Why does my Android get hot? 6 fixes for phone overheating — and how to prevent it

• Your Android could get hot from charging your phone while using streaming or gaming apps, leaving your phone out in direct sunlight, or leaving it in a case that traps heat.
• Android phones tend to get warm in routine use, and that's not unusual or problematic unless you're doing a handful of things.
• If your Android phone gets excessively hot — too hot to touch or uncomfortable to hold — then you should take precautions to cool it off and keep it from overheating in the future.

Your Android phone is a sophisticated computer, and all computers generate heat while they're running. But while your desktop PC and laptop have fans to help manage heat, your phone doesn't. That means it tends to get warm when in use.

A warm phone isn't unusual and is rarely, if ever, a problem. Still, if you find that your Android phone gets uncomfortably or alarmingly hot, you should take some steps to cool it off — and prevent it from getting so hot in the future. It should be obvious when your phone is too hot. It will not be warm, but difficult to hold and even painfully hot to the touch.

What to do if your Android phone gets too hot

If your phone gets excessively hot, you should make an effort to cool it off immediately. Here are some standard precautions and troubleshooting steps you can take.

Stop performing processor-intensive tasks

This means you should close your streaming video apps and stop playing mobile games. For example, if the phone got noticeably hot while watching Netflix, stop the streaming app to take the load off the processor.

Get your phone out of direct sunlight

Often, a phone overheats when it's in a hot car with the sun beating down on it directly through the windshield. If possible, move it into a shady part of the vehicle. But don't put it in your pocket or a heavy bag that will trap the heat and not let it radiate away.

Take the Android device out of its case

Some phone cases are more likely to trap heat than others. So if your phone is extremely hot, remove the case so the heat can more easily radiate away.

Stop charging your Android while you perform processor-intensive tasks

Charging your phone heats the battery. Playing games heats up the CPU and other components. Combining the two can lead to an unexpectedly hot Android.

If possible, turn your Android phone off right away

Usually, you can do this by pressing and holding the power button on the phone's side and then confirming you want to power it off by tapping on the screen.

How to keep your Android phone from overheating

All the advice about cooling off a hot phone applies to keeping it from overheating in the first place.

For example, you might find that watching long Netflix sessions makes your phone hot, so it's a good idea to shorten your streaming video sessions. Likewise, avoid charging your phone while you are actively using it for intensive applications. And if you notice that your phone gets unusually warm while charging, you might want to remove it from the case when you charge it.

These precautions can usually keep your phone from getting too hot, but if you find that your phone is unusually susceptible to overheating, there might be a hardware issue that needs to be addressed. You should contact customer service for your phone to see if it needs to be serviced.

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