How to Repair or Reset Microsoft Store or Clear Windows Store Cache in Windows 11/10

One of the features of Windows 11/10 is the downloading of Microsoft Store applications. Often you might encounter issues where the downloading of Windows Store apps get stuck halfway or when you try to install or update them on your Windows 11/10/8.1 PC; it does not work.

The Microsoft Store is an important constituent of Windows 11 due to the coming support of Android applications. Often you might encounter issues where the downloading of Microsoft Store apps get stuck halfway or when you try to install or update it on your Windows PC; it does not work.

Repair or Reset Microsoft Store via Settings

Windows 11

To reset or repair the Microsoft Store from Settings in Windows 11:

1. Open Settings by Win + I.
2. Go to Apps > Installed apps.
3. Scroll down and click on System components.
4. Look for “Microsoft Store”, click on the three dots, and select Advanced options.
5. Click on Repair first and check if the issue is resolved. If the issue persists, click on Reset.

Windows 10

To reset Microsoft Store, open Settings > Apps > Apps and features > Search for Microsoft Store > Advanced options > Use the Reset button.

TIP: Windows 11/10 also allows you to Reset Microsoft Store apps via Settings.

Clear Windows Store Cache with WSReset.exe

To reset the cache for Microsoft Store you can use Windows Settings or use the built-in command-line tool known as WSReset.exe.

Run CMD as administrator, type WSReset.exe and hit Enter.

Alternatively, in the Start search, type wsreset.exe. On the result which appears, right-click and select Run as administrator.

A command prompt window will open. After a while, the Windows Store will open. You may (or may not) see the following confirmation message:

The cache for the Store was cleared. You can now browse the Store for apps.

It will then take you back to the Windows Store. Now try to install or update the apps or download fresh apps and see if they work as they should.

TIP: This post will help you if WSReset.exe is not working.

Why reset and clear the Microsoft Store cache?

You may want to reset the Microsoft Store to its default state for many reasons. Sometimes, the Store just fails to work as it should, or maybe one or more apps are acting up. There are other ways to solve issues with the Microsoft Store, but resetting and clearing the cache is the best of the bunch.

If you receive an error-

Windows cannot find ‘ms-windows-store:PurgeCaches’. Make sure you typed the name correctly, and then try again.

you need to re-register the Windows Store app by running the following command in an elevated command prompt window:

powershell -ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register $Env:SystemRoot\WinStore\AppxManifest.xml

Incidentally, our freeware FixWin, lets you reset the Microsoft Store Cache with a click. If this doesn’t help, you may want to repair your corrupt Windows Image or Component Store using DISM.

Related reads:

1. Repair Microsoft Store Apps
2. Microsoft Store is not opening.