Can You Take Electric Toothbrush in Hand Luggage?

Being able to bring an electric toothbrush on plane trips, especially in your hand luggage is a must but are electric toothbrushes allowed on planes?

That is particularly important if you are on a long flight, perhaps overnight, so that you can clean your teeth during the flight to help freshen up your oral hygiene (and be kind to adjacent passengers).

Even if you normally use an electric toothbrush you could of course just take a manual toothbrush with you, or even buy one at your destination.

But if you are like me and feel that you can only clean your teeth properly with your electric toothbrush then you will want to take it with you.

If you are going on a short break and only taking hand luggage with you then it is obviously important to be able to clean your teeth while you are away. But can you take an electric toothbrush on a plane in your carry on?

The Quick Answer: Can you bring an electric toothbrush on plane trips? TSA rules allow electric toothbrushes on a plane in carry on bags through security no matter what type of battery they contain. They are also permitted to be packed in checked bags, even though they normally contain lithium batteries.

I have taken my electric toothbrush in hand luggage and also in my checked luggage all over the world without a problem.

Below you can see the full TSA electric toothbrush rules.

Can you take electric toothbrush in carry on?

You can bring an electric toothbrush through airport security and onto a plane in your carry on luggage.

Electric toothbrushes are generally rechargeable and therefore contain a rechargeable battery, more often than not these days, a lithium battery.

Lithium batteries are the batteries that airport security has the biggest problem with. This is because of the small possibility of them overheating and catching fire but this is not likely in electric toothbrushes where the battery is encased within the unit and cannot be removed.

Asking if you can bring an electric toothbrush in carry on is a frequently asked question on the TSA Twitter service (#asktsa). This is a reply to one of the many who ask:

Make sure that your toothbrush has some charge in it. This is because you may be asked to switch it on when you go through airport security. If you cannot then there is a small possibility that it may be confiscated.

You can also take replaceable battery-operated toothbrushes in your cabin bag too.

You can of course also take the charging unit for your electric toothbrush with you. Since you will not need it during the flight, if you are taking a checked bag, then you may as well pack it in there. If not, it can go in your cabin bag.

There are three good reasons to pack your electric toothbrush in your carry on bag rather than in a checked bag:

• You may want to brush your teeth during the flight, particularly if it is a long and overnight flight
• Your checked bag may be delayed or lost so if the toothbrush is in your carry on at least you will still be able to brush your teeth
• There is no danger of your toothbrush being stolen in transit. It may sound stupid but even electric toothbrushes get stolen occasionally

Although electric toothbrushes are ok, many other items that contain a rechargeable battery can potentially present a problem at airport security. To find out more you may wish to read – Can you take lithium batteries on a plane?

Read: You may want to know if you can take toothpaste in carry on should you wish to clean your teeth mid-flight.

Can you pack an electric toothbrush in checked luggage?

If you do not want to use your electric toothbrush on a plane during the flight, perhaps because it is just short-haul, then you can go ahead and pack it in your suitcase and check it in to go into the aircraft’s hold.

This is because, if the battery is built-in, or removable, but properly inserted, they have little or no chance of shorting, overheating or catching fire so they are not a problem.

In the unlikely event that your toothbrush uses a removable lithium battery then you can only put the toothbrush in your checked bag if the battery is inserted into the unit. The battery cannot travel separately in checked bags and neither can spare batteries.

This is the TSA’s response to a passenger asking can you bring an electric toothbrush on a plane:

Do electric toothbrushes have lithium batteries?

Rechargeable electric toothbrushes will normally have either a NiMH or a lithium-ion battery. Most modern models will have a lithium-ion battery encased in them, which cannot be removed.

The whole unit sits on a charger when the battery needs recharging, rather than the battery being removed and charged separately.

Some cheaper electric toothbrushes use disposable replaceable batteries.

Whatever type of battery your electric toothbrush is fitted with you are allowed to bring it with you on a plane in either your carry on baggage or checked bags

Do Oral B toothbrushes have lithium batteries?

Almost all modern Oral B rechargeable toothbrushes will have a lithium-ion battery in them. Certainly, my Oral B toothbrush does.

You can check your rechargeable electric toothbrush model out on the Oral B website to see what kind of batteries are fitted in it.

The same applies to Sonicare toothbrushes.

Conclusion

The TSA allows electric toothbrushes on a plane in carry on bags no matter what type of battery they contain.

But if they contain lithium-ion batteries, provided the batteries are installed in the toothbrush, they can be packed in checked baggage too.

Other toiletry airport security questions you may have

As well as whether you can take an electric toothbrush in your carry on you may also be interested in these:

Can you take an electric razor on a plane?

Are shaving razors allowed in carry on bags?

Can I bring deodorants on a plane?

Can you take aerosols on a plane?