How to Fix Netflix Error UI-800-3: "Information Stored on Your Device Needs Refreshing"
What Netflix error UI-800-3 means
You open Netflix on your smart TV, Roku, or Fire TV Stick and instead of your profiles you get a gray screen: "Couldn't connect to Netflix. Please try again or restart your home network and streaming device." The on-screen code is UI-800-3, and Netflix's own help page explains it this way: information stored on your device needs to be refreshed, or a network issue stopped Netflix from opening. In plain terms, the app's saved data on that particular device has gone stale or gotten corrupted, and Netflix can no longer build a working session out of it.
This error shows up almost exclusively on TVs and streaming devices — smart TVs, Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast, Blu-ray players, set-top boxes, and cable boxes — rather than phones or computers, because those devices store app data more aggressively and give you fewer ways to refresh it. You might also see it with numbers in parentheses, like UI-800-3 (205040) or UI-800-3 (100018). Those variants are the same underlying error; the number just identifies which device or platform reported it, and the fixes are identical.
The reassuring part: UI-800-3 is not an account error. Your Netflix membership, profiles, watch history, and billing are all untouched. The broken thing is only the stored data on this one device, and everything works again the moment that data is refreshed. The steps below go from the fastest fix to the more thorough ones — work through them in order and stop as soon as Netflix loads.
Common causes
- Stale or corrupted cached login data: the session token and profile data Netflix saved on your device expired or became unreadable — by far the most common trigger, and the one the error message is describing.
- Corrupted app files after an update: a Netflix app or device firmware update that didn't install cleanly can leave mismatched stored data behind, and the app can't reconcile the old data with the new version.
- Device put to sleep instead of restarted: months of standby mode let temporary session state pile up without ever being flushed. Netflix works fine for ages, then the stale state finally breaks the login.
- A network issue stopping Netflix from opening: sometimes the stored data is fine and it's actually the connection — a router glitch, a dropped DNS lookup, or a VPN/proxy interfering with the handshake.
- An abandoned built-in app on an old TV: smart TVs that stopped getting firmware updates years ago run old Netflix builds whose stored-data format no longer matches what Netflix's servers expect.
How to fix Netflix error UI-800-3 — step by step
Work through these fixes in order. Steps 1–2 clear the majority of UI-800-3 cases; steps 3–6 cover the stubborn ones.
- Power-cycle your device completely. Don't just put the TV or streaming box to sleep — standby mode keeps the stored data exactly as it is. Unplug your smart TV, Roku, Fire TV Stick, Chromecast, Blu-ray player, or set-top box from the wall. Leave it unplugged for at least 15 seconds (a full minute is better), then plug it back in and open Netflix again. This wipes the temporary session state from memory and lets the device build a fresh connection to Netflix.
- Sign out of Netflix and sign back in. Open the Netflix app and go to Settings (or the Get Help menu) to find the Sign Out option. On many TVs you can reach a hidden Sign Out button with your remote: press Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, Up, Up, Up, Up. Confirm the sign-out, close the app, then sign back in with your email and password. This forces Netflix to issue a brand-new session token and pulls down fresh profile data.
- Clear the Netflix app cache and data. On Android TV, Fire TV, and other Android-based devices, go to Settings > Applications > Manage Installed Applications > Netflix, then choose Clear Cache first and retry. If the error stays, choose Clear Data — this resets the app completely, so you will need to sign in again. On most Roku, Apple TV, and built-in smart TV Netflix apps there is no cache option, so skip ahead to the reinstall step.
- Uninstall and reinstall the Netflix app. If clearing data is not available or did not help, remove Netflix entirely from the device and reinstall it from the device's app store or channel store. On Roku, highlight the Netflix channel, press the star (*) button, and choose Remove channel, then re-add it from the Channel Store. A clean reinstall replaces every stored file, including any corrupted ones the cache clear could not touch.
- Check the network and restart your home equipment. Because UI-800-3 can also be caused by a network problem stopping Netflix from opening, restart your modem and router: unplug both for 30 seconds, plug the modem back in first and wait until its lights are steady, then plug the router back in. Then reconnect the device to your home Wi-Fi (forget and rejoin the network if it was already connected). Try a wired ethernet connection if the TV is far from the router, and disable any VPN or proxy running on the router.
- Update the device firmware and the Netflix app. An outdated app or TV firmware can fail to exchange fresh data with Netflix's current servers. On your TV or streaming device, go to Settings > System > Software Update and install any pending update. Then open the device's app store and check for a Netflix app update. On older TVs that no longer receive firmware updates, consider moving Netflix to a cheap streaming stick instead — the TV's built-in app is often abandoned by the manufacturer long before Netflix changes how it talks to devices.
Did this fix it? Quick checklist
- The device was fully unplugged from the wall for 15+ seconds — not just put to sleep
- You signed out of Netflix and signed back in with fresh credentials
- The Netflix app's data was cleared (Clear Data) or the app was fully reinstalled
- A title loads without the "Couldn't connect to Netflix" screen appearing
If UI-800-3 survives all of this, something deeper on the device is interfering. Run a factory reset on the TV or streaming box as a last resort — this returns the built-in Netflix app to a clean state and clears every trace of the old data. If the error appears on every device in the house while other sites and apps work fine, the connection itself may be the problem: restart your home network once more and, if it persists, reach Netflix through their help center chat.
Frequently asked questions
What does Netflix error UI-800-3 mean?
It means the information Netflix stored on your device — cached login data, profile data, and session tokens — is outdated or corrupted, so the app cannot properly connect to Netflix. Netflix's own help page phrases it as "information stored on your device needs to be refreshed," and occasionally "a network issue stopped Netflix from opening." It is not an account problem: your membership, profiles, and watch history are untouched.
What do the extra numbers like UI-800-3 (205000) mean?
Variants such as UI-800-3 (100018), (205000), (205040), and (100061) are the same underlying error — stale or corrupted stored device data — with the number in parentheses identifying which device or platform reported it. The fixes are identical for every variant: power-cycle the device, sign out and back in, clear or delete the app data, and reinstall if needed.
Why does UI-800-3 keep coming back after I sign back in?
Because signing in again without clearing the old data just re-downloads into the same corrupted container. If the error returns, go one level deeper: power-cycle the device with a full unplug, use Clear Data (not just Clear Cache) on the Netflix app, or fully uninstall and reinstall it. On Fire TV and Android TV, the corrupted data can also live in the device's own system cache, which is why a full power cycle matters.
Is UI-800-3 the same as NW-2-5?
No, though they look alike on screen. NW-2-5 is a network timeout — your device cannot reach Netflix's servers through your internet connection. UI-800-3 is about the data already stored on the device being stale or corrupted. Restarting the network fixes NW-2-5; refreshing the stored data — sign out, clear data, reinstall — fixes UI-800-3.
Can I fix UI-800-3 on a TV where I can't sign out or uninstall Netflix?
Yes. On TVs with no visible Sign Out option, use the remote-button sequence on the Netflix home screen: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, Up, Up, Up, Up. On TVs where Netflix is preinstalled and cannot be removed, a full power cycle — unplug the TV from the wall for a full minute — is often enough to clear the stored session. As a last resort, factory-reset the TV, which returns the built-in Netflix app to a clean state.