Moderator note: This article was updated in December 2024.
Sometimes, we just wish we could start over. Though if you’re considering factory resetting your Sonos devices, there are a few things you should know first.
What a Factory Reset is Not:
- A cure for skipping music.
The majority of cases where music is cutting out or skipping are caused by interference in the WiFi environment (Even if everything else seems fine, and yes, even if you seem to have good bandwidth in that room). Sending music from room to room (or device to device), is rather demanding. Just because one device works fine, it doesn’t mean that all others will as well. Location, distance to router, devices nearby, there are many things that can influence a WiFi device and its ability to effortlessly send and receive information.
- The solution for a room disappearing from the app.
Factory resetting your speaker to solve this problem is rarely (almost never) the answer. You would be better served by doing an evaluation of your network environment, to ensure there is no interference present. Factory resetting the speaker will not address any other existing problems on the home WiFi.
- A good idea for one device households.
Your added music services, room names, EQ and Trueplay settings, you name it - it’s all stored on the speakers themselves. If you are to Factory Reset your only speaker, you are effectively starting from scratch. What can be even more irritating about this is that, as we said above, the underlying problem you were trying to solve is likely still there.
- An answer as to why playlists are incomplete / missing.
Depending on the types of playlists that are not functioning correctly (i.e. those from a music library vs. those from a music service), the causes as to they are not working properly will vary. However, regardless of where they are kept, this issue is not solvable by a factory reset. If you are having problems with your playlists, please visit the link above. If that doesn’t help, start a new topic describing what the source of the playlist is (music service, local library, etc.), as well as what you’ve already tried.
When a Factory Reset might help:
- Your speaker is changing owners.
If your speaker is changing hands, you will want to wipe all of the existing settings and services from it. When you add a device to your system, all of the information from your other Sonos devices is kept on the speakers themselves. (As said above, this includes your added music services, room names, EQ and Trueplay settings, etc.)
- You’ve been advised to do so by a Sonos representative.
At times, a device may actually need to be Factory Reset to resolve the problem. For instance, if there is a suspected hardware fault and all other measures have failed, a Factory Reset can be used as a last resort. This can only really be determined by working directly with a Sonos Technician.
We do not recommend performing a Factory Reset unless explicitly advised to by a member of Sonos staff.
We don’t keep the method of performing a Factory Reset a secret but we strongly advise against doing this unless explicitly advised. The overwhelming consensus of our technicians is that it has the potential to cause far more issues than it’s worth. If, however, you are selling your speaker or giving it away, you can follow these instructions to perform a Factory Reset.
