How to Fix Google Play Store "Error 495" App Couldn't Be Downloaded

By FixMyError · Updated October 16, 2026 · 6 min read

What "Error 495" means

When you tap install or update in the Google Play Store, the download runs through a small chain of system apps: the Play Store itself fetches the package, Google Play Services handles the install handshake with Android, and the Download Manager moves the bits. Error 495 fires when that chain breaks — the store shows the blunt message "App couldn't be downloaded due to error 495" and the download stops. The app itself is fine; the plumbing on your phone is what failed.

This is one of Android's oldest download errors, and it can strike any app — it is most commonly reported with large, popular downloads like WhatsApp, but the fixes are identical no matter which app triggered it. Because 495 sits at the download layer rather than in the app, it is rarely fixed by waiting or retrying on the same setup. Clearing the stale data out of the three apps in the chain, refreshing your Google account ID on the device, or switching networks clears it in almost every case, and the steps below work through each layer in order.

Common causes

• Corrupted Google Play Store cache or data: the most common trigger — stale or broken store data makes every download fail with 495 until it is cleared.
• Corrupted Google Play Services or Download Manager data: the background services the store relies on can hold bad state that survives a simple retry.
• A stale Google account ID on the device: when the device's registered Google ID gets out of sync, downloads fail; removing and re-adding the account issues a fresh ID.
• Network or region hiccups during the download: some downloads fail on one network and succeed on another, and location services being off has been reported to stall 495-affected downloads.
• A broken Play Store app version: occasionally the store app itself updates into a bad state, so rolling it back to its factory version resets it cleanly.

How to fix "Error 495" — step by step

Work through these fixes in order. Steps 1 and 2 clear the corrupted data that causes most 495 errors, and step 3 fixes it when the problem is your Google account ID.

1. Clear the cache and data of the Google Play Store. Open Settings, then Apps, then "See all apps," and tap Google Play Store. Tap "Storage & cache," tap Clear cache first, then tap Clear storage and confirm. Reopen the Play Store — it will ask you to accept its terms again, which is normal — and retry the download that failed with 495. This wipes the stale store state behind the majority of 495 errors, and it does not touch your installed apps or purchases.
2. Clear the cache and data of Google Play Services and the Download Manager. The store is only the front door; the install handshake runs through Google Play Services and the actual download runs through the Download Manager, and bad state in either keeps the 495 loop going. Open Settings, then Apps, then "See all apps," and tap Google Play services (note the plural "services"). Tap "Storage & cache," tap Clear cache, then tap Clear storage. Repeat the same two taps for the Download Manager app. Restart your phone, then retry the download — a reboot lets all three apps come back with clean state.
3. Remove your Google account from the phone and add it back. When 495 survives the cache clears, the usual culprit is a stale Google account ID registered on the device. Open Settings, then "Passwords & accounts" (or just Accounts on some phones), and tap your Google account. Tap Remove account and confirm — your account itself is untouched on Google's servers, this only signs it out of this device. Restart the phone, go back to Settings, then "Passwords & accounts," then Add account, and sign in to the same Google account again. This issues the device a fresh Google ID, which is the classic, long-documented fix for stubborn error 495.
4. Switch to a different network or turn location services on. Error 495 is sometimes tied to how your network or region is checked during the download. If you are on Wi-Fi, turn it off and try the download on mobile data; if you are on mobile data, connect to a stable Wi-Fi network instead. Also open Settings, then Location, and make sure Location is turned on — there are years of user reports showing that enabling location services lets a stuck 495 download complete. Retry the download after both changes.
5. Uninstall Play Store updates to reset the store app. If the store app itself is in a bad state, clearing its data may not be enough. Open Settings, then Apps, then "See all apps," and tap Google Play Store. Tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner and choose "Uninstall updates" — this rolls the store back to its factory version. Restart the phone and wait a few minutes; the Play Store updates itself to the current version in the background. Open the store and retry the download that failed with 495.
6. Reset app preferences on the device. A misconfigured app preference — a disabled system component, a revoked default — can quietly block downloads. Open Settings, then Apps, and tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner. Choose "Reset app preferences" and confirm. This restores all default settings for every app: it re-enables disabled apps, resets default apps and background restrictions, but deletes no app data and uninstalls nothing. Restart the phone and try the download again.
7. Update Android and, as a last resort, change DNS or factory reset. Open Settings, then About phone, then System update, and install any pending Android updates. If 495 still blocks downloads, try changing your DNS: open Settings, then "Network & internet," then "Private DNS," and set it to "dns.google" (Google's public DNS) — this bypasses any ISP-level quirks affecting the download. Only if everything above has failed should you back up your photos, messages, and files and go to Settings, System, "Reset options," and choose "Erase all data (factory reset)." This is the genuine last resort for 495.

Did this fix it? Quick checklist

• The app downloads or updates without the 495 error
• Play Store, Google Play Services, and Download Manager all have fresh cache/data
• The Google account was removed and re-added to refresh the device ID
• The download was tried on both Wi-Fi and mobile data with Location on

If you've done all seven steps and downloads still fail with error 495, the remaining suspect is your Google account's state on Google's side — try downloading the app from a different device signed into the same account, or on play.google.com from a computer with the download pushed to your phone. If the Play Store on a computer also fails, wait a day and retry: rare server-side hiccups on Google's end do clear on their own. For persistent cases, contacting Google Play support with the words "error 495, stale Google ID" gives them the detail they need.