How to Fix the Microsoft Store Not Working on Windows 11

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Ankit Kumar
Windows 11TroubleshootingAppsFix

The Problem

The Microsoft Store will not open, closes instantly, sits on a blank white page, or downloads hang at Pending. Common codes: 0x80131500, 0x80073D12, 0x80072EFD, 0x80072F8F, 0x80070005.

This is nearly always a corrupt Store cache, a broken app registration, a stopped background service, or a clock that is wrong. It is almost never a reason to reinstall Windows.

Store apps crashing instead? See fix an app crashing or not opening. Downloads failing because updates are stuck? Check Windows Update stuck.

What the Error Code Tells You

| Code | Meaning | Go to | |---|---|---| | 0x80131500 | Generic connection failure | Steps 1, 2, 6 | | 0x80072EFD / 0x80072F8F | Network or certificate/clock problem | Steps 1, 6 | | 0x80073D12 | Dependency or package problem | Steps 4, 5 | | 0x80070005 | Permissions | Step 5, then a new profile | | Stuck at Pending | Account token or queue | Steps 2, 3 |

Step 1: Fix the Clock First

A wrong date or time breaks the TLS handshake to Microsoft's servers, and it produces a confusing generic error rather than saying so.

  1. Settings → Time & language → Date & time.
  2. Turn on Set time automatically and Set time zone automatically.
  3. Click Sync now.
  4. Check the region under Time & language → Language & region matches your account.

This is the single most common cause after a CMOS battery replacement or a dual-boot with Linux.

Step 2: Reset the Store Cache

  1. Press Win + R, type wsreset.exe, press Enter.
  2. A blank Command Prompt window opens for around 30 seconds—do not close it.
  3. The Store launches automatically when it finishes.

Step 3: Sign Out and Back In

Open the Store → click your profile picture → Sign out → close the Store → reopen and sign in.

This clears a stale account token, which is what usually causes downloads to sit at Pending indefinitely. While you are there, check Settings in the Store and confirm App updates is on.

Step 4: Repair, Then Reset the App

  1. Settings → Apps → Installed apps.
  2. Find Microsoft Store → ⋯ → Advanced options.
  3. Click Terminate, then Repair (which keeps your data). Test.
  4. Still broken? Return and click Reset—this clears the cache and sign-in state.

Step 5: Re-register the Store

In Terminal (Admin):

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers Microsoft.WindowsStore | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

If the Store package is missing entirely, reinstall it along with its dependencies:

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers | Where-Object {$_.Name -like "*Store*"} | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

Restart afterwards.

Step 6: Check the Services It Depends On

  1. Win + R → services.msc.
  2. Confirm each of these is Running, with startup type Automatic or Manual—not Disabled:
    • Microsoft Store Install Service (InstallService)
    • Windows Update (wuauserv)
    • Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS)
    • Cryptographic Services (CryptSvc)
    • App Readiness
  3. Right-click anything stopped → Start.

If someone previously "optimised" Windows by disabling services, this is very often where the Store broke.

Step 7: Clear Proxy and Network Filters

  1. Settings → Network & internet → Proxy → turn everything off unless your workplace requires it.
  2. Disconnect any VPN and test.
  3. Reset the network stack in Terminal (Admin):
netsh winsock reset

ipconfig /flushdns

Restart afterwards.

If the error points at the network, work through DNS server not responding.

Step 8: Run the Troubleshooter and Repair System Files

  1. Settings → System → Troubleshoot → Other troubleshooters → Windows Store Apps → Run.
  2. Then in Terminal (Admin):
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

sfc /scannow

Restart. Details: repair Windows 11 with SFC and DISM.

Step 9: Clear a Stuck Download Queue

When downloads are permanently pending:

  1. Stop the Store: Settings → Apps → Microsoft Store → Advanced options → Terminate.
  2. In Terminal (Admin):
net stop wuauserv

net stop bits

ren %windir%\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old

net start bits

net start wuauserv
  1. Restart and retry the download.

What Not to Do

  • Don't uninstall the Microsoft Store with PowerShell. Reinstalling it cleanly afterwards is genuinely painful and sometimes requires an in-place upgrade.
  • Don't disable Windows Update to speed things up—the Store delivers app packages through it.
  • Don't run blanket Remove-AppxPackage commands from debloat scripts. They are how most of these cases start.

Still Not Working?

A corrupt user profile blocks the Store while everything else works. Create a new local account (Settings → Accounts → Other users → Add account) and test there. If the Store works in the new profile, the original profile is the fault—see fix "signed in with a temporary profile".

If it fails in a fresh profile too, run an in-place repair install keeping files and apps: reinstall Windows without losing data.

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