How-To

How to Fix Disney Plus Not Working in Chrome

By Ben Stockton

Published March 11, 2024

Having trouble with streaming your favorite Disney Plus content in Chrome not working? Troubleshoot the problem using the steps in this guide.

There are several different ways you can enjoy watching Disney Plus at home. If you’re sitting at your PC, you can watch it from your web browser, but only if it’s working properly. If Disney Plus isn’t working on Chrome, you’ll need to figure out why and fix the problem to get your Marvel or Star Wars fix.

Thankfully, there are a few obvious causes for Disney Plus not working on your Chrome browser. You can check out some of the fixes I’d try in this situation below.

Check Your Internet Connection

A bad internet connection is enough to prevent you from streaming your Disney Plus content. You’ll need to check that your internet connection is stable enough to stream with.

You can do this by visiting a speed test website, like the free speed test offered by Netflix. If the speed falls below the minimum speed requirements for Disney Plus, you may need to troubleshoot the connection or consider an upgrade. If you should have a connection that meets these requirements, you’ll need to investigate further.

For instance, if other devices on your Wi-Fi network are also experiencing connectivity issues, it could indicate a problem with your router or ISP. You can restart your router by disconnecting it from power for a minute and then reconnecting it.

If your connection is over Wi-Fi, consider switching to a wired connection to stabilize your internet. Wired connections reduce interference and often provide a more reliable network connection for streaming content.

Contact your ISP if restarting your router or switching to a wired connection doesn’t resolve the issue. Your ISP can confirm if outages or service issues are impacting your area.

Clear Your Chrome Browser Cache

If Disney+ isn’t working on your Chrome browser, clear your browser cache. This should fix any unusual errors with the Disney+ website and force the site to reload, but you’ll need to sign in again afterward.

To clear your Chrome browser cache, follow these steps.

1. Open Chrome and click the three-dots menu icon in the top-right.
2. From the drop-down menu, click the Clear browsing data.
   
3. A new tab will appear—make sure to select All time from the Time range drop-down menu.
4. Check the boxes next to Cookies and other site data, Cached images and files, and any other cache items you want to clear.
5. Click Clear data to complete the process, then restart your browser.
   

Once you’ve cleared your cache, open the Disney+ website again and sign in. As Chrome’s cache is empty, the site should reload fully.

Disable (or Enable) Hardware Acceleration in Chrome

If you’re trying to stream Disney Plus content in a high resolution (HD, 4K, or higher), your PC is going to need the necessary system resources to do it. To help you, you can use hardware acceleration in Chrome to help fix any streaming issues.

However, you may also need to disable this feature if you see your PC slowing down too much during streaming. Test Disney+ with and without hardware acceleration enabled in Chrome to see if the problem is resolved. To disable or enable hardware acceleration in Chrome, follow these steps.

1. Open Chrome and press the three-dot menu icon in the top-right.
2. From the menu, select Settings.
   
3. Select System from the menu panel on the left.
   
4. Click the Use hardware acceleration when available slider to either On or Off, depending on whether you’re trying to enable or disable it.
   
5. If you’ve changed the setting, Chrome will prompt you to restart your browser—confirm this by clicking Relaunch.

If your videos are still not playing smoothly after disabling (or enabling) hardware acceleration, then return to this menu and restore the setting you had enabled previously.

Disable Energy Saving or Memory Saving Modes in Chrome

Chrome has several built-in energy-saving or memory-saving features that may cause Disney Plus to stop working properly. These include throttling bandwidth and system resource usage.

Disabling these features might fix any Disney+ problems that you’re having. To disable energy-saving or memory-saving features in Chrome, follow these steps.

1. Open Chrome.
2. Click the three-dot menu icon > Settings.
   
3. Select Performance in the left-hand panel.
4. On the right, click the Memory saver slider, switching the slider to the Off position to disable it. Alternatively, if you’re on a laptop, click the Energy saver slider and switch it to Off instead.
   

Disabling memory or energy saving in Chrome will mean that the browser no longer restricts itself to save battery life or limit memory usage. If you’re on a laptop, this might lead to increased energy usage (and reduced battery capacity), so make sure to keep an eye on your usage as you’re streaming.

Fixing Disney Plus Issues in Chrome

If Disney Plus isn’t working in Chrome for you, don’t panic—one of the steps above should help to fix the problem. If all else fails, however, you can always switch to another browser (or device) to enjoy your favorite Disney Plus series next.

Decided to switch to another browser? You can export your Chrome bookmarks and take them with you. They should import into other Chrome-based browsers like Microsoft Edge easily.