Is it safe to leave Apple Watch, MacBook, and iPhone chargers plugged in when not in use?

JimBlowitski wrote:

Is it a fire hazard or safe to leave an Apple Watch Magnet charger, MacBook USB-C wired charger, and iPhone lightening wired charger plugged in when not in use?

I am going to guess that 99.999% of users do this. There is not a fire or safety hazard unless the charger (power supply) or cable are faulty, but then there is a safety concern whether a device is connected or not.

When no device is connected/charging, the charger may use a tiny trickle amount of electricity and its lifetime might be shortened a tiny amount. Both of these are close to insignificant amounts.

I would not worry about this.

JimBlowitski wrote:

To make sure I am asking my question correctly I would have the cable plugged in to the wall, but no device connected to it. For example, I would have the Apple Watch Magnet charger plugged in to the wall, but I would be wearing the watch for a day or two without connecting it to the magnet to charge.

Thanks.

I understand now. You are NOT concerned the Apple Watch, iPhone, Macbook sitting on the charger, it is the power brick, the charging cable and the connector, while the device itself is NOT connected.

Then as others have said, there is ONLY an issue if the charging brick, cable and connector are defective.

Since many (maybe most; possibly nearly all) users tend to keep the power brick and cable plugged in while their device is away, and the world has not burned to the ground, I suspect you will be safe. UNLESS you have a Cat, Dog, Other pet that likes to chew on things. Then all bets are off 😁

There is a slight benefit to unplugging the charging brick, in that it will stop drawing any power. This is often referred to as "Parasite" or "Vampiric" power lost. Google the phrase: "Vampiric power loss".

If they are from a recognized brand then they'll be OK. If they are some cheap knock-off that you've bought from an online tat shop then you should bin them and buy something else.

As long as they are not physically damaged, it's fine.

Yes, if you are just talking about a few days (maybe even a few weeks).

But if you are going to not be using them for months on end, then it is best to drain them to between 60-80%, then power them off.