistance is one feature you would want your Fitbit watch to have, if it has to endure rugged outdoor conditions. You just need to be careful here, because your precious Fitbit charge 5 or Fitbit iconic is more splash-resistant than water resistant.
A few drops of water won’t damage your Fitbit smartwatch if you jog around a beach or if you are washing hands after exercises. But if you wear the fitness smart wearable into a shower or water pool for swimming, expect water to enter and wet some components.
Water inside your watch can cause condensation on the watch dial, but it would more than cause electrical faults, and possible charging problems, in your Fitbit smartwatch.
When your Fitbit gets wet, don’t plug in the charger please! Do your best to dry the device first and make sure any water droplets inside, is completely evaporated.
Shop On Amazon : Fitbit Inspire HR Heart rate and Fitness Tracker watch( S & L bands Included)
5. Closed Charger Clips,
I have seen customers complain their Fitbit is not charging, when the real problem was actually that they did not just fully open the Fitbit Charger clips. Unless the clips are widely opened, the charger won’t perfectly fit into supply power to the watch. Always ensure you have the clips opened, so that the charging contact have good connection with the device.
6. Depleted or damaged battery
One thing must users don’t quickly notice about smartwatches and smartphones, is that it takes pretty more time for a depleted battery to recharge.
Critical conditions, like continuous GPS tracking, always-on-display, may exhaust the Fitbit battery down to 0%. So you got to be a little patient (keep it plugged in) for up to 30 minutes, when you connect your watch for recharge.
If you got, for example, your Fitbit blaze not charging within the first 5 minutes because the battery is zero percent, give it more time to start charging. Be assured that it may take close to 60 minutes if something completely depleted the Fitbit battery beyond recovery.
In another case, if you’ve got your Fitbit Versa not charging, extreme temperature might have caused the battery to go dead.
In situations that your Fitbit iconic won’t turn on after battery died, it might need more time to warm up the battery, before it can regain its ability to hold or store electrical energy.
7. Not enough AC voltage
Sometimes, your power line may suffer excessive voltage drop, and the resulting effect is low or insufficient voltage in your wall outlet in the home.
Consult an electric power utility technician if there is a short-circuit somewhere. Or, disconnect all the appliances in your house and check if the Fitbit watch receives enough AC power to start charging or turn .
Shop On Amazon : Fitbit Iconic – GPS, Heart Rate Monitor, Bluetooth, Touchscreen, Compatible : Android 5.0, Windows 10, 4 plus day battery life
What to do if your Fitbit won’t charge
We have seen various reasons that may cause Fitbit not charging problems, how to we get them fixed?
1. If it’s wet, Dry it
If for some reasons, your Fitbit iconic won’t turn on after swimming, Heres how to get your wet Fitbit smartwatch dry
- Put the wet Fitbit watch into Uncooked rice or silica gel
- Seal the bag and leave it standing and untouched for 1 to 2 days
Read more : How Many Calories Do You Burn In 5000 Steps Walking?
2. If charging contact pins are dirty, clean it
The most common issue that keeps Fitbits from charging properly is dirts accumulated inside the pins or connectors. How to clean charging contacts on your Fitbit watch:
If the pins on your Fitbit watch or on the Fitbit charger are full of dirt, use a liquid to clean them. Alcohol is the popular cleaning liquid for smartwatch contact pins.
You just have to use a new toothbrush dipped into the alcohol and dust off the pins. After the cleaning, use a tissue or cloth to dry any liquid droplets off.
If the metal pins are corroded, a suitable solution to fix your Fitbit not charging problem is to scrap the charger’s contact pins with a tiny metal object, blade or tiny knife.
- The connectors should look gold or bronze when you’ve cleaned them.
- You just need to be overly careful not to damage the plating. By default, new chargers have golden or bronze colored pins, so ensure that they aren’t scraped off.
- Make sure you don’t leave any cotton swap in-between the pins.
- Also, make sure that the alcohol does not enter other holes (microphone, altimeter sensors) in the Fitbit device.
Shop on Amazon : Fitbit Charge 5 Advanced Fitness, Health Tracker with Built-in GPS, Stress Management Tools, Sleep Tracking, 24/7 Heart Rate & More, Platinum, Mineral Blue
3. Fitbit is inactive for several months,
Leave it plugged in to charge for longer than you need to. Half hour or longer for it to start to charge. If that’s not the case, try the next solution, below.
4. Make sure you connect the watch properly to the charger
If charging pins aren’t aligned properly, misaligned charging pins may be the cause due to poor handling of the charger. You may want to check and get the charging pins connected to your Fitbit correctly. Remove the USD cable and reconnect if the Fitbit is not well seated in its charger.
Read more : best ultra thin watches that look absolutely elegant
5. Restart, reset or reboot your Fitbit watch
Your Fitbit watch may need a restart or reset, just like a cellphone or computer. Some battery charging software glitches may occur, and may get resolved if you reboot the Fitbit device.
Be careful here please, the restarting process is not the same for all Fitbit models. Some models of Fitbit watches just require you to hold down the button, and that is it.
How to rest, restart a Fitbit watch
Here is how to fix a Fitbit that won’t turn on or charge.
- Press and hold the buttons for 3-5 seconds.
- Wait for Fitbit logo to appear.
- If nothing happens, recharge the watch and hold all the buttons to restart
- When You get a vibration, release the button
- If the Fitbit watch restarts, you’ll see it turn on
Shop On Amazon : Fitbit Sense Advanced Smartwatch with Tools for Heart Health, Stress Management & Skin Temperature Trends, White/Gold, One Size (S & L Bands Included)
Read: how to charge smartwatch without USB charger
6. Get a new replacement charger
Change USB cable or get a replacement charger from the seller. A new Fitbit charger won’t won’t cost much. So I don’t see the reasons you shouldn’t buy a new charger, if all the other solutions have failed to get your Fitbit not charging issue fixed.
7. Factory reset your Fitbit Watch
Factory reset is the last solution only if you have contacted the Fitbit support and they recommend it. Use this Fitbit factory reset method only when the software glitch or problem persists and all other options have failed. Then you can go for the Factory reset option. Take the following steps to return your Fitbit watch to default settings.
Beware, all data will be lost and your device will look new, fresh and in the factory mode. If you don’t want to lose stored information or media content, back them up.
Read: best cheap smartwatch under $50
Reset and Factory Reset Fitbit Iconic
- Press and hold all the buttons on the Fitbit Iconic
- Wait for the Fitbit Logo to appear on the display.
- release the bottom right button and keep holding the other ones.
- Release the rest of the buttons when you hear the Fitbit device vibrates
- Now, it should be removing all the stored data,
- set up the device again
- Everything should start working well
Reset and Factory Reset Fitbit Charge
Read More : How to fix time and date on Fitbit devices
8. Contact Fitbit customer support
If, for example, your Fitbit iconic won’t turn on after factory reset, you need help from the manufacturers. Fitbit customer support may offer assistance if you contact them about your watch issues.
Read more : best smartwatch for small wrists
But Why is my Fitbit not turning on after shutdown?
Lack of battery juice is one of the main reasons Why Fitbit watches won’t turn on, if they are shutdown. Even your Android smartphone won’t power on when the battery is critically low. So Charging your Fitbit smartwatch may resolve it.
Why my Fitbit won’t turn on
Like other Fitbit smartwatches, if your Fitbit Iconic watches just won’t come on, recharge it. If there is the Fitbit won’t charge, there’s probably a technical issue, including:
- Software (Operating System) reboot problem
- Damaged or broken hardware or component
- Battery is low, bad or depleted
Read more : Do ellipticals help lose belly fat? How easy does elliptical burn belly fat?
How do you turn on a dead Fitbit?
My Fitbit iconic won’t turn on, What should I do? In case your Fitbit Iconic watch won’t turn on after battery died, try these simple diagnostic steps to restart your Fitbit iconic watch.
- First, connect the Fitbit charging cable to the watch.
- Press and hold the Fitbit iconic button down
- After about 5-10 secs, release the button.
- Remove the Fitbit charging cable and reconnect .
- Hopefully, your Fitbit Iconic will restart
img: Why is my Fitbit charge 4 not charging? Why won’t my fitbit hold charge?Shop On Amazon : Fitbit Charge 4 Fitness and Activity Tracker with Built-in GPS, Heart Rate, Sleep & Swim Tracking, Black/Black, One Size (S &L Bands Included)
How to Turn On Fitbit for diagnostic purposes
Here is how to turn on your Fitbit watch for troubleshooting issues
- Press and hold the buttons at the back and bottom
- Wait, a bit until the Fitbit logo shows on the screen.
- Release the buttons.
- To find issues, Turn it off and on repeatedly
- It will surely power on and off, normally if it has got not reset, or reboot issues.
How restart a Fitbit Charge 4 without a charger?
If you’ve tried several times and your Fitbit watches won’t restart, you won’t track your outdoor fitness workouts. Here is a quick way for Fitbit charge 4 when there’s no charger:
- Press and hold the buttons on your Fitbit Charge 4
- Wait for up to 5 seconds.
- Release the button.
- A smile icon should appear on screen
- You will hear the tracker vibrate,
- There your Fitbit charge 4 tracker restarts.
Fitbit Iconic Won’t Turn On After Charging?
Sometimes, the Fitbit Iconic users still have issues even when their wearable device is fully charged. This is quiet disturbing when you want to track your indoor running exercises. When your Fitbit Iconic fails to power on, after charging, check if it shows an icon on your Android or iOS smartphone, when it’s paired. If it does, try to change the Clock Face in these steps.
How do you restart a dead Fitbit iconic?
- Open your Fitbit App
- Tap the Today
- Tap the Profile picture
- Tap your device image
- Tap the Clock Faces
- Choose any random Clock Face
- Apply it
The Fitbit iconic display will come on if it is connected to the Android or Apple smartphone but in case it still doesn’t turn on, you’ve probably got a hardware issue that needs attention of Fitbit customer support.
Fitbit Iconic won’t turn on when I raise My Wrist?
Fitbit watches have Screen Awake feature, which makes the devices to turn on automatically every time you raise your wrist. Some Fitbit users have reported this kind of issues, when it fails to work. If your Fitbit iconic does not come on by itself when you jerk up your wrist, check the settings. Here is how.
- manually power on your Fitbit Iconic watch
- Press and hold the left button
- Wait until the screen awake settings show or display
- Make sure the screen awake settings is set to “Auto.”
- If not, toggle it to Auto, to enable the Screen Awake feature.
- The iconic should turn on automatically when you raise your wrist
- If the Screen Awake is not still working, restart your device and try again
Read Also : Best Smartwatch With Camera
Fitbit won’t turn on after software update
Smartwatch software update can have a glitch and the product will fail to charge or get any improvement. Instead of improving user experience, if your Fitbit operating system or software update messes up the functionality, restart the watch.
First, make sure you’ve fully charged the watch before you restart it.
- Hold the Fitbit
- Now press and hold the back and bottom buttons
- Wait until the Fitbit Logo appears on display.
- It’s done if not contact the customer support.
Video : How to Clean Your Fitbit Surge or Charge
Why Is my Fitbit Not Working?
Your Fitbit smart watch or tracker may fail to work for few reasons:
- Your Fitbit tracker may be shutdown. You need to power it on.
- Your Fitbit may be in the ‘Do Not Disturb’ mode, so you got to turn it off.
- You may have switched your Android smartphone or iPhone Bluetooth off. If you don’t switch it on, it won’t get paired with the Fitbit watch.
- Your Fitbit watch and your smartphone are not within communication distance. Bring the two devices to close distances under 10 meters apart.
How Long Should a Fitbit battery Last after charge?
A properly charged Fitbit wearable device should hold charge for up to 5 days or more. More recent Fitbit smartwatches have crazy power hungry features like always-on-display, GPS, and continuous heart rate monitoring. They suck and drain a lot of energy, and make your Fitbit battery to last shorter than the estimated.
Old Fitbit activity trackers without those sucking-functions may still not have prolonged battery life because of their age. A Fitbit tracker watch that is been used for over 3 years will sure, have a lower battery life than modern smart watches from the brand.
Your usage of the Fitbit also decides how long the battery lifespan will be. Heavy usage shortens the battery life and device durability, while light use makes the battery more durable.
Read more : best long battery life smartwatch
Why is my Fitbit not fully charging?
If the charging pins on your Fitbit watch or charging cable are dirty, wet, corroded, it won’t charge properly. Dust and debris can accumulate and prevent flow of current into the device, so you must clean the connectors well. You may just try a different USB port or a UL-certified wall charger. Again, if the watch does have good connection, secured to the charging cable, don’t expect the battery to get full at 100%.
how to Monitor the Fitbit watch’s battery level.
Different Fitbit watches have different indicators for showing the current battery level.
1. Fitbit Flex watch.
The lights on Fitbit Flex tracker will illuminate during charging. Each solid light shows a single or one battery level and all the five lights will illuminate, when the Fitbit battery charging is complete9100%).
2. Fitbit One
As you plug in the charging cable, you’ll notice that the screen will turn on and the battery indicator displays. If you want to know battery level during charging, press and hold the button. Fitbit one takes about 90 minutes to reach 100% charge.
3. Fitbit Surge, Charge, and Force
The battery icon for these wristbands displays immediately you plug them into the charger. Charging time is about an hour and a half.
I found fun in watches especially when I started having difficult time select wearables for my skinny 5.5 inch wrists.
Because of the amazing toolds embedded inside trackers and smartwatches, I fell in love with fitness.
Today I love to go out for gym workouts with my friends. Now am part of a sizable fitness community and I feel lucky.
