Whatsapp is one of the most popular apps any smartphone owners are using today and it’s well-developed with updates being rolled out from time to time to make sure it works well with any operating system it’s programmed to run on. However, there are times when problems may occur and the most common of them all is when the app crashes for some reason. If you are using an Android phone, you may encounter the error message “Unfortunately, Whatsapp has stopped” which basically notifies you that the app has crashed. Others reported about force closes wherein the app closes immediately after being opened. More often than not, this kind of problem is limited to the app so it’s pretty easy to fix.
However, there are cases wherein the errors or force closes are just a result of a more serious firmware issue. To determine what the problem is all about, I will share with you a solution and I know would work for this kind of problem. However, if it continues after doing such method, then we will have to go after the firmware itself. If you’re one of the owners of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and are currently dealing with Whatsapp that keeps crashing, continue reading as this post may be able to help you.
If however, you are looking for a solution to a different problem, drop by our Galaxy S8 troubleshooting guide for we have already addressed the most common issues with this phone. Find problems that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work for you or if you need more help, then feel free to contact us through our Android issues questionnaire.
How to fix Galaxy S8 with Whatsapp that keeps crashing
App-related problems are pretty much easy to fix but you have to determine if the problem is just with the app or the firmware. One thing to know that is to classify the app that has issues and there are only two general classifications of apps in your phone, either it’s a third-party or pre-installed. Third-party apps are ones you download manually from Play Store or those you sideload while pre-installed applications are those that came with the phone. In the case of the Galaxy S8, you can find apps from Google, Samsung and your provider.
If the app that’s crashing is a third-party app, then it’s probably a minor problem but if it’s a pre-installed app, then there’s a possibility that the problem is with the firmware. With all that being said, here’s what I suggest you do about this problem…
First Solution: Restart your Galaxy S8
There’s more to restart than just turning your phone off and back on; it actually refreshes the device’s memory and closes all apps and services running in the background and reload them during the boot process. That is the reason why it’s very effective in addressing issues that occurred without apparent reason or cause. Even app crashes and force closes can be fixed this procedure so it’s worth doing.
Now, hit that Power key and reboot your phone. After the phone has restarted, open Whatsapp to know if it would still crash or if the error would still show up. If it does, then do the forced reboot procedure by pressing and holding the Volume Down button and the Power key simultaneously for 10 seconds. This will reboot your phone like a normal restart but it’s far more effective. If that doesn’t work, try pressing and holding the Volume Down button before pressing the Power key and then hold both keys for 10 seconds or more. Once the phone is active, open Whatsapp and if it still crashes, move on to the next solution.
Second Solution: Clear cache and data of Whatsapp
In other words, you need to reset the app to bring it back to its default settings as well as replace it’s caches and data files that may have been corrupted for some reason. All your files and data won’t be touched if you did this as they’re saved in Whatsapp servers. You can regain access to them when you log back in to your account after you’ve fixed the problem. Here’s how you do this procedure…
- From a Home screen, touch and swipe up or down to display all apps.
- From a Home screen, navigate: Settings > Apps.
- Tap App Manager.
- Locate then tap Whatsapp.
- Tap Storage.
- Tap CLEAR CACHE.
- Tap Cached data.
- Tap CLEAR.
After this, open Whatsapp to know if it would still crashes and if it does, move on to the next solution.
Third Solution: Uninstall and reinstall Whatsapp
One of the reasons why issues with third-party apps are pretty easy to fix is because you can remove them from your phone without suffering any adverse effects on the performance. If the problem is with the app, you can easily eliminate it by uninstalling the app. In this case though, I want you to remove Whatsapp from your phone to also remove all files associated with it. After which, download the app into your phone again and install it. Here’s how you do those things:
- From a Home screen, touch and swipe up or down to display all apps.
- From a Home screen, navigate: Settings > Apps.
- Tap App Manager.
- Locate then tap Whatsapp.
- Tap UNINSTALL.
- Review the notification then tap OK to confirm.
- Reboot your phone to refresh it’s memory and other connections.
Now, to reinstall Whatsapp, follow these steps…
- From a Home screen, touch and swipe up or down to display all apps.
- Tap Play Store.
- Type ‘whatsapp’ in the search box.
- Select Whatsapp then tap Install.
- To continue, review the required app permissions then tap Accept.
This is often the end of the problem that concerns a third-party app. However, if by any chance the app still crashes after you’ve re-installed it, then the next solution will take care of it.
Fourth Solution: Perform the Master Reset
Yeah, that’s right! A reset is necessary if the a newly installed app crashes it’s because the problem could be with the firmware itself. However, make sure you make a backup of your important files and data as they will be deleted during the reset process, then disable the Factory Reset Protection by removing your Google account from your phone so that you won’t be locked out after the reset. Once everything is set, follow these steps to reset your phone:
- Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
- When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
- Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
- Press Power button to select.
- Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
- Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
- When the master reset is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
- Press the Power key to restart the device.
I hope our solutions can help you fix the problem with your phone. If you have something you want to share with us, leave a comment below.
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