When everything works fine on an Android device, it is a good sign for the user experience. When you encounter an error that says – “Unfortunately, <App name> has stopped“, the user gets frustrated! Maybe the user was in the middle of doing something important and now that the application forcefully stopped, everything is literally gone! The user has to re-launch the app and start over again! So, in this article, we have compiled a list of methods that you can try to fix Unfortunately, <App> has Stopped error.
Method #1: Clear the Cache & Try Again
A cache is a storage location where data which is accessed repeatedly is stored. The cache is the fastest available storage option available to the developer or the OS.
So, if you clear the cached data for an app, there is a possibility that the issue should be fixed.
Steps to clear the cache and fix “Unfortunately, <app name> has stopped”
Step #1: Open the Settings app on your Android device.
Step #2: Scroll down and look for “Apps” as shown in the image above.
Step #3: Scroll down to find the desired app and click on it.
Step #4: Click on “Storage option“.
Step #5: Now, you will find two options as – “CLEAR DATA” and “CLEAR CACHE“. Simply, click on “CLEAR CACHE“. The first option (Clear Data) serves a different purpose that we will cover in the next method.
After you have successfully cleared the cached storage data, re-launch the app and try doing the same thing which caused the error. You may have possibly fixed the “Unfortunately, <App name> has stopped” error. If it still persists, follow the next method.
Method #2: Reset the Application
If clearing the cache did not work, then, this time, you need to reset the app in order to fix the error.
Note: Clearing the data would delete all your app’s data, information, and reset the settings of the app. So, if you do not have a backup of the app’s data or if it does not reside in the cloud, perform a backup of the required data.
Steps to clear App data and fix “Unfortunately, <app name> has stopped” error
Step #1: Open the Settings app on your Android device.
Step #2: Scroll down and look for “Apps” as shown in the image above.
Step #3: Scroll down to find the desired app and click on it.
Step #4: Click on “Storage option“.
Step #5: Now, you will find two options as – “CLEAR DATA” and “CLEAR CACHE“. Simply, click on “CLEAR DATA“.
Finally, re-launch the application. If the app required user’s authentication, then it will ask you to re-enter your credentials in order to sign in again.
Method #3: Reinstall or Update the application
If none of the above methods mentioned worked for you, you can try uninstalling and install the app again to see whether the error “Unfortunately, <app name> has stopped” still shows or not. Reinstalling may not be much different than clearing the app’s data, but it seems to work most of the time.
On the off chance, if there is an update available for the app at the Google Play Store, consider updating it.
Method #4: Install an older version of the App
Sometimes updating an app fixes the issue but on the contrary, sometimes it makes it worse. So, in order to get rid of the “Unfortunately, <app name> has stopped” error message, you can also try installing an older version of the app by downloading the APK package.
Note: It is not advisable to download APK packages from 3rd Party stores or sites. So, make sure you are downloading the APK file from a trusted site like APKMirror.com which verifies the legitimacy of every package before publishing it.
Method #5: Perform a Factory Reset
It is time to drop the bomb in order to get rid of the annoying error message. The only option you have got at the end is to perform a factory reset. However, we would not recommend doing this unless you are encountering this issue on multiple apps or if you are sure that you can restore your data easily after doing the Factory Reset. WARNING, THIS WILL DELETE ALL DATA ON THE PHONE.
Steps to perform a factory reset to fix “Unfortunately, <app name> has stopped” error
Step #1: Open the Settings menu on your Android device.
Step #2: Scroll down to find the “Backup & Reset” option.
Step #3: Click on “Factory Reset“. Now, you will be able to observe some on-screen instructions. You just need to read then and think before proceeding doing the Factory Reset.
Conclusion
Finally, we now know about various methods that can be used in order to fix Unfortunately, <App-name> has stopped error. You should never try performing a factory reset unless you encounter the error on multiple applications or if its something too important. Also, this error could simply be a bug in the app, in which case, reporting the bug to the developer, and waiting for an update may be the better option.
Do you know about some other interesting methods to fix this issue? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Filed in . Read more about Android Apps and Apps.