An App Keeps Crashing on Your Phone — Here's How to Fix It

FreeTechSupport Team Updated May 14, 2026 3 min read

App crashes fall into a few categories: a temporary glitch, a bug in the current app version, a corrupted cache, or a compatibility problem with your phone's software. Each has a different fix.

Force Close and Reopen the App

The first thing to try is force-closing the app and reopening it. On iPhone, swipe up from the bottom of the screen (or double-press the Home button on older models) to see the app switcher, then swipe the crashing app's card upward to close it. On Android, tap the square Overview button and swipe the card away. Then reopen the app normally.

Restart Your Phone

If the force-close doesn't help, a full phone restart clears system memory and resets background services the app depends on. Power off completely, wait 10 seconds, and power back on.

Update the App

Developers release updates to fix bugs, and running an outdated version is a common crash cause.

iPhone: Open the App Store → your profile icon (top right) → scroll down to see pending updates.
Android: Open the Play Store → profile icon → Manage apps & device → Updates available.

Clear the App's Cache (Android)

On Android, apps store temporary data that can become corrupted. Go to Settings → Apps → [App name] → Storage → Clear Cache. This does not delete your account or settings within the app — it only clears temporary files.

On iPhone, there's no direct cache-clear button. Offloading the app is the equivalent: Settings → General → iPhone Storage → [App name] → Offload App, then reinstall it from the App Store.

Check Your Available Storage

Apps often crash when storage is full because they can't write temporary files. Make sure you have at least 1–2 GB free. See our guide on freeing up iPhone storage for tips.

Uninstall and Reinstall the App

A clean reinstall replaces any corrupted app files.

Note down any login credentials you'll need.
Uninstall the app (press and hold its icon, choose Remove/Uninstall).
Restart the phone.
Reinstall from the App Store or Play Store and log back in.

Check if the App's Servers Are Down

Some apps (particularly social media and banking apps) crash when their own servers are having problems — not because of anything on your phone. Search for the app name plus "down" or check a site like Downdetector to see whether other users are reporting the same issue right now.

If only one specific app crashes on your phone and not on other devices, and reinstalling doesn't help, contact the app's developer through the App Store or Play Store listing. Ask us if you're unsure how.

Frequently asked questions

Start with a phone restart, then check for an update for the app. If it still crashes on open, go straight to uninstall and reinstall. If that doesn't help, check whether the app has a known issue by searching for '[app name] crashing [your phone model]' online — often other users will have reported the same problem and a developer fix is already on the way.

Yes, possibly. Banking apps often refuse to run on phones where developer options are enabled, where the device has been rooted or jailbroken, or where a screen-recording or accessibility app is running. On Android, try disabling Developer options (Settings → Developer options → toggle off) and force-close any accessibility services you don't actively use. Also make sure your phone's operating system is fully up to date, as banking apps frequently require recent OS versions for security compliance.

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