'Minecraft' Not Installing? Why It Says "Waiting on Install" and What to Do

You sit down, ready to load up Minecraft, but instead of jumping into the game, you’re met with the dreaded “waiting on install” error. At first, you probably think nothing of it. After all, maybe the game just needs a second to load or update. As more time passes, your patience starts to grow thin. What gives?

At this point, it is normal for you to wonder: Why does Minecraft say “waiting on install” when installing and playing the game is exactly what you are trying to do? If you’ve found yourself dealing with this problem you’ve come to the right place. Keep reading and we’ll try to help you get it sorted out.

Unfortunately, this is a common problem that plagues Minecraft players. Making it worse, there isn’t a single cause. For some players, there is an issue with the launcher. Other players, however, have found conflicts with Microsoft services that caused the installation to fail. Furthermore, it is also possible that a poor internet connection or a process happening in the background of the device is causing the problem.

You can try restarting your device, reinstalling Minecraft, or just waiting for the problem to go away. You may try all three of these things and still not fix the problem. Unfortunately, the key to fixing the problem is determining what is causing it in the first place. To do that, you are going to have to explore a little trial and error.

First things first — restart everything. Sometimes, Minecraft just needs a fresh start. Close the launcher, restart your computer, and try again. If that doesn’t work, check for Windows updates, since missing updates can interfere with installations. You should also reset your internet in case that was the source of the connection error.

If you installed Minecraft through the Xbox app, that could be part of the problem. Many players have found that force-quitting the Xbox app or reinstalling it can help. Another trick is to open the Microsoft Store and see if there are any pending downloads stuck in the queue. If there are, clearing them out might allow Minecraft to install properly.

For some, signing out and back into their Microsoft account has done the trick.

While there isn’t one official fix, Minecraft support has suggested a few steps to troubleshoot installation errors. The help site recommends checking for updates, making sure the right version of the launcher is installed, and restarting the device. Some players who reached out to support were also advised to adjust their network settings to rule out connection issues.

Community discussions on Reddit and Microsoft forums show that this isn’t a new problem. Some players believe the error is linked to Microsoft account authentication, while others think it’s a launcher bug. There’s no single fix that works for everyone, but many of the solutions shared by players have helped others resolve the issue.

While dealing with this error is frustrating, most players who experience it eventually find a way around it. Hopefully, as Minecraft evolves, issues like "waiting on install" will become less common. Until then, one of these solutions will usually fix the problem.