As one of the earliest music apps, Spotify provides users with everything that all of its music streaming app competitors have and more. It is the reason that attracts music lovers in mounting numbers. However, it is not perfect enough that it sometimes may display "The Spotify application is not responding". Don't be upset. Following these 8 solutions built on experience, you can solve the problem successfully and enjoy your music again.
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- Why Is Spotify Not Responding
- 1. Force Quit Spotify in Task Manager
- 2. Delete the Spotify User Data Folder
- 3. Disable the Internet Connections on Your Computer
- 4. Restart Your Device
- 5. Update Outdated Spotify Software
- 6. Allow Spotify Through Windows FireWall
- 7. Uninstall and Reinstall Spotify
- 8. Disable Hardware Acceleration
- 9. A Panacea - Spotify Music Converter
Why Is Spotify Not Responding
When the Spotify application is not responding, it could be due to software bugs, errors, or network-related issues. Before you take advanced measures, it is advised to check the following essential steps in case you complicate simple things.
1. Check for Faulty Network Connections: Ensure your device is connected to the internet and restart Spotify.
2. Verify Subscription Services: If your Spotify subscription has issues, contact Spotify support.
3. Check if Spotify is outdated: Ensure Spotify is updated to the latest version. Sometimes, an outdated app can cause problems.
4. Check for System Updates: Make sure your computer or device has all the latest system updates installed. Then, try launching Spotify again.
5. Check if Spotify is Down: Contact Spotify customer support to see if it is because the Spotify server is down.
If the Spotify application still isn't responding after these steps, you can try the further solutions below. If you want to save yourself a series of tedious steps of checking, you can directly refer to solution 7 to do a clean reinstall of Spotify to fix the "Spotify application is not responding" issue.
Solution 1. Force Quit Spotify in Task Manager
When your Spotify application is not responding, the most effective way to get around is to force quit Spotify and reopen it. Here are the different steps on Windows and Mac. Just pick up the suitable step of your computer.
On Windows PC
Step 1. Open Task Manager with “Ctrl + Shift + Esc”.
Step 2. Find Spotify and then right-click on it. Click on “End task”.
Step 3. Reopen Spotify, it should run without any problem.
On Mac
Step 1. Press “Command + Option + Escape” to launch the “Force Quit Applications”.
Step 2. Select Spotify and then hit Force Quit to end the process of Spotify.
Step 3. Reopen Spotify on your Mac.
Solution 2. Delete the Spotify User Data Folder
This is another effective method to fix the "Spotify Application is not responding" error according to Reddit. Deleting the Spotify User Data Folder will clear the cached Spotify data on your computer and make the Spotify application function again. Here is how to do that:
Step 1. Press Win+R to launch "Run" on your computer.
Step 2. Type "%appdata%" in Run and click OK to navigate to the Roaming folder.
Step 3. Navigate to Spotify > Users.
Step 4. Right-click the folder named with random characters and then reopen Spotify.
Solution 3. Disable the Internet Connections on Your Computer
If your LAN(Local Area Network) works well while Spotify is still not responding. You can try to shut down your network before you start Spotify. In some cases, Spotify not responding issues can be prevented by disabling the internet you are connecting to. When you reopen Spotify, you can connect to the network and check if the error appears.
Solution 4. Restart Your Device
Sometimes, the Spotify application is not responding because of your computer's glitch. You can reboot your computer and see if Spotify is working. Rebooting your computer can not only clear the memory but also stop any tasks that are eating up RAM.
Solution 5. Update Outdated Spotify Software
To maintain smooth operation, the Spotify official has to release the latest version to fix some bugs. So a new update can also lead to Spotify not responding. If your computer doesn't update Spotify automatically, check whether Spotify needs an update.
Step 1. Launch Spotify and log in to your account.
Step 2. You can see an arrow next to your username. It may have a blue dot, and you can just click it.
Step 3. From the list of options that have emerged, select “Update available” where it will be updated.
Solution 6. Allow Spotify Through Windows FireWall
Sometimes, the firewall on your computer may shut down the Spotify running and lead to Spotify not responding. If you fail to get Spotify functioning, you can go to your Firewall and then check out Spotify is listed on the Whitelist. If Spotify is listed on Blacklist, please make sure to allow Spotify to run on your computer under the FireWall.
Solution 7. Uninstall and Reinstall Spotify
If you have ended the process of Spotify and checked the firewall but still have the problem of Spotify not responding, there must be some errors in Spotify, like lacking software startup files. Then performing a full reinstallation of Spotify will be great for fixing "The Spotify application is not working" problem. Let's see how to make it.
On Windows
Following is an example of Windows 10. Please note that the methods of Windows 8, Windows 7, or others are the same as Windows 10.
Step 1. Make sure you have quit Spotify before you are going to process the full uninstallation. If you don't know how to do it, see solution 1.
Step 2. Go to the “Control Panel” of your computer. Here, you have the authority to adjust the settings of your computer, like User Accounts, Hardware and Sound, and also Programs.
Step 3. Now click “Uninstall a program”. Then you will move onto the page of Uninstall or change a program, scroll down to find Spotify, and click “Uninstall Spotify”
Step 4. When the whole installation is over, please delete the data from the folder of Spotify. Here is the file folder location below. Just enter the whole location path on your computer and then delete the file folder.
File Folder Location Path: C:\Users\YOURUSERNAME\AppData\Roaming\Spotify
Step 5. Reinstall Spotify on your PC.
On Mac
Step 1. Make sure that you have already quit your Spotify app from running on your MacBook. If you don't know how to completely quit, go to take a look at solution 1.
Step 2. Open Finder > Applications. Scroll down to find out Spotify and click “Move to Trash”. If you have downloaded Spotify from the App Store, just delete it on your Launchpad.
Step 3. When you have successfully deleted the Spotify, bear in mind to delete the related file folder as below.
Press the Hotkey “Command + Shift + G” to turn on Go to Folder and then enter “~/Library/” to open the Library Folder.
On the Library Folder, you can enter Spotify on the Search Bar and then click on “Library” and then you can move all the related files of Spotify to Trash. Also, you can search “~/Library/Preferences/” or others to delete the related files folder of Spotify.
Step 4. Empty your Trash to make sure you have cleaned up all the file folders of Spotify.
Step 5. Reinstall Spotify on your Mac.
Solution 8. Disable Hardware Acceleration
Hardware acceleration is a setting that allows a program to use the computer's hardware to perform functions and processes more efficiently. But if your computer runs slowly and Spotify is not responding, you can consider turning it off.
Step 1. Open Spotify, select your username, and click “Settings”.
Step 2. Scroll down to the bottom and find “Compatibility”. And then you can turn off the button “Enable hardware acceleration”.
Solution 9. A Panacea - Spotify Music Converter
What if the above-mentioned methods failed to do you a favor? You could try this silver bullet – TuneFab Spotify Music Converter.
TuneFab Spotify Music Converter is a desktop application that is highly recommended by users for its music conversion function. It can be your backup when the desktop or app version of Spotify is not responding. For one thing, TuneFab Spotify Music Converter has a built-in Spotify web player; for another, it can download and convert songs, tracks, playlists, and podcasts into MP3 format, or other compatible formats like M4A, WAV, and FLAC. What's more, even if you are not a Spotify Premium user, you can try this to convert and download songs from Spotify.
Things You'll Like
- You can enjoy and save songs with original high quality.
- You can download music and podcasts even without Spotify Premium.
- You can save ID3 tags after music conversion to manage your music library better.
- You can experience 5X default faster conversion speed and support batch conversion.
- You can keep all Spotify content locally forever no matter if Spotify is responding.
Now, follow the steps below to enjoy music with TuneFab when the Spotify application is not responding.
Step 1. Download and launch TuneFab Spotify Music Converter.
Step 2. Log in to your Spotify account.
Step 3. Select your loved songs or playlists, and drag them to the green add button.
Step 4. Change settings before converting. You can change music formats in the top-hand corner, and you can set up music folders at the bottom of the converting page.
Step 5. Click “Convert All” to convert selected music, and you can check converted songs on the “Finished” page.
The Bottom Line
Now, with the 9 solutions listed above, you can manually fix your Spotify not responding on Mac and Windows. But considering the differences in devices, regions, and Spotify versions, the writer still suggests you take simple methods first. Meanwhile, TuneFab Spotify Music Converter is a good try literally when you aren't able to fix the Spotify application is not responding. Hope you can immerse yourself in music soon!
