Download Pending error in the Play store? Here are 9 Easy Fixes!

First of all, don’t panic! It has happened to almost every Android user. This infamous “Download pending error of Google Play Store” is quite common and easily fixable. Before you read the solution, restart your phone as it is known to fix many glitches.

There could be many reasons which can cause the Play Store to stuck when downloading or updating apps. According to all the forums and users reporting Redmi, Oneplus and Samsung smartphone users faced this problem the most.

It has nothing to do with the phone manufacturer as the majority of Android users use Redmi or Samsung devices. It can happen to any Android user.

Now let’s see what solutions are there to fix this Google Play Store download pending error.

How to fix download pending error of Play Store

Google Play Store download queue

Let’s start with the basic troubleshooting. Play store download or update apps in sequence or in the queue. If you are downloading or updating multiple apps simultaneously then download pending will show on all the apps standing in queue. It can take even longer if apps are big in size.

If you want to download any app urgently then you can do this- Open Play Store> Menu> My apps & games and then tap on STOP next to Updates pending to stop all apps from updating. You can also cancel specific apps by canceling their updates.

Check Internet Connection

Internet speed or connection sometimes sucks and becomes too slow to download apps. You can try switching between your WiFi and mobile data to see if it resumes the download. You can even try turning airplane mode on and off, sometimes it fixes the problem.

Disable VPN

Many big tech players have been dragged to court for not maintaining the privacy of users’ data. That’s the reason why most people have started using VPNs. Many users experienced the download pending error in Play Store while on VPN.

Also Read- 10 best free VPN apps for Android and iPhone

According to experts when you connect to VPN, Play Store thinks you are not using WiFi but mobile data. If you have set your Play Store settings to only download or update apps over WiFi only then the download pending error will show.

There are two ways to fix this problem:

• Disable VPN for a while and turn on it back after you are done downloading from Play Store.
• The other way is, Open Play Store> Menu> Settings> Change “App download preference” and “Auto-update apps” to over any network.

Make sure that you revert the changes after you are done as it may incur data charges.

Low internal storage and SD card

Generally, if you are low on internal storage then you can’t download or update new apps. Usually, you get notification about low storage but sometimes it just doesn’t show up. 

You can manually check your storage space at Settings> Storage. If you are low on storage then remove unnecessary files and then try again.

Sometimes improper placement or faulty SD cards can cause the download pending error in Play Store. Eject the memory card and properly set it up and restart the phone and check if the error still exists.

Force stop and clear data of Play Store app

Sometimes old data and cache of the Play Store app can cause the download pending issue. You can delete the data and clear the cache by opening Settings> Apps> Google Play Store> Storage. First “Force Stop” the app and then clear cache and data. Similarly, repeat this step for Google Play Services and download manager app.

Don’t worry this will not remove any data or uninstall any app, so feel free to try. Relaunch the Play Store and see this step has fixed the download pending or not.

Enable Download manager

Play Store uses the default download manager app to manage updates and downloads on Android. Though it comes enabled by default, maybe you mistakenly disabled it. Go to Settings> Apps> Download Manager and then enable it if it’s disabled.

Now try downloading the app and mostly it fixes the problem.

Bypass download pending error of Play Store

I would recommend you to first try all other methods and try to fix it but you need any app urgently then try this method. Most probably you must be aware that there exists a web version of the Play Store.

Visit the Official Play Store website and log in using your Gmail account if you haven’t. Search for the app, download and install it.

Are you using your primary account on two or more devices?

Many people keep two smartphones, this is not the problem. The problem is using the same Google account as the primary account on both the devices. Remove the Google account from your secondary phone and only use it on your daily driver.

Doing this will certainly fix the Play Store download pending error.

Use a different Google account

Sometimes Play Store settings and permissions can cause this download pending. We recommend switching account for a while and try downloading the app. Open Play Store> menu> at the top you will see drop-down option to switch between accounts.

Remove Google account from Phone

This method has worked for many. You just need to remove the primary Google account you use and then again add it back. You can remove Google account, Settings> Users & accounts and then tap on the primary Google account and remove it.

Restart your device and then again add the same old account from the same location you removed.

Conclusion

I have mentioned all the major solutions which work or reportedly worked for users. There are some other small and minor solutions too which helped users to solve their Google Play Store download pending error. But the number of those users is very small.

If none of the above methods worked for you then let me know in the comment section below and I will reply with a solution almost the same day as we read comments multiple times a day.