You've kicked back to catch the latest show on Amazon Prime, but Amazon Prime Video has suddenly stopped working. The show has disappeared, and instead, you find yourself staring at a blank screen.

What do you do next? Well, in some cases, you might be able to fix Amazon Prime Video yourself. Follow these steps one-by-one until you’ve fixed it.

1. Check Your Internet Connection

Before you do anything else, check your internet connection is working. (You may have seen the “Insufficient Bandwidth” message or error 1060.)

This might mean confirming your wireless router is operating correctly, or that your mobile device has a signal.

For specifics, check your router’s documentation. Adjusting the quality of the video you're trying to play may also help.

Set video quality in Amazon Prime Video

Meanwhile, your internet connection should be at least:

  • 1 Mbits/sec for Standard Definition (SD) video
  • 5 Mbits/sec for High Definition (HD) video
  • 15 Mbits/sec for 4K/Ultra High Definition

Should you find that everything is up and running, but there is still no video streaming, look at other devices on your network. Insufficient bandwidth could be impacting internet access if other people using the network are also streaming. If possible, disable these other devices for a few minutes to see if this helps.

If it does, you’ll need to subscribe to a faster internet package—or arrange a timetable of internet use for your house.

2. Check Your Amazon Prime Video Account Is Active

If Amazon Prime isn't working, the first thing to check is your account status. You probably know that Amazon Prime Video isn't 100% free. You'll either have access to it via the annual Amazon Prime subscription or the monthly video-only subscription.

To check if your account is active:

  1. Open a browser window on your PC or mobile
  2. Go to www.amazon.com
  3. Sign in to your account
  4. Click Account & Lists
  5. Select Your Prime Membership or Account > Prime Video Settings if you pay monthly
Amazon Prime Video account details

Here, review the details of your membership and check it hasn’t expired

3. Confirm Amazon Prime Video Works on Another Device

A good troubleshooting method is to confirm that Amazon Prime Video works on other devices. This might be a smart TV, a streaming stick, mobile device, laptop, or even game console.

The idea is to rule out a problem with the device that won’t stream Amazon Prime Video.

If you’ve got this far with no solution, try this. Should streams work on the other device, the problem isn’t with Amazon Prime Video. But if the second device also fails to stream from Amazon’s video service, the problem could be at the other end.

4. Restart the Device to Fix Amazon Prime Video

If it turns out that Amazon video streams on other devices, take a few minutes to restart the first device you tried. This will depend on the specific device, so if you’re unsure how to restart a streaming stick or set-top box, check the device documentation.

Hopefully, Amazon Prime Video should start streaming following a reboot.

5. Is Amazon Prime Video Down?

Prime Video on Down Detector

As suggested above, there is a chance that Amazon’s video service is not working correctly. General server issues can cause problems with Amazon Prime Video from time to time.

Usually, these don't last too long, but such an incident can wipe out that evening of binge-watching you had planned. To check if your Amazon Prime Video problem is caused by Amazon servers, use a checking service to learn whether Amazon is offline or experiencing problems.

Popular checking services include Down Detector and Is it Down Right Now?

6. Does Your Device Meet the Minimum Requirements?

Next, you need to confirm the minimum requirements for your device. For smart TVs and set-top boxes, the requirements will remain unchanged. This means that if the device has an Amazon Prime Video app available, it should work. If not, and you've checked the other troubleshooting items on this page, you'll need to contact the manufacturer.

For desktop computers, ensure that your operating system meets the minimum requirements:

  • Windows 10 or newer
  • macOS 11.4 or newer
  • Linux/UNIX operating systems also supported

The web browser you use is also important. If there is no dedicated Amazon Prime Video app for your OS, you'll need to view videos in the browser. Your web browser should be the latest version any of the following:

  • Google Chrome
  • Mozilla Firefox
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Apple Safari
  • Opera

If Amazon Prime Video meets the minimum settings, you should try these tips and tricks you can do with Amazon Prime Video.

Note that if you are using a browser with Do Not Track privacy settings enabled, Amazon Prime Video may not work. As such, disable this or white list “https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/” to ensure trouble-free streaming.

Similarly, if you're streaming via a VPN connection, disable this while troubleshooting Prime Video.

7. Check the HDMI Cable Works Correctly

In some cases, issues with Amazon Prime Video not working can be due to the HDMI cable. For example, if you're streaming via a game console or set-top box. In order for 4K streaming to work correctly, you will need a 4K-ready HDMI cable, rather than a standard 1080p HDMI cable.

Check our list of the best 4K HDMI cables to ensure your video streams in top quality from Amazon Prime.

But the problem might be simpler; there is simply no video. In this case, swap out the HDMI cable for another, and stream in standard or high definition.

Fixing Amazon Prime Video on Other Devices

Are you running Amazon Prime Video on your mobile, set-top box, streaming stick or smart TV?

Dedicated apps are available for Android and iOS; meanwhile, Prime Video is built-in on tablet devices (and Fire TV). Pretty much any streaming device offers a Prime Video app.

Whichever option you're using, you'll find that the apps update automatically. This usually keeps bugs and errors at bay, but you may need to take matters into your own hands.

How to Fix Amazon Prime Video on iOS

On iPhone and iPad, you can fix any issues with Amazon Prime Video that are unrelated to your network by uninstalling the app.

  1. Find the Prime Video icon
  2. Long press
  3. Tap Remove app
  4. Tap Delete app
  5. Tap Delete

Once this is done, search for Prime Video in the App Store and install it again.

How to Fix Amazon Prime Video on Android

Are you running Amazon Prime Video on Android? You have two options for sorting out any problems with the app.

The first option is to clear the cache:

  1. With two fingers drag down the notification bar and tap the Settings cog
  2. Apps > App management
  3. Scroll down to, then tap Prime Video
  4. Tap Storage usage then Clear cache
  5. Retry the video

If this doesn’t work, try reinstalling the Prime Video app.

  1. Go to Settings > Apps
  2. In App management scroll down and tap Prime Video
  3. Tap Uninstall and OK to confirm

When this completes, restart your phone then reinstall Prime Video.

With this all sorted, you should find that your Amazon Prime Video problems have ended. At the very least, you should now know the problem isn’t with the mobile app.

Fix Amazon Prime Video on Your TV or Set-Top Box

Reinstalling a mobile app is easy enough—but what if the app is on your TV or set-top box? Things are a little different, but you have two main options:

  • Restart the device
  • Clear the app cache

By "restart," we mean switch off and power up again, rather than simply put the device on standby mode. To do this, you should find the power button on the back of your TV. It's worth disconnecting it from the mains supply too.

Amazon Prime Video apps on TVs and set-top boxes can be reset by clearing the data cache. The method for this will depend on the platform, so check the device manual or online help for steps.

Eventually, you should find the options to Clear data and Clear cache. Use these to persuade the app to work. Note that you'll probably need to sign in to the app again once it restarts.

You should also check our list of the most annoying Prime Video issues.

Get Amazon Prime Video Working Again

In this article, we've looked at various reasons why Amazon Prime Video has stopped working. To ensure the best performance, be sure to keep the app updated and subscribe to a fast broadband package. You should also position your streaming device close to your router.

To fix Amazon Prime Video, follow these steps in order:

  1. Check your internet connection
  2. Confirm you have an active Amazon Prime Video account
  3. Check if Prime Video works on another device
  4. Restart your device to fix Prime Video
  5. Check if Amazon Video is down
  6. Check it meets the minimum requirements
  7. Ensure the HDMI cable works correctly

Hopefully, Amazon Prime Video is back to full functionality, so you can explore all of its content and great features—like the ability to download its videos to watch offline.