How to Pop Your Ears After a Flight: 6 Methods

That muffled, pressurized feeling in your ears after a flight comes from trapped air in your middle ear that failed to equalize with the cabin pressure during descent. The fix is straightforward: you need to coax your Eustachian tubes open so air can flow through and balance the pressure on both sides of your eardrum. Six reliable methods can get that done, ranging from something as simple as swallowing to over-the-counter decongestants, and the right choice depends on how stubborn the blockage is and how often you deal with it.

Why Your Ears Feel Blocked in the First Place

Your middle ear is a small air-filled chamber sealed off from the outside world by the eardrum on one side and a narrow passage called the Eustachian tube on the other. The Eustachian tube runs from the middle ear down to the back of your throat, and it opens briefly during swallowing, yawning, and certain jaw movements to let air in or out. When cabin pressure changes rapidly during a flight, especially during descent, the air pressure outside your eardrum rises faster than the pressure inside your middle ear can adjust. This creates a pressure gap that pushes your eardrum inward, causing that familiar stuffed, painful sensation along with muffled hearing.¹

The good news is that the Eustachian tube does not need to open all the way to fix the problem. Computational modeling of airflow through the tube has shown that even a partial opening can fully equalize middle ear pressure. In most ears studied, opening the tube to about half its diameter was enough to restore normal pressure across the entire middle ear space.² That means the techniques below do not require heroic effort. A gentle, well-timed action is usually all it takes.

Method 1: Swallowing

Swallowing is the most natural way to open your Eustachian tubes. Every time you swallow, muscles attached to the cartilage of the Eustachian tube contract and pull the tube open for a fraction of a second. Specifically, the levator veli palatini muscle rotates the cartilage in a way that opens the tube’s entrance near the throat, while the tensor veli palatini muscle helps widen the middle portion.³ The levator’s contraction lasts slightly longer than the tensor’s, which means the tube stays open for a beat after the swallow finishes, giving air a moment to move through.

This is why flight attendants hand out candy during descent and why chewing gum is the classic in-flight ear remedy. Both encourage repeated swallowing. Sipping water works just as well if you prefer it. The key is frequency: one swallow might not be enough if the pressure gap is large, so keep at it during the final 15 to 20 minutes of the flight. If your ears are still blocked after landing, take small, deliberate sips of water every few seconds until you feel that satisfying pop.

Method 2: Yawning

Yawning recruits the same two muscles that swallowing does, but it opens the Eustachian tube wider and holds it open longer because the jaw drops further and the soft palate stretches more dramatically. If you cannot yawn on command, try opening your mouth as wide as possible and moving your jaw forward and down as if starting a yawn. Many people find that faking a yawn a few times triggers a real one, which tends to be more effective because the muscle engagement is stronger and more sustained.

The advantage of yawning over swallowing is that it moves more air through the tube in a single action. The downside is that it is harder to repeat quickly and can feel awkward in a crowded cabin. In practice, alternating between swallowing and yawning gives you the best of both approaches.

Method 3: The Valsalva Maneuver

When swallowing and yawning are not enough, the Valsalva maneuver is the next step up. Pinch your nostrils shut, close your mouth, and gently blow as if trying to push air out through your sealed nose. The pressure you generate in your throat and nasal passages forces air up through the Eustachian tubes and into the middle ear. You will often feel a distinct pop or click as the eardrum shifts back into its normal position.

There are two important cautions. First, blow gently. The Valsalva maneuver generates substantial pressure throughout your chest and head, and blowing too hard can strain blood vessels, briefly spike blood pressure, or in rare cases damage middle ear structures. Second, do not keep blowing if nothing happens after a couple of seconds. Sustained, forceful straining is counterproductive because the increased pressure in your chest can actually make it harder for the Eustachian tubes to open. A series of short, gentle puffs is safer and more effective than one prolonged push.

Method 4: The Frenzel Maneuver

The Frenzel maneuver accomplishes the same thing as the Valsalva but without the chest pressure, making it a safer and more repeatable technique. Instead of blowing against a closed nose, you close your glottis (the valve at the top of your windpipe) and use your tongue as a piston. With your nostrils pinched shut, press the back of your tongue upward against the roof of your mouth. This compresses the small pocket of air already sitting in your throat and nasal cavity, pushing it toward the Eustachian tubes.⁴

The technique takes a fraction of a second, requires almost no effort, and can be repeated rapidly without fatigue. Because the glottis stays closed, no air is drawn from the lungs and there is no change in chest pressure. Scuba divers use the Frenzel maneuver extensively because they need to equalize many times during a dive without interrupting their breathing. Singers have also been found to use it instinctively, since it does not interfere with breath support the way a Valsalva does.⁴ The Frenzel is harder to learn initially because the tongue-piston motion feels unfamiliar, but once you get it, it is the most efficient way to pop your ears in any situation.

Method 5: Nasal Balloon Devices

If you find the Valsalva too forceful and the Frenzel too tricky, a nasal balloon device like the Otovent offers a middle ground. The device is simply a small balloon attached to a nosepiece. You press the nosepiece against one nostril, hold the other nostril closed, and inflate the balloon by blowing through your nose. The controlled back-pressure forces air through the Eustachian tubes in much the same way the Valsalva does, but with more consistent and moderate pressure.

A direct comparison of the Otovent and the Valsalva maneuver found that both techniques opened the Eustachian tube at similar rates, but the Otovent produced lower and significantly more consistent pressures. That consistency makes it more reliable for people who tend to blow too hard or not hard enough with the Valsalva.⁵ In children treated for Eustachian tube dysfunction, regular use of the Otovent device brought hearing back to normal levels in roughly four out of five kids, compared to none in a control group that did not use it.⁶ The device is available over the counter in most countries and is small enough to keep in a carry-on bag.

Method 6: Decongestants

When ear blockage is tied to nasal congestion, swollen mucous membranes can physically squeeze the Eustachian tube shut and make mechanical techniques less effective. Decongestants tackle this by shrinking the swollen tissue, opening up the tube so air can pass more freely. Two types are commonly used: oral pseudoephedrine (sold as Sudafed and generics) and nasal sprays containing oxymetazoline or similar active ingredients.

A systematic review pooling data from multiple trials found that oral pseudoephedrine cut the risk of ear barotrauma roughly in half compared to placebo, with consistent reductions in ear pain, blockage, and temporary hearing loss. Oxymetazoline nasal spray also helped, but its effect was more modest and less consistent across different symptoms.⁷ For the best results with either, timing matters. Oral pseudoephedrine typically needs about 30 to 60 minutes to take full effect, so you would take it before boarding. A nasal spray can work faster, within 10 to 15 minutes, making it useful closer to descent.

A practical note: decongestants work best as prevention. If you are reading this in the terminal with already-blocked ears, a decongestant spray may still help by reducing the swelling that is trapping the pressure, but it will work more slowly than the mechanical techniques above. Pairing a spray with repeated swallowing or a gentle Valsalva gives you the best shot at relief.

Why Descent Is the Problem, Not Ascent

Most people notice their ears during landing, not takeoff, and the anatomy explains why. When the plane climbs, the cabin pressure drops and the air inside your middle ear expands. The Eustachian tube opens passively to let that excess air escape, much like a one-way pressure valve. You might notice a faint pop or a slight sense of fullness, but it rarely hurts.

Descent reverses the situation. Cabin pressure rises, and now the middle ear needs to pull air in through the Eustachian tube. But the tube does not open passively in that direction. The soft tissue around the tube’s opening acts like a flap that is easy to push open from the inside but tends to seal shut when pressure pushes from outside. That is why you need active effort, swallowing, yawning, or one of the maneuvers described above, to pop the tube open during descent.¹ If you wait too long and the pressure gap gets large, the surrounding tissue gets pressed more firmly against the tube, making it even harder to open. Starting your equalizing efforts early in the descent, as soon as you feel the first hint of fullness, prevents this cascade.

Flying With a Cold or Allergies

Upper respiratory infections and allergic rhinitis are the two biggest risk factors for airplane ear because they swell the mucous membranes lining the Eustachian tube. When the tube’s lining is puffy and inflamed, even normal swallowing may not open it enough to equalize pressure.¹ This is the scenario where decongestants earn their keep: taking pseudoephedrine before the flight and using a nasal spray before descent gives the tube the best chance of functioning normally despite the inflammation.

If you have an active sinus infection with thick mucus and significant facial pressure, you are at higher risk for more than just discomfort. A badly blocked Eustachian tube during a steep descent can lead to fluid or even blood accumulating in the middle ear, a condition that can take days or weeks to resolve. Rescheduling a flight when you are in the worst stage of a cold is worth considering if the trip is not urgent. If you must fly, combine a decongestant with aggressive equalizing techniques throughout the descent and avoid sleeping during the final 30 minutes of the flight, because you cannot swallow or yawn deliberately while asleep.

Babies and Young Children

Infants and toddlers are especially prone to airplane ear for a straightforward anatomical reason: their Eustachian tubes are shorter, narrower, and sit at a more horizontal angle than in adults. This geometry makes the tube less efficient at draining and equalizing because gravity is not helping move fluid and air downward the way it does in the more vertically angled adult tube.⁸ Children also get ear infections and upper respiratory illnesses more frequently, which means their tubes are more likely to already be swollen when they board a plane.

Babies obviously cannot perform a Valsalva or Frenzel maneuver, so the strategy is to encourage swallowing during descent. Nursing or bottle-feeding during the landing approach is the most reliable method because sucking and swallowing happen continuously. For toddlers, a sippy cup or a snack that requires chewing works well. Pacifiers help too, though sucking on a pacifier produces less forceful swallowing than actual feeding. If a young child is crying during descent, that is actually somewhat helpful: crying involves deep breaths, swallowing, and wide jaw movements that all promote Eustachian tube opening, even if the sound is unpleasant for everyone nearby.

What About Pressure-Regulating Earplugs?

Several brands sell earplugs marketed as “pressure-equalizing” or “flight earplugs,” claiming they slow the rate of pressure change reaching the eardrum and give the Eustachian tube more time to adjust. They typically contain a small ceramic or filtered vent that supposedly meters airflow. The concept sounds plausible, but the evidence is discouraging.

In a controlled study simulating descent from cruising altitude, researchers compared middle ear pressure changes in ears wearing active pressure-equalizing earplugs against ears wearing plain placebo plugs. There was no difference in how much middle ear pressure dropped between the two groups. In fact, the ears using the active earplugs scored significantly worse on otoscopic examination afterward, showing more signs of barotrauma than the placebo group.⁹ The researchers speculated that the earplug seal may trap a pocket of low-pressure air against the eardrum, worsening the very problem it claims to solve. Standard foam earplugs can reduce the discomfort of cabin noise, but do not expect specialty “flight” earplugs to help with pressure equalization.

When Ears Stay Blocked for Hours or Days

Most post-flight ear blockage resolves within minutes to a few hours using the techniques above. If your ears are still muffled the day after flying, the pressure difference may have pulled fluid into the middle ear space, a condition doctors call serous otitis media. This fluid acts as a cushion that dampens sound transmission across the eardrum, causing that persistent underwater feeling. Mild cases clear on their own as the Eustachian tube gradually drains the fluid over a few days, and you can help the process along with regular swallowing, jaw exercises, and a short course of decongestants.

If blockage persists beyond a week, or if you experience sharp pain, significant hearing loss, dizziness, ringing in the ear, or any fluid draining from the ear canal, see a doctor. Severe barotrauma can rupture the eardrum or damage structures in the inner ear, and these injuries need professional evaluation. People who experience ear trouble on nearly every flight despite using preventive measures may have chronic Eustachian tube dysfunction, a condition where the tube does not open reliably regardless of the techniques used. An ear, nose, and throat specialist can assess tube function and discuss options ranging from prescription nasal steroids to a minor procedure called balloon dilation of the Eustachian tube, which mechanically stretches the tube open.

Putting the Methods Together in Practice

These six methods are not mutually exclusive, and experienced fliers often layer them. A practical routine for someone who regularly has trouble might look like this: take an oral decongestant an hour before the flight if you have any nasal congestion, use a nasal spray about 15 minutes before expected descent, and then begin swallowing or chewing gum as soon as the plane starts dropping. If fullness develops despite that, try a gentle Valsalva or, if you have practiced it, a Frenzel maneuver. Keep an Otovent device in your bag as a backup for flights where nothing else seems to work.

The single most common mistake is waiting too long. Once the pressure gap is large, the tissue around the Eustachian tube is compressed shut, and every technique becomes harder to execute successfully. Starting early, at the first hint of ear fullness or when the captain announces the initial descent, prevents the problem from snowballing. If you regularly fly short-haul routes where descent happens quickly, being proactive matters even more because the pressure change per minute is steeper.