- The Messages app should have all the necessary permissions. Plus, it should be set as the default communications app.
- The app could be crashing due to a faulty cache, which can easily be cleared from the Settings.
- Additionally, resetting the app preferences could also do the trick for you.
Basic Fixes:
- Restart Phone : Start the troubleshooting process by restarting your phone. At times, it’s a minor issue, and a simple reboot would restore the app to its working condition.
- Make Messages Your Default App : If you have another messaging app installed, like Facebook Messenger or Truecaller, that could interfere with the Android Messages app. To fix that, head over to Settings > Apps & notifications > Default apps > SMS app. Here, tap on Messages to make it the default app for SMS.
- Update Messages App : Any app is prone to have bugs. The same is the case with the Messages app. That said, these issues can be solved by updating the app to the latest version. Make sure to do that from the Google Play Store , and check if that resolves your issue.
Fix 1: Clear Messages App Cache and Data
The age-old remedy to fix problems on Android phones might come to your rescue for Messages too. You need to clear the cache for the Messages app. Clearing the cache will not delete your messages or any data from your phone. It only removes temporary files.
Step 1 : Head over to Settings > Apps & notifications > Messages > Storage & cache . Here, tap on the Clear cache option.
Step 2 : Once done, restart your phone and reopen the app.
Hopefully, it will work normally. However, if the issue continues, you can try clearing the data too. For that, tap on Clear storage or data instead of the Clear cache button. And before you ask, fret not, clearing data will not delete your messages.
Fix 2: Grant Necessary Permissions
An app will not work if it doesn’t have the required permissions. Similarly, the Messages app requires access to storage, SMS, contacts, and phone for proper functioning. So make sure these permissions are allowed to avoid the app closing unexpectedly issue.
To check that, follow these steps:
Step 1: On your Android phone, head over to Settings > Apps & notifications > Messages . Here, tap on Permissions .
Step 2: Now, tap on the required permission name and choose Allow .
Repeat the steps for all required permissions. Once done, try using the app again.
Fix 3: Delete Old Messages
The Messages app crashing issue mostly happens because either one of your message threads is too long or you have a huge pile of messages. So you need to delete old messages. Start with checking the message threads. If a chat has hundreds of messages, then delete it. However, if there isn’t any particular thread, you need to delete some messages.
For that, hold any message thread . It will get selected. Then tap on other chat threads that you want to delete. Finally, hit the Delete icon at the top.
Fix 4: Reset App Preferences
Another thing to try is to reset app preferences . Doing so will not delete any data from your phone. It will only restore all the settings on your phone to their default values.
To reset app preferences, go to Settings > Apps & notifications > All Apps , and tap on the three-dot icon . Select Reset app preferences from the menu, confirm the selection, and restart your phone.
