Apps won’t update on Android? Top 7 solutions

What’s worse than getting a major system update, expecting all kinds of improvements (both aesthetic and practical) just to see that it completely broke the most regular thing on Android — app updating and download from the Play Store. But, based on many reports, it seems that apps won’t update on Android for some reason.

We made sure to check out possible causes and tackle the issue head-on. The solutions for the problem are below so make sure to give them a try.

Table of contents:

1. Clear cache and data from the Play Store app
2. Check the connection
3. Sign out and sign in with your Google Account
4. Disable and re-enable Google Play Store 
5. Clear data on Google Play Services and other services
6. Install Google Play Services APK
7. Reset the device to factory settings

Why are my apps not updating on Android?

This is a major problem but the fact that it doesn’t occur frequently points towards the update as the main cause. Upgrading to a newer OS version often brings problems.

Eventually, you might want to reset your device to factory settings. But, before that try the steps below.

Solution 1 – Clear cache and data from the Play Store app

This seems to be a major issue that affects many users that recently got the update from Android 11 to Android 12. The first step is to reboot your device. Open the Google Play Store and try updating or downloading apps again.

In case the issue persists, make sure to clear the locally-stored data from the Google Play Store. The Play Store has cached data like any other Android app and the data might be corrupt. Especially when the kernel and other variables change after an update.

Follow these steps to clear cache and data from the Google Play Store on Android:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Apps.
3. Then open All apps or App Manager.
4. Locate the Google Play Store and open it.
5. Open Storage.
6. Clear the cache first and then all data.

Solution 2 – Check the connection

This goes without saying and, in most cases, users can confirm that the network is hardly a problem. However, you can check some in-app settings concerning the Play Store. In addition, make sure that the Play Store has all the necessary permissions.

Follow these steps to check the connection and inspect the Google Play settings and permissions:

• Try downloading or updating apps with Mobile Data.
• Disable VPN or proxy.
• Open Settings > Apps > All apps > Google Play Store and select Permissions. Give all necessary permissions.
• Open the Google Play Store > Profile > Settings > Network preferences and set “App download preference” and “Auto-update apps” to Wi-Fi only.
• Check out our articles about Wi-Fi and data issues on Android for more solutions.

If apps still won’t update on Android, make sure to continue the troubleshooting by moving to the next step.

Solution 3 – Sign out and sign in with your Google Account

The next thing you should try is to sign out of your Google Account and sign in again. If there’s a bug even remotely related to your account, this procedure should address it completely. Once you sign out, reboot your device and sign in with your account again.

Follow these instructions to sign in and sign out of your Google Account on Android:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Accounts.
3. Choose Google.
4. Remove your Google Account and restart your device.
5. Get back to Settings > Accounts and sign in with your Google Account.

Solution 4 – Uninstall Google Play Store updates

If the previous step hasn’t solved the problem and apps still won’t update on Android, we recommend uninstalling updates from the Google Play Store. Since the Play Store is an essential part of the system, it can’t be completely uninstalled.

What you can do is uninstall the updates and wait for it to update itself again. That way, it should start working as intended so you’ll be able to install updates for pending apps and download new apps without any issues.

Follow these steps to uninstall Google Play Store updates:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Apps and then Apps Manager or Manage apps.
3. Locate and open the Google Play Store.
4. Tap Uninstall updates.
5. Reboot your device and try again.

Solution 5 – Clear data on Google Play Services and other services

Besides addressing the Google Play Store, there are multiple associated services that need your attention and are possibly related to the issue at hand. The list includes Google Play Services, Google Services Framework, and Location Services.

What you need to do is navigate to each of these 3 in Settings > Apps and clear cache and data. They are usually hidden by default so you need to enable System services in order for them to appear on the All apps list.

Follow these instructions to clear data from Google Play Services, Google Services Framework, and Location Services on Android 12:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Apps and then Apps Manager or Manage apps.
3. Tap on the 3-dot menu and ensure that System apps are shown as well.
4. Locate and open Google Play Services, Google Services Framework, and Location Services respectively.
5. Choose Storage.
6. Clear Data and confirm when prompted.

Solution 6 – Install Google Play Services APK

The aforementioned services can’t be reinstalled. However, you can uninstall updates from Google Play Services and, either wait for the service to update on its own or sideload an APK. This is something I personally did when migrating from Android 11 to Android 12 and it helped me address the problem.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Uninstall updates from the Google Play Services.
2. Navigate to APK Mirror or any other websites that offer apps for sideloading.
3. Now, you can either go for the latest version of Google Play services or you can download an older one. We suggest downloading an older version, not older than 2 months.
4. Download the APK and run it. Once asked for permission to install apps from untrusted sources, make sure to grant it.
5. Install Google Play services and look for improvements.

If the apps won’t update on Android even after all the previous steps, we can only recommend resetting your device to factory settings.

Solution 7 – Reset the device to factory settings

Finally, the only thing remaining is to reset your device to factory settings. If apps are still not updating or you can’t download new ones to your Android 12-powered device, this is what remains to do. We know that the procedure is definitely cumbersome, but the safest way for everything to work when switching from old to new Android versions is to reset the device.

That way, all preinstalled services and system apps should work without any problems. Of course, there are some distinctive bugs certain OEMs brought with Android 12 but, in that case, there’s nothing you can do except report the issue and wait for the patch.

So, back up your data and follow these steps to reset your device to factory settings:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose System.
3. Open Backup & reset.
4. Choose Erase all data (factory reset).
5. Tap Erase all data and confirm the selection when prompted.

That’s a wrap. Thank you for reading and if you want to discuss this article further, but also find more content like this, make sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in February 2020. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.