Why Is My Meta Quest 3 Not Turning On? (Let’s Fix It Fast)

It could be unsettling if your Meta Quest 3 not turning on out of a sudden–but don’t panic yet, the headset is probably not dead, just “tired” to say so.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of different reasons why the headset wouldn’t turn on, and to find out the culprit, you’ll need to go through a series of steps.

The most common suspects why Quest 3 won’t turn on are the following:

Meta Quest 3 Not Turning On – 7 Quick & Easy Steps to Try!

Note: Have you tried continuously holding the Power button on the headset for 30 seconds?

1. Check the LED Indicator for Clues

To identify the problem as soon as possible, you can narrow down the potential suspects with a quick observation of the LED indicator.

The status LED is located on the side of the VR headset.

Status Light:	Meaning:
Red	Dead Battery – The most common reason why Quest won’t turn on.
Green	Fully Charged – The headset should turn on after pressing “Power”.
Orange	Now Charging – May or may not turn on, depending on the charge.
White	Powered ON – The Meta Quest 3 headset is already powered on.

The bottom line here is that if you’re seeing a red light, the battery is dead.

The other possibility where the unit wouldn’t turn on is when the battery has been dead and has just started charging.

Note: If you just connected the headset to the charger and is now showing orange light, keep it plugged in for 15–20 minutes and then try turning it on.

2. Verify that your Quest 3 is Charged

If your Meta Quest 3 headset is showing a red light, even after disconnecting it from a charging session, this means that the battery was not charging all along.

When you connect your VR headset to the charger, whether it’s via USB cable or station, you need to see the orange light.

• No light means that Quest 3 is not charging!

Quest 3 Not Charging – What to Do?

We recommend undertaking the following steps:

• Check for interrupted USB connection
• Switch to a different and tested socket
• Remove third-party plugs & connectors
• Try using a different AC power adapter

Well, if you don’t see the orange light, this means your Meta Quest 3 is not charging, and we recommend following our tailored guide on the topic. 

3. Try to Prevent Potential Overheating

Well, if your Meta Quest 3 is overheating, this is another potential reason why the headset won’t turn on.

This is an automatic defensive reaction of the device’s hardware, that prevents the excessive heat from damaging the hardware, thus until the device cools down, it won’t turn on.

If you have a suspicion that overheating is preventing the Quest 3 from turning on, the only way around it would be to leave the device to cool down for 15–20 minutes.

How to Prevent Quest 3 Overheating?

• Disable Features: You should disable any features of your headset that you rarely, or never use such as running apps, hand tracking, Quest AI, and Air Link.
• Lower Graphics: Since overheating is most commonly encountered while gaming, we recommend lowering the game’s graphics to decrease the HW utilization.
• Boost Ventilation: Optimize the headset’s ventilation by removing accessories, keeping distance from heat sources, and lowering the room’s temperature.

Note: Your Quest 3 headset may not be able to turn on up to 10–15 minutes after overheating!

4. Allow Quest 3 Battery to Acclimatize 

Aside from overheating, severe cold and low battery temperature is the opposite extreme that can also prevent your Quest 3 from powering on.

This mainly happens after an unboxing, when the Meta Quest 3 headset has just been delivered and exposed to extremely cold temperatures.

Bringing your ice-cold device inside can also cause condensation and attempting to turn on the headset may not only be unsuccessful but can also lethally damage the hardware.

So, if that’s the case we recommend leaving the headset at room temperature for at least 20–25 minutes.

5. Inspect your Quest 3 Power Button

Are you sure that the Quest 3 power button is clicking, and when pressed goes all the way in?

Because if not, maybe that is why your Quest 3 is not turning on.

If your Quest 3 is showing a green light (fully charged) but nothing happens when you press the Power button, push it a few times firmly.

Also, inspect the Power button shafts for potential obstructions or stuck objects.

If the power button looks well, continue reading…

6. Try Booting Quest 3 in *Safe Mode*

Sometimes, even if rarely, your Quest 3 headset may not turn on due to a software-related bug with the booting process.

In case of a system problem, the device may get stuck in a boot loop or keep turning off without a reason, so booting it up through the safe mode menu should help.

The safe mode, also known as “USB Update Mode”, is a built-in recovery feature allowing you to troubleshoot potential problems with the headset.

• To turn on the Quest 3 in safe mode, press and hold the Power + Volume (-) buttons for 5–10 seconds and release them when the menu pops up.

If you see the menu, congratulations–the problem is almost solved. This means the headset is not dead and working.

We recommend choosing “Boot device” or “Power off” to try turning it on. 

Note: If your headset won’t turn on properly, we recommend going for the “Factory reset” option!

7. Recalibrate your Headset’s Battery

If your Meta Quest 3 not turning on and not even showing the recovery menu (safe mode), the battery may be in a near-death state.

Well, this is not certain yet, but if you’ve tried everything so far and nothing worked, there isn’t anything else to try besides recalibrating the Quest battery.

To achieve this, the battery must hit 0%.

So, if possible enter the safe mode menu and let your headset display it for as long as the battery lasts.

If the safe mode menu is not reachable, plug the headset into the charger and let it charge overnight (12+ hours).

Well, if you still can’t turn on the Quest 3 in the morning, the headset’s battery might be dead.

Note: If you suspect that the battery might be dead, get in touch with Meta Customer Service or try claiming your warranty by contacting the local merchant.

Meta Quest 3 Controllers Not Turning On – Why & How to Fix? 

Quick Tip: To turn on the Meta Quest 3 controllers, press any button!

Replace the Batteries

If you’re not using a charging station, your Meta Quest 3 controllers come with 2 1.5V batteries, one battery for each controller.

If you see the red light on your controller/s, this means that there is no battery, so the best thing to do here is to replace the batteries.

We recommend Duracell or Energizer!

Re-pair the Controllers 

If you see a green light after pressing any button, this doesn’t mean the controllers aren’t turning on, so if they are not functioning, it’s probably a pairing issue.

Here’s how to pair your controllers to the Quest 3 headset:

1. Turn on the Quest 3 headset and open your Meta Horizon app.
2. Select the hamburger menu (☰) and head to the “Devices” tab.
3. Select your headset and go to Headset Settings → Controllers.
4. From there choose “Pair New Controller” and select which one.

• For the right controller press and hold the Meta or “B” button.
• For your left controller press and hold the “☰” or “Y” button.

That’s it. Now when your controllers are paired, they will automatically connect to your Quest 3 when you turn it on and press any controller button.

Check Charging Station

If you’re using a charging station and rechargeable batteries, the reason why the controllers are not turning on is probably due to a lack of battery charge. 

There are a couple of things to check here:

• The station’s cable is securely connected.
• The power outlet for the station is working.
• The VR controllers are properly embedded.

Quick Note: If your controllers are not charging from the base station, we recommend inserting a fresh pair of non-rechargeable 1.5V AA batteries to test with.