Keurig is one of the most popular coffee machines in the world right now. With 20 million US citizens owning a Keurig inside their house, we can see why Keurig is such a big deal. Like all coffee machines, proper maintenance and cleaning are all part of extending the life of your coffee machine.
Sometimes, your coffee machine will start to only make half-cups of coffee or start to leak coffee; now, if this is happening, it could be because of a clogged needle. A Keurig needle can be clogged up with dirt and more, so we have to be sure we are maintaining this needle and keeping it clean so; if you don’t know how to do that, you have come to the right place, as through this article I’ll be telling you how to clean the needle on a Keurig!

What’s the needle?
To understand the problem, we have to understand the needle. The brewer’s top needle is the part that will pierce the foil on top of a coffee pod; this will allow for hot water to flow through into their coffee grounds, which allows your machine to make coffee.
Sometimes, the needles can become clogged with coffee grounds and dirt. This equals little to no water flow getting through the machine, with an inability to pierce through the top of the coffee pod.
Keurig Needle Maintenance – Cleaning Keurig Needles
Luckily, Keurig 2.0 needle cleaning is quite easy and does not take long at all; let us show you how to do it.
Keurig Needle Cleaning
- To start, you are going to have to turn off and fully unplug your Keurig; this will protect you from shocks.
- Remove the pod holder out of the machine. To do this, lift the handle on your Keurig, then grab the top of the pod holder and, using your other hand, push the pod holder up from underneath.
- Remove the funnel from the pod holder.
- Now that you have removed the funnel from the pod holder, use a toothpick or paperclip to clean the exit needle. Flip the pod holder upside down and insert it into the tube. Move the toothpick/paperclip around for 30 seconds to get out any dirt and loosen any clogs.
- Now to fully clean out the exit needle, rinse the pod holder and funnel under running tap water.
- Now you have cleaned the exit needle, time to clean the entrance needle. This can be found under the brewer’s head. If you lift up the Keurig brewer, you will find the entrance needle.
- Remove any dirt/clog from the entrance needle using a paper clip.
- Put your pod holder back together.
Now, even I have trouble with worded descriptions of how to clean something and would rather see it visually. So here is also an in-depth video on how to clean a Keurig needle.
How do you clean the needle on a Keurig 2.0 without the tool?
To clean the Keurig needle on a Keurig 2.0 without the tool, it is very similar to cleaning a normal Keurig. Repeat the same steps as above.
How often should you change your Keurig filter?
The Keurig water filter is also one of the most important parts of changing a Keurig filter. The filter of a Keurig is only designed to last for a certain amount of brews, so it depends on how much you use your Keurig. On average, Keurig thinks you should change your water filter every two months. We have an in-depth guide on how to change the Keurig water filter right here!
Why is my Keurig spitting out coffee grounds?
This can be caused by coffee grounds or just grime clogging the exit needle. This is quite common, so no need to worry. To fix this problem, normally, just a good clean of the exit needle will fix the problem.
Things to be aware of
When changing a Keurig needle, be aware that the needles are very, very sharp and are capable of piercing through skin, as the needle’s job is to pierce through pods. So, when cleaning the Keurig needles, just be sure you are careful because they can hurt. Also, when cleaning the Keurig needles, again, be sure the machine is actually unplugged from all power sources because we don’t want anyone getting electrocuted.
Conclusion
There you have it, an in-depth guide on how to clean your Keurig needle. We hope this article was able to help you clean out your Keurig machine, and thank you for reading. If you are looking for more Keurig maintenance guides, we have guides on how to turn off auto off on Keurig, or even a guide on how to fix when your Keurig says prime.