Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, second generation, that will not pair have a short list of causes, and most are fixed by resetting the pairing on both sides. These flagship earbuds use Bluetooth 5.4 with LE Audio, which pairs quickly with a modern phone, and they live in a charging case. They enter pairing mode when you open the case and hold the button on the case or press the earbud in the way the guide shows, and they show a light on the case.
The checks in more detail
A pairing that fails usually has a stale entry on the phone, a bud that is not charged or a phone that is busy with another connection. Start with the buds and the case. Put both buds in the case and charge it, because the earbuds will not pair if the buds are flat. Close the case and open it again to wake them. Hold the pairing button on the case, or press and hold the touch control as described in Bose's guide,
until the case light pulses blue and the earbuds say that they are ready to pair. On your phone, open Bluetooth settings, find the earbuds in the list of available devices and tap them. Place the phone close to the case. If they do not appear, or they connect and fail, remove the old pairing. On the phone, forget the earbuds, then turn Bluetooth off and on, and try again. Turn off Bluetooth on other devices that may be grabbing the earbuds, such as a tablet or a laptop, or disconnect them in the Bose app.
If the app cannot find the earbuds, check that location and Bluetooth permissions are on for the app. Update the phone's software and the Bose app, and update the earbud firmware once they connect. If nothing works, reset the earbuds by the method in Bose's guide, which clears all pairings, and pair them as new. If the earbuds still fail to pair, contact Bose with the serial number from the case.
Differential
Likely causes of “Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds will not pair or connect”, and how to tell them apart
- 1
Flat buds or a flat case
What separates it No light or a failed pairing mode
How to confirm Charge the case and the buds
- 2
A stale pairing on the phone
What separates it The buds appear and fail to connect
How to confirm Forget the earbuds and re-pair
- 3
Another device grabbing the buds
What separates it The buds connect elsewhere
How to confirm Disconnect other devices
- 4
Missing permissions
What separates it The Bose app cannot find the earbuds
How to confirm Allow Bluetooth and location for the app
- 5
A corrupt pairing memory
What separates it Nothing helps
How to confirm Reset the earbuds
Before you touch a setting
Record this first — changing settings destroys the evidence
- Whether the case light pulses blue
- Whether both buds are charged
- Whether other devices are connected
- The phone model and software version
Try in this order
0 of 6 completedCharge the case and buds
ReversibleBoth.
Open the case
ReversibleHold the pairing button.
Select the earbuds
ReversibleIn Bluetooth settings.
Forget old pairings
ReversibleThen try again.
Disconnect other devices
ReversibleOr turn Bluetooth off there.
Reset the earbuds
ReversibleIf all else fails.
Model-specific
What is true of this model and not of its siblings
- Pairing mode
- A button on the case starts it; a light pulses.
- Charging
- Flat buds will not pair.
- Old entries
- A stale pairing blocks a new one.
- Other devices
- They can grab the earbuds.
- A reset
- It clears pairings.
- Bose help
- Quote the serial number from the case.
Stop boundary
When this stops being a self-service repair
- !Do not charge the case with a damaged cable
- !Do not open the buds
- !Contact Bose if the case will not charge
Evidence ledger
Sources behind this answer
Exact questions
Common questions
Why will my earbuds not pair?+
Flat buds, a stale pairing or another device.
How do I enter pairing mode?+
Hold the pairing button on the case.
Does LE Audio matter?+
It helps with pairing speed on newer phones.
Should I forget the earbuds?+
Yes.
Will a reset help?+
It clears all pairings.