Why Do Your Ears Pop on a Plane? The Science and How to Stop It

Your ears pop on a plane because the air trapped behind your eardrum cannot change pressure as fast as the cabin does. When the pressure around you changes and the air inside your middle ear does not keep up, your eardrum gets pushed in or out, and the "pop" you feel is the moment a narrow passage in your head finally opens and evens things out.

Most people feel it on the way down, when the plane lands, and many have felt it on a mountain road or a fast elevator too. This guide explains what is happening inside your ear, why descent is usually the worse part of the flight, why some people suffer more than others, and what actually works to clear your ears, based on how the ear is built and what the sources say.

The Short Answer: A Valve That Has to Open

A small tube connects your middle ear to the back of your nose and throat, and it opens only when you swallow, yawn or chew. That tube is the Eustachian tube. It is normally collapsed shut, and its job is to keep the air pressure on both sides of your eardrum about the same. When the outside pressure changes, the tube has to open for a moment so air can move in or out. The pop is that air moving.

Wikipedia's article on the Eustachian tube describes the basic mechanism: the tube gapes open with swallowing and with positive pressure, which lets the middle ear's pressure adjust to the air around you. When the pressure is not equalized, the eardrum moves less freely, and that is what makes your ears feel stuffed or muffled.

Why the Air Pressure in a Plane Changes

Airliner cabins are pressurized, but not to sea-level pressure. Pumping air in keeps the cabin livable at cruising altitude, yet the cabin is still less pressurized than the ground. Under US rules, the cabin altitude on a commercial airliner must be kept at 8,000 feet (2,438 meters) or less. Wikipedia's article on cabin pressurization records the same limit, and the Federal Aviation Administration's rule for transport aircraft sets it in its regulations at 14 CFR 25.841.

At 8,000 feet, the air pressure is roughly three-quarters of what it is at sea level. So during the climb, the cabin pressure drops. When you land, the cabin pressure rises back toward the ground level. The change is gradual, but your ears are sensitive to small differences, and a flight changes pressure in both directions.

Why Landing Hurts More Than Takeoff

Descent is usually the harder part, because the pressure outside is pushing against your eardrum from the wrong direction.

On the way up, the air trapped in your middle ear is at a higher pressure than the cabin, so it tends to leave through the Eustachian tube on its own. You may hear a pop, or nothing at all. On the way down, the cabin pressure is climbing and the air in your middle ear is now at a lower pressure than the air outside. The eardrum gets pulled inward. Your Eustachian tube has to open against that pull to let fresh air in, and many people only manage it with effort.

That is why the squeeze usually arrives in the last part of the flight, as the plane comes down. It is also why the advice for landing is different from the advice for takeoff.

What Is Inside Your Ear

Your middle ear is an air-filled chamber behind the eardrum, and it needs a way to match the outside air. The eardrum, or tympanic membrane, separates the outer ear canal from the middle ear. Behind it sit three tiny bones that carry sound to the inner ear. For those bones and the eardrum to move freely, the air on both sides of the drum has to be at about the same pressure.

The Eustachian tube is the only regular route for that air. Its opening is at the back of the nose, and its other end sits in the middle ear. Because it is normally closed, pressure changes can build up on one side of the drum. Yawning, swallowing and chewing are the body's everyday way of opening it, which is why people often yawn after a sudden change in pressure. If you want more on the yawn itself, our post on why we yawn explains the other side of that reflex.

If the tube cannot open, the pressure difference stays. Wikipedia notes that this can cause temporary conductive hearing loss, because the eardrum and the small bones move less. That is the muffled, underwater feeling that lasts until the pressure evens out.

Why Some People Feel It More Than Others

Anything that narrows or blocks the Eustachian tube makes ear pressure harder to balance. A cold, allergies, a sinus infection or swollen tissue at the back of the nose can keep the tube from opening properly. That is why a flight with a bad cold is often miserable, and why some people feel a plane's pressure change even when they feel fine on the ground.

Children are a special case. Their Eustachian tubes are shorter and sit more horizontally than adult tubes, according to Wikipedia's Eustachian tube article. The same anatomy that makes ear infections more common in young children can make the pressure change harder to handle. Babies cannot follow the instructions, so feeding during takeoff and landing is the most useful tool for a parent.

Some people simply have tubes that open with more difficulty. Pressure sensitivity varies, and a rough flight for one person can be a non-event for the next.

How to Clear Your Ears Faster

The most reliable tricks all do one thing: they make you swallow, which opens the tube.

• Swallow often, starting before the descent. Sip water or a drink during the last half hour of the flight, and swallow each time you notice pressure building.
• Chew gum or suck on a sweet. Chewing triggers the same muscles that open the tube, and it keeps you swallowing without thinking about it.
• Yawn on purpose. If you cannot yawn, a big open-mouth jaw stretch can help. Some people find it works better than swallowing alone.
• Try a gentle Valsalva. Pinch your nose, close your mouth and blow very gently, as if you were inflating a balloon. Stop if it hurts, and never blow hard, because the force can damage the eardrum.
• Stay awake for the descent. Sleeping through landing means you stop swallowing, and the pressure can build for a long time before you notice.

If you have a cold or a blocked nose, talk to a pharmacist before taking a decongestant on a flight. Decongestants can help some people open the tube, but they are still medicine, and the right choice depends on your health. Nasal sprays used more than a few days can also cause rebound congestion, so use the label's directions.

When to See a Doctor

Most ear pressure goes away within minutes to a few hours after landing. Ears that still feel blocked after a day or two, sharp pain that does not ease, bleeding or discharge from the ear, dizziness, or hearing loss that does not clear are reasons to see a doctor. Those symptoms are not normal, and a clinician should check them, rather than waiting for them to fix themselves.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do my ears pop on a plane when I am not even moving?
The plane is moving through a pressure change. The cabin is climbing or dropping in pressure, and your middle ear is adjusting to match. You feel it even when the aircraft is level, because the change is still in progress.

Does ear popping damage my hearing?
A normal pop and the short muffled feeling that follows are usually temporary and do not cause lasting damage. Strong pain, bleeding, or hearing that does not come back should be checked by a doctor.

Why do my ears pop on a car ride down a mountain?
The same thing happens on a steep descent in a car. The outside air pressure is rising as you go down, and your Eustachian tube has to open to match it. Swallowing works the same way on a road as in a plane.

Does chewing gum really help?
It does for many people, because it keeps you swallowing. It is one of the simplest tools, and it costs very little. It works best when you start before the pressure builds, not after the pain begins.

The Bottom Line

Your ears pop because a small valve in your head opens to let air in or out and balance the pressure with the cabin. Descent is harder because the outside pressure is pushing on your eardrum as the plane drops. Swallowing, chewing and yawning are the best ways to open that valve, and starting early is the trick. Most of the time the discomfort is harmless and goes away quickly, and it is worth knowing that the feeling is your body doing exactly what it was built to do.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Eustachian tube (mechanism, swallowing and yawning, middle-ear pressure, children's tube anatomy, temporary hearing loss)
• Wikipedia: Cabin pressurization (commercial cabin altitude of 8,000 feet or less)
• 14 CFR 25.841, Pressurized cabins (eCFR)
• Wikipedia: Barotrauma (injury from pressure differences, including the middle ear)