Do you see an error message saying ‘Cannot play title. Please try again later’ on Netflix whenever you play a movie or TV show?
When it comes to on-demand movie streaming, Netflix is arguably the best platform available on the market right now. They have thousands of titles in their library and a number of great originals that would keep you entertained.
Currently, Netflix has more than 200 million subscribers that come and go through the platform every day. Although their team does a great job handling the traffic, occasional errors can still occur and are inevitable.
If you see an error message that says ‘Cannot play title. Please try again later’ on Netflix, it’s probably a server-related issue. However, it can also be due to an underlying problem with your device or network connection.
To help you troubleshoot the error, we’ve decided to make a detailed guide in fixing the ‘Cannot play title. Please try again later’ error on Netflix.
Let’s get started!
1. Check Netflix Servers.
When you encounter problems playing titles on Netflix, the first thing that you should always do is to check the platform’s status.
Visit Netflix’s dedicated status page where they show the current status of their servers.
However, if Netflix’s website is not accessible, you can also use Downdetector to check the platform’s servers. It is a third-party site that shows the current status of applications like Netflix and the past problems it encountered.
Check the website from time to time so that you will know once their servers are back and running.
2. Re-Login to Your Netflix Account.
Random bugs and glitches may occur on Netflix and cause your user data to get corrupted. If this happens, you may experience difficulties playing titles on the platform and random errors to pop-up.
To fix this, sign out of your Netflix account and log back in after several minutes to reload your account data.
On Android and iOS, follow the steps below to sign out of your account:
- On your device, launch the Netflix app and tap on your Profile from the top right corner of your display.
- Next, tap on Sign Out at the bottom of the page.
- Lastly, tap Yes on the pop-up message to confirm the action.
For Windows users, you can sign out of your Netflix account by doing the following:
- First, open the Netflix app from your desktop.
- After that, click on More Options.
- Finally, click the Sign Out button and follow the on-screen prompts to proceed.
If you are on a macOS device or any browsers, follow the guide below:
- First, access the Netflix website using your preferred browser.
- After that, hover your mouse to your Profile icon beside the Notification Bell.
- Lastly, click on Sign Out of Netflix.
Once done, wait for several minutes to pass before logging back into your Netflix account.
On the other hand, visit Netflix’s Help Center if you don’t see your device from the steps above.
3. Try Playing Another Title.
Some movies or TV shows on Netflix encounter temporary problems and become unavailable for a while. If you see a ‘Cannot play title. Please try again later’ on Netflix when playing a movie, try to find another title to watch to check if the situation would be the same.
If you are having issues playing a specific title on Netflix, check our dedicated guide about this issue to help you out.
4. Turn Off VPN.
Netflix is known to block users’ IP addresses who run VPNs to bypass restrictions and access contents from other regions.
Each content on Netflix is under a licensing term that may not cover a specific country. In this case, Netflix may face legal sanctions if users from other regions access restricted contents, explaining the banning of VPNs.
If you have any VPN running on your device, turn them off first before accessing the Netflix app.
You can also try other VPNs that work well with Netflix, like PureVPN. Compared to other VPNs, it doesn’t disrupt your internet connection while protecting your online data.
5. Clear Browsing Cache and Cookies.
Search browsers store temporary data on your computer, which are called caches and cookies. These data are used to enhance your browser’s performance and reduce the loading times of websites.
Unfortunately, caches and cookies can get corrupted during use and cause all sorts of problems on your browser.
If you can’t play movies or TV shows on Netflix, check out the guide below to address the issue:
- On your browser, click on the Options button and select Settings.
- After that, go to Privacy and Security and click on Clear Browsing Data.
- Now, change the Time Range to All Time and click on the checkbox beside ‘Cached Images and Files’ and ‘Cookies and Other Site Data’.
- Lastly, click on Clear Data to start the clearing process.
Once done, re-access your Netflix account and try playing another movie or TV show.
6. Disable Browser Extensions.
Extensions or add-ons are third-party applications installed directly to your browser that provide additional functionality to some websites. However, some websites are not compatible with browser extensions and add-ons.
If you can’t play specific titles on Netflix, disable your browser extensions first and see if the problem goes away.
Check out the steps below to guide you on the process:
- On your browser, click on the Options button on the top right corner of your display and open the Settings tab.
- After that, find the Extensions tab from the side menu and access it.
- Lastly, disable all your browser extensions.
Once done, go back to Netflix and check if the problem is solved.
7. Run Malwarebytes.
Your system may be suffering from malware and other virus infiltration and causes other applications not to work correctly. To check if this is the case, perform a full system scan using Malwarebytes.
It is an antivirus program that automatically scans your computer for viruses and removes them with a press of a single button.
Malwarebytes is available on multiple platforms like Windows, macOS, Chromebook, Android, iOS, and more.
8. Restart Your Device.
Errors and other issues may have occurred on your operating system and cause applications to malfunction. If this is the case, we suggest restarting your device to reload its resources and eliminate any errors in the process.
On Android, follow the guide below to restart it:
- On your device, locate the Power button and hold it down until the Options screen shows up.
- After that, tap on Restart and follow the prompts to reboot your device.
- Wait for your device to complete the process, which can take several seconds.
For iOS devices, you can restart it by doing the steps below:
- Press your iOS device’s Power button until the ‘Slide to Power Off’ screen shows up.
- Next, drag the slider to the right until your screen turns black.
- Lastly, tap the Power button again to restart your device.
If you are using a Windows device, follow the steps below to restart it:
- Press the Start button on the lower-left corner of your display to access the Start Menu.
- After that, click the Power button to see the Power Options screen.
- Lastly, click on Restart and follow the on-screen prompts to reboot your computer.
For macOS users, you can restart your device by doing the following:
- On your Mac, click on the Apple logo on the top-right corner of your display.
- Next, click on Restart from the drop-down menu.
- Finally, click on Restart again to confirm the action.
Once done, go back to Netflix and try playing another movie or TV show.
If you don’t see your device from the methods above, visit Netflix’s Help Center and look for the dedicated guide in restarting your device.
9. Check and Reset Your Internet.
Network-related problems could also be the reason why Netflix titles are not playing on your device. Given that streaming movies are pretty demanding in bandwidth, your device may struggle to load the video if your internet is unstable or slow.
To confirm this, run a speed test using Fast.com to measure your network’s upload and download speed.
If the result shows that your network is the problem, restart your network router to re-establish the link with your ISP’s servers.
Re-run the test after restarting your router to check if the problem is solved. If you continue to experience network-related issues, contact your service provider and ask them to fix their service.
10. Report the Problem to Netflix.
If you still can’t play a movie or TV show on Netflix, we suggest that you leave the troubleshooting process to the experts.
Contact Netflix’s customer service and report the error message you get whenever you play a title on the platform. Make sure to provide all essential information like your account details, the title you are trying to play, and a screenshot of the error if possible.
You can also browse the articles on their Help Center and see if you can find any solution.
This ends our guide in fixing the error message ‘Cannot play title. Please try again later’ on Netflix. If you have any questions, kindly leave a comment below, and we’ll get back to you whenever we can.
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