How to fix Google Play Store error 940 in Samsung devices

One of the Play Store errors that Samsung users were often complaining about is the error 940. This is a type of error that may show up when your phone is downloading an app. The error message “Application can’t be downloaded” will suddenly appear without apparent reason.

In this post, I’ll discuss the same issue to help users that are bugged by this error. Although it seems like it is a very complicated issue, but the truth is, it’s not, and you can get rid this problem on your own by simply performing some troubleshooting procedures . To resolve this issue, just continue reading this post for I will walk you through on how to do it.

Before we proceed, if you’re looking for a solution to a problem with your phone, try to browse through our troubleshooting pages to see if we support your device. If your phone is in the list of our supported devices, then go to the troubleshooting page and look for similar problems. Feel free to use our solutions and workarounds. Don’t worry it’s free. But if you still need our help, then fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.

How to troubleshoot Google Play Store 940 on your Samsung device

The purpose of doing these step by step procedures is to determine the real issue and the reason that the error code is showing over and over again. These are the basic troubleshooting procedures designed by Samsung engineers to deal with this type of error. Don’t you worry, these procedures are safe and won’t ruin your device.

Perform forced reboot procedure

Before anything else, the first thing that you should do is to restart your phone. This will eliminate the suspicion that a glitch in the system is causing the error. It is a simulated battery pull procedure that refreshes your phone’s memory and reloads all apps. To do so, just press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons simultaneously for 10 seconds. After the procedure, download any app and see if the issue will occur again. If so, proceed to the next step.

Clear the Google Play Store Cache and Data

Since, the first procedure was unable to resolve the error, the next thing that you need to do is to delete Play Store’s cache and data. In other words, you have to reset the app to delete and replace all stored cache and data files. This is a very simple step but very effective especially in dealing with this type of issue. To delete the cache and data just go to Settings > Application manager and find Google Play Store.

Create a backup and reset your Samsung device

If the previous methods failed to resolve the issue, then the last option that you can do is to reset your phone. But before you follow the steps be sure to transfer or backup all your files and data because all will be deleted. Once the device is ready, follow these steps:

Back up data on the internal memory. If you have signed into a Samsung account on the device, you have activated Anti-theft and will need your Samsung credentials to finish the master reset.
Turn off the device.
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.

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