Youtube App video freezes but audio continues on Chromecast TV 4k

[kenrblan1901]

I am having a frustrating experience with the Youtube app on my Chromcast TV 4k recently. This only happens in the Youtube app. Videos will start but then freeze on a frame while the audio continues to play and then eventually stops. Sometimes pausing and unpausing causes the video to resume but only briefly before another freeze. Manually changing playback to the lowest setting doesn't resolve the issue. Restarting the Chromecast device does not resolve the issue. Clearing the application storage and cache doesn't resolve the issue. Uninstalling and reinstalling the app does not resolve the issue. Performing a hard power off and power on of the device doesn't help either. There is no way this is a bandwidth issue because I can stream 4k live video flawlessly in the YoutubeTV app with no buffering. If I turn on stats for nerds, it seem pretty obvious that the app just gets to a state where it is not downloading stream content to fill the buffer. I can monitor real-time bandwidth consumption using my wifi router and just see it have very little activity. In comparison, the the YoutubeTV (live cable tv replacement) app consistently uses 20 Mbps downloading bandwidth with no stutters buffering and flawless play.

This seems to probably be an application issue specific to the chromecast.
Device and App details follow.

Android TV OS version 14
Android TV OS security patch level October 1, 2025
Kernel version 5.15.170-android14-xx-gf4a1f03072af #1 Tue Sep 9 06:16:23 UTC 2025 (redacted -11- before gf because the post was blocked for some dumb reason of 14- that number being in the post)
Android TV OS build UTTC.250917.004.14193937
YouTube App version 5.0.317

[AshleyB]

Hi @kenrblan1901,

Thank you for posting in the community. I’m sorry to hear about the freezing issues you’re experiencing with the YouTube app on your Chromecast with Google TV (4K). I know how frustrating it is to deal with video playback interruptions, especially when you’ve already confirmed your network is performing well with other services.

I appreciate the detailed information regarding the device versions and the troubleshooting steps you’ve already completed, such as clearing the cache and reinstalling the app. I’m happy to assist you further.

To narrow this down, I’d like to know a few more details:

• Does the issue occur on all videos or only specific content (e.g., 4K, HDR, or certain channels)?
• When did the issue start, and was there any recent app or system update prior to this?
• Is the Chromecast connected via 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi or Ethernet (if applicable)?
• Are there any other devices experiencing similar issues with the YouTube app on the same network?

Keep me posted; I’ll be waiting for your response.

Best regards,

Ashley

[kenrblan1901]

I have found no specific correlation to video resolution or content producers. When the issue is at its worst, even manually setting the playback to 360p exhibits the same issue. Even while demonstrating full 4k playback on other apps. 

As far as timing, this seemed to become an issue about 2 or 3 weeks ago and did present on separate chromecast tv devices on the same network. I'm unaware of any specific app or system update as the Chromecast devices are all on the latest version and had been for quite a while. 

These devices are set to automatically negotiate with wi-fi band as my wi-fi network supports both 2.4 Ghz and 5 Ghz. These devices all happen to join on the 5 Ghz band.

Youtube app on mobile device or Windows based laptop running Chrome are unaffected. Even when comparing the same content that is glitching at a specific time.

At this point, I suspect it is a combination issue of an application specific bug on the chomecast Youtube app potentially related to pulling data from the Youtube Content Distribution Network (CDN).

[AshleyB]

Hi @kenrblan1901,

Thanks for the reply. With the information provided, I am happy to continue helping you. I have listed additional troubleshooting steps below to help resolve the issue; please try them and let me know how it goes:

• Update the Device: Ensure the Chromecast is fully updated to the latest system version (Settings > System > About > System update).
• Update the App: Check for updates specifically for the YouTube app via the Google Play Store.
• Force Stop: Force stop the YouTube app and relaunch it (Settings > Apps > YouTube > Force Stop).
• Test Casting: Try casting YouTube from a mobile device to see if the issue persists outside the native app.
• Network Swap: Try switching to a different network (e.g., a mobile hotspot) to rule out any network-level anomalies.
• Switch Accounts: If available, test with a different Google account on the YouTube app to rule out account-specific issues.

Keep me posted; I’ll be waiting for your response.

Best regards,

Ashley

[Feech22]

Love how all you CS reps know is copy and paste answers instead of giving us answers as to why your YouTube software blows and keeps having issues.  Wish I could have your job.  You have no real skills other than Ctrl-C and Ctrl-V.

[vonelliott]

I am experiencing the same issue. 

Youtube app version: 6.49.311

This is on a regular Chromecast, not 4k. 

Issue appeared over the past week or two. At first I thought it was a network issue... But I have updated and reset everything and the issue still persists. 

Just uninstalled and reinstalled the YouTube app on the Chromecast and issue happened immediately. 

[mbrehme]

Same for me

[Patrick033]

Same 3 - been doing it for the past 3 days. Freezes the first frame of video but keeps playing audio for every single video chosen. If you seek backwards and press play it will work, but defaults to the 360p stream quality.

[vonelliott]

Some more detail - the image seems to freeze about 10 seconds into the video (with audio continuing). I can manually go back a few seconds, see the spinning 'loading' graphic for about 15 seconds, then it starts playing at 360p, then I can go into the settings and put it back on 1080p. Last night it did this for every video I tried playing.

[mbrehme]

Exactly the same on my side. I am currently factory resetting my Google tv as clearing the cache for YouTube did not work 

[mbrehme]

Problem still exist 

[ZliGrl]

Its happening here as well. Just started freezing but the audio plays on. It was working perfectly for over 6 months until the past few days. 

[ZliGrl]

I updated Google tv Ambiance Mode and Android System WebView then Force Stop YouTube and the movie played flawless after that. Coincidence or not, appears to be fixed or intermittent.  

[Boy10]

Only way I've been able to fix it is factory reset, and a week later it's happening again 😭

[beta-tester]

Exact same issue:  Several seconds in, the video freezes but audio continues. When I check the resolution, it is ALWAYS set to 320p.  I manually change it to 1080p and the video continues fine.

This happens for EVERY video I watch.  As soon as the video starts, I go to the resolution settings and see that it is set to 320p. Once I set it to 1080p, it will always resume playing.

My Chromecast and YouTube app are both on the most recent version available.

[Fory]

Same issue. 

When I drag and drop mp4 file to chrome, the audio works fine, but the video freeze. disabling hardware acceleration don't help, not MTU change, not clearing cache, nor using incognito window, nor disabling all the extensions . I have 4 computers. 2 Mac and 2 Windows. All have the same symptom except for my work PC (Windows) which is managed by our company IT. Somehow my work PC works just fine. All of my 4 computers  used to work. 

[Fory]

FYI. I have 3 chromecast devices. They all have the same symptom.  Somehow my work PC works for all of these 3 chromecast just fine,  The browser version is "Version 147.0.7727.138 (Official Build) (x86_64)" for all these computers I have.

They started giving a symptom about 7-8 months ago. I am an IT engineer. I have been trying all kinds of solutions. Tried with Ubuntu 24.04 didn't help, showing the same symptom. 

[Fory]

I changed Chromecast setting -> Display -> Match content frame rate to "yes". Didn't help

[Fory]

Also toggled "Allow game mode" on or off. That didn't help eitehr 

[Fory]

FYI, if the video has the "chromecast icon" overlay on top of the video such as YouTube, I can click that icon and works fine for all of my computers. My problem is when that icon is not present, the "screen tab" on the top right of  a browser to display video doesn't work.

[beta-tester]

The issue appears to have been resolved. I no longer have any problems with video freezing or resolution changing.

I do not think there has been any update to the device or app, so I'm guessing this was a server side issue.

[vonelliott]

I'm watching YouTube right now and it is literally happening on every video that I try to play. It's making the app unusable. Every once in awhile. I will freeze a second time part way through the video and I have to backtrack and reset the resolution again. 

[Jksd818]

Echoing what everyone has said. Starts off great, 5 seconds later video freezes but audio continues. I can manually change the video resolution back to 1080p and it works, but I should not have to be messing with that. It started doing this all of a sudden in the last 2 weeks. 

[Jeeman23]

Same here.  Tried everything including factory reset and doesn’t fix it.  It has been working fine for 3-4 years!

[Fox3]

Mohammed a dahi

[Fox3]

Fffffffffffffffffffffff

[KeeganBuilds]

Thought I was the only one and losing my mind. Is this google trying to sunset their chromecast devices? Just piss us off to the point of using the apps only? The app on my samsung tv is fine, but the chromecast (which I prefer) is just freezing after 5 seconds. I had a little work around by manually selecting  the resolution and it would finally play. But now it looks like that's no longer working