How to fix a zipper that wont zip together

You may occasionally run into another broken zipper. No one wants to replace a new tent or favorite jacket whenever the zipper stops working. Knowing how to repair a zipper that doesn’t close the teeth can save you money and stress. Find out why zippers break and how to fix them.

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Stuck Zippers
Loose Slider
Broken Teeth
Broken Slider

Stuck Zippers

Your zipper may not close if it becomes stuck. Getting your slider to move over a stuck zipper may require some maintenance. First, you should inspect the teeth to see if anything has become caught in them. Sometimes, loose threads or fabric may get into your fastener. Further, grime or dirt in the teeth can also cause an issue. You should clean the zipper and grease the teeth so that the slider glides easily.

Loose Slider

Your zipper may not close properly if the slider is loose. A slider may loosen over time due to wear and tear. To fix it, use pliers to pinch the slider until it’s tight enough for the zipper to work. Be careful not to pinch it too tightly, though. Otherwise, it will become stuck.

Broken Teeth

Missing or broken zipper teeth can prevent your fastener from working. In this case, you may need to replace the entire zipper with a repair kit. While you can use pliers to put bent teeth back in place, you’ll need a new chair if the teeth are altogether missing.

Broken Slider

The most important element to any zipper is the slider. You need something to pinch the teeth together to engage the mechanism. Using your hands won’t work. If your slider breaks, it may be challenging to use it to close the teeth. Whether due to wear and tear or an accident, your slider may lose its pull. Or it may crack. While you can attach a piece of twine or rope to your slider to replace the pull, you’ll need a zipper pull replacement piece if the entire slider has become damaged.

Use a FixnZip when you don’t know how to repair a zipper that doesn’t close the teeth. With this replacement piece, you use a thumbscrew to customize the tightness of the slide. Stop throwing away broken jackets and backpacks and repair them with the FixnZip.

If the zipper on your sleeping bag, tent door, jacket or backpack is broken, it might be a simple fix or it might mean replacing the zipper.

First, you need to look at the problem. To fix zipper teeth that won’t stay closed, you can tighten the zipper slider or replace it. If the zipper teeth are broken or it’s missing a tooth, it might be time to replace the whole zipper. And if the zipper feels stiff and isn’t sliding, try to fix it by using a candle.

A pair of hinged or adjustable pliers (ideally not needle nose)

Before you get started, take a look at what type of zipper you have to know what you’re working with:

If your zipper teeth won’t stay closed, you can try a temporary fix by tightening the zipper slider:

Move the zipper slider to the bottom of the zipper.
Put the pliers around the slider, so one side of the pliers faces the inside of the garment and one side faces the outside. (Needle-nose pliers will put uneven pressure on the slider, which is not ideal).
Gently squeeze the left side of the slider, then squeeze the right side. Test the zip. You may have to re-squeeze the slider until the zipper functions. Avoid squeezing so hard that you jam or break the slider.

If a zipper is sewn in at one end (like a fly on a pair of pants or the top of a tent door) there might be a few teeth at the very end that do not properly engage. To fix this, unpick some stitches and install new stops, or sew a few teeth closed, and use just a little bit less of the full length of the zipper.

A more permanent fix for fixing a zipper slider is to replace it completely.

For separating zippers (zippers that separate at both ends, like the front zip on a jacket) it will be easier to remove one or both of the stops.
For non-separating zippers (zippers that are sewn in at one end, like a tent door), you may need to open a seam before you can remove the stops.

Find a matching replacement for your zipper slider.
Use pliers (or nippers if you have them) to gently pull or cut out the stops. Try not to damage the webbing as you take them out.
Pull the slider off the end.
Put the new slider in place (for non-separating zippers, place the two ends of the zipper teeth into the front two openings of the new slider). Make sure that slider is facing the right way – not upside down – as you’re putting it on.
Hold the teeth together and move the slider along the zipper. It may require a few tries to get it sliding evenly.
Once the zipper slider is working, attach new stops and re-sew any seams required.

You can do a quick fix in the field by sewing above the missing teeth:

Does your zipper feel stiff? Maybe it’s not sliding nicely? Try rubbing the zipper with a wax candle:

Shop all maintenance and repair

1
Inspect the slider on the zipper. Many times when the sides of a zipper separate and won't go back together as you pull the slider, it's because the slider itself is damaged. When you use a zipper often, the slider opening will begin to stretch open a bit. Inspect both ends of the zipper to determine if they have the same opening size. If one end looks wider than the other, then this may be why your zipper failed.[1]
- As the opening increases in size, it puts less pressure on the tracts of the zipper, allowing them to stay separated.
Tip: This is a common problem on bags and purses, as their zippers get a lot of wear and tear.
2
Inspect the rest of the zipper and fix any problems that are apparent. For instance, straighten out any bent zipper teeth that you see. If there are tears in the fabric of the zipper, mend them.
- In some cases, bent teeth on a zipper will cause a zipper to separate. If the zipper teeth are metal, you can use a pair of pliers to straighten them out. If the teeth are plastic, gently try to straighten them with your fingers, as pliers could easily break them off.
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3

Squeeze the opening on the slider to reduce its size. Squeeze the slider on the top and bottom with your fingers or a pair of pliers. This will make the opening inside the slider the correct size once again.[2]
- On one end of the slider there is a middle piece that won't let you squeeze it. On the other end there is no middle piece. That is the side that gets opened and needs to be squeezed back together.
- Don't squeeze the slider too strongly though, as you don't want to make the gap smaller than it should be. You will know the gap is too small if it becomes difficult to pull up and down the zipper slider along the tracks.
4
Check the zipper. Once you've reshaped the slider, move it up and down the zipper. If it is properly fixed, the slider should go back to opening and closing the zipper right away.
- If the zipper still doesn't work, either squeeze the slider more or try another solution.[3]

1
Assess whether the slider needs to be realigned. If you have tried to move the zipper up and down, force the zipper sides together, and reduce the opening on the slider, the next thing to try is starting from scratch. If you can see the stops at the top of the zipper and they are metal, taking off the slider and realigning the zipper is possible.[4]
- The stops at the top of the zipper are small pieces of metal that are shaped a bit differently from the teeth on the zipper. They are not big pieces and they look similar to teeth but they are slightly larger and are positioned at the very end of each side of teeth.
- If the stops are plastic, you won't be able to take them off and put them back off without breaking them, so you can't use this method.
2
Remove the top stops. Get a pair of small-tipped pliers and gently open up the stop. The stop it shaped like a "u," so you simply need to open up the side of the stop that is hooked onto the tape of the zipper. Once it is just slightly opened, you can wiggle it and unhook it from the tape.[5]
- It's important to be gentle with the stop and don't cut it or bend it until it breaks. You need to keep it intact.
- Keep the top stops and put them somewhere safe, as you'll need to use them again.
Tip: A pair of small wire cutter with a pointed end work well for removing the top stops.
3
Pull the slider up and off the zipper. Once the tops stops are removed, you will be able to easily pull the slider off the end of the zipper. Taking it off will allow you fix the tracks and then get the slider back in line.[6]
4
Push the teeth of the zipper together. Start at the bottom of the zipper, the opposite end from where you took off the slider. Push the teeth of the zipper together, making sure that the teeth from the left and right sides alternate.[7]
- Put the zipper on top of a hard surface. As you work your way up the zipper, press down on the teeth to pop them into place.
- It is important that the teeth are perfectly lined up. Make sure that once you get to the top of the zipper that you don't have extra teeth on one side. This would mean that the teeth are not lined up.
5
Reinsert the slider onto the top of the zipper. Once you have realigned the teeth, stick the bottom of the slider back onto the top of the tracks. Insert one track into the bottom of the slider, which is the end without a piece of metal separating the two sides. Then insert the other track.
- You will know each side is inserted when several teeth have gone up into the slider and the track won't go any further.
- It's easiest to insert one side and then the other. Putting them both in at once doesn't typically work.
6
Run the slider up and down to check your work. Pull the slider down a few inches to make sure that it is on track. Move it up and down a bit to make sure it opens and closes the zipper correctly.[8]
- Be sure not to pull the slider all the way back up to the top, as it will slide off of the tracks again without the top stops in place.
7
Reapply the top stops. Once the zipper is working once again, put the top stops back in place. Position them in the spots where they were originally installed. Squeeze the ends of the stops with your pliers until they grip the zipper tape once again.[9]
- Wiggle each stop after you reinstall it to ensure that it is securely in place.

Add New Question

Question

Can I fix an invisible zipper this way?

Chloée Ohayon-Crosby
Costume Designer & Wardrobe Specialist
Chloée Ohayon-Crosby is a Costume Designer and Wardrobe Specialist in Los Angeles, California. With over eight years of experience in fashion consulting, Chloée specializes in personal, film, theater, and commercial styling as well as image consulting and costume design. Chloée has worked as an assistant designer for the distinguished fashion house Chloée and as a freelance stylist with Glamour Italia. Chloée studied Fine/Studio Arts at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and Fashion Design and Merchandising at the world renowned ESMOD École Supérieure des Arts in Paris, France.

Invisible zippers are made out of thin plastic and are usually harder to fix. While it's possible, I would recommend just replacing the zipper altogether.
Question

How do you manually close a zipper?

Chloée Ohayon-Crosby
Costume Designer & Wardrobe Specialist
Chloée Ohayon-Crosby is a Costume Designer and Wardrobe Specialist in Los Angeles, California. With over eight years of experience in fashion consulting, Chloée specializes in personal, film, theater, and commercial styling as well as image consulting and costume design. Chloée has worked as an assistant designer for the distinguished fashion house Chloée and as a freelance stylist with Glamour Italia. Chloée studied Fine/Studio Arts at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and Fashion Design and Merchandising at the world renowned ESMOD École Supérieure des Arts in Paris, France.

Start at the bottom of the zipper. One-by-one press the teeth of the zipper together, alternating the right and left sides until the zipper is closed.
Question

Does this work on a bag?

It doesn't matter what the zipper is on, it should work. The only way it might be different is if it's a two-way zipper.

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↑ Chloée Ohayon-Crosby. Costume Designer & Wardrobe Specialist. Expert Interview. 24 July 2020.

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Costume Designer & Wardrobe Specialist

This article was co-authored by Chloée Ohayon-Crosby. Chloée Ohayon-Crosby is a Costume Designer and Wardrobe Specialist in Los Angeles, California. With over eight years of experience in fashion consulting, Chloée specializes in personal, film, theater, and commercial styling as well as image consulting and costume design. Chloée has worked as an assistant designer for the distinguished fashion house Chloée and as a freelance stylist with Glamour Italia. Chloée studied Fine/Studio Arts at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and Fashion Design and Merchandising at the world renowned ESMOD École Supérieure des Arts in Paris, France. This article has been viewed 470,623 times.

Co-authors: 13

Updated: July 16, 2022

Categories: Featured Articles | Zip Fasteners

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"I have a heavy canvas Ike style jacket that I've worn daily for the last four winters. This year, on the second day of cold weather, it unzipped itself several times. I pressed the opening of the slide as shown. Worked perfectly and I have my jacket!"..." more

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