Why is YouTube So Slow and How to Fix it with Easy Ways

YouTube is one of the commonest ways to enjoy your time. However, the YouTube slow issue is annoying. That’s what we want to share in this article, we will tell everything about how to fix YouTube buffering/stuttering, and YouTube loads slow on both desktop and mobile. First, we need to know why is YouTube so slow.

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Why is YouTube So Slow?

Please check the possible reasons below:

Overload server: It is obvious that there are thousands of users using YouTube all over the world. Although YouTube has a strong infrastructure, the overload issue may appear from time to time.

Internet/router issues: Apart from the first one, the most possible reason why your YouTube stuttering should be an internet or router issue.

Browser cache: The browser cache may also cause YouTube running slow. You will need to clear the temporary data to speed up your YouTube on the browser.

Outdated Flash: As is known to all, an updated flash can help users view videos on the computer. If your flash is outdated, the problem may occur.

Video issue: Sometimes a YouTube video loads very slow because of the issue within it. You can simply change to load another video to confirm the problem.

How to Fix YouTube Slow on Desktop

According to the reasons we have mentioned above, you can try these tips to fix the YouTube lagging issue.

1.Clear Cache

The first solution for YouTube loading slow should be to clear the cache on your browser. For instance, if you are using Google Chrome, you can check the steps below:

1. Open Chrome on your computer.
2. Find the three stacked dots on the top right of your browser and tap on it.
3. From the pop-up window, click More Tools > Clear Browsing Data.
4. Now, select the time of the caches you want to clear. For deep cleaning, we suggest selecting all time.
5. Check both Cookies and site data and Cached images and files.
6. Click Clear data, the process will be finished in seconds.

2.Update Flash

In case your browser does not update flash automatically, you need to check if it is up-to-date and upgrade it manually. However, as Adobe has stopped providing flash players, you can search for some alternatives to have a try.

3.Check and Change a Network

It’s also necessary to check the speed of your internet. You can simply try to use another video app to check if it is the network too weak that makes YouTube slow or just the YouTube issue.

Besides, you can search for Internet speed test tools from your browser to check if your internet is well.

4.Change the URL

This way is a little interesting as it seems not helpful at all. However, if your YouTube lagging on Chrome, it’s a good idea to have a try. The steps are easy:

1. Open the YouTube video first and check on the URL.
2. Then delete the “www” in the URL and enter ca to replace it.
3. Now, reload the link, the YouTube video will be quicker than before.

5.Use A VPN

It is also a good way to use a VPN to speed up your YouTube. As is known to all, there are many free VPNs you can find online. However, the free VPN is not always stable.

Thus, if you want to have a better experience, we highly recommend you choose to use a paid VPN, like NordVPN, ExpressVPN, or other similar ones.

6.Choose A Lower Quality Settings

If you find that it is your network that makes YouTube slow, you can try to change the YouTube quality settings. Now, follow the steps below to learn how to change.

Open a YouTube video and click on the settings at the right bottom corner. Then, select Quality to select a lower one to use.

7.Block Two IP Address Ranges

Sometimes, the way to block IP address range may also help solve YouTube loads slow issues. Generally speaking, we normally watch YouTube videos from CDN (Content Delivery Network) but not directly from YouTube.

Thus, the ISPs (Internet Service Providers) will influence the connection speed from you to these CDNs. Blocking two IP address ranges for these CDNs (173.194.55.0/24 and 206.111.0.0/16) can help solve the problem. To use this way, you need:

1. Open Command Prompt as administrator.
2. Enter the command below:

netsh advfirewall firewall add rule name=”YouTubeTweak” dir=in action=block remoteip=173.194.55.0/24,206.111.0.0/16 enable=yes

3. Click on the Enter button to operate the command.

If you find this way not working and want to remove the rule, you can Command Prompt as administrator again and type this command: netsh advfirewall firewall delete rule name=”YouTubeTweak”. Then click Enter to finish the whole process.

With the help of the 7 ways above, you may have solved the YouTube stuttering issue. If you have any other questions or other good solutions for this problem, please feel free to let us know via comment.