Driver download failed in GeForce Experience

Are you experiencing the Driver download failed error in the GeForce Experience app? GeForce Experience is an application specially designed for NVIDIA graphics cards to download and install drivers and adjust your graphics settings. It is quite a useful app but has its share of errors and issues that also include the Driver download failed error.

Does GeForce Experience download drivers?

Yes, GeForce Experience lets you download and install drivers. It provides a dedicated DRIVERS tab from where you can manually check for driver updates by clicking on the respective button. And then, install the driver updates. Besides that, it offers an automatic driver download option that notifies you about the available driver updates and automatically downloads them.

However, many users have reported that they can’t install new driver updates because of the Driver download failed error. One of the users on NVIDIA GeForce Forum says:

Hi, so I’m trying to update my driver through the GeForce Experience, and whenever the download for the new driver finishes (currently 375.57) it says “Driver Download Failed” and restarts the download all over again.

Now, this error could be triggered due to faulty drivers, antivirus/firewall interference, and corrupted installation of the app. In any case, you can follow the below fixes to resolve the error. Let us get straight to the solutions.

Driver download failed in GeForce Experience

Here are the methods you can use to fix the Driver download failed error in GeForce Experience on Windows 11/10:

Enable automatic driver download.
Temporarily turn off your antivirus/firewall.
Manually install the driver.
Reinstall your drivers.
Reinstall the GeForce Experience app.

1] Enable automatic driver download

If you haven’t enabled the automatic driver download in GeForce Experience, turn on the option to download and install driver updates automatically. It might help you get past the Driver download failed error. Here’s how you can do that:

First, open the GeForce Experience app.
Now, click on the gear-shaped Settings button from the top.
Next, in the General tab, scroll down to the Automatically download driver updates and let me choose when to install checkbox.
When done, restart the GeForce Experience app and click on the DRIVERS tab.
It will download the available driver updates now. You can also click the CHECK FOR UPDATES button to check for pending driver updates.
Once the updates are downloaded, you can install the updates by choosing the Express Installation or Custom Installation option.
Check if the error is now fixed.

Read: Fix NVIDIA GeForce Experience overlay not working.

2] Temporarily turn off your antivirus/firewall

It could be your antivirus or firewall causing the error in downloading and installing drivers. Now, to check for antivirus or firewall interference, temporarily disable your security software and check if the error is fixed. If yes, you can avoid such errors in the future by whitelisting the GeForce Experience app in your antivirus or firewall.

Here’s how you can allow the GeForce Experience app through Windows Firewall:

First, open the Windows Security app using the Windows Search feature.

Now, click on Firewall and Network Protection and then tap on the Allow an app through firewall option.

Next, press the Change Settings button in the newly appeared window. After that, click on the Allow another app button.

Next, look for the GeForce Experience app in the list. If it is not listed, click on the Allow another app > Browse button and then browse and select the NVIDIA GeForce Experience app executable. You will likely find it at the following location:

C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\NVIDIA GeForce Experience

Once added, tick the checkbox associated with the checkmark NVIDIA GeForce Experience. Then, tick the Public and Private network checkboxes present next to it and click on the OK button to save changes.

Lastly, reopen GeForce Experience and see if the error is fixed.

Read: Can’t move Mouse in NVIDIA GeForce Experience Overlay.

3] Manually install the driver

If you still get the same error when trying to download drivers using the GeForce Experience app, you can manually install the drivers from the NVIDIA website. You can open the NVIDIA website in your web browser and choose details like product type, product series, product fields, and operating system. It will show multiple relevant results. You can simply download the driver you want and then install it on your PC.

4] Reinstall your drivers

If the error remains, it could be due to corrupted device drivers. Hence, you can uninstall your graphics driver and then reinstall it to fix the issue. To do that, here are the steps to follow:

First, press the Win+X hotkey and choose Device Manager to quickly open the app.
After that, scroll down and expand the Display adapters category.
Next, right-click on your NVIDIA graphics driver and choose the Uninstall device option from the context menu.
Now, proceed with the onscreen instructions to complete the process.
When done, reboot your PC and let Windows download and install the missing driver. Or, you can open Device Manager and click on the Scan for hardware changes button to reinstall the graphics driver.

Read: How to Update NVIDIA Drivers.

5] Reinstall the GeForce Experience app

It could also be the case that your GeForce Experience app is incorrectly installed which is why you keep getting the Driver download failed error. So, if the scenario is applicable, you can uninstall GeForce Experience and then install it again to fix the error.

To remove GeForce Experience, open the Settings app using Win+I and move to the Apps > Installed apps section. Now, locate the GeForce Experience app and select the three-dot menu button. Next, choose Uninstall and follow the prompted instructions to remove the app. Once done, restart your computer and download the app from the NVIDIA website. Install the app on your computer and open it to check if it works properly without the Driver download failed error.

See: Fix NVIDIA GeForce Experience error code 0x0001.

I hope this helps!

See: NVIDIA GeForce Experience unable to open Share.

Why is my Nvidia GeForce Experience not working?

If the GeForce Experience app is not working or opening on your PC, there can be several factors responsible for it. It could be because the app is outdated or corrupted. Besides that, the problem may occur if your antivirus suite is causing interference in the working of the app. To fix the issue, you can manually download drivers from the website or reinstall the GeForce Experience app correctly. You can also briefly disable your security suite and check if the problem is gone.

Now read: Fix NVIDIA GeForce Experience is stuck on Preparing to install.