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This wikiHow teaches you how to restart apps on Android smartphones and tablets. If an Android app becomes unresponsive, you can force it to quit in the Settings menu and then restart the app.

  1. It's the gray app that resembles a gear usually located in your Android phone's app drawer. You can also swipe down from the top of the screen to open the notification drawer, and then tap the gear icon in the top-right corner.
    • The icon may look different if you have a different theme installed on your Android device.
  2. It's next to an icon of four circles in the Settings menu. You will see an alphabetical list of all the apps installed on your Android device.
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  3. This will display the Application Info screen with additional options.
  4. It's the second option below the app's title. This will prompt a confirmation pop-up window.
  5. It's in the bottom-right corner of the pop-up window. This will stop the app and the "Force Stop" button will now be grayed out because the app is no longer running.
  6. Press the Home button to return to the home screen.
  7. Open the app drawer and select the app you recently closed.
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  • Question
    How do you restart the app after you force the stop? This only is showing the forced stop (to me at least).
    Rudy Toth
    Rudy Toth
    Community Answer
    You will have to perform a factory reset, which can wipe out all your apps and data. You should never use those buttons. "Force Stop" is mean only for workers at the factory, so they can do bench testing of the device.
  • Question
    Will I lose my progression in a game?
    Freddy Chavez
    Freddy Chavez
    Community Answer
    Most games these days are always connected to the internet. This way they back up all your game data on their servers. If you lost your phone, uninstalled it or did anything to lose the game you would merely need to log back in and the progress will return. Note that some games even have a backup code as a secondary option to restore an account.
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About This Article

Travis Boylls
Written by:
wikiHow Technology Writer
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Travis Boylls. Travis Boylls is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. Travis has experience writing technology-related articles, providing software customer service, and in graphic design. He specializes in Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Linux platforms. He studied graphic design at Pikes Peak Community College. This article has been viewed 183,098 times.
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Co-authors: 4
Updated: July 10, 2022
Views: 183,098
Categories: Android Applications
Article SummaryX

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Apps.
3. Tap the unresponsive app.
4. Tap Force Stop.
5. Tap Force Stop to confirm.
6. Relaunch the app.

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Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 183,098 times.

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