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If the WhatsApp Desktop app keeps crashing or freezing on your Windows 11/10 PC, this guide will show you how to fix the issues. Many users prefer to use the desktop client of WhatsApp service on their Windows PC. It keeps you up to date with recent important messages while you continue working on the desktop. While it works fine most of the time, some users have reported crashes or freezes with the WhatsApp desktop app. For some users it crashes on startup, while some experiences crash after launching the app. A few users have encountered the problem while uploading or uploading a file. This problem is known to exist on different versions of Windows.
Now, if you are one of those who are facing the same problem with WhatsApp, this guide will help you to fix the problem. Here we are going to mention several fixes to fix crashing issues with WhatsApp on Windows PC. Let us check it out.
Why does WhatsApp keep crashing on PC?
Here are some of the possible causes of WhatsApp crashing on PC:
The problem can be triggered due to an outdated operating system which is not compatible with new software and applications. In this case, you can try updating Windows to the latest version to resolve the issue.
In addition to the outdated operating system, using an outdated version of the WhatsApp desktop client can be another reason for the same problem. So make sure you have an up to date WhatsApp client.
Corrupted or faulty WhatsApp updates can also cause WhatsApp to crash on desktop. You can rerun the update executable to properly apply the updates and resolve the issue.
The crashing issue can also be caused by a corrupt or damaged installation of the app. Try reinstalling the app to resolve the issue.
Depending on the scenario that applies to you, you can apply an appropriate fix from those mentioned below.
WhatsApp Desktop app crashes or hangs on Windows PC
Here are the methods you can try if the WhatsApp desktop app keeps crashing on your Windows 11 or Windows 10 PC:
- Install all pending Windows updates.
- Update your WhatsApp desktop app.
- Disable WhatsApp notifications.
- Run the WhatsApp Update.exe file again.
- Rename the WhatsApp Update.exe file.
- Reinstall the WhatsApp desktop client.
1.Install any pending Windows updates
First of all, make sure you have updated your operating system to the latest version. If the WhatsApp desktop client keeps crashing randomly on your PC, it could be due to an outdated operating system. So if you haven’t checked or updated your system to the latest version, consider installing all pending Windows updates and see if the error is fixed.
For that, you can just open the Settings app by pressing the Win + I keys. Then go to the Windows Update section and click on the Check for updates button. After that download and install all available updates. Windows will restart and on the next boot try launching the WhatsApp desktop client and see if it still crashes or not.
2.Update your WhatsApp desktop app
If you are using an older version of the WhatsApp desktop client, there is a good chance that it has become incompatible with your operating system, causing the app to crash. So if you haven’t updated the app for a long time, go ahead and update it.
If you are using the Microsoft Store version, you can follow the steps below to update the WhatsApp desktop client:
First, open the Microsoft Store app.
Now go to the Library section.
Then click on the Get Updates button to check and install the updates of the installed apps.
If that doesn’t work, you can try downloading the EXE version of the WhatsApp desktop client from whatsapp.com. Then run the installer and complete the installation process by following the onscreen guide. See if the EXE version works for you or not.
3.Disable WhatsApp notifications
Crashes can occur due to the fact that the WhatsApp Sound and Notifications API is not compatible with your operating system due to a software issue. If the scenario applies, you should be able to resolve the issue by turning off sound and notifications in WhatsApp. It’s kind of a workaround and it might work for you. Here are the steps to do it:
First of all, try to start the WhatsApp Desktop client and once you have managed, tap on the three-dot menu button present in the top right corner.
Now click on Settings option and then navigate to Notifications.
Then uncheck all notifications including sound, desktop alerts, incoming call alerts, etc.
After that relaunch the app and see if it has stopped crashing.
4.Run the Update.exe file from WhatsApp
The desktop version of the WhatsApp app may crash if a WhatsApp update failed or was not applied correctly. If the scenario applies, you can try to run the Update.exe file from WhatsApp again and it might fix the bugfix crashing issues. Here’s how to do it:
First, open Task Manager and make sure all the processes related to the WhatsApp desktop client are closed.
Now press Windows keyboard shortcut + R to open the Run dialog box and enter the following path:% localappdata% WhatsApp
Next, right click on the update file (executable) and select the Run as administrator option to run it.
After that let the update process finish and when done restart your PC.
On the next start, start the WhatsApp desktop app and see if it works without crashing.
5.Rename the WhatsApp Update.exe file
If method (4) does not work, it is possible that the WhatsApp update file is corrupted. It can also cause crash issues. So you can try renaming the file in question and see if that fixes the problem. The new files will be automatically retrieved from the servers when updating the application. Here’s how to do it:
First of all, make sure all the processes related to the WhatsApp desktop app are turned off in the Task Manager.
Now open Run using Win + R keys and then type and enter the following path:% localappdata% WhatsApp
Then rename the Update.exe file to oldupdate.exe or something else.
After that restart your system and launch WhatsApp to see if the issue is resolved.
6.Reinstall the WhatsApp desktop client
The last resort to fix the problem is to reinstall the WhatsApp desktop client, as you might be faced with the corrupt installation of the app itself. You can try uninstalling and then reinstalling WhatsApp desktop software. To uninstall the WhatsApp desktop client, open Settings and go to Apps> Apps & Features. Find WhatsApp and then uninstall it. When uninstalling, download WhatsApp installer and reinstall it on your system. Hopefully the app won’t crash anymore.
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