How to Fix Nvidia GeForce Drivers Not Downloading or Installing

Having trouble downloading graphics drivers with Nvidia GeForce Experience or its other tools? Have you tried installing the downloaded drivers only to find that they do not follow your directions? If so, you may not be able to fully utilize the powerful graphics card you’ve purchased for hundreds of dollars from Nvidia. Why does this happen?

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So, let’s explore why Nvidia drivers won’t download or install on your device and what you can do about it.

How to Fix Nvidia Drivers Not Downloading on Windows

There are two primary reasons why Nvidia drivers do not download: the automatic download setting is disabled, or there is a problem with the Nvidia graphics software itself. Here are the steps you need to follow to fix it.

1. Enable Automatic Downloads in the Nvidia GeForce Experience Client

To enable the automatic downloads in the Nvidia GeForce client, follow the below steps:

1. Launch GeForce Experience by searching for “GeForce Experience” in Windows Search.
2. In the top-right corner, click Settings (gear icon).
3. In the left sidebar, click the General tab.
4. Then, scroll down to the bottom of the General settings page and check the box for Automatically download driver updates and let me choose when to install.

Close the Nvidia client and relaunch it after that. Then, select the Drivers tab on the client’s home screen, and you’ll find the latest update available for installation. If you don’t see any, click the Check For Updates box, which will load the latest update. If that doesn’t help, move on to the next step.

2. Manually Download the Drivers

If the above method doesn’t work, you can manually download and install the driver. Here are the steps you need to follow.

1. Go to the Nvidia Driver Downloads page.
2. Choose the correct Product Type, Product Series, and Product.
3. Next, choose the proper Operating System.
4. Select Game Ready Driver (GRD) from the Download Type drop-down menu.
5. Click on the Search button once the correct options have been selected.
6. Depending on the hardware, Nvidia will find the appropriate driver.
7. Click on the Download button.

That’s it. If Nvidia Experience or any other Nvidia client fails to download the driver automatically, you can manually download them. But what if they don’t install after downloading?

How to Fix Nvidia Drivers Not Installing on Windows

Nvidia drivers fail to install due to interference from Windows security protection or an antivirus app protecting your device, using an outdated Nvidia GeForce client, downloading an incompatible driver that is not supported by your graphics card, having a physical connection issue, or having an outdated operating system.

If Nvidia software fails to install drivers, follow these steps.

1. Turn Off Antivirus Protection

The Windows Defender or third-party antivirus software helps us catch viruses before they cause havoc on our devices. There are times, however, when they don’t let even the safe-to-execute processes complete because they consider them a threat.

Firstly, you should ensure that antivirus or Windows Defender doesn’t interfere with the drivers’ installation. Disabling them is the best way to accomplish this. Not sure how to disable Windows built-in security? Check out our guide on how to disable Windows Defender.

Additionally, if you’re using any third-party antivirus software, refer to the official instructions on their website explaining how to turn them off. After disabling them, try installing the drivers again.

Reenable Windows Defender or your antivirus after successfully installing the drivers. You could put your device at risk otherwise.

Running an outdated Windows OS can also impede the installation of drivers, just as outdated GeForce Experience clients can cause problems. Therefore, make sure that no operating system updates are pending. Our guide on managing Windows Updates will show you how to check for the most recent updates and install them.

3. Rule Out Compatibility Issues

Your Nvidia drivers may also fail to install if you’re trying to install incompatible drivers. Every graphics card requires a different driver. Hence, the Nvidia client will simply give up if the driver you are trying to install does not match your hardware.

Thus, you should carefully check the graphics card installed on your device, then manually download the driver corresponding to your hardware per the instructions about manually downloading drivers. If you are confident that your drivers are compatible with your hardware, proceed to the next step.

4. Install the Driver Manually

If the Nvidia client cannot install the drivers, you can install them manually. To do that, follow the instructions listed above for downloading drivers manually. When the driver has been downloaded, right-click the driver installer package and click Run as administrator.

After that, follow the on-screen instructions to install the drivers manually.

5. Install an Older Driver Version

Are you trying to install a newly released driver? Occasionally, newly released drivers contain bugs that prevent them from installing. If you encounter this issue with a driver released recently by Nvidia, try installing an older version.

If the old version installs smoothly, the problem must be with the new drivers. The Nvidia forum can be an excellent place to confirm this since other users may also have the same issue. If they are, then wait for Nvidia to fix the problem. You can stick with the older version until then.

6. Reinstall the GeForce Experience Client

If none of the above fixes helps you install the drivers, your last resort should be to uninstall the GeForce Experience or any other client you’re using and reinstall it. This will undoubtedly be time-consuming. However, it will save you from having to deal with this issue again in the future.

For a successful reinstall, uninstall your current installation and delete any junk files on your system. In some cases, remnants of some client files may remain in the following locations, which will need to be manually deleted:

 C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation
C:\Program Files (x86)\NVIDIA Corporation 

Smoothly Download and Install Nvidia Drivers

Being unable to download and install newly released drivers can be tempting. If you follow the fixes in the list, you should be able to download and install Nvidia drivers seamlessly. If the fixes don’t work, you can use third-party tools to update your drivers.