Snapchat is a popular instant messaging platform where its users can send images and videos that have an automatic self-destruct mode. When someone sends you a message, it deletes itself a certain time after you open it. It is a fun way to communicate with your family and friends. But what if Snapchat won’t open for you? It will be a frustrating situation as you might miss some important snaps. If Snapchat won’t open for you, then this guide covers some basic troubleshooting steps you can follow.
First, we will see some reasons why Snapchat won’t Open on your Smartphone. Later, we will see how to fix the issue.
Why My Snapchat Won’t Open?
The Snapchat app on your smartphone works perfectly fine until it won’t. We are not stating the obvious but trying to emphasize the fact that a good application can fail to work due to a number of reasons.
Here are some possible reasons why Snapchat won’t open on your mobile phone.
- Problem with Snapchat Server
- Outdated Snapchat App
- Faulty App Update
- An issue with Internet Connectivity
- Snapchat Data Corruption
- An issue with Snapchat App itself
What to Do if Your Snapchat Won’t Open?
Snapchat’s messages (images or video clips) will delete after the user opens it. So, if Snapchat won’t open while you are in the middle of a conversation, there is a possibility that you might lose some messages.
Here are some simple troubleshooting steps you can follow to fix Snapchat won’t open issue.
Check if Snapchat is Down
Snapchat has a huge number of servers all over the world. The setup is so complex with redundancy in terms of storage, network infrastructure, and power supply.
These servers “serve” millions of users without any hiccup. But if there is a problem with Snapchat’s server, then you will have a tough time opening Snapchat.
Snapchat usually updates its servers every now and then. It also updates on Twitter about any scheduled maintenance or downtime. If this is the case, then all you can do is wait for them to fix the server as soon as possible.
Also, you can make use of the services of the Downdetector website and check for any user-reported errors or problems.
Check Internet Connectivity
Like most apps nowadays, even Snapchat is reliant on the internet. You need a proper and stable internet connection, be it Wi-Fi or Cellular data, to use Snapchat.
So, if Snapchat Won’t Open, then you should definitely check your internet connectivity.
Try to switch between Wi-Fi and Cellular Data. You can further restart your Wi-Fi router. This ensures that your smartphone gets a proper IP Address from the router.
If you are using cellular data on your Smartphone, then try to put the phone in Airplane mode for a couple of minutes.
This will turn off all the “hardware” associated with wireless connectivity such as Wi-Fi, Cellular, Bluetooth, etc.
When you disable the Airplane mode, the smartphone starts connecting to the respective services with a fresh start.
Close and Open Snapchat
If you left Snapchat in memory for too long along with a bunch of other apps, it might take a toll on the apps including Snapchat. As a result, it might not open or work as intended.
The simple solution to this is to remove all apps from memory, close Snapchat, and then reopen it.
Restart your Smartphone
One of the common and possibly the simplest solutions for several smartphone-related problems is to restart the phone. A simple soft reboot is sufficient.
When you restart a smartphone, all the memory will be freed. All apps you open, including Snapchat, will have a fresh start.
Some phone manufacturers such as Samsung even recommend you restart your smartphone once in a while.
Manage Your Storage
Media-centric apps such as Snapchat need a lot of storage on your Smartphone. If Snapchat won’t open or work properly, then your phone might be running out of storage.
Free up storage on your smartphone by deleting unnecessary apps and data. You can move your “gallery” to cloud storage or your personal storage server.
Update Snapchat App
Snapchat updates its app to add new features, fix bugs, and user-reported issues. Sometimes, these updates are simple but they can also impact how the app works.
If you are using an outdated version of Snapchat, then we highly recommend you update it from respective stores, depending on the device you use.
For iPhone users, go to the App store, search for Snapchat and see if there are any updates available. If there are any updates, apply them.
If you are using an Android Phone, go to Google Play Store, search for Snapchat and update it.
App updates, while trying to fix things, can also break things sometimes. Yes, that’s right. There are several situations where a “bad” update or poorly tested update has crippled the app.
This can happen to Snapchat as well. If you notice problems with Snapchat after an update, then uninstall the updates.
Clear Data/Cache of Snapchat
All apps on your smartphone store essential information as well as temporary functional data on the storage. If there is any sort of corruption with this data, then Snapchat won’t open or work.
You can easily clear this data and technically start the Snapchat app from “scratch” without uninstalling it.
On Android phones, you can go to Settings -> Apps and select Snapchat from the list of apps. Here, in the ‘Storage’ section, you get options to clear data and cache.
Note that clearing the cache will only delete the temporary data but your essential app info is still intact.
But if you delete the ‘data’, then it will delete everything including login credentials, media, etc. So, make sure to back up all your media and other important stuff before deleting the data.
If you proceed to delete the data, then you are essentially starting the Snapchat app as if you installed it right now.
Uninstall and Reinstall Snapchat
Another easy way to give Snapchat a fresh life is to uninstall it completely and reinstall it from App Store or Google Play Store.
Uninstalling Snapchat ensures that there is no corrupt data or leftover data from the previous installation.
Contact or write to Snapchat
As a last measure, you can contact Snapchat’s support team and write to them regarding your situation. You can mail them or contact them over Twitter.
If Snapchat gets a lot of similar issues from several users, it will try to focus on the problem and post an update on how to fix it.
Also Check: How To Unblock Your Friend On Snapchat?
Snapchat Won’t Open FAQs
Ans: Snapchat may not be opening due to various reasons, such as an outdated app version, cached data conflicts, software glitches, network connectivity issues, or device-specific problems.
Ans: If Snapchat still won’t open after following all the troubleshooting steps, it’s recommended to contact Snapchat support for further assistance. They have dedicated channels to help users with technical difficulties.
Ans: Yes, if Snapchat won’t open on your current device, you can try using it on a different device to see if the issue persists. Make sure to log in with your account credentials and check if the app functions correctly.
Conclusion
Snapchat has a unique system for messaging with friends or family. You can send ‘snaps’ that get deleted once the other person opens it. Several millions of active users use the services of Snapchat.
What if Snapchat won’t open or work for you? Is the problem with Snapchat or with your device?
In this guide, we saw some basic reasons why Snapchat won’t open on your smartphone.
After that, we also saw some simple troubleshooting steps or solutions to fix the problem.
