7 Proven Ways To Fix Nearby Share Not Working On Android?

Nearby Share Not Working On Android?-Google introduced nearby share features in 2020. It is similar to Apple’s AirDrop, which was launched a few years ago. Nearby share is very easy to use, and people don’t need to be any technical masters; just by turning on some settings, the file can be transferred within a minute or a few seconds.

But sometimes it doesn’t work properly or scan nearby devices due to various reasons. If you are also facing the same problems, then you’ve landed in the right place, where I’ll be showing you 7 proven ways to fix nearby sharing not working on Android and why it’s happening with your device.

Why is Nearby Share not working?

Both the device you’re sharing from and the other device that will receive the file should have some settings enabled.

If any settings or options are turned off, file transfer will not be possible. At the end, you might see “not finding device”.

So, here are some common reasons why your nearby share is not working:

Bluetooth is turned off

Bluetooth turned off can be a major reason for Nearby Share not working on your device. Bluetooth must be turned on on both devices.

WiFi is turned off

Similar to Bluetooth, you need to enable WiFi and be connected via WiFi to the device you are going to share files or apps.

Location is turned off

Make sure Location is enabled on both devices; otherwise, your Android device won’t detect any nearby devices.

Check out your Android version 

As I said earlier, this feature was introduced in 2020, so it is only compatible with the above “Android 6” version.

Here’s how you can check your Android version

1. Go to the settings
2. Scroll down and find about a phone
3. Click on About phone
4. Scroll down and see the Android version 

How to Fix Nearby Share Not Working on Android

As I mentioned earlier, there could be a couple of reasons why this isn’t working. If you make any small mistake, you will not be able to use it properly. 

So if you want to get rid of it, then follow these troubleshooting steps below.

Restart your device

I have seen most of the Android software glitches and hang issues resolved by restarting the phone, including nearby sharing not working on your smartphone.

 You may restart your smartphone and then try to share files again. If it still doesn’t work, follow these tips below.

Here’s how you can restart your device

1.  Press and hold power button.
2. Click on “Restart” option 

Enable Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Location on both devices

When you turn on “Nearby Share,” you will see a pop-up to turn on WiFi and Bluetooth. But if you close or turn off these options, Nearby Share won’t open, and you won’t be able to share your files. 

Next, you will need to manually enable “location” on both devices to find nearby devices.

  Here’s how you can enable all these settings 

1. Scroll down the notification panel
2. Find all these options

If you’re not finding these options, follow these tips

3. Go to the settings
4. Search all these options individually 

Bring devices closer

Since Nearby Share uses Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technology, it’s best to keep devices close together.

 The better your connection, the better file transfer speed you’ll get.

Hence, Google recommends that the distance should be around 30 cm, or 12 inches, for best results.

Check device visibility

When you turn on Nearby Share, you’ll get a Device Visibility popup and three more options, including “Everyone”, “Contacts,” and “Your Device.”

Here, “everyone” means that anyone can share with you,

“Contacts” means anyone can share with you from your contact list.

And last but not least, your device.

Normally, this option is kept for privacy only.

So if your nearby share is not working on your device, you can check if it is on or not. If not, turn it on manually.

Here’s how you can enable this option 

1. Scroll down the notification panel
2. Find a nearby share option
3. Press and hold the option(nearby share)
4. Find and click on device visibility

Turn on and off Airplane Mode

Nearby Share uses WiFi and Bluetooth technology. This requires a quality network. But if your network connection is bad, it may prevent files from being sent.

 You could reset your network by turning aeroplane mode on and off, which will help you get a better network connection. 

Enabling aeroplane mode is very easy

1.  just scroll down the notification panel, 
2. find the option 
3. And click on it

Clear Google Play Services cache

Clearing the Google Play Services cache can be a great way to fix Nearby Share not working on your Android device. However, this will not delete all your data. 

This will only clear the unimportant data stored in the app. Then try re-sharing the file again.

#Step 1 

1. Go to the settings
2. Click on the Search option and type “apps”

#step 2

4. Click on the apps option
5. Then you will see the apps option again and click on that option again 

#Step 3

6. Find “Google play service” and click on it
7. Click on “clear cache”

Keep devices unlocked while sharing

There are dozens of smartphone manufacturers, and each of them comes with a different UI and features. Some Android devices turn off background processes when your device is locked to save extra battery. 

As a result, the nearby share feature is turned off. If your phone has the same problem, try unlocking your device while sending files.

How to enable nearby sharing

It’s very simple to enable nearby sharing. There are two ways you can enable it. Here’s how you can enable it on your Android device:

#method 1

1. Scroll down the notification panel.

2. Find nearby share options.

3. Click on “Nearby Share.”.

4. Click on the option to turn on Bluetooth, WiFi, and location.

5. And finally, select who can share with you: “Everyone”, “Contacts” and “My Devices”.

#method 2

1. Go to the settings.

2. Search “nearby share.”

3. Click on the “use nearby share” option.

After enabling Nearby Share, you need to check device visibility. As I mentioned earlier, there are three options for device visibility: “Everyone”, “Contacts,” and “Your Device.” Now you select those options as per your usage.

How to use Nearby Sharing on your Android

Now you have successfully turned on “Nearby Share,” and you can share anything, be it photos, videos, games, apps, large files, etc.

But do you know how to use it?

Let’s see how to use it.

1. Select the files you want to share.

2. Press and hold those files

3. Click on the “share” options.

4. Click on “Share via nearby share.”

5. Click on “__ phones.”

Here you will see the device name. But the device name will be the name that was given while creating the Gmail account.

 Suppose My nearby share email is created with the name Roki, so my device name will be Roki’s phone.

6. After clicking on “Roki’s Phone,” you will see a pop-up on the other phone that is going to receive the file. You need to click on the “accept option to get the file.

Tips for Improving Nearby Share Performance on Android

Place one phone on top of another phone

This is not a myth anymore; it is 100% true. I use this trick whenever I share files via a nearby share, and I get much faster speeds than before. 

Just put the phone from which the file is being shared on top of the phone that is receiving the file.

Clean up storage

Almost full storage can cause slow performance. So you need to check your storage whenever you want to share or receive files.

Don’t let your phone’s charge drop below 5%

Whenever your phone has a low charge, you cannot do heavy work like playing heavy games, watching high-resolution videos, editing videos, etc.

And file sharing is still a heavy task, so you should try to keep the maximum charge on your device to get better file transfer speeds via nearby shares.

Conclusion

Nearby Share is the best way to share files from one device to another. Although sometimes the nearby shares don’t work properly for some reason.

 More often than not, you can get rid of this problem by restarting your device or turning Bluetooth, WiFi, and location on and off. 

But still, if you can’t use it, then follow these tips above, and you will surely fix it completely. Now let me know which tips helped you out of this problem in the comment section.

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