ChatGPT Won’t Respond | Quick Fix Guide

Why ChatGPT Won’t Respond: Common Causes

When the chat window stalls or the typing cursor blinks forever, the root cause usually falls into a short list. The service can be down or degraded. Your account can be bumping into rate limits. A browser extension can be blocking scripts or cookies. Local cache or stale cookies can break sessions. A VPN, captive Wi-Fi, or strict DNS can interfere with requests. A device clock mismatch or a corrupted app install can also derail the page. The fix is to confirm service health first, then isolate your browser and network, and finally trim heavy usage patterns.

Fast Triage Flow

Start with status checks, then isolate your device and browser, and finally tune account usage. This sequence saves time and catches the most common snags first.

Symptom-To-Cause Map

Symptom	Likely Cause	Quick Check
Blank reply area or spinner	Service outage or network drop	Open the status page and run a quick speed test
“Something went wrong” banner	Temporary server hiccup or local cache issue	Refresh, start a new chat, or use a private window
No send action when pressing Enter	Extension conflict or cookie rule	Disable extensions or allow third-party cookies for the site
429 or “Too many requests”	Rate limit or bursty prompts	Wait a minute and retry with a shorter message
Works on phone but not desktop	Desktop cache or profile problem	Sign out on desktop, clear site data, sign in again
App freezes on launch	Outdated build or corrupted install	Update or reinstall the app

Check Service Health And Account State

Open the official status dashboard to see live incidents, maintenance, or partial outages. If ChatGPT shows active incidents, you may see slow replies, blank screens, missing history, or sporadic features. Subscribe to updates if you depend on the tool for time-sensitive work. If the dashboard shows normal service and chats still freeze, move on to usage and browser checks.

Usage spikes can trigger rate limits, which appear as 429 messages or silent drops. Short bursts, extra-long prompts, and heavy file uploads can hit ceilings even when you do not expect it. Back off for a minute, trim context, or split a task. When the page regains normal speed, continue with smaller chunks. Teams should avoid script-driven bursts under a shared login and spread requests across time windows.

Watch for patterns. If you retry the same heavy prompt again and again, the page may recycle the same error. A brief pause with a trimmed prompt often clears the path.

Fix Browser Conflicts And Cookies

Privacy tools and content blockers can stop the scripts the app uses to send and receive messages. Open a private window, sign in, and send a short test prompt like “hello.” If replies return, the issue lives in your main profile. Turn off extensions that affect scripts, ad blocking, content security, or DNS. Add an allow-list rule for the site. In Chrome, visit Settings → Privacy and security → Third-party cookies and confirm the site can set cookies. In Firefox, set Enhanced Tracking Protection to Standard for the site. In Safari, disable content blockers for the page and test again.

Old cache or cookies can break session tokens or CSRF checks. Clear site data only for the domain to avoid wiping other sessions. Sign out, clear data, close the browser, and launch again. If you use multiple Chrome profiles, try a clean profile with zero extensions to rule out hidden conflicts. On managed devices, check whether a policy enforces strict cookie rules or blocks third-party scripts.

Repair A Stuck Page

If the page loads but the send button does not fire, reload without cache. On Windows, press Ctrl+F5. On macOS, press Cmd+Shift+R. If the page still stalls, open the browser console and scan for blocked requests or extension errors. A single red entry can point to the blocker. Turn that tool off and retry.

Network And Device Checks

Move from shaky Wi-Fi to a steady connection. Toggle Airplane Mode on a phone to reset radios. Café or airport Wi-Fi often hides a captive portal that breaks long requests. Open a random news site to trigger the portal page and accept the terms. VPNs can route traffic through regions with strict bot filters, which can throttle sessions. Turn the VPN off, test, then pick a different exit region if you must use a tunnel. If you use custom DNS, switch to your ISP’s default for a quick test to rule out filtering.

Large uploads or streaming on the same network can starve interactive traffic. Pause cloud backups and video streams while you test. If you run a local proxy, turn it off during checks. Time drift can also break secure sessions. Match your device clock to network time and try again. If replies resume, you found the culprit.

When ChatGPT Does Not Respond: Quick Checks

Here is a compact checklist that covers the widest share of stalled chats. Move down the list in order. Stop when replies return.

1. Open the status dashboard and scan active incidents.
2. Start a private window and send a one-line prompt.
3. Disable extensions that block scripts or cookies.
4. Allow third-party cookies for the site, then retry.
5. Clear site data, sign out, close the browser, relaunch, sign in.
6. Try a second device or mobile data to isolate the network.
7. Shorten the prompt and pause one minute between retries.
8. Update the app or reinstall if the mobile build keeps freezing.

Deeper Fixes For Persistent Silence

Reduce Prompt Size And Attachment Load

Long chats with huge pastes or many images can overload context. Split the work into stages. Start with a shorter brief. Feed files only when needed. If replies return, you found a size ceiling. Keep each step lean to keep replies flowing.

Regain A Clean Session

Log out on every device where you use the same account. Wait a minute. Log in on one device only and retry. This clears token clashes that can show up when multiple tabs push requests at once.

Profile Reset Without Data Loss

Create a fresh browser profile with no extensions. Sign in and test. If chats work, migrate only the extensions you trust. Keep the new profile for AI work to avoid repeat clashes.

Mobile App Tweaks

On iOS or Android, clear the app cache from system settings. Toggle background refresh. Check that battery savers are not killing network calls in the background. If the app still stalls, delete and reinstall from the official store.

Outage Awareness And Safe Workarounds

Large waves of usage can cause regional slowdowns, partial outages, or login issues across the web app and APIs. During those windows, replies may hang or drop mid-stream. Save drafts often and keep a light offline plan for key tasks. If voice or image tools stall while plain chat works, switch to the stable path to finish the task, then retry the rich feature later.

When status updates confirm an incident, avoid rapid retries. That traffic adds load and can trigger rate limits. Set a short backoff interval and queue small tasks. Teams can shift to email or shared docs for handoffs until the dashboard clears.

Privacy Tools, DNS, And Firewalls

Some privacy suites inject content filters that break large requests. Whitelist the site in those tools. If you manage a router firewall, allow long-polling and WebSocket traffic. Enterprise networks may block unknown AI domains by policy, which can stall the page with no clear error. Ask the admin to allow the needed endpoints for a short test window to confirm the cause.

Reference Links For Quick Checks

Monitor live incidents on the OpenAI status page. For common page errors and clean-up steps, see the official troubleshooting guide. These two sources align with the fixes listed here and explain the most frequent messages you will see.

Browser Fixes By Platform

Platform	Where To Tweak	What To Change
Chrome	Settings → Privacy and security	Allow third-party cookies for the site; clear site data
Firefox	Shield icon on the address bar	Set site protection to Standard; turn off strict blocking for the session
Safari	Settings → Safari	Turn off content blockers for the site; test with Cross-Site Tracking control adjusted
Edge	Settings → Cookies and site permissions	Allow third-party cookies; turn off Tracking prevention for the site
iOS App	iOS Settings → General → iPhone Storage	Offload or delete the app, then reinstall
Android App	Settings → Apps → Storage	Clear cache and data; reinstall from Play Store

Care Tips To Prevent Stalls

Keep a light browser profile for AI work. Avoid stacking many content filters at once. Update your browser monthly. Use a steady network when you draft long replies. Keep prompts tight and split bulky tasks. Save long chats to notes or docs so you can recover after a refresh. Keep the mobile app current, and review extension lists every few months.

When To Contact Support

If replies stop across every device and network while the dashboard shows no incidents, collect simple diagnostics before you reach out. Capture a timestamp, browser version, a screenshot of the console, and the last steps you took. Send those details with your ticket so the agent can reproduce the stall. If your account shows repeated 429 messages even with short prompts and long gaps, include that pattern in the ticket as well.

One-Page Checklist You Can Save

1) Check the status page. 2) Private window test. 3) Turn off extensions. 4) Allow cookies. 5) Clear site data, relaunch. 6) Switch network or device. 7) Shorter prompt with a pause. 8) Update or reinstall the app. With these steps, most “ChatGPT won’t respond” moments clear fast.