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How to remove air bubbles from a screen protector

Stick it to those air bubbles — your screen protector, that is.
By
February 8, 2023

Getting air bubbles under your screen protector is never fun. It indicates faultiness in the initial application, which can also be annoying to consider. If you want to get rid of those pesky dust and air bubbles, we’ve got you covered. Let’s review how to remove air bubbles from a screen protector.

Read more: How to put a screen protector on your smartphone

QUICK ANSWER

To remove air bubbles from a screen protector, pry up a corner of the screen protector with a knife or credit card. Clean your screen, then reapply your screen protector. Use a credit card to smoothen out any air bubbles.

How to get air bubbles out of your screen protector

Unfortunately, if you’re a stickler for details, this method might not be the best for you. The best way to dismiss existing air bubbles from your screen protector is to lift it up and reapply it after cleaning your screen. The problem with this is many screen protectors are meant to go on once. Furthermore, when you take off the screen protector, the sticky side will be exposed to the elements and could gather dust. This is the opposite of what you want to achieve.

While expensive, the best and most consistent solution would be to remove your old screen protector, clean your screen as best you can, and then apply a brand-new one. However, this isn’t always a realistic option, so let’s quickly review how to get air bubbles out of your screen protector.

  1. Use something thin (like a knife or credit card) to pry up one corner of your screen protector.
  2. Without touching the sticky side (or allowing any dust to get on the sticky side), set the screen protector somewhere it cannot get dirty. This is risky, as the sticky side will be bare; however, there isn’t much you can do to mitigate that.
  3. Clean your screen as quickly as possible. Alcohol pads and screen cleaning wipes work best.
  4. Make sure there are no oily patches, smudges, or dust particles on your screen. After that, reapply your screen protector.
  5. Use a credit card to smooth out any air bubbles from the center outwards.

Read more: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 problems and how to fix them

FAQs

Unless you remove air bubbles from your screen protector immediately after applying it, those pockets of air typically don’t go away on their own. If the adhesive is very good, the bubbles may disappear 24 to 48 hours after application.

This is very difficult to nearly impossible. Lifting the screen protector releases the trapped air. However, you can try using a flat object like a credit card to push the air bubbles toward the edges of your device.

After applying the screen protector, air bubbles will typically disappear within three days — unless the screen protector was improperly placed.