Scratches on your CD can cause a lot of hassle – your beloved CD might lose its best songs, or you might be dealing with an important document or program at risk of being lost. You can find plenty of suggestions online to solve the issue, but we've discovered the three most effective methods and have gathered them here. You can simply polish the CD with a little toothpaste, and if that doesn't work, try using abrasive compound or applying wax to the CD's surface.
How to Fix Scratched CD
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Ngày cập nhật gần nhất: 15/4/2026
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Steps
Using Toothpaste
Choose regular toothpaste. You don’t need the super-whitening, swirl, or specialty flavors. Opt for basic white paste toothpaste for polishing the CD. Any toothpaste that contains abrasive minerals will work!
- Regular toothpaste is cheaper than the flashy advertised products. This is especially useful if you have many CDs to polish.
Apply toothpaste to the CD surface. Squeeze a small amount of toothpaste onto the scratched area and use your finger to spread it evenly across the CD surface.
Polish the CD. Polish in a motion starting from the center of the CD and moving straight outward, gradually working your way around the disc. Start from the middle and rub in a straight line toward the outer edge of the disc.
Wash and dry the CD. Place the CD under warm running water and rinse it off, then use a soft, clean cloth to dry it. Make sure to thoroughly check that the CD is no longer damp and that no toothpaste residue remains.
- After washing and drying the CD, use a soft cloth to polish the surface of the disc.
Polish using abrasive compound
Choose the abrasive compound you will use. Some common household products can be used to polish CDs, but 3M and Brasso compounds are likely the most reliable. You can also use fine polishing compounds designed for cars or hard surfaces.
- If you use Brasso, be sure to work in a well-ventilated area and avoid inhaling the fumes. Be sure to read the safety instructions and warnings on chemical products, as many types (such as cleaning alcohol) are flammable and/or may irritate skin, eyes, or respiratory systems.
Apply polishing compound to the cloth. Place a small amount of 3M or Brasso compound onto a clean, soft, and smooth cloth. An old t-shirt or microfiber lens cloth would work perfectly.
Polish the CD. Use gentle, outward strokes starting from the center of the disc to apply the compound to the scratched areas. Begin at the center and rub in straight lines outward, mimicking the spokes of a wheel. Repeat this motion 10-12 times around the CD, focusing only on the scratches you notice.
- While polishing, ensure the disc is on a flat and stable surface, not rough. The data stored on the aluminum layer or the dye layer of the CD (the label side) and its protective coating can be easily scratched. You may damage or break the disc if you press it too hard against a soft surface.
- A circular motion (as opposed to the outward strokes from the center) may cause minor scratches on the CD, misaligning the laser beams of the disc reader.
Rinse off the polishing compound from the CD. Wash the CD thoroughly with warm water and dry it. Make sure all the solution is rinsed off and allow the disc to dry completely before using it. If using Brasso, simply wipe off the excess solution and wait for the remaining liquid to dry, then wipe again with a clean cloth.
Test the disc. If the issue persists, polish the disc for another 15 minutes or until the scratch is almost gone. The area surrounding the scratch will start to shine with tiny, fine marks. If you don’t see improvement after several minutes of polishing, the scratch may be too deep, or you might have been polishing the wrong spot.
- If the CD still doesn’t work, take it to a specialist at a game store or a CD repair shop.
Apply wax
Determine if the waxing method is suitable. Sometimes, you may need to remove the plastic layer from the CD by polishing. However, over-removing plastic can impact the refractive properties of the lenses, making it impossible to read the data. The waxing method can be helpful because even if the disc has visible imperfections, the laser beams can still read through or bypass them.
Apply wax to the scratches. Apply a thin layer of Vaseline, lip balm, car polish wax, colorless shoe polish, or furniture wax onto the scratched areas of the CD. Leave the wax on the scratches for a few minutes—remember that the goal is to fill in the scratches with wax so the disc can be read again.
Wipe off excess wax. Use a clean, soft, lint-free cloth to wipe from the center of the disc outward toward the edges. If using wax, follow the manufacturer's instructions (some products require you to wait for the wax to dry before wiping, while others need to be wiped while still wet).
Test the disc again. If the Vaseline or wax works, you should burn a new disc immediately. Waxing is only a temporary solution to make the CD work long enough to transfer data to a computer or another disc.
Tape method
Before you proceed, it's important to understand that the scratches or punctures on the aluminum surface of the disc are beyond repair, even with professional help. The best approach is to jump past these damaged areas so that you can at least retrieve and back up any remaining data elsewhere.
Hold the disc in a well-lit area with the shiny side facing up.
Check if there are any visible marks on the shiny surface of the disc.
Flip the disc over and use a marker to highlight the areas with noticeable scratches.
Take two pieces of adhesive tape and stack them on top of each other at the marked spots.
- Note: The CD may produce some noise when playing, but at least you should be able to recover around 70% of the data on it.
Advice
- To avoid damaging your CD, always hold it by the edge.
- Severely damaged CDs may be beyond repair. Deep scratches and cracks that reach the aluminum layer will render the disc useless. In fact, the Disc Eraser tool uses the method of damaging the aluminum layer to make CDs and DVDs unreadable!
- It's better to practice fixing scratched CDs that aren’t particularly important before working on your favorite ones.
- Try using a dry "Mr. Clean Magic Eraser" to remove scratches. Apply light pressure and scrub from the center of the disc outward, similar to the polishing method described earlier. You can then polish the repaired area to make it shine using other methods such as buffing or waxing.
- It’s a good idea to back up your data before damage occurs.
- If the CD is beyond repair, you can repurpose it as a coaster! Look for articles on how to reuse old CDs to explore creative ideas.
- Usually, you can bring Xbox discs directly to Microsoft to exchange for a new one for about 20 USD.
- Instead of using toothpaste, try peanut butter. Its sticky consistency makes it an effective polishing compound. Be sure to use a smooth variety!
- If using toothpaste, ensure it’s free of particles or minerals—stick to plain white toothpaste.
- You can use an iPad or iPhone cleaning cloth instead of a glasses cleaning cloth.
Warning
- To prevent CD damage, make sure the disc is completely dry and free of excess polishing product before attempting to play it.
- Do not apply solvents to the surface of the CD, as this will alter the chemical composition of the polycarbonate layer, causing the disc surface to become cloudy and unreadable!
- Be aware that any repair method can potentially cause further damage. Be sure to follow the steps carefully.
- If you hold the CD up to bright light to check for damage to the aluminum layer, don’t stare at the light too long. A 60-100 W bulb is sufficient to spot small indentations on the aluminum surface. Avoid exposing the disc to direct sunlight!
Things You Need
- A clean, soft, and lint-free cloth (microfiber is the best choice)
- Water (or rubbing alcohol)
- A metal polish product like Brasso, a fine polishing compound, or toothpaste
- Car polish liquid or Vaseline
- Cotton gloves or food-grade plastic gloves (to help hold the CD and avoid fingerprints)
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