4 Ways to Fix Facebook Messenger Not Working on the Desktop

Quick Tips

• Open Settings > Privacy > Enable permissions for Camera and Microphone.
• Ensure you have enabled the required permissions for the Messenger app and web page.
• Open the browser > Settings > Privacy and Security > Clear browsing data > Clear data.

Basic Fixes

• Run Messenger app as an Admin: Search for the Messenger app on your PC and select Run as Administrator.
• Try another browser: The Windows ecosystem has many chromium browsers to choose from. You can ditch Google Chrome and go with Microsoft Edge, Firefox, Brave, or Opera to use Messenger.
• Update or reinstall Messenger app: Install the latest version of the app on your PC to get rid of bugs or glitches that may be causing the issue.
• Check Facebook messenger status: Visit DownDetector and then check if Messenger is working in your region.

Fix 1: Enable Camera and Microphone Permissions for Messenger

Disabling camera and microphone permissions will leave you with broken voice or video calls over Messenger. Here’s how you can enable relevant permission for Messenger on Windows 11.

Step 1: Open Settings > Privacy and Security.

Step 2: Select Camera under the app permissions menu and then enable access.

Step 3: Go back to open Microphone and then enable access.

Fix 2: Enable Messenger Notifications

If you face issues with getting Messenger notifications on the desktop, you need to enable the required permissions for Messenger web and Windows app.

Messenger Web

Step 1: Visit Messenger on the web.

Step 2: Select the lock icon in the address bar and open the permissions menu.

Step 3: Allow notifications from the permissions menu.

Messenger Windows 11 App

Step 1: Open Windows 11 Settings menu and then select System from the left sidebar.

Step 2: Select Notifications.

Step 3: Enable notifications for Messenger from the following menu.

Fix 3: Clear Browser Cache

If you notice frequent Messenger issues on the web, you can clear the browser cache and try again. Messenger collects cache to remember your login information. When the browser saves a corrupt cache, you may face problems with Messenger. We will use Google Chrome as an example here.

Open the browser > Settings > Privacy and Security > Clear browsing data > Clear data.

Visit Messenger on the web and then sign in with your Facebook account details.

Fix 4: Repair or Reset the Messenger App

This solution will remove all preferences and login data from the Messenger app. You will need to sign in again to your account to check if the problem is solved.

Open Settings > Apps > Apps and Features > Three dots next to Messenger > Advanced options > Repair > Reset.

Tip: If someone blocks you on Facebook, you can’t contact the person. Which trick helped you fix Messenger issues on the desktop? Share your findings with us in the comments section below.