Ear pain during flights is caused by rapid changes in cabin pressure that your ears can’t adjust to quickly enough. About 10% of adult passengers and 22% of children show physical signs of ear barotrauma after flying. The good news: a few simple techniques before and during your flight can prevent most of the discomfort entirely.
Why Your Ears Hurt on Planes
A narrow channel called the Eustachian tube connects your middle ear to the back of your throat. Its job is to keep air pressure equal on both sides of your eardrum. When a plane climbs or descends, cabin pressure shifts faster than this tube can adjust. The resulting mismatch pushes or pulls on your eardrum, causing that familiar stuffed, painful feeling.
Descent is typically worse than takeoff. As the plane drops altitude, cabin pressure increases rapidly, and the eardrum gets pushed inward. Anything that narrows or blocks the Eustachian tube, like congestion from a cold or allergies, makes the problem significantly worse. Flying with a sinus infection or even mild congestion increases the risk of barotrauma and can turn a short trip into a longer-term problem.
Swallowing and Jaw Movement Techniques
The simplest way to equalize ear pressure is to get your Eustachian tubes to open. Swallowing and yawning both do this naturally. Chewing gum, sucking on hard candy, or sipping water during takeoff and landing encourages frequent swallowing without you having to think about it. Start as soon as the plane begins its climb or descent, not after you already feel pain.
If passive swallowing isn’t enough, try the Valsalva maneuver: pinch your nostrils shut and gently blow through your nose. You should feel a soft pop as the pressure equalizes. Don’t blow hard, as too much force can damage your inner ear. Another option is the Toynbee maneuver, which works in the opposite direction: pinch your nostrils closed and swallow at the same time. This one is particularly useful during descent, when pressure is building inward against the eardrum.
A third technique, the Frenzel maneuver, involves pinching your nostrils, closing the back of your throat as if you’re about to lift something heavy, and then making a “K” sound. It takes a bit of practice on the ground but gives you very precise control over equalization.
Decongestants and Nasal Sprays
If you’re prone to ear pain on flights or you’re flying with any congestion at all, an oral decongestant taken before the flight can help keep your Eustachian tubes open. A low dose (30 mg) is generally enough and less likely to cause the jittery, anxious feeling higher doses can produce. Take it about 30 to 60 minutes before departure so it has time to work.
A nasal decongestant spray is another option, used before takeoff and again before landing on longer flights. These shrink swollen tissue in the nasal passages, giving the Eustachian tubes more room to function. Don’t rely on nasal sprays for more than a few consecutive days, though, as they can cause rebound congestion with overuse.
Pressure-Filtering Earplugs
Specialty earplugs designed for flying use a small ceramic filter inside a silicone earplug to slow down the rate at which pressure reaches your eardrum. They don’t block the pressure change entirely. Instead, they give your Eustachian tubes more time to catch up. You put them in before takeoff and leave them in through landing.
These aren’t medical devices and haven’t been evaluated by the FDA for treating or preventing any condition, but many frequent flyers find them helpful as an extra layer of protection. The filters lose effectiveness as particles accumulate, so they need to be replaced regularly, roughly every couple of weeks of use.
Helping Babies and Young Children
Children are hit harder by airplane ear pressure. Their Eustachian tubes are shorter and more horizontal than adults’, making equalization harder. Nearly a quarter of kids show signs of barotrauma after a flight.
Infants can’t chew gum or perform pressure-equalizing maneuvers, so feeding is your best tool. Breastfeeding, bottle feeding, or offering a pacifier during takeoff and landing encourages the swallowing reflex that opens the Eustachian tubes. One important detail: try to keep your child awake during climb and descent. Children swallow more often when they’re awake, so a nap during landing can mean they wake up in pain with pressure already built up behind the eardrum.
When Flying Congested Is a Bad Idea
All of these strategies work best when your Eustachian tubes are functioning reasonably well. If you have a cold, active sinus infection, or significant nasal congestion, the tubes may be too swollen to equalize at all, no matter what you try. In that situation, the pressure difference can become severe enough to damage the eardrum or cause fluid buildup in the middle ear. If you have the flexibility to reschedule, waiting until you’ve fully recovered is the safest move.
If you can’t reschedule, combining an oral decongestant with a nasal spray gives you the best chance of keeping the tubes functional. Use the swallowing and Valsalva techniques aggressively during descent, starting early rather than waiting for pain to set in.
If Your Ears Still Hurt After Landing
Some muffled hearing and mild discomfort after a flight is normal and usually resolves on its own within a few hours. You can continue using the Valsalva maneuver on the ground to help clear any remaining pressure. Most cases of barotrauma aren’t serious and don’t need treatment.
If the stuffed feeling, pain, or hearing loss persists beyond a day or two, or if symptoms are getting worse rather than better, that’s worth a medical evaluation. Persistent symptoms can indicate fluid trapped in the middle ear or, in rare cases, a small tear in the eardrum that needs time and monitoring to heal properly.