Allergic to AirPod Pro eartips

Quick update: the combination of light exposure (multiple days) and replacement of the silicone tips with memory foam seems to have improved things for me. I'll need to try them a bit more and see how it goes, but it all seems much better now.

Hope this gives others some handles to resolve their troubles; and thanks to everyone sharing experiences and tips (no pun intended) to resolve the issues!

I’m hoping if anything Apple is taking all this info into consideration with the new Pros coming out this year. I’m going to buy them and try them and if I have a problem which I will know immediately I will just return them like I have done with several other products trying to find one I like that doesn’t cause a problem.

I am highly fascinated by your experience. As I am searching for a way to fix this issue.

First I changed the tips to Comply tips but still same problem. Also tried cheap 3rd party tips and still no change. This gave me the thought it might be the hard white plastic. I tried to put tape around the first part which is closer to the entry or the ear canal. Thats where I get the reaction, nowhere else where (not the stem).

from your reaction you also think it is the white hard plastic, not the tips? Which tips you use now? Original or foam? Did you do additionally desinfected the tips?

thnx for giving some hope!

I suspect what’s made this so difficult to solve is some people reacting to the buds, some to the stem and some to both.

My experience was that I initially changed the tips for foam ones and still got a reaction.

I then saw someone mention light treatment on the stem, so I put under bright lights for 2 hours, turned them and gave another 2 hours, then thoroughly cleans the stems and the case.

So with light treated stems and foam buds, so far I’ve had no further problems and my confidence in that is growing with each subsequent use.

Thanks! I really hope this is will work for me! It's a last option for me before passing the Airpods Pro on to a family member.

I placed the Airpods at the window in full sunlight, tomorrow I will place them under a old Halogen desklamp which produces some warmth. And to be sure I ordered an UV Sterilizer to be sure. At least I can use it to regularly clean my iPhone with alcohol or whatever.

I did read you need to wipe it off with, a dry or slight moist cloth should do the trick. Now hoping this will work!

I really think you‘re onto something there. After wearing my AirPods Pro for about 8 months without any Problems I suddenly got a very painfull allergic reaction. Since then I couldn‘t wear them for more than 15 minutes without getting itching ears again. After seeing your comments about the light treatment I placed the AirPods behind a window in direct sunlight for a few days. I now wear them since 4 days for 3-4 hours per day and have no signs of any allergic reaction at all.

Note: I still have the original Ear Tips from Apple, so I was not allergic to them

That’s fantastic news!!!!!

There is some science behind it, related to uncured resin particles as I recall.

Hope more people find this method and try it, nothing worse than having a great product that you’re not able to use!!!

after years of constant use I developed reaction to silicone on both AirPods Pro and Bose quiet comfort. Even comply memory foam have caused major issues since. AirPods gen 1 and gen 3 however, I have been using since with no reaction. Everybody is different by the looks of it. Could never wear over ear. My ears get incredibly hot for some reason. Have an 8 hour flight this week with no noise cancelling. Shudder the thought.

I’ll add to this that I wear Apple Watch silicone band every day with no issue.

Sherlock Holmes wouldn’t figure my issue out.

Wow I’m amazed at all the people having this same problem. I truly thought it was just me. What’s weird is I’ve had my airpod pros since they came out… never had a single issue with them. Then the sound started acting up so I contacted apple and had to send them in to be repaired, apparently it was a known issue. I am pretty sure they just gave me a new earbud. Ever since I got them back, I’ve had issues. The sound is great but my ear get wet inside even after 30 mins of use. Then it gets crusty 🤢 and swollen and itchy. It’s horrible!!!! Then it hurts really bad. The weird thing is…. It’s just my right ear. And it was the right earbud that was having the sound issues before… My left ear has no issues at all. My right gets so swollen inside that I can barely hear. So I don’t wear them for a week or so and my ear heals, then if I use them again it starts right back up. I feel like, for me at least, if it was the silicone tips, wouldn’t both my ears be having problems? I’m starting to truly think it’s the actual earbud or something in it.

Can you tell us more? What other brands have you tried. This is an important test. If the reaction happens after replacing the ear tips, that would suggest there is something else going on beside the ear tips.

Adding my name to the list of those who have experienced allergy like reactions to airpods pro. pain, itchiness, drainage and swelling. i am an audiologist and going to see if i can get some custom molds for mine and see if that helps….

The exact same thing happened to me! I had them for almost a year, and probably used them for a few hours every day with no problem.

Then got the rattling sound and they were replaced by apple. After this I immediately got the allergic(?) reaction that has led me to have problems with my ears for a year or so, even though I stopped using them. did they change up the silicone mix? Was there a production error? What changed?

This problem doesn’t happen when I use other earplugs.

My doctor told me he had seen several others getting this by wearing apple EarPod Pros, and said we’d have to do a lot of tests if I’d like to prove that the silicone in my EarPods is actually causing it. At the time I didn’t want to do a lot of tests, but seeing everyone here having the same problem, I’m starting to reconsider this.

Apple must be aware of the problem by now and at the very least offer a replacement program for anyone affected.

I thought my irritation and weepy ears were due to the silicone so I removed the tips and have used them without them (which is silly since that blows the noise cancellation and control), but even using them this way, my ears still

become irritated and weepy if I wear them for even just a couple of hours in a day. It’s got to be something else.

Interesting… my ear irritation started after receiving a replacement pair as well. It hadn’t occurred to me, until I read what you wrote, but I don’t think the first pair caused any problem at all (incidentally, mine were returned due to a rattle too).

I use mine without the silicone tips these days and they cause the SAME problem so I don’t think it’s the silicone.

Well, it has been some time ago I started with my "light treatment" and I have tried several methods. I tried many hours of sunlight, about 10 hours under a halogen desk light, af bunch of times using an UV-C desinfection light. And since I learned that's more to destroy cells but doesn't cure any chemicals. I tried a UV light used for drying nail polish.

Just to understand more what actually gives the irritation I used the Airpods without the tips (inspired by another reaction here), this because I got the reaction using the original tips, cheap (non Apple) replacement tips and the Comply foam tips. It became clear it's not the tips because without I also get the same reaction. Using the airpods was ok, but some time afterwards I started noticing the liquid coming again, this keeps on going. I must admit I don't notice any red irritation of the skin. But it seems to be at the entry of the earway and inside. This seems strange since the airpods haven't been in contact with that part.

With other (semi wireless) headphone form JBL I don't have any problem. Can wear those for hours and hours. I think I will try some tests to conclude, but I think the Airpod Pro are not good for me and have to use another brand.