12 Fixes to YouTube Not Playing Videos

It can be annoying to meet errors when you watch videos on YouTube. If that unfortunately happens, you do not have to be worry because this guide will give you some proven solutions to fix your YouTube not playing video issue.

Why Is Youtube Video Not Playing

Specifically, YouTube might fail to play a video due to problems with your browser, computer, internet, or device. Everything involved in playing videos is probably responsible for the issue that YouTube won't play videos. Based on the causes, we collected some solutions to solve this problem. You can try them one by one to see if any one of these solutions is workable.

Common Fixes to YouTube Video Not Playing on Your Computer

Perhaps you've known that YouTube might go wrong due to a variety of reasons. In response to these causes, we collected some helpful solutions. You can try these solutions one by one until your problem is solved, which might be time-consuming but useful. If you don't want to waste time, you can directly download that video on your computer for watching offline.

Whichever way you choose to use, check the following instruction to see more details.

#1. Play or download YouTube video with a Video Downloader

The most straightforward way to fix the "YouTube video not playing" issue is to use another YouTube player instead. Thus, you can be thoroughly free from worries about YouTube errors. There are many YouTube video downloaders, but very few of them also work as a player. And this video downloader - EaseUS Video Downloader, is one of the few options that support both downloading and playing YouTube videos. In addition to YouTube, other popular sites like Facebook, Instagram, Dailymotion, and more are also supported.

To play or download YouTube videos:

Step 1. Copy the URL of the YouTube video you want to download.

Step 2. Preset the format and quality preferences on its Home page.

Step 3. Click "Paste Link" and it starts analyze the link and start to download the video.

Step 4. Once the download is complete, check the downloaded video below its "Finished" tab.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this guide is for personal fair use. EaseUS is in no way collaborated or affiliated with YouTube and will never approve any copyright infringement action. The use of the downloaded information is solely at your own risk.

Note: If this video is unavailable in your country, EaseUS Video Downloader will fail to play or download it. 

#2. Refresh the YouTube page

Another trial to fix this issue is to refresh your YouTube page, one of the most commonly used bug fixes. If this doesn't work, you can try other solutions. 

#3. Open the video via a private browsing session

When browsing in a private mode, anything you search for and the websites you visit won't appear in your browsing history. Also, your browsing won't be influenced by any extension or plugin. And different browsers have different ways to refer to private browsing.

• Chrome calls it Incognito mode
• Microsoft Edge calls InPrivate mode
• Firefox and Opera call Private Browsing

#4. Check your internet connection

You can also check the internet connection on your computer to see if it is disconnected or goes wrong. If it is an internet connection problem, you can reset the connection settings by opening Control Panel > Internet Options > Advanced > Restore advanced settings and Reset > Apply.

#5. Clear cache and cookies on your browser (Google Chrome & Firefox)

Too many caches or cookies may also cause YouTube errors, so you can try to clear the cache and cookies on your browser and see if your problem is solved. The steps are vary depending on your browser type. 

• On Google Chrome: Open Chrome > Click "More" > Choose "More tools" > Select "Clear browsing data..." Make sure the checkbox next to the "Cookies and other site and plugin data" and "Cached images and files" is clicked. Then, click "Clear browsing data" to start the process.
• On Firefox: Open Firefox > Click the Three-line menu at the top right corner > Click "History" > Click "Clear Recent History" > Specify the "Time range to clear" > Check the box next to "Cookies" and "Cache" > Click "Clear Now."
• On IE: Open IE > Click the Tool icon > Select the "Safty" option > Choose "Delete browsing history..." > Choose the type of data you wish to delete > Click "Delete."

#6. Uninstall and reinstall the Adobe Flash Player

By uninstalling and reinstalling the Adobe Flash Player, you can fix many problems related to media playing. But there is a prerequisite, that is, you have already installed Adobe Flash Player. If not, you can't play YouTube videos. 

#7. Use a VPN 

If the video is unavailable in your country, the effective workaround for this problem is to use a VPN. Some good options include NordVPN, Surfshark, ExpressVPN, PurVPN, etc.

Fixes to YouTube Not Playing on Android and iPhone

Some common causes of YouTube videos that won't play include issues with your internet, YouTube app, or device. To solve these problems, you can:

#1. Check your internet connection to see if it goes wrong. 
#2. Clean the YouTube cache. 
#3. Open the video via a web browser.
#4. Refresh your device.
#5. Uninstall and reinstall the YouTube app on your device.

Bottom Line

These are all solutions to fix YouTube not playing on your computer or mobile phone. We can't promise every solution is helpful, but you can try them one by one until your problem is solved. This might be time-consuming, but it's still worth a try. While if you don't want to try all of them, you can directly use EaseUS Video Downloader to play or directly download YouTube videos for offline watching.