Although the browser has great functionality, some issues like Microsoft Edge not playing videos can reduce your browsing experience and make it less likely to be used.

Microsoft Edge is not what it was earlier. It has become one of the leading and most popular web browsers over the years. Due to its functionality, many users have now begun to make Edge their default browser. To be more specific, Microsoft Edge is officially the default browser in the Windows 11 OS.

However, sometimes the browser poses some issues and errors, like not playing videos and Edge not saving passwords. Although it may take some time, fixing these errors and continuing to use Edge is easier than finding a new browser, setting it as the default and importing your data.

This article contains seven fixes that can overcome the issue of Edge not saving videos. If you are one of those who face this issue, then read along.

1. Ruling Out Browser Issues

Before going to the other fixes, you should make sure that the fault is in the browser. There is no point in fixing Edge if the root cause is somewhere else.

First, check your internet connection. Make sure your connection is not interrupted and that any other user on the same network isn’t downloading any large files.

If the connection errors are clear, play a video saved on your computer that is available offline to make sure the issue is not due to a graphic card or display driver malfunction.

If all the above are clear, then let us take a look at some fixes you can take, so that you can resolve Microsoft Edge not playing videos.

2. Disabling Extensions in Edge

A corrupted or malfunctioning browser extension can be the reason for Edge not playing videos. Such extensions may interrupt and hinder the playback ability of the browser.

To fix this issue, you must disable your browser extensions. This can take some considerable time, especially if you have installed many extensions.

It would be meaningless to spend your time clearing your extensions if the issue is not one of them. Therefore, it is better to make sure that the issue is rising from an extension before starting to clear them.

The easiest way to test this is to use an InPrivate window. To open one, press the Ctrl + Shift + N or click the three-dot menu on the top-right corner of the window and select New InPrivate window. An InPrivate window opens an Edge window without any extensions.

If you find no issues while playing videos in the InPrivate window when there are no extensions, then go to edge://extensions and disable all the installed extensions. Then use the toggles to enable and disable them one by one and find out the extension that is causing the issue.

Check How to Open Extensions With Keyboard Shortcuts in Any Browser.

3. Deleting the Cache of Your Browser

The functionality of the browser can also be affected by corrupted cache data. You can try to fix this issue by deleting the cache of your browser.

To do this, follow the below steps in order:

1. Go to edge://settings.
2. Select Privacy, search and services from here.
3. Go to the Clear browsing data section.
4. Click Choose what to clear from there.
5. Set the Time range to All time.
6. Select Cached images and files.
7. Click Clear now.

4. Disabling Microsoft Defender SmartScreen

The Microsoft Defender SmartScreen in Edge scans websites before they load, which ensures a safe browsing experience. Nevertheless, the defender feature can be a little more cautious and thereby interrupt some features of Edge like playing videos.

If this issue rises, then you can turn this feature off. To do this, follow the below steps:

1. Open the Settings in the browser.
2. Select Privacy, search, and services.
3. Scroll down to Security.
4. Click on the toggle next to Microsoft Defender SmartScreen to turn it off.

5. Resetting Flags

Browser flags are experimental features that are not enabled by default. They can improve user experience by offering a wider range of customization options.

However, flags can sometimes interrupt the functionality of Microsoft Edge. Therefore, to overcome any issues risen in the browser, like Edge not playing videos, then you can reset your flags to check whether this resolves the issue.

1. Go to edge://flags.
2. Select Reset all from the top of the page.
3. Click Restart.

After re-launching the browser the flags will be reset.

6. Turning Off Hardware Acceleration

When the Hardware Acceleration feature is enabled on your PC, graphical tasks are managed and controlled by the GPU, not the CPU. This can help to avoid CPU usage but may interrupt the functionality of Edge, and thereby result in Edge not playing videos.

Check Reducing High CPU Usage in Chrome.

To disable the Hardware Acceleration feature:

1. Open the Settings menu in the browser.
2. Select System and performance.
3. Click the toggle next to Use hardware acceleration when available to turn it off.
4. Relaunch the browser.

7. Resetting Edge

If none of the above methods fixes the problem, then an inappropriate setting in the browser may be causing the issue. To overcome this, you can reset the browser. This will revert all the settings in Edge to their default values.

Note that your history, passwords and bookmarks will not be erased by resetting your browser.

These are the steps you can take to reset Edge:

1. Navigate to edge://settings.
2. Open Reset settings from the menu on the left side.
3. Click Restore settings to their default values > Reset.

Playing Videos in Microsoft Edge

Edge is becoming popular among users with each passing day. However, Edge may show some errors due to various reasons like corrupted extensions or improper customization settings. You can improve the performance of Edge while customizing it without hindering any of its functionalities.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I download Microsoft Edge?

Microsoft Edge usually comes by default with your operating system. But sometimes you may need to reinstall it to fix some issues. You can download the Microsoft Edge web browser by visiting the Microsoft Website.

What is the best web browser?

There are many web browsers that are in use today among users. However Google Chrome is supposedly the most popular one while Microsoft Edge has come forward within the past few years. In addition, Mozilla Firefox and Opera are popular among users as well.

Is Microsoft Edge Safe to Use?

Microsoft Edge has some built-in security features that filters out phishing and malware. It also natively supports hardware isolation on Windows 10 and no additional or third-party software is required to be installed for enabling this feature.