YouTube has become an essential part of daily life for many users. The diversity and sheer volume of content means that YouTube will have content for you no matter what your field of interest may be. It is also evident by the fact that YouTube sees a traffic of 122 million daily active users.
Whether educational or recreational, YouTube can provide fresh and engaging content. But what should I do if my computer won’t play YouTube videos? Don’t worry. Just follow our instructions and you can resolve YouTube won’t play on the PC issue.
Now let us get right into the scenarios under which this problem displays and methods to resolve the issue.
Fix YouTube Won’t Play on PC |
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Scenario 1: YouTube Won’t Play on PC’s Default Browser but Plays in Other Browsers |
Scenario 1: YouTube Won’t Play on PC’s Default Browser but Plays in Other Browsers
In case your video is not playing in your default browser but plays in other browsers, it is clear that the problem is with the browser and not YouTube or your system itself.
If this is the case follow these fixes, to resolve your problem.
Fix 1: Update the Browser
Steps to Update Chrome
- Click on the Customise and Control button i.e. ⋮ symbol at the top right corner of Chrome.
- Select the option Settings.
- Navigate to the section About Chrome.
Chrome will automatically search for updates. If there are any updates present they will be updated automatically click on update.
Relaunch the browser.
Fix 2: Clear Browser Cache
Steps to Clear Cache in Chrome
- Select the Customise and Control button i.e. ⋮ symbol at the top right corner of Chrome.
- Click on Settings.
- Navigate to Privacy and security.
- Select Clear browsing data and clear the history, cache, and cookies.
- Relaunch the browser.
If this does not work reset the settings of your browser to default. You can do this by going to the settings and then to the Reset settings section. Other chrome issues like HTML5 video not found error, can also be fixed by doing so.
Fix 3: Update your Operating System and Device Driver
In some cases, outdated operating systems or device drivers can cause compatibility issues so make sure they are up to date.
Update Operating System
- Press Windows + I to open Windows settings and click on Update & Security.
- Select the option Check for Updates. If there are any updates it will start installing.
Update Graphics driver
Follow the steps below to update your graphics driver
- Press Windows + X. Select the option Device Manager.
- Click on the roll-down button next to Display Adapters.
- Right-click on your Graphics driver and select the option Update Driver.
- Select Search automatically for updates and finish the process.
Restart your device and check if the issue has been resolved.
Scenario 2: YouTube Won’t Play on any Browser
In case the YouTube videos are not playing on any of the browsers, then the issue is not with the browser settings but with the connectivity or with the device itself.
In such cases try these methods.
Fix 1: Check your Internet Connection
Check your internet speed. Slow internet can also hinder your videos from playing. Go to the website https://fiber.google.com/speedtest/ and then click on go to check your internet speed.
In case you have a slow internet speed take these actions.
- Lower the video quality of the video to test if the video is playing.
- Try reconnecting to your Wifi.
- Contact your Internet service provider if the problem is not resolved.
Fix 2: Check if YouTube is Down
Sometimes, everything may be fine but YouTube itself may be down.
So in case, your internet speed is fine. Check the speed for YouTube. You can do this by following the steps.
- Press Windows + R. Type cmd and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open Command Prompt as Administrator.
- Type the command ping youtube.com
- In case, the Request Timed Out message is displayed it means that the system is unable to connect to YouTube.
- Ping other sites to test your internet connection. In case a time-out message is displayed only for YouTube, then this indicates that YouTube is facing technical difficulties and is down.
Note: You can also visit sites like DownDetector to check whether a site is down.
In case, YouTube is down you cannot connect to it for the time being. Wait for YouTube to be up again and try connecting again.
Fix 3: Diagnose for DNS Resolution issues
Sometimes, YouTube may not connect due to DNS resolution issues. You can test this by following:
- Open command prompt as administrator.
- Enter the command nslookup youtube.com
- In case you receive a message like ”*** UnKnown can’t find youtube.com: No response from server” indicates that there is a problem with DNS resolution. In such a situation:
- Flush the DNS cache by entering the command ipconfig /flushdns
- If the issue is not resolved contact your Internet Service Provider.
Note: In case, you have corrupt or unplayable videos you want to repair, check out CAT Video Repair software for safe and effective repair.
But, what should I do none of the methods worked.
Restore the device to Factory settings
If you still have YouTube won’t play on PC issue, you can restore your computer to factory settings as a last resort to resolve any system issues preventing you from playing YouTube videos on your computer.
Beware: Resetting your computer to factory settings will remove data present on the device. It is recommended to create a backup copy before proceeding with this process.
In case, you still lose your data, use CAT Data Recovery software for quick, safe, and effective data recovery.
To reset your computer follow the steps below.
- Press Windows + I to open Windows Settings.
- Click on Updates & security.
- Navigate to the Recovery tab.
- Under Reset this PC click on Get started.
- Follow the on-screen instructions and your PC will be reset.
Conclusion
In this article, we have covered all the aspects of the problem of YouTube videos not playing on the computer, and have provided various solutions that you can apply depending on your scenario.
In case, you are still facing some difficulty and require assistance feel free to contact us.
