Safari not working on Mac after update? 10 ways to fix it!

Quick Solutions for Safari Not Working on Mac after Update:

visiting system status A page to see if Apple’s servers are down.
Make sure your Mac is connected to the Internet.
Ensure that the servers of the website you are trying to access are not down.

With every new update, Apple adds new features to the Safari browser on Mac. Unfortunately, these updates can sometimes bring unexpected guests, such as bugs that can affect how the browser works. So, let’s take a look at the solutions to help fix Safari not working on Mac after an update.

1. Reload the web page

Since Safari won’t load webpages on Mac after an update, you can start to fix this by reloading the webpage you’re trying to access or the page you’re currently on. Because this will force the browser to send and receive data again to load the page, eliminating any errors that are preventing it from loading.

To reload: Press Cmd (⌘) + R.

Alternatively, click View in the menu bar and choose Reload Page. If none of them work, make sure you have a stable internet connection and check other fixes.

2. Force quit Safari

If Safari is stuck or not loading, try to force quit the app and see if that helps.

After that, open the app again and it will automatically continue where you left off. If you are sure that a website is interfering with Safari on your MacBook Air or other Mac models, you can disable it.

3. Check and reset your network settings

If some error changes the default settings, even this may prevent Safari from working. To fix this problem, you can reset the network settings on your Mac and see if you are still facing the issue.

4. Access via VPN

Choosing the right VPN can help fix Safari not working on Mac issue. Sometimes it may not be Safari, but a specific website causing the problems. The site may be blocked in your region. Therefore, we have compiled a detailed list of the best VPNs for Mac, and you can choose the one that best suits your needs.

Little use of a private window

Interestingly, you can easily access some websites by opening them in a private window. To open a private window in Safari, use Cmd (⌘) + Shift + N.

5. Delete Safari history, cache, and cookies.

Have you ever wanted to erase some memories in your life so you can start over? While not quite possible in real life, you can clear cache, history, and cookies in Safari on Mac.

If that’s not all, you can remove junk files from Safari using Finder. Here’s how:

Open Finder → click Go in the menu bar.
Select “Go to folder”.
Now type/paste the following: ~/Library/Safari.
Now delete the History.db and LastSession.plist files.

With it, you can clean corrupted Safari PLIST files and database. Don’t worry; These files will eventually be restored by Safari. Clearing these files will also remove anything preventing Safari from running on your Mac after the update.

6. Disable Safari Extensions

While you download them to enhance your browsing experience, some add-ons may be the reason why Safari is not working on your Mac after the update.

Launch Safari → click Safari in the menu bar → go to Preferences.
Click on “Extensions” → disable extensions by unchecking them.
To remove these extensions, click Remove.

7. Check your boot drive

Disk Utility can scan for errors and then fix them, giving you the solution of Safari not responding on Mac.

Open Disk Utility → select Macintosh HD.
Click on “Ambulance”.
Click Run → click Continue.
Wait for the process to complete. During this time, you will not be able to use your Mac.
Click Finish after the process is complete.

Repeat the process 2-3 times and restart your Mac.

8. Delete the settings files

As you might imagine, Safari’s preference files contain information about all the settings and changes you’ve made in the browser. This may be the reason why Safari is not working on your Mac after the update. To solve this problem, you can simply clean it up:

Exit Safari if it’s running.
Launch Finder.
Hold down the Option key and click on the Go menu.
Select “Library”.
You can also use Shift + Command + L
Go to Containers → Safari → Data → Library → Safari.
Even if you see multiple Safari files, only one will have the correct path.
Delete all files that end in the following extensions:
- db
- db-shm
- db fall

9. Clear the DNS cache on a Mac

Sometimes users may add multiple DNS and that may be the reason why Safari is not working on Mac after update. The solution is to clear the DNS cache and see if the issue is resolved.

Have you ever heard of safe play? While this is almost impossible in real life, it is possible in macOS in Safe Mode. Thanks to this, you can save Safari from freezing.

General repairs

Apart from these fixes, you can also try the solutions below to fix Safari not opening on Mac after an update.

Restart your Mac: With a quick restart on your Mac, you should be able to resolve this issue: Click the Apple logo → Restart → Click Restart again to confirm.
Mac Update: Check if any updates are available for your Mac. If there is, quickly update your Mac, as this can fix bugs that may be causing Safari to not work.
Contact Apple Support. If, as a last resort, none of the solutions work, contact Apple Support and see if they can help you fix the problem.

Instructions

How to uninstall and reinstall Safari on a Mac?

Safari is the main system app that came with macOS; Therefore, it cannot be uninstalled or reinstalled.

Can Safari get bad?

If Safari is infected with some kind of browser virus, the same can affect your Mac as well.

Happy surfing with Safari

I hope that with the help of this guide, these solutions will help you to prevent Safari from working on MacBook Air or other Macs after an update. If you still have any doubts or suggestions, let me know in the comments.