Fix: Instagram keeps crashing on Android

Although TikTok took over in recent times, Instagram is still the go-to social network for many users around the world. And, while the app constantly gets new features that bring more and more users, issues are not unusual. Some users report that Instagram keeps crashing on their Android devices and we made sure to shed some light on this occurrence. Of course, we also brought some troubleshooting steps that should help you fix the problem for good. Or, at least, until some other widespread outage doesn’t break Facebook and Instagram again.

Table of contents:

1. Restart your phone and check the status
2. Check Instagram permissions
3. Clear cache and data from the Instagram app
4. Reinstall Instagram
5. Leave the Beta program
6. Rollback to an older version of Instagram

What to do when Instagram keeps stopping on Android

1. Restart your phone and check the status

Let’s start with a simple restart. App crashes are usually easily solved after a restart. Unless there’s an underlying problem with the service. Which might be the case here. Also, make sure to navigate to Play Store and uninstall updates from Android WebView and install them again. The fiasco with WebView led to apps crashing around the world.

In addition, make sure to check the Instagram status on DownDetector or Instagram’s Twitter account. There’s a good chance that the issue is widespread and that many other users are affected. When this happens, the only thing you can do is wait until Instagram fixes the problem at hand.

2. Check Instagram permissions

The next thing to check is Instagram permissions and ensure that Instagram has access to Camera and Local Storage, above all else. Because of a strange bug, if you decline access to Camera and Storage the first time you are asked, Instagram won’t ask again. Instead, it will crash when you try to record and post a Story or Post.

For that reason, we recommend navigating to Settings > Apps and granting access to Instagram. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Apps.
3. Locate Instagram and open it from the list of all apps.
4. Tap Permissions.
5. Grant all required permissions to Instagram and check for improvements.

If Instagram keeps crashing, make sure to try the next step.

3. Clear cache and data from the Instagram app

You can also try clearing local data to reset the app. Instagram for Android (like all other social network apps) tends to pile up a lot of local data. Now, this data is there so the app can work faster while keeping some important configuration files. However, once it gets to a certain threshold, it can do quite the opposite. The app might start working slower and, sometimes, even crash.

Here’s how to clear local data from Instagram for Android:

1. Again, open Settings > Apps and choose Instagram.
2. Tap Storage.
3. Clear Data and restart your device.
4. Open Instagram, sign in again, and look for improvements.

In case Instagram keeps crashing even after you cleared the local data, we suggest reinstalling the app.

4. Reinstall Instagram

Moving on. Reinstalling an Android app immediately get’s you the latest app version. If the previous steps failed, you might as well go for the reinstallation and check if the problem is solved. You can uninstall Instagram from Home Screen, just tap & hold on to the Instagram shortcut and select Uninstall from the contextual menu. Alternatively, just open the Play Store and uninstall Instagram from there.

Once you’ve removed the app, restart your device and install Instagram again. Sign in and, after that, you shouldn’t have any issues with the app.

5. Leave the Beta program

The Beta program for Instagram on Android is almost always full as people are keen to get the latest features as soon as possible. And, truth be told, those Beta releases are usually quite stable. However, the main purpose of the Beta program is to test new features, and, sometimes, these break the app.

The latest example that comes to mind is the new Reshare option that allows you to share posts from other people from the Create mode. I’m a bit perplexed by the idea, but it should be good enough when they iron out the bug that keeps crashing Stories when trying to add Text to Reshare.

So, based on that example (and there are a few more), we can recommend leaving the Beta program and sticking to the public release of the app. Here’s how to leave Instagram Beta on Play Store:

1. Open Play Store.
2. Search for Instagram and expand the app.
3. Scroll down and, under the Beta program section, tap Leave.
4. Restart your device and update the app. You might as well reinstall it, just to be sure.

6. Rollback to an older version of Instagram

Finally, if none of the previous steps worked for you, the only remaining troubleshooting step that comes to mind concerns rolling back the app to an older iteration via an APK.

Chances are that the current version (the latest one is the only one available in the Store) is broken and going back to an older version should address the problem.

You can also report Instagram keeps crashing to Instagram Support. Send them a report and maybe they’ll look into it and fix it.

And, on that note, we can conclude this article. Thank you for reading and feel free to share your thoughts, questions, and suggestions in the comments section below. We look forward to hearing from you.