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Troubleshoot video playback issues
Troubleshoot video playback issues
Adam D. avatar
Written by Adam D.
Updated over a week ago

Many factors can influence video playback, including some that pertain to your computer or device. If you’re not getting the best viewing experience on Vimeo, you might want to try these simple fixes.

  • Switch to “Auto” in the quality menu, if available. Auto mode automatically adjusts to the best quality of video for your current Internet connection and processing speed. We recommend using this default setting to avoid buffering delays. (If “Auto” is not available, switch to one of the lower quality options.)

  • Check your bandwidthWe require network speeds of 500 kbps or higher in order to stream our lowest playback quality (240p). You can use this speed test to get a general sense of your Internet speed during the time of the issue. Keep in mind that bandwidth can fluctuate, especially on Wifi or cellular networks. 

  • Disable any browser extensions, plugins, or add onsThird party programs can sometimes cause issues during playback— including blocked video segments, dropped frames, buffering, etc. If you're having trouble, try disabling any active extensions one-by-one to find the culprit. You can also open your video within an incognito or private window of your browser for testing. 

  • Restart your router and modemResetting your router or modem can help to refresh your connection and improve playback performance. Try disconnecting the power cord and then reconnecting to perform a hard reboot.

  • Update your browserBrowser software is constantly being improved upon. Make sure you are using the latest version of your browser for peak performance. The latest version of each browser can be found here

  • Close excess browser tabs or applicationsKeeping too many applications open can make everything run slower, including video playback. Especially on a mobile device, it’s easy to forget which apps are running. Make sure that you completely close or disable apps instead of just minimizing their windows.

  • Clear your browser’s cacheAlthough this may sound simple, refreshing your cache can help with many different issues, including playback. Learn more here

  • Disable/Enable Hardware accelerationHardware acceleration makes resource-hungry operations run more efficiently, but sometimes doesn’t work well with older graphics cards. Try disabling or enabling this option within your browser settings. 

PS. Internet Explorer and Edge are probably the two worst browsers for browsing performance, so switching to Chrome could actually fix the issue.

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