10 Common Premiere Pro Problems (and Easy Fixes!)

1. Premiere Pro Not Responding / Crashing

Description of the Problem

It’s a classic headache: you’re deep into your edit when suddenly Premiere Pro freezes, stops responding, or crashes altogether. Sometimes it closes without warning, or you might see error messages before it shuts down. These types of Premiere Pro errors can cause serious workflow interruptions and even lead to lost work.

Possible Causes

• Insufficient system resources (low RAM or CPU usage maxed out)
• Corrupted project files
• Outdated graphics or system drivers
• Conflicts with third-party plugins or software
• Full or bloated cache folder

Solutions

• Save your project frequently using the autosave feature or manual saves
• Increase RAM allocation in Preferences > Memory
• Update your GPU drivers and Premiere Pro to the latest version
• Clear media cache via Preferences > Media Cache > Delete Unused
• Turn off GPU acceleration under Project Settings > General
• Temporarily disable third-party plugins to rule out conflicts
• Restart Premiere Pro and your machine

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2. Premiere Pro Playback Issues

Description of the Problem

Does your footage stutter, freeze, or lag during playback? These Premiere Pro playback issues are common when dealing with high-resolution footage or effect-heavy timelines. It can feel like the software is struggling to keep up—even when nothing looks wrong on the surface.

Possible Causes

• Hardware limitations (slow CPU, low RAM, weak GPU)
• High-bitrate or 4K+ footage
• Too many effects, layers, or transitions applied to the sequence

Solutions

• Lower playback resolution (try 1/2 or 1/4 in the Program Monitor)
• Use proxy files to ease performance pressure
• Optimize your sequence settings to match footage specs
• Render previews (Sequence > Render In to Out)
• Upgrade your hardware if you edit large projects frequently

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3. Premiere Pro Export Problems

4. Premiere Pro Audio Problems

Description of the Problem

Audio glitches can ruin an edit. Whether you’re dealing with audio not syncing, missing waveforms, or no sound at all, these Premiere Pro audio problems can be tricky to diagnose.

Possible Causes

• Muted audio tracks in the timeline
• Incorrect audio hardware settings in Premiere Pro
• Corrupted or unsupported audio file types

Solutions

• Unmute and solo audio tracks to isolate problems
• Check audio hardware preferences (Preferences > Audio Hardware)
• Verify correct audio output device is selected
• Restart Premiere Pro after making changes
• Replace or convert audio files if they appear to be corrupted

5. Premiere Pro Import Issues

Description of the Problem

You try to bring in files—and nothing happens. Or maybe you get a dreaded “insufficient media” error. These Premiere Pro import issues often signal deeper compatibility or corruption problems.

Possible Causes

• Unsupported video or audio formats
• Missing file paths or moved assets
• Corrupted files or disk read errors

Solutions

• Ensure your media format is supported by Premiere Pro
• Relink missing media via the Project panel
• Import the entire folder, not individual clips (especially for AVCHD)
• Reopen the project and try importing again

6. Premiere Pro Render Issues

Description of the Problem

You hit “Render In to Out,” expecting to preview your sequence smoothly, but Premiere Pro render issues stop you cold. It might freeze mid-render, produce incomplete previews, or simply refuse to render certain parts of your timeline.

Possible Causes

• GPU overload or conflicts
• Corrupted media or effects in the timeline
• Timeline too complex for real-time rendering

Solutions

• Disable GPU acceleration and switch to software-only rendering
• Isolate problem clips by rendering in sections
• Delete and regenerate preview files (Sequence > Delete Render Files)
• Update or roll back GPU drivers, depending on recent changes
• Nest complex timelines to reduce strain during previewing

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7. Premiere Pro Text and Fonts Issues

Description of the Problem

Your carefully chosen font isn’t displaying correctly—or worse, text is missing entirely in your project. This can happen with both traditional text tools and the Essential Graphics panel.

Possible Causes

• Missing or corrupted font files
• Unsupported font types (especially with variable fonts)
• Essential Graphics template corruption
• Text layer hidden or not rendered

Solutions

• Reinstall or replace font files, ensuring they’re compatible with your system
• Use Adobe Fonts for better integration with Premiere
• Check layer visibility and graphic track settings
• Restart Premiere Pro after installing new fonts
• Use the Legacy Title tool as a backup for basic text work

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8. Premiere Pro Black Screen Problems

Description of the Problem

You press play—but all you see is black. Sometimes audio plays without video, or the Program Monitor stays black even though everything looks fine in the timeline.

Possible Causes

• Hardware acceleration glitches
• Incorrect sequence or playback settings
• Corrupted preview files or effects

Solutions

• Turn off hardware acceleration (Project Settings > General)
• Switch to a different renderer (Software Only or CUDA/OpenCL)
• Delete media cache files
• Ensure correct resolution is selected in the playback monitor
• Disable Lumetri or other effects to see if one is causing the issue

9. Premiere Pro Transition Glitches

Description of the Problem

When applying a transition, you expect smooth results—but instead get jerky, broken, or glitchy transitions, especially when rendering or exporting.

Possible Causes

• Incompatible frame rates or resolutions between clips
• Transition applied to unlinked or mismatched media
• Buggy third-party transitions

Solutions

• Check clip frame rates and match them in your sequence settings
• Ensure transitions are applied to overlapping clips
• Try native transitions first, and test third-party packs individually
• Update third-party plugins to the latest version
• Render the sequence to verify correct playback

10. Premiere Pro Color Grading Errors

Description of the Problem

Your project looks perfect inside Premiere—but the exported video has weird colors, washed-out contrast, or sudden shifts in hue. Sometimes Lumetri just doesn’t behave the way you expect.

Possible Causes

• Color space mismatch between source, timeline, and export
• Display gamma differences (Premiere vs. external players)
• Overlapping Lumetri instances on nested clips

Solutions

• Use consistent color space settings across your entire workflow
• Enable display color management in Preferences > General
• Apply Lumetri to adjustment layers for cleaner stacking
• Test exports with different formats/codecs, especially for web delivery
• Avoid using multiple color tools simultaneously (stick to Lumetri or external LUTs, not both)

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Conclusion

By applying the right solutions outlined in each section, you’ll spend less time fixing errors and more time doing what matters—editing great content.