Gmail app keeps crashing on Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus with “Unfortunately, Gmail has stopped” error

Your Samsung Galaxy  S9 Plus has two native email clients. One is the app called Email, which comes with every Android device but manufacturers are allowed to modify it while the other is Gmail which only serves as the client for your Gmail (Google) account and Google actually has a mandate to include it and many of its apps in any Android smartphones. Both apps are embedded in the firmware and come as pre-installed so you cannot uninstall or remove them without root access.

We have readers who reported to be experiencing the error message “Unfortunately, Gmail has stopped” which basically means that the app crashed for some reason. There are several reasons why a problem like this occurs; it could be just an issue with the app or it could be a problem with the firmware. The reason also varies from case to case so as a user, you must do something about it if you really want to use the app. In this post, I will walk you through in troubleshooting your Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus with “Gmail has stopped” error. So, continue reading as we may be able to help you through this post.

Before going further, if you found this post because you were trying to find a solution to your problem, then try to visit our Galaxy S9 Plus troubleshooting page as we’ve already addressed most of the commonly reported issues with the phone. We’ve already provided solutions to some of the problems reported by our readers so try to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work for you and if you need further assistance, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit.

How to fix Galaxy S9 Plus with “Gmail has stopped” error

The error may seem like a sign of a very serious problem considering the fact that you may not be able to read your emails when it shows up but the fact is it’s not that serious of an issue. This is not the first time I’ve encountered a problem like this so I’ll tell you that you can fix this on your own without any help from somebody. With that said, here’s what I suggest you do about it:

First solution: Reboot your Galaxy S9 Plus

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Before anything else, it’s best that you try to restart your device because if this is just due to a minor glitch in the system or app, then a reboot would be enough to fix it. Sometimes minor issues occur but we’re often tempted to think that the problem is actually serious so we tend to do some complicated procedures in a bid to fix the issue when a reboot could be the only thing you need to do.

So, hit the power key and then try to open Gmail after the reboot to find out if the issue still occurs. If it does, try doing the Forced Reboot procedure by pressing and holding both the volume down and power keys at the same time for 10 seconds or more. This will reboot the phone but it’s memory will be refreshed with all its services and core functions reloaded. If the problem still continues are this, then move on to the next procedure.

Second solution: Clear cache and data of Gmail

This will reset the app back to its default settings and configuration but along with its cache and data, your messages that have been downloaded to your phone will also be deleted. But don’t worry, your emails remain on Google’s server so you can access them anytime by logging into your Google account using the webmail or you can download them again once the problem is fixed. So, here’s how you do this:

  1. From a Home screen, touch and swipe up or down to display all apps.
  2. From a Home screen, navigate: Settings > Apps.
  3. Tap App Manager.
  4. Locate then tap Gmail.
  5. Tap Storage.
  6. Tap CLEAR CACHE.
  7. Tap Cached data.
  8. Tap CLEAR.

However, if the error still shows up after this or if the app is still crashing, then the issue could be due to some third-party apps. The next solution will address such possibility.

Third solution: Reboot your phone in Safe mode

Doing this will tell you immediately if the error is triggered by a third-party app or not  because in this mode, all downloaded apps and services will be temporarily disabled. If one of them is causing the problem, then Gmail will work properly if opened in this environment. This is the reason why it’s important that you do not skip this procedure:

This is how you run your S9 Plus in safe mode:

  1. Turn the device off.
  2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen appearing on the 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. When Safe mode appears in the bottom left corner of the screen, release the Volume down key.

Assuming the problem doesn’t occur in this mode, find the app that’s causing the problem and uninstall it. Of course, that would be a lot easier said than done so you must try uninstalling apps you installed when this problem started happening.

  1. From the Home screen, swipe up on an empty spot to open the Apps tray.
  2. Tap Settings > Apps.
  3. Tap the desired application in the default list.
  4. To display preinstalled apps, tap Menu > Show system apps.
  5. Tap UNINSTALL > OK.

On the other hand, if the problem continues to bug you even in safe mode, then you have to troubleshoot the firmware. Move on to the next solution…

Fourth solution: Wipe cache partition

Another possibility that may result to similar problem is when some system caches got corrupted. While these files are small and temporary, when they get corrupted, they may also cause some serious issues in your phone. To be thorough in our troubleshooting, I suggest you wipe off all contents of the cache partition so that all system caches will be replaced with new ones.

  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 Android logo displays, release all three keys.
  4. An ‘Installing system update’ message will show for 30 – 60 seconds before the Android system recovery menu options appear.
  5. Press the Volume down key several times to highlight wipe cache partition.
  6. Press Power key to select.
  7. Press the Volume down key to highlight yes, them and press the Power key to select.
  8. When the wipe cache partition is complete, Reboot system now is highlighted.
  9. Press the Power key to restart the device.

Your phone will take a little time booting up after the cache partition is wiped off of its contents as it will rebuild or recreate those caches.

Fifth solution: Reset all Settings

If the app still crashes after wiping the cache partition off, then you must bring the phone back to its default settings but unlike a full reset, the following procedure won’t delete any of your files and data.

  1. From the Home screen, gap the Apps icon.
  2. Find and tap Settings.
  3. Tap Backup and reset.
  4. Tap Reset settings.
  5. Tap Reset Settings again to confirm your action.

Reset Settings returns the device to factory defaults with the exception of Security, Language and Accounts. It does not affect personal data and downloaded applications. If necessary, backup your files and data and then do the Master Reset:

  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.

I hope that this troubleshooting guide can help you, somewhat. If you have other concerns, feel free to contact us or leave a comment below.

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