This is why you shouldn't charge your phone overnight

It makes total sense as well

phone charging
(Image credit: Muriel de Seze)

It makes total sense as well

We're sorry to say that you've been charging your phone wrong this whole time. Because as tempting as it is to leave it to charge overnight so you have full battery the next day, it's actually bad for your handset.

Why? Because you're leaving it plugged in even when it's fully charged, and according to Battery University, that's adding extra stress and tension to it and this will eventually wear it down.

'Li-ion does not need to be fully charged as is the case with lead acid, nor is it desirable to do so. In fact, it is better not to fully charge because a high voltage stresses the battery,' Battery University says.

We know it feels like you should plug in your phone overnight, but this isn't necessary. And if you're worried about draining your battery, there are plenty of things you could do to make your phone last longer, like deleting these apps which could double your battery time, or moving somewhere with a better phone signal (ok a bit extreme, we know, but you get the gist).

In any case, you might want to re-think when you want to charge your phone.

Plugging it in for an hour while you catch up on your favourite Netflix shows might be the solution. Just saying.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.