How to clean a USB

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Though you can protect the USB-C ports on many devices with the right case, a plug, or even just a piece of tape, you’ll inevitably have to clean a port out at some point. It’s easy for debris to get trapped in such a small space, especially when it’s part of a phone in a lint-filled pocket. Here’s how to clean any USB-C port in a minute or two — and what to avoid in the process.

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The main principle here is to be careful. We’ll go into that more in the next section, but if you damage the electronics in a USB-C port, the connection might stop working. You might even short out the device as a whole, though that’s unlikely.

Follow this checklist:

At least some of these points may seem obvious, but keep them in mind.