YouTube Vanced is the best modded YouTube client for Android that offers an ad-free experience, background play, and other features by patching the stock YouTube app.
However, since the original Vanced app was discontinued in March 2022, many users have reported issues of Vanced suddenly not working anymore on their devices.
In this troubleshooting guide, we will review the most common YouTube Vanced problems and provide fixes to help restore functionality.
We will tackle the following issues:
- “The content is not available” error message
- Vanced crashing or freezing
- Features like background play not working
- “This video isn’t available anymore” error
Check Internet Connectivity
Since YouTube Vanced relies on connecting to YouTube’s servers to fetch video data and streams to play content, having a stable internet connection is essential for the mod to function properly.
If you get error messages like “This video isn’t available” in Vanced, the first thing to check is that your internet is working fine. Open a browser to confirm you have a working internet connection.
If there are connectivity problems, troubleshoot issues with your WiFi network:
- Disable and re-enable WiFi
- Forget and re-add the WiFi network
- Check for router firmware updates
- Toggle airplane mode on and off
- Restart your device
- Check mobile data settings
Once internet connectivity is restored, reopen Vanced to see if the errors remain. Clearing the Vanced app cache and data can also help resolve temporary network issues.
Confirm Vanced is Updated
The Vanced team routinely updates the app to fix bugs and add new features. If your YouTube Vanced stops working, it could be due to a problem that has already been patched in a newer version.
To check for updates:
- Open Vanced Manager
- Go to the Home tab
- There will be an update button if a new version is available
- Tap update and install the latest version
The update will replace your existing Vanced APK with the newest files. This often resolves app crashes, video playback problems, missing features, and connectivity issues.
If the Manager does not show an available update, your Vanced app is likely already on the newest version. Still, uninstalling Vanced fully and doing a clean reinstall sometimes helps troubleshoot problems that persist even in updated versions.
It’s also good practice to routinely check and update Vanced every few weeks to stay on top of bug fixes.
Clear App Data and Cache
If YouTube Vanced has suddenly stopped working, one quick fix to try is clearing the app’s data and cache.
This removes temporary data that could cause conflicts:
- Go to Android Settings > Apps
- Find YouTube Vanced in the list and select it
- Tap on Storage
- Hit Clear Cache followed by Clear Data
- Confirm clearing data again when prompted
Clearing Vanced data forces the app to fully reload as if doing a clean install. All your subscriptions and settings will be reset. But it often resolves common problems like crashing on launch, video playback failures, or freezing.
Alternatively, you can re-install Vanced Manager and select the “Uninstall YouTube Vanced” option during setup. This achieves the same effect of wiping the app data.
Re-Installing Vanced
If clearing the app data does not resolve the problems, the next step is to uninstall and re-install Vanced Manager with the YouTube Vanced APK.
This ensures any corrupted files are replaced with a clean setup.
To fully uninstall and re-install:
- Open Vanced Manager
- Go to Settings > Uninstall
- Check all boxes to uninstall Manager, Vanced YouTube, and MicroG
- Download and install the latest Vanced Manager APK
- Follow setup prompts to re-install YouTube Vanced
This will completely remove old problematic Vanced files and replace them with a fresh YouTube APK patched again using the latest Manager version. All your subscriptions and data will still be lost.
Re-installing from scratch often fixes persistent issues like app freezing, videos buffering excessively, or button taps not registering. Be sure to select matching Vanced and MicroG versions.
Conclusion
To recap, if your YouTube Vanced suddenly stops working, here are the key troubleshooting steps covered:
- Check for internet connectivity errors
- Update Vanced to the latest version
- Wipe app data and cache
- Uninstall and re-install Vanced Manager
- Switch the MicroG
Following these basic guidelines should help successfully fix issues in most cases.
However, as Vanced development has stopped, more severe issues can occur over time where troubleshooting cannot help. In such cases, you must migrate to YouTube Vanced alternatives such as ReVanced or NewPipe or wait for community-maintained forks.