You finally update an app — and suddenly, it starts lagging.
It opens slower, freezes, or drains your battery faster than before. What happened?
While updates are meant to improve performance, not every update works perfectly on every device.
Here’s what to do when an app starts acting up after an update.
✅ 1. Restart your device
This may sound basic, but it works.
Sometimes, after an update, the app or system needs a full reboot to adjust memory allocation and clear temporary files.
Always restart your device after a major app or system update.
✅ 2. Clear the app cache (Android only)
If you’re on Android, app cache can sometimes cause lag after updates.
To clear it:
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Go to Settings → Apps
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Select the app
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Tap Storage → Clear Cache
Don’t tap “Clear Data” unless you want to reset the app completely.
✅ 3. Check for background activity
After some updates, apps may run more background services than before.
You can:
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Disable background refresh (iOS: Settings → General → Background App Refresh)
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Check battery usage stats to see if the app is hogging power
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Turn off unnecessary notifications or auto-sync features
✅ 4. Make sure it actually updated properly
Sometimes the update process fails midway.
To be sure:
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Go back to the App Store / Play Store
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Check if another update is pending
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Reinstall the app if needed (your data may be safe if it’s cloud-synced)
✅ 5. Wait for the next patch (or downgrade)
If nothing works and you’re not alone, it’s likely a bad release.
Check reviews or Reddit — other users may be reporting the same problem.
In some cases:
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Developers release a hotfix within days
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Power users on Android may try downgrading to a previous version (advanced users only)
Key points to remember
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Not every update works smoothly on every device
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Restarting often solves post-update lag
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Clearing cache and checking background activity can help
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Watch for follow-up updates or bug fix patches
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Report issues to developers — it speeds up fixes for everyone