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Screen flickering or glitching on Galaxy phone or tablet

The screen flickering or glitching on your Galaxy phone or tablet can stem from multiple causes including screen damage, outdated software, app conflicts, or underlying bugs. To resolve these issues, inspect the device, check for software updates, adjust the display settings, and reset problematic apps if needed. 
Person holding a Samsung Galaxy phone with a glitching screen showing vertical lines over the home screen.
Person holding a Samsung Galaxy phone with a glitching screen showing vertical lines over the home screen.

Screen flickering or glitching on Galaxy phone or tablet

Note
If there has been any sort of damage to the device, please visit a Samsung walk-in service center or you can schedule a repair service online.

Checkpoint

Check for screen flickers in the Camera app
Check for screen flickers in the Camera app
1

Open the Camera app while indoors.

While indoors, navigate to and open the Camera app.

Camera app icon selected from the Home screen on a Galaxy phone. 

2

Record a video.

Video shooting modes selected in the Camera app on a Galaxy phone. 

  • Video mode: From the app, swipe right to and tap Video, and then tap the SuperSteady icon. Tap record to start recording.

  • Pro video mode: From the app, swipe right to and tap More, and then tap Pro Video. Tap SPEED, set the short shutter speed to 1/125, and then tap record to start recording.
3

Check for screen flickering.

In some indoor environments, you may notice a flickering black line while recording a video with Super Steady mode or a short shutter speed in Pro video mode. This is caused by the indoor lighting and is not an indication of an issue with the phone.

Modern lighting frequently uses fluorescent or LED-based bulbs that flicker on and off very quickly. This happens so quickly that the human eye perceives it as a steady light. When a camera, such as the one on your Galaxy device, uses a shutter speed faster than this flicker, it may appear that the image is flickering or as a black bar that travels across the image. 

To prevent this effect, try the following:

  • Add more light to the scene.
  • Disable Super steady. Super steady mode uses a very fast shutter speed. 
  • If you are using Pro Video mode, you'll likely see this phenomenon begin at speeds faster than 1/125. Adjust the shutter speed slower until the artifact disappears.
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Restart your phone or tablet
Restart your phone or tablet
1

Open the Power menu.

Power off icon highighted in the Quick panel on a Galaxy phone

First, open the Power menu:

  • On devices with a regular Power button, press and hold the Power button until the Power menu is displayed.
  • On devices without a dedicated Power button, swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen to open the Quick settings panel. Tap the Power icon at the top of the screen.

2

Restart the device.

Tap Restart, tap Restart again, and then wait for your device to reboot.

Restart icon highlighted on a Galaxy phone.

3

Test your device.

Try using your phone or tablet normally and see if the issue has been resolved.
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Check for software and app updates on your phone or tablet
Check for software and app updates on your phone or tablet
Note
Available screens and settings may vary by wireless service provider, software version, and model.
1

Check for software updates.

Software update menu highlighted in the Settings on a Galaxy phone.

Navigate to and open the device's Settings, and then swipe to and tap Software update or System updates. Next, tap Download and installCheck for system updates, or Check for software updates, depending on your carrier. If an update is available it should begin downloading automatically although you may need to tap Download now on some devices.

 

2

Check for app updates.

Updates icon selected in the Galaxy Store on a Galaxy phone.
  • Galaxy Store: Open the Galaxy Store, and then tap Menu (the three horizontal lines) in the bottom right corner. Tap Updates, and then tap Update app to install all available updates.
  • Play Store: Open the Play Store, tap your profile picture, and then tap Manage apps & device. Tap Updates available, and then tap Update all to install all available updates. 
3

Test your device.

Try using your phone or tablet normally and see if the issue has been resolved.
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Adjust the display settings on your phone or tablet
Adjust the display settings on your phone or tablet
1

Open the Display settings.

Swipe down from the top right corner of the screen with two fingers to open the Quick panel, and then tap the Settings icon. Swipe to and tap Display.
2

Adjust the Display settings.

Display menu on a Galaxy phone.

Try adjusting the following Display settings: 

  • Turn off Dark mode or Night mode.
  • Turn off the switch next to Adaptive brightness. To manually make the screen brighter, slide the brightness bar to the right.
  • Tap Motion smoothness, and then tap Standard. However, if the screen flickers or glitches when charging the device, make sure the charging connection is secure, and set the Motion smoothest to Adaptive.
Note
Available screens and settings may vary by wireless service provider, software version, and model.
3

Test your device.

Try using your phone or tablet normally and see if the issue has been resolved.
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Optimize the storage space on your phone or tablet
Optimize the storage space on your phone or tablet
1

Navigate to Device care.

Swipe down from the top right corner of the screen with two fingers to open the Quick panel, and then tap SettingsSwipe to and tap Device care.
2

Optimize your device.

Optimize now option selected in Device care  from Settings on a Galaxy phone.
Tap Optimize now to improve your overall performance by closing running apps, scanning for abnormal power usage, wasted storage space, and unstable or malicious apps. If you don't have the option to optimize the device is already in an optimal condition.
3

Clean your device’s storage.

Device care internal storage menu in Settings on a Galaxy phone.

From the Device care menu, tap Storage. Then, tap your desired file category such as Images, Videos, Audio files, Documents, etc. Next, touch and hold your desired file to select it, or tap All at the top of the screen to select all of the files. Tap Delete or Delete all, and then tap Move to Trash to confirm.

To empty the Trash, tap Trash from the bottom of the Storage screen, and then tap a folder in the Trash menu. Tap the More option (the three vertical dots) icon in the top right corner, tap Empty, and then tap Delete.

4

Clean your device’s memory.

Memory management screen on a Samsung phone displaying 2.5 GB available with a 'Clean now' button to free up an additional 1.2 GB by closing background apps.
From the Device care menu, tap Memory, and then tap Clean now to free up memory and stop background apps from slowing down your device.

If you would like to keep certain apps running, you can tap Excluded apps, and then tap Add (the plus sign) to select your desired apps.

Screen of a Samsung phone showing memory settings with options including 'Excluded apps' highlighted, and a section labeled 'RAM Plus' with 8 GB.

5

Test your device.

Try using your phone or tablet normally and see if the issue has been resolved.
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Boot the device into Safe mode
Boot the device into Safe mode
1

Learn about Safe mode.

Certain downloaded apps can make your phone or tablet freeze, crash, or lag. Some apps can even affect camera functionality, cause audio issues, and affect network connectivity.

Using Safe mode disables all downloaded apps and loads only the original software that came with your phone or tablet, allowing you to determine if the issue is caused by an app or with the device itself.

If the issues do not appear while in Safe mode, the problem is caused by a downloaded app, and it should be uninstalled.

Important
If you have a security feature set up on the phone or tablet, you'll be required to enter your credentials once the phone or tablet reboots.
2

Reboot the phone or tablet in Safe mode.

First, open the Power menu:

  • On devices with a regular Power button, press and hold the Power button until the Power menu is displayed.
  • On devices without a dedicated Power button, swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen to open the Quick settings panel. Tap the Power icon at the top of the screen.

Touch and hold Power off until the Safe mode icon is displayed. Tap Safe mode to start your device in Safe mode. If you've entered Safe mode successfully, you'll see “Safe mode” displayed at the bottom of the screen.

3

Check if the phone or tablet is still having the same problem.

Use the phone or tablet normally to see if the issue has been resolved. If the phone or tablet is operating normally, a recently installed app was most likely causing the issue.

  • If the issue is gone in Safe mode: One of your recently downloaded apps was likely the cause of the problem. Proceed to Step 4.
  • If the issue still exists: Downloaded apps may not be the cause of the problem. You may need to reset the phone or tablet to its factory setting.
4

Uninstall apps.

One by one, uninstall any apps you downloaded just before your phone or tablet began having the issue.

From your Home screen, swipe up to open the App drawer. Find the app you want to remove, and then touch and hold the app's icon until a popup menu appears. Tap Uninstall, and then tap OK to confirm.

After uninstalling each app, exit safe mode and check for normal operation.

After you uninstall the app that caused the issue, you can reinstall the other safe apps you just deleted.

5

Exit Safe mode.

First, open the Power menu:

  • On devices with a regular Power button, press and hold the Power button until the Power menu is displayed.
  • On devices without a dedicated Power button, swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen to open the Quick settings panel. Tap the Power icon at the top of the screen.

Tap Power off to turn off the device. Wait until the phone or tablet completely turns off, and then press the Power button again to turn it on. Check if the issue has been resolved.

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Perform a factory data reset on your phone or tablet
Perform a factory data reset on your phone or tablet
Warning
You may need your Samsung account password or Lock screen password when resetting your phone or tablet. All your data will be erased. However, before resetting your device, you can use Smart Switch or a cloud account to back up your data onto an SD card or USB drive. If you have encrypted your SD card, it must be decrypted before resetting your device.
1

Prepare your phone or tablet for reset.

  • Make sure to back up your phone or tablet. All data and settings will be erased.

  • Write down the username and password for the account that you used to back up your data.

  • We recommend having your phone or tablet plugged into the wall charger during the reset process because it may take up to an hour.

  • If you have encrypted the SD Card inserted in to your phone or tablet, make sure to decrypt it before the reset. Navigate to Settings, search for and select SD, and then tap Decrypt SD card.

2

Perform the reset.

Navigate to Settings. Search for and select Factory data reset. Tap Factory data reset again, and then tap Reset. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the reset. You may need to enter your Samsung account password or Lock screen password. The phone or tablet will reboot.
3

Set up the device.

When the phone or tablet reboots, it will have its original factory settings. Now you will need to go through the initial setup to finish setting up the phone or tablet. The phone may require you to enter your Samsung or Google account information to complete the setup.
4

Test the device.

Before installing any apps, make sure that your phone or tablet is functioning normally.

If you are still encountering any issues, please visit a Samsung walk-in service center or you can schedule a repair service online.

Note
If you are still experiencing network service issues with calling, SMS or MMS messages, network signals, mobile data, or hotspots after resetting the device, you may need to contact your carrier.
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