My Youtube is not working - 13 Fixes [2023] 💥
YouTube is the most popular online video platform worldwide, with more that 2.7 billion users each month. If your YouTube is not working you just have a rahter big problem nowadays. What do you do? Here are some tips for your Android and/or iOS device.
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1. Is your internet working?
The network you are connected to could be a source of YouTube problems. You might be able to lower the quality of your video at times. However, in some cases you may need to unplug your router before plugging it back in. This will give the network device a chance to reboot.
2. Is Youtube down?
YouTube can occasionally go down, even though it's rare. This is the first thing that you need to look at. While there's no way to tell if YouTube's servers don't work, we suggest a few options. Go to the official YouTube Twitter page to get all the details. Any outage reported there is likely to be reported. Click here and Down Detector will tell you if Youtbe is down. This website allows users to report YouTube issues. The site is spot on and includes a live map so you can see if any outages are occurring in your area.
3. Close then reopen the app or browser
Sometimes, you can fix any bugs or issues by closing the YouTube app and reopening it. If you are on a computer or a laptop you can close either the browser or tab to reopen YouTube. First try closing and reopening the tab only, then the same with the complete browser.
4. Restart your PC/Laptop
A simple restart may be necessary if the system is causing disruptions in your video experience. An outdated OS version on a computer could be the cause.
5. Restart Mobile Phone
This is for Android/Tablet and iPhone/iPad: Everyone knows how to restart his mobile phone so I guess it is not necessary to explain that here :)
6. Upgrade Mobile Phone
Android/Tablet
- Open the Settings app on your device.
- Tap Security.
-
For the latest information, check out:
- Tap Google Security Checkup to check if there is a security update available.
- Tap Google Play system Update to check if there is a Google Play System update available.
- Follow the steps.
iOS on iPhone/iPad
- Software updates can be checked and installed at any time.
- Go to Settings >> General >> Software Update.
- This screen displays the current version of iOS and any updates.
- Go to Settings >> General >> Software Update >> To disable automatic updates, click on Settings >> Automated updates.
7. Restart Youtube app
On Android
- Open Settings. Tap Apps.
- Click on the app that you wish to start.
- Tap Force Stop. This will open a confirmation popup window.
- To confirm, tap Force Stop. This will close the app. The "Force Stop" button will then be grayed out to indicate that the app is stopped.
- Click the Home
- Select the app that you have just closed from the app drawer.
On iPhone/iPad
Sometimes apps on your iPhone and iPad can freeze or behave strangely. You can use the App Switcher feature in iOS to shut down the app and start it again. How to activate the App Switcher
- iPhone X and later or iPad with iOS 12 or earlier: Start by swiping up from the bottom edge, pause at the middle, then lift your finger.
- For iPhones and iPads equipped with a Home button, quickly double-tap the Home key.
Follow the steps below.
- You will see the screen below after you have launched the App Switcher. The screen will display large thumbnails of all the apps you have recently opened. You can swipe left or right for more information.
- Scroll through the thumbnails until the app that you are looking for is highlighted and centered on the screen.
- Click on the thumbnail of the app until it disappears.
- To start an app again, locate its icon on your home screen and tap it.
8. Upgrade Youtube app
Mobile users may also experience problems due to an outdated app version or accumulated app data. See below how to upgrade the YT-app.
On Android
- Open the Google Play Store App.
- Tap your profile picture.
- Tap My Apps and Games
- Apps that have an update are marked "Update"
- Tap Update All to update all apps To update individual apps, locate the app you wish to update and click Update.
You may have to restart your device in order to update an application.
On iPhone
- Go to the App store.
- Select your profile picture.
- Scroll down to view pending updates
- You'll be able to see the YouTube Studio or YouTube YouTube app updates if they are not current in the Updates section. Tap "Update" next to the YouTube logo.
9. Clear Youtube cache
Clear YouTube's cache, data and other information is the next step in this list. While the former deletes temporary data while the latter erases all app data including settings, both are effective in clearing out cache and data. This is because data and settings can sometimes get corrupted or bugs can mess up. Clearing all data resets your browser or app and allows you to start fresh.
Clear your YT-cache on Android
- Open the "Settings" App
- Go in Apps.
- Click on the Youtube App in the "See all Apps" section.
- Tap on Storage and cache.
- Clear Cache.
- Clear storage is also available for a clean start.
Clear your YT-cache on iPhone (older then iOS-11)
- Tap Settings > General > Storage & iCloud Usage.
- Tap Manage Storage in Section (Storage) at the top.
- Search and Tap YouTube>>Tap to Delete App
- To reinstall the app, go to the App store. This will result in a clean installation without any data or documents.
Clear your YT-cache on iPhone (iOS-11 and newer)
- Tap "Settings" >> "General" >> "iPhone Storage".
- Tap "YouTube" >> Tap "offload app" or "delete app" according to your needs.
- To reinstall the app, go to the App Store
Clear your cache in Firefox for Windows
- To open the Settings page, click the three-line menu button at the top-right of Firefox desktop browser. Click "Privacy and Security" to open the Settings page.
- Scroll down to "Cookies and Site Data". This section will show you how much disk space stored cookies, site information, and cache are currently using. In our case, it is more than 1 gigabyte.
- To continue, click "Clear Data".
- Click the Clear Data button to open. Check the box to delete "Cached Web Content." However, this will sign you out of websites.
- To delete an item, click Clear.
- You can also clear Firefox's cache by clicking the three-line button and choosing History. Then, click "Clear Recent History"
- Clear Recent History opens. Uncheck all boxes except Cache in the History section. Optionally, you can also choose to clear "Browsing data and site history".
- Click OK to select Everything from the drop-down menu "Time range to clear" and then click on it.
Clear your cache in Chrome for Windows
- Open Chrome on your Windows computer.
- Click the three-dot button at the top-right.
- Go into Settings.
- Choose Security and Privacy in the left column.
- Pick Clear browsing data.
- To select the items you wish to delete, check the boxes. If there are serious problems, I love to delete everything.
- Select All time within the Time range.
- Hit Clear data.
10. Your Youtube is blocked
YouTube and other services may sometimes be restricted by network restrictions. This can happen when you use the internet at schools, libraries, and other places where administrators don’t want you to watch random videos. Parents who restrict their children's YouTube activities could also be responsible.
Ask the network administrator if YouTube restrictions are in place. Asking the administrator to allow YouTube access is the only way to solve this problem. You can also try using data or another network. YouTube is blocked in some areas of the world. China is a prime example of this. It is possible that YouTube has been blocked in your country. You might also find that YouTube is blocked by your government during exams. Such blockages can be circumvented with a VPN service.
11. Hardware acceleration off
Below I am giving instructions for the only two browser that one should use, as the rest of them are kind of crappy.
Turn off hardware acceleration Firefox on Windows
- Open Firefox.
- You can find the hamburger menu at the top-right corner.
- Firefox menu with settings
- Click on "Settings".
- You can go to General.
- Firefox hardware acceleration settings
- Scroll down to go to "Performance"
- Check the box next To "Use recommended performance Settings".
- You can disable hardware acceleration by unchecking the box for it.
Turn off hardware acceleration Chrome on Windows
- Start Chrome on your computer.
- Click the three-dot button at the top-right.
- Choose Settings
- Go into System.
- When hardware acceleration is available, toggle off the Use hardware acceleration
12. Sync time and date
Windows allows you to sync date and time:
- Open the "Settings" application.
- Enter "Time and Language".
- Choose "Date and Time" in the left-side column.
- Set time automatically by toggling it.
- "Set time zone automatically" by toggling it.
Android allows you to sync date and time:
- Open the "Settings" app.
- Click on the "System".
- Go into "Date and time".
- You can toggle on the "Set time option auto".
- Click on the toggle to "set time zone auto".
- Activate "Use location to set time Zone"
13. Update GPU drivers
This fix is only for people using a PC or Laptop. YouTube may not work if you are running YouTube on a computer that isn't compatible with the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). Check your drivers to see if it helps. This solution is only for computer users.
- Type Device Manager into the Windows search bar and then click the Open button.
- Expand the section titled Display adapters.
- Right-click your GPU
- Select Update driver.
- Click on "Search automatically for drivers"
- Allow the computer to do its job and follow the instructions.