Current:Home > ScamsYour smartwatch is gross. Here's how to easily clean it. -ValueMetric
Your smartwatch is gross. Here's how to easily clean it.
View
Date:2025-04-26 08:41:02
The smartwatch or fitness tracker you're wearing is dirty. Really dirty.
While the device tracks information like your fitness data and helps you respond to text messages, it also inadvertently collects things like sweat, lotion and sunscreen.
A 2020 experiment found a smartwatch to be dirtier than a smartphone, gaming controller or keyboard, and 37 times dirtier than your toilet seat. Yuck!
Fortunately, it's easy to quickly disinfect your smartwatch or fitness tracker and its strap using items you probably already have in your home.
Watch this video to see how to easily clean your Apple Watch or Fitbit.
How to clean Apple Watch, Fitbit, Samsung smartwatch
Start by removing your Apple Watch, Fitbit, or other smartwatch from your wrist or the charger.
Then, turn it off and remove the bands.
Most of these devices can be cleaned using a microfiber cloth, cotton swab, water, isopropyl alcohol, or a disinfecting wipe.
Gently wipe the device with a damp microfiber cloth to clean it. The cloth can be dipped in either water, isopropyl alcohol, or a diluted combination of the two.
If there's a buildup in the port or speaker, or if the Digital Crown is stuck on your Apple Watch, Apple says you can put the watch under "lightly running, warm" water to flush it out or unstick the Digital Crown.
If you have any gunk built up around the edges, creases or buttons, use a damp cotton swab or gently brush the area with a damp toothbrush.
Once you're finished, dry the device with a soft cloth.
Clean your smartwatch, fitness bands
Don't forget to clean your bands!
A lot of dirt, sweat and other gunk builds up in the little crevices attaching the tech to the strap, and it can get nasty in there.
Use a damp toothbrush or cleaning brush to gently remove any buildup on the strap.
To clean straps that aren't leather or metal, just wipe them down with soap and water.
Reviewed-approved laundry recommendations
Purchases you make through our links may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.
Reviewed helps you find the best stuff and get the most out of what you already own. Our team of home experts are always testing new washing machines, irons and more so you can shop for the best of the best.
- Editor's Choice dryer balls:Smart Sheep Wool Dryer Balls
- The best stain-removing detergent:PersilProClean
- A supersized laundry backpack:Azhido 115L Extra Large Laundry Backpack
- Lingerie bags for all your delicates:Bagail Mesh Bag Set
- A sweater-saving fabric shaver:Conair Fabric Shaver and Lint Remover
veryGood! (121)
Related
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- 2 years after Dobbs, Democratic-led states move to combat abortion bans
- Lawsuit challenges Louisiana law requiring classrooms to display Ten Commandments
- TSA says it screened a record 2.99 million people Sunday, and bigger crowds are on the way
- Everything Simone Biles did at the Paris Olympics was amplified. She thrived in the spotlight
- Social Security says it's improving a major practice called unfair by critics. Here's what to know.
- Consumer confidence in U.S. falls in June as Americans fret about near-term prospects
- Severe thunderstorms cut power to more than 150,000 Michigan homes and businesses
- Tropical rains flood homes in an inland Georgia neighborhood for the second time since 2016
- Biden and Trump face off this week in the first presidential debate. Here's what we know so far about the debate, prep and more
Ranking
- Person accused of accosting Rep. Nancy Mace at Capitol pleads not guilty to assault charge
- Boy who died at nature therapy camp couldn’t breathe in tentlike structure, autopsy finds
- Conservancy that oversees SS United States seeks $500K to help relocate historic ship
- RHONJ: Inside Jennifer Aydin and Danielle Carbral's Shocking Physical Fight
- Oklahoma parole board recommends governor spare the life of man on death row
- Social Security says it's improving a major practice called unfair by critics. Here's what to know.
- Sean Penn is 'thrilled' to be single following 3 failed marriages: 'I'm just free'
- Los Angeles public school board votes to ban student cellphone use on campus
Recommendation
Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
Deion Sanders on second season at Colorado: 'The whole thing is better'
Elon Musk welcomes third child with Neuralink executive. Here's how many kids he now has.
Things to know about dangerous rip currents and how swimmers caught in one can escape
EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
Active shooters targeting the public spiked from 2019 to 2023 compared to prior 5-year period, FBI report says
Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise’s Daughter Suri Drops Last Name for High School Graduation
Meryl Streep's Daughter Louisa Jacobson Gummer Shares She's Queer