Picture of the JBL Charge 3 Bluetooth speaker and power bank, original box, side 3.

How to Reset JBL Charge 3

How to reset the JBL Charge 3 speaker details here, how to restore your Charge 3 to its default settings. Resetting restores this speaker to factory default state. It also erases any earlier paired Bluetooth devices from its memory. Clearing these stops the Charge 3 from pairing to any nearby Bluetooth devices after the reset. Also, you might reset the unit, to get it ready for sale or re-gifting, or to stop it from pairing with devices you no longer wish it to pair with.

How to Reset JBL Charge 3, Step by Step

1. Turn on the Speaker

Press and release the Power button.  It should immediately light up.

Picture of the JBL Charge 3 powered off. Showing the -Power- button.
The JBL Charge 3 powered off. Showing the -Power- button.

Find the Power button, as shown in the last picture above.

Then, the Power button comes on, as shown next. In our case, since we’ve paired the speaker with Bluetooth devices before this, it does not enter Bluetooth discovery mode. We know that because the Power button glows solid gray, rather than blinking blue.

Picture of the speaker, powered ON but not paired. Showing the glowing white -Power- button.
The speaker, powered ON but not paired. Showing the glowing white -Power- button.

2. Wait for the Power Up Sound

The speaker makes a rising electric guitar strum sound when it powers up. The Charge 3 is ready for resetting after this sound finishes.





3. Press the Volume UP and Play-Pause Buttons Together

See the next picture to find the Pause Play and UP Volume buttons.

Picture of the -Volume Up- and -Play Pause- buttons.
The -Volume Up- and -Play Pause- buttons.

The JBL Charge 3 then enters reset, as shown in the next picture. Note that both the Power and Connect buttons light up for a couple seconds as the reset progresses. The Power button glows a pale blue, and the Connect button glows gray-white.  We circled these buttons in green, as shown next.

Picture of the speaker during reset. Showing the glowing -Power- and -Connect- buttons lighted.
The speaker during reset. Showing the glowing -Power- and -Connect- buttons lighted.

Then after a short pause, the unit turns off. All the lights go off, and it makes the power-down guitar sound.  The next picture shows the speaker, powered down.  All buttons are dark.

Picture of the control panel buttons on the top of the JBL Charge 3.
The control panel buttons on the top of the JBL Charge 3.

4. Check that your JBL Charge 3 Did Reset

Next, power on the speaker again, as described in step 1 above.  In short, press and release the Power button, as shown next.

Now this time, after reset, our speaker immediately comes up in Bluetooth discovery mode, as shown next. We did not have to press the Bluetooth button first, as after a reset, the speaker automatically enters Bluetooth pairing mode.  Note that the Power button blinks blue to denote Bluetooth discovery mode. When this button blinks blue or shows as solid white, the Charge 3 is not currently paired. We expect it not to pair to anything after a reset.

Picture of the speaker, powered on and paired. The -Power- button is glowing blue.
The -Power- button glows blue when JBL Charge 3 is paired.

5. Done with How to Reset JBL Charge 3 !

The reset is now finished. You may now pack the speaker up for sale, or pair it again with your favorite Bluetooth devices.

The Charge 3 will no longer automatically pair with any previously paired, in range Bluetooth device. So, to restore automatic pairing, you’ll need to forget the previously paired Charge 3 listed in the Bluetooth devices section of your source device settings, if any.  Once you do that, then manually pair the Charge 3 with that device again if so desired. Then after that, any time that both speaker and that device have Bluetooth turned on, pairing with automatically take place once more.

Other JBL Charge 3 Posts

    1. JBL Charge 3 Charging Time
    2. JBL Charge 3 Battery Indicator
    3. How to Update JBL Charge 3 Firmware
    4. How to Connect JBL Charge 3 to iPhone
    5. JBL Charge 3 Charger Specs

Related Posts to How to Reset JBL Charge 3

    1. How to Reset Chromecast Audio to Factory Settings

References for How to Reset JBL Charge 3

    1. JBL Charge 3 Official Product Page at JBL.com

Revision History

    • 2022-12-02: Updated links.
    • 2021-08-11: Shortened the internal links and tags lists.
    • 2020-05-19: First published.