How to Fix Phone Apps That Keep Crashing
An app opens and immediately closes. Or it works for a few seconds, then freezes and kicks you back to the home screen. One crashing app is usually that app's problem. Multiple apps crashing, or the same app crashing after every fix you try, points to something deeper — a storage issue, a software conflict, or in some cases a hardware problem. Working through the fixes in order, from simplest to most involved, resolves most app crashes without losing data.
Force close and reopen the app
The most basic fix works more often than you would expect. Force closing an app clears it from memory completely and gives it a fresh start:
- iPhone: Swipe up from the bottom of the screen and pause in the middle (or double-press the Home button on older iPhones) to open the app switcher. Find the crashing app's preview card and swipe it up off the screen. Then reopen the app from the home screen
- Android: Open the recent apps view (swipe up and hold, or tap the square button). Find the crashing app and swipe it away. Alternatively, go to Settings, Apps, find the app, and tap Force stop
If the app was stuck in a bad state — a corrupted temporary process, a failed network request it kept retrying, or a rendering error — force closing and reopening clears it. If the crash happens again immediately after reopening, the problem is not a temporary glitch.
Restart the phone
A full restart clears all running processes, flushes temporary caches, and reinitializes system services that apps depend on. Hold the power button (or power plus volume button on newer phones) and select Restart. If apps were crashing because of a memory leak, a stuck background process, or a system service that was misbehaving, a restart fixes it.
If you have not restarted your phone in weeks, a restart alone may fix multiple issues at once. Phones that run continuously for long periods accumulate background processes and memory fragmentation that degrade performance and stability.
Update the app
App crashes are frequently caused by bugs that the developer has already fixed in a newer version:
- iPhone: Open the App Store, tap your profile icon in the top right, and scroll down to see available updates. If the crashing app has an update, tap Update. You can also tap Update All to update everything
- Android: Open the Google Play Store, tap your profile icon, then Manage apps and device, then Updates available. Update the crashing app or tap Update all
If the app started crashing right after an update, the new version may have introduced a bug. In this case, waiting for the developer to release a fix is sometimes the only option — but clearing the app's cache (next step) can help in the meantime.
Clear the app cache
Apps store temporary data (cached images, login tokens, temporary files) that can become corrupted and cause crashes. Clearing the cache removes this temporary data without deleting your account, settings, or saved information:
- Android: Go to Settings, Apps, select the crashing app, tap Storage, then Clear Cache. This is safe — it does not delete your data, just temporary files. The app may load slightly slower the first time you open it afterward as it rebuilds its cache
- iPhone: iOS does not have a direct clear cache option for most apps. The equivalent is offloading the app: go to Settings, General, iPhone Storage, find the app, and tap Offload App. This removes the app binary but keeps its data. Tap Reinstall App to put it back. The fresh install replaces any corrupted cached files
Clear app data (Android only, last resort)
If clearing the cache does not help, clearing the app's data resets it to a fresh install state. In Settings, Apps, select the app, tap Storage, then Clear Data. This deletes everything — your login, preferences, saved files within the app, and all local data. You will need to sign in again and reconfigure the app. Only do this if clearing cache did not work and you are prepared to set the app up again.
Check storage space
Apps need free storage space to operate. They write temporary files, download updates, cache content, and store data. When the phone's storage is nearly full, apps cannot create the temporary files they need and crash:
- iPhone: Settings, General, iPhone Storage. If the bar at the top is nearly full (less than 2 to 3 GB free), storage is likely contributing to crashes. Delete unused apps, old photos and videos, or large message attachments to free space
- Android: Settings, Storage. Same guidance — less than 2 GB free is a problem. Clear old downloads, unused apps, and cached data. Android also offers a Free up space tool that identifies large and unused items
A phone with less than 10 percent of its storage free will have performance problems beyond just app crashes — the operating system itself needs space for swap files, update staging, and system caches.
Update the operating system
An outdated operating system can cause app crashes, especially when apps have been updated to require newer OS features:
- iPhone: Settings, General, Software Update. Install any available update. Major iOS updates occasionally fix widespread crash bugs that affect many apps at once
- Android: Settings, System, Software Update (or System Update — the path varies by manufacturer). Install available updates including security patches
There is also the reverse scenario: a new OS update can break apps that have not been updated for compatibility. If apps started crashing right after an OS update, check for app updates — developers usually release compatibility fixes within days of a major OS release.
Reinstall the app
If updating and clearing the cache did not help, a complete uninstall and reinstall replaces all of the app's files with fresh copies:
- Delete the app (long-press the icon and select Delete or Uninstall)
- Restart the phone
- Reinstall the app from the App Store or Play Store
- Sign back in and check if the crash is resolved
This fixes crashes caused by corrupted app files, incomplete updates, or conflicts between old cached data and new app code. The downside is that any data stored locally within the app (not synced to a cloud account) will be lost. For apps like messaging, social media, and email, your data is on the server and reappears when you sign in. For games and some utility apps, local progress may be lost unless the app has its own backup feature.
Check for broader problems
If multiple apps are crashing, the problem is likely not with any individual app:
- Android System WebView. On Android, many apps use a shared component called Android System WebView to display web content. If WebView is corrupted or has a buggy update, it can crash dozens of apps at once. Go to the Play Store, search for Android System WebView, and update it. If it was recently updated and that is when crashes started, tap Uninstall updates to revert to the previous version
- Google Play Services (Android). Similar to WebView, Google Play Services is a background component that many apps depend on. Update it from the Play Store if an update is available
- Background app restrictions. Some phones aggressively kill background apps to save battery, which can cause apps to crash when they try to resume. Check Settings, Battery (or Battery optimization) and make sure frequently-used apps are not set to restricted or optimized if they keep crashing when you switch back to them
- Factory reset. If many apps crash and nothing else has worked, a factory reset reinstalls the operating system fresh. Back up everything first — a factory reset deletes all data on the phone. On iPhone: Settings, General, Transfer or Reset iPhone, Erase All Content and Settings. On Android: Settings, System, Reset options, Erase all data (factory reset). This is the nuclear option and should only be used after everything else has failed
When it is a hardware problem
App crashes are almost always software problems, but hardware issues can cause them too:
- Failing storage. If the phone's internal storage chip is degrading, data corruption causes random app crashes, boot loops, and files disappearing. This is more common in older phones (4+ years) and cannot be fixed with software — the storage chip needs to be replaced
- Overheating. A phone that runs hot causes the processor to throttle, and apps that cannot handle the reduced processing speed may crash. If apps only crash when the phone is hot (during charging, in direct sunlight, or during heavy use), heat is the trigger. A new battery or thermal paste reapplication can help if the phone is overheating under normal conditions
- RAM failure. Rare but possible — failing RAM causes random crashes across all apps with no pattern. A factory reset does not fix RAM failure
App crash diagnosis at Marion Phone Repair
Marion Phone Repair diagnoses persistent app crashes and determines whether the cause is software (fixable with updates, resets, or reinstalls) or hardware (storage degradation, overheating, RAM failure). We fix software issues on the spot and advise on hardware repairs if the internals are the problem.