How to Unclog a Toilet
Unclog a toilet with a flange plunger, a hot water and dish soap soak, or a toilet auger. Stop an overflow first, test the drain with a bucket of water before you flush, and know when the clog is past the toilet.
You will end up with a toilet that drains and flushes normally again, or with a clear sign that the clog is past the toilet and needs a plumber. The methods run from a flange plunger to a soak with hot water and dish soap to a toilet auger. Kohler's toilet troubleshooting guide names the same two tools, a plunger and an auger, for clearing a blockage from the trap.
If the water in the bowl is still rising, start at step 1. If the bowl is full but steady, go straight to step 2. Step 7 covers the clogs that none of these methods clear.
Flange plunger (the kind with an extra rubber lip inside the cup) Rubber gloves and eye protection Old towels or newspaper for the floor around the toilet Bucket Disposable cup or small container for bailing water out of the bowl Liquid dish soap Pot or kettle for heating water Toilet auger, also called a closet auger (for clogs the plunger cannot clear) Baking soda and white vinegar (optional, for soft paper clogs only)
Stop the water before it overflows
Do not flush again. A second flush sends a full tank of water into a bowl that cannot drain, and that is how a clog becomes a flood. If the water in the bowl is rising, lift the tank lid off the back of the toilet and push the rubber flapper down over the drain hole at the bottom of the tank. This stops more water from entering the bowl. Then reach behind the toilet and turn the oval-shaped shutoff valve clockwise until it stops. Ace Hardware's instructions for clearing a clogged toilet give the same two moves for stopping an overflow. If you cannot find the shutoff valve or it will not budge, lift the float ball or float cup inside the tank upward and hold it. This keeps the tank from refilling and sending more water into the bowl. Keep holding it until the water level in the bowl stops rising. Spread old towels or newspaper around the base of the toilet before you start on the clog. Move on when the bowl level is steady.
Heads up: Leave the shutoff valve closed while you work. Turn it back on, counterclockwise, only after the toilet drains, so the tank can refill for the test flush.
Seat a flange plunger over the drain
Put on rubber gloves and eye protection. The safety instructions in Harbor Freight's toilet auger manual warn that drains can hold bacteria and other substances that may be infectious, and plunging splashes. Use a flange plunger, not a flat cup plunger. A flange plunger has an extra rubber lip that folds out from inside the cup, and that lip fits into the toilet's drain opening. A flat cup plunger is made for the flat drain of a sink or tub, and its rim cannot seal into the curved, recessed opening at the bottom of a toilet bowl. Run the plunger under hot tap water until the rubber feels soft and flexible, so it presses into a tighter seal. Check the water level in the bowl before the plunger goes in. Ace Hardware's instructions for clearing a clogged toilet say the bowl needs enough water to cover the edges of the plunger. If the level is low, pour in tap water from your bucket a little at a time, and stop once the water is deep enough to cover the cup. Insert the plunger at an angle so the cup fills with water, not air. Water carries the push to the clog, while trapped air compresses and absorbs it. Fit the flange snugly into the drain hole so no gaps remain around the edges.
Good to know: If you only have a flat cup plunger, try it, pressing the rim down over the drain opening as squarely as you can. If it will not hold a seal, get a flange plunger before you move on to the auger in step 6.
Plunge with steady, controlled strokes
Start gently with the first few strokes, to push the air out of the cup and get water moving through the drain. Once the plunger is sealed tight, increase the force. Push down firmly, then pull back sharply. The push and the pull alternate pressure and suction on the clog, which works it loose from both directions. Keep the cup under water the whole time. If it breaks the surface, you lose the seal and have to start over. After each set of strokes, lift the plunger out and watch the bowl. If the water level drops, the clog is moving. Test it before you flush. Kohler's troubleshooting guide checks for a blockage by pouring water slowly into the bowl and watching whether it drains away or rises, so pour in a bucket of water from the tap. If it drains, turn the shutoff valve back on, let the tank refill, and flush once to confirm. If the level rises instead, plunge another set. If several sets do not move the water level at all, go on to step 4 rather than plunging harder.
Try hot water and dish soap for stubborn clogs
If plunging alone is not working, bail as much standing water out of the bowl as you can with a disposable cup or small container. Then squirt a generous amount of liquid dish soap into the bowl, about half a cup. Heat a pot or kettle of water on the stove until it is hot but below 140°F, and never use boiling water. Porcelain is a ceramic, and a sudden jump in temperature can stress it enough to crack. That 140°F limit is the maximum operating temperature Charlotte Pipe gives for both PVC and ABS pipe, the white and black plastic drain pipes, and whatever you pour into the bowl goes on into your drain line. Pour the hot water into the bowl steadily. The soap acts as a lubricant between the clog and the porcelain drain passage, while the hot water softens toilet paper and waste. Let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes. The soak works on clogs made of toilet paper and waste, which soften as they sit. It does nothing to a toy, a wipe, or anything else that does not break down. After waiting, run the bucket test from step 3, then flush. If the water drains slowly, repeat the soak one more time before you move on.
Heads up: If you know a toy, a wipe, or another solid object went down, skip the soaks in steps 4 and 5 and go straight to the toilet auger in step 6.
Try baking soda and vinegar only on a soft paper clog
Do not use this method if you have poured a bleach-based toilet cleaner into the bowl. Washington State's health department lists vinegar among the acid products that react with bleach, and its page on bleach mixing dangers warns that those reactions give off toxic gas. Bail as much water out of the bowl as you can. Pour 1 cup of baking soda into the bowl and let it settle to the bottom. Then slowly pour 2 cups of white vinegar over the baking soda. The mixture fizzes because vinegar is an acid and baking soda is a base, and mixing them neutralizes both into sodium acetate, water, and carbon dioxide gas. Poison Control adds that drains are not airtight, so the gas escapes instead of building up enough pressure to push a clog through. Once the fizzing stops, there is nothing in the bowl but salty water. The useful part is the soak, so leave it for 20 to 30 minutes. After waiting, pour a pot of hot water into the bowl, below the 140°F limit from step 4. Run the bucket test from step 3, then flush. If the water still does not drain, go on to step 6.
Good to know: Baking soda and vinegar will not shift a wipe, a toy, or a heavy wad of paper deep in the trapway. If the soak and the hot water do not drain the bowl, do not repeat it. Use the auger in step 6.
Use a toilet auger for deep or solid clogs
A toilet auger, also called a closet auger, is a crank handle on a guide tube with a flexible cable inside. The bend at the bottom of the tube has a protective cover. Ace Hardware's instructions for clearing a clogged toilet explain that the covered bend is what rests against the bowl and keeps the cable from scratching the porcelain. A regular drain snake has no cover, so do not use one on a toilet. Pull the handle up until only the short, coiled tip of the cable sticks out of the bend. Set the covered bend in the drain opening, tilted toward the back of the bowl as the Harbor Freight toilet auger manual shows. Turn the handle clockwise while you push the cable down into the drain. The cable has to work through the bends of the toilet's trapway, so if it stalls, turn the handle back and forth or pull the cable back a little and push again. Keep cranking until the cable tightens against the clog. Do not force it past that point. Ace warns that over-cranking can bend the cable back on itself and get it stuck in the drain, and the Harbor Freight manual says to release the tension as soon as it starts to build. Then bring the cable back up the way your auger's instructions say, because makers differ on whether you crank forward or in reverse as you pull. Ace says cranking until the cable is tight usually grabs the object causing the clog, so it comes up as you retract the cable. Run the bucket test from step 3, then flush. If the water still drains slowly, run the auger through once more. Rinse the cable with clean water and let it dry before you put it away, as the Harbor Freight manual says, and disinfect the bowl and the auger. If a toy or another hard object went down and the auger cannot bring it up, stop cranking and go to step 7. Ace's fix for that case is to take the toilet off the floor and run the auger through from the bottom.
Know when to call a plumber
If you have tried plunging, the hot water and dish soap soak, baking soda and vinegar, and a toilet auger without success, the clog is likely beyond the toilet itself. It may be in the main drain line or even in the sewer lateral that connects your house to the municipal system. Other signs you need professional help: multiple fixtures backing up at the same time (toilet and shower, or toilet and sink), gurgling sounds from other drains when you flush, water coming up through the floor drain in the basement, or sewage smell throughout the house. These symptoms point to a mainline blockage, which requires professional equipment like a motorized sewer snake or a hydro-jetting machine. Also call a plumber if you suspect a hard object fell into the toilet and you cannot retrieve it with an auger. Forcing a foreign object deeper into the drain can create a much more expensive problem farther down the line.
Prevent future clogs
Flush nothing but toilet paper and waste. That rules out wipes, even ones labeled flushable. In Consumer Reports' 2025 tests, none of 11 flushable brands blocked the test toilet, but the trouble shows up farther along. The National Association of Clean Water Agencies estimates wipes add $441 million a year to the operating costs of U.S. clean water utilities, and CR's advice is not to flush them. Keep a small trash can with a lid next to every toilet. Cotton balls, dental floss, feminine hygiene products, paper towels, and hair all belong in the trash, not the toilet. Dental floss in particular wraps around other debris and creates stubborn clogs over time. If your toilet clogs frequently, the issue might be the toilet itself. The EPA says low-flow toilets from the 1990s were sometimes associated with performance problems such as needing a double flush. Toilets with EPA WaterSense certification use 1.28 gallons per flush or less and have to pass independent flush performance testing. If an old toilet clogs again and again and an auger finds nothing in the trapway, price out a replacement. If you are already dealing with slow drains elsewhere in the house, our guide on how to unclog a drain covers kitchen sinks, bathroom sinks, and shower drains. And if your toilet runs constantly after you clear the clog, that is a different fix entirely. Our guide on how to fix a running toilet walks through the flapper, fill valve, and float adjustments that stop the problem.
If the toilet drains but slowly after you clear it, the clog is not fully gone. Run the auger from step 6 once more. If the toilet clogs again within days, go through step 8's list of what should never be flushed, and run the auger to check for something lodged in the trapway that keeps catching paper. If water backs up into a tub, shower, or floor drain when you flush, stop using the plumbing and call a plumber, because step 7 explains that the clog is in the main line. Once the bucket test drains, turn the shutoff valve back on and let the tank refill before you flush, as the step 1 callout says. If it keeps running after that, the running-toilet guide linked in step 8 covers the flapper and fill valve.
Questions we get asked about this
Answers from experience, not a textbook.
No. Poison Control lists what these products contain, including sulfuric and hydrochloric acids and sodium and potassium hydroxide, and warns that injury can happen when a drain cleaner splashes back, especially when too much is poured into a completely blocked drain. A clogged toilet full of standing water is that situation exactly, and if the cleaner does not work, you are left plunging or augering through a bowl of caustic water. A plunger, the hot water and dish soap soak, or a toilet auger avoids all of that. If a drain cleaner is already in the bowl and the toilet has not drained, do not plunge, because plunging splashes. Do not add a second product either. Washington State's health department says bleach reacts with drain cleaners and other acids. Call a plumber and tell them what you poured in. If any gets on your skin or in your eyes, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.
Common causes of frequent clogs include using too much toilet paper per flush, flushing items that do not break down (wipes, cotton products, feminine hygiene products), an older low-flow toilet with a weak flush mechanism, and a partial obstruction deeper in the drain line that catches debris over time. Use less toilet paper per flush first. If clogs continue, run a toilet auger to check for a partial blockage in the trapway. If other drains back up too, the clog is in the main line, and step 7 covers when to call a plumber.
Use the hot water and dish soap soak in step 4, which needs only a pot, dish soap, and a cup for bailing. The baking soda and vinegar soak in step 5 is a second option for a soft paper clog. If neither drains the bowl, do not keep repeating them. Get a flange plunger or a toilet auger, because a clog that a soak has not softened needs force or a cable to move it.
It can, if the clog is toilet paper and waste, which soften in water. That is the same reason the soak in step 4 works. Wipes, toys, and anything else that does not break down will stay where they are. If you decide to wait, leave the shutoff valve closed, then run the bucket test from step 3 before you flush, so a clog that has not cleared does not overflow the bowl.
A plunger pushes water against a clog near the top of the drain, and it is the first tool to reach for with a clog of toilet paper or waste. A toilet auger (closet auger) feeds a flexible cable down through the bends of the trapway to break up or hook a clog that a plunger cannot reach, such as a toy or a wipe. Start with the plunger, and move to the auger when plunging does not move the water level.
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