Galaxy S8 “Unfortunately, Android Keyboard Has Stopped” error [troubleshooting guide]

We’ve been getting reports that some #GalaxyS8 owners have encountered “Unfortunately, Android Keyboard Has Stopped” bug so we’ve decided to write this short troubleshooting guide. If you’re one of the unlucky ones to have suddenly found yourself facing this error, one of our solutions below should help you fix it.

Solution #1: Perform a soft reset

Fixing an S8 “Unfortunately, Android Keyboard Has Stopped” bug should start with a simple restart. A lot of Android users who tend to their issues usually forget the power of this solution. Restarting a device is a simple and easy way to address minor bugs that usually develop as the operating system or hardware ages. Some minor bugs also develop after a device has run for a long time. To see if it will help in fixing your problem, you should refresh the system by turning it off temporarily. You can do that by pressing the Power button, and then tapping the restart option.

Another way to restart a Samsung device with a non-removable battery pack like your S8 is by doing a soft reset. Basically, it’s still a restart but you have to press two buttons — Power and Volume Down — to do it. This way of restarting a device is best done when it’s not responding, or if it’s frozen. Here’s how to do it:

1. Press and hold the Power and Volume down buttons for 12 seconds.
2. Use the Volume down button to scroll to the Power Down option.
3. Press the Home key to select. Note: Wait for the device to power down completely.

Solution #2: Force quit the Keyboard and messaging app you’re using

“Unfortunately, Android Keyboard Has Stopped” is usually caused by a keyboard app so the next troubleshooting step that you want to do is to see if you can fix it by quitting the keyboard app. If you’re using the default keyboard and messaging app, both of which are provided by Samsung, one of them must have developed a bug. Some bugs are fixed by simply closing an app so this next step might just be the solution.

In order to force quit an app, follow these steps:

1. Open Settings app.
2. Tap Apps.
3. Tap More settings (three-dot icon) at the upper-right.
4. Tap Show system apps.
5. Find the keyboard app or messaging app you’re using.
6. Once you found the keyboard app, open it.
7. Tap FORCE CLOSE button.
8. Check if the problem still exists.

Solution #3: Clear keyboard and messaging app cache and data

If force closing keyboard and messaging apps won’t work at all, the next good thing that you can do is delete their cache and data. Each app keeps its own cache to help it operate efficiently everytime you open it. Sometimes, this cache gets corrupted for some reason. This usually occurs after updating the app, or after you install an update for Android. If you encounter any app-specific issue like the “Unfortunately, Android Keyboard Has Stopped” error, clearing the app cache should be part of your troubleshooting suite.

To clear the cache of both keyboard and messaging apps:

1. Open Settings app.
2. Tap Apps.
3. Tap More settings (three-dot icon) at the upper-right.
4. Tap Show system apps.
5. Find the keyboard app you’re using. This may be Samsung Keyboard or the name of the third party keyboard app you’re using.
6. Once you found the keyboard app, open it.
7. Tap Storage.
8. Tap Clear Cache button.
9. Restart your S8.
10. Check if the problem still exists.

Solution #4: Clear keyboard and messaging app data

Like cache, each app also keeps data that includes app-specific networking configuration, username and password, among other things. In the case of the messaging app, data also includes the SMS and MMS in your inbox as well as logs for your messages (both incoming and outgoing). If you want to keep your messages, you should consider backing them up using Smart Switch.

Once you’ve backed your messages up, you can then go ahead and delete the cache and data of your keyboard and messaging apps. Here’s how:

1. Open Settings app.
2. Tap Apps.
3. Tap More settings (three-dot icon) at the upper-right.
4. Tap Show system apps.
5. Find the keyboard app you’re using. This may be Samsung Keyboard or the name of the third party keyboard app you’re using.
6. Once you found the keyboard app, open it.
7. Tap Storage.
8. Tap Clear Data button.
9. Restart your S8.

Solution #5: Install app and Android updates

While there’s no guarantee that an update, be it for apps or Android, can fix the current issue, it’s always a recommended solution. Updates often come with improvements as well as patches for known issues so it pays to install them whenever they become available. Updates for pre-installed apps like Samsung keyboard and Messages are often bundled with Android updates, or those updates that are pushed by Samsung (some updates are carrier-specific though there’s no way for an average user to tell). Needless to say, updates are important in getting new features and functions as well as in fixing issues. Installing updates is also a good way to minimize bugs.

Solution #6: Refresh your S8 cache partition

In most Android cases, clearing the cache partition should be the first troubleshooting step that you must try but in dealing with  “Unfortunately, Android Keyboard Has Stopped” error, we aren’t sure if it will do any good. Still, you should try it if the issue has persisted this far. Ideally, the problem should already be fixed by now but if that’s not happening, you should at least try to do this.

Wiping the cache partition won’t affect personal data so you can do it without worrying about your photos, videos, etc.

To wipe your S8 cache partition, follow these steps:

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. 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).
4. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight ‘wipe cache partition’.
5. Press Power button to select.
6. Press the Volume down key until ‘yes’ is highlighted and press the Power button.
7. When the wipe cache partition is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
8. Press the Power key to restart the device.

Solution #7: Restart to safe mode and observe

Some third party apps can interfere with the operating system. If you’re not careful with what app you install, chances are you’ll eventually encounter issues from them. To see if one of your installed app is causing the error, you should restart the device to safe mode and observe how your phone works. If your device runs on safe mode, only preinstalled apps will be able to run. So, if the bug is absent only when your S8 is on safe mode, that’s a clear indication that a third party app is problematic.

To restart your S8 to safe mode, kindly follow these steps:

1. Turn the device off.
2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
3. When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
6. Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
7. Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.

Solution #8: Try another keyboard app

While not really an ideal solution, using another keyboard app can be a desperate measure that you can try if you want to determine if the bug is due to the keyboard app itself, or if you just want to be able to enter data while trying to fix the issue. There are many free keyboard apps that you can use from the Play Store but we recommend that you try the ones from reputable developers. You don’t want to infect your S8 with malware by using apps from untrusted source.

Solution #9: Fix #8: Factory reset

Finally, if everything has been done and there’s no solution in sight, you should not hesitate to wipe the phone and restore all its settings to their defaults. Factory reset is usually an effective solution for all sorts of issues  that basic software troubleshooting can fix. Just be sure not to forget to create a backup of your files to avoid losing them.

To factory reset your S8:

1. Turn off the device.
2. Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
3. 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).
4. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
5. Press Power button to select.
6. Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
7. Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
8. When the master reset is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
9. Press the Power key to restart the device.

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