Fix Spotify Won't Open on PC - Stuck Background Processes

You click the Spotify icon and nothing happens, or the app window flashes for a split second before vanishing. You are likely dealing with a hung background process that is preventing a fresh instance of the app from launching.

Why this happens

Spotify often leaves behind invisible background processes when it crashes or fails to shut down properly. These ghost processes block the application from starting again until they are cleared.

Steps

1. 01
   Right-click your Windows taskbar and select Task Manager.
2. 02
   Type 'Spotify' into the search bar at the top of the Task Manager window.
3. 03
   Right-click every item that appears in the list and select End task until the list is empty.
4. 04
   Open File Explorer and navigate to C:/Users/[YourUsername]/AppData/Roaming/Spotify/Users.
5. 05
   Locate the file named 'local-files.bnk' and delete it.
6. 06
   Launch Spotify from your desktop shortcut or Start menu.