HP Laptop Screen Goes Black but Still Running? Here’s How to Fix It

HP is one of the most popular laptop brands around the world. People are mainly attracted by their reliability and performance to buy them. However, some people report that they encounter a black screen issue on their HP laptop.

Not all black screen issues are the same. Use this table to quickly diagnose your case:

Now, follow the step-by-step solutions below based on your situation.

Method 1. Perform a Hard Reset

Normally, a hard reset can solve many different errors on HP laptops, including the HP laptop screen black issue. To do that, you can do the following steps:

1. Turn off your laptop.
2. Disconnect all hardware peripherals from your laptop.
3. Open the battery compartment and carefully remove the battery.
4. Ensure that your laptop is not connected to any power source.
5. Press and hold the Power button for about fifteen seconds to drain any residual electricity.
6. Replace the battery in your laptop and turn it on.
7. Your laptop should now boot up without any issues.

Method 2. Reset the Graphics Driver

Sometimes, the display just fails to render. Just press Windows + Ctrl + Shift + B to refresh the graphics driver.

Method 3. Use an External Monitor

Connect your laptop to a monitor using HDMI, DisplayPort, or another compatible cable. Then restart your laptop. This helps determine if it’s a screen issue or system issue.

If the external monitor display works, your laptop screen may be faulty.

If not, it may be a system/driver issue.

Method 4. Disconnect All External Devices

USB devices can sometimes cause boot conflicts. You should remove USB drives, mouse, docking stations, etc. Then restart your laptop.

Method 5. Boot into Safe Mode

Safe mode allows your laptop to boot and only use the required resources, which is beneficial for figuring out what’s causing the issue on your laptop. Here’s the guide:

1. Interrupt boot 3 times to enter the Windows Recovery environment.
2. Select the Repair option and then head to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings.
3. Next, click Restart and select Enable Safe Mode with Networking.
4. After that, your laptop will boot up in safe mode, allowing you to fix any items that you think may be causing the HP laptop black screen issue.

Method 6. Restart Explorer.exe Process

For the HP laptop black screen with a cursor, it may be the Windows Explorer process crashing. To fix this issue, restart the explorer.exe process.

Step 1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.

Step 2. Go to the Details tab and find the explorer.exe process. Then, choose it and click End Task.

Step 3. Restart your HP laptop and go back to Task Manager.

Step 4. Click File and select Run new task from the drop-down menu.

Step 5. Type “explorer.exe” in the box and press Enter. After that, check if your laptop works normally.

Method 7. Update/Roll Back Drivers

Outdated or incompatible drivers can also cause the HP laptop screen black and show nothing. In this case, you can try updating/rolling back drivers to fix the issue. Here’s the way:

Update Drivers:

1. Press Win + X to open the Quick Link menu.
2. Select Device Manager from the menu.
3. Expand the Display adaptors category.
4. Then, right-click the outdated driver and select Update driver.
5. Select Search automatically for drivers.
6. Next, follow the on-screen guide to finish the process.

Roll Back Drivers:

1. Open the Device Manager.
2. Expand the Display adapters category.
3. Right-click one driver and select Properties.
4. Go to the Driver tab.
5. Click the Roll Back Driver button. If the button is grey, it means that there aren’t older versions to roll back.
6. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

Method 8. Disable Fast Startup

Step 1. Press Win + S to open the Search window, type “control panel” and press Enter.

Step 2. Set View by as Large icons, and choose Power Options.

Step 3. Select Choose what the power buttons do from the left panel.

Step 4. Click Change settings that are currently unavailable, uncheck Turn on fast startup (recommended), and then click Save changes.

Method 9. Disable the Integrated Graphics Card

If you have enabled the integrated and dedicated graphics card simultaneously on your HP laptop, you can experience black screen on HP laptop easily. In this case, you can try disabling the integrated graphics card temporarily to fix the issue. Here’s the guide:

1. Press the Win + X to open the Quick Link menu.
2. Select Device Manager from the menu.
3. Expand the Display adapters category.
4. Right-click the integrated graphics card driver.
5. Then, select Disable device.
6. Restart your laptop, and the black screen issue should be gone.

Method 10. Disable App Readiness

Some people report that they fix the black screen issue on their HP laptop successfully by disabling App Readiness. You can also have a try. Here’s how to do that:

Step 1. Open the Search window, type “services” and press Enter.

Step 2. Find App Readiness from the services list. Double-click it to enter its Properties window.

Step 3. Select Manual from the Startup type dropdown menu. Then, click Apply and OK sequentially to save the changes.

Step 4. After that, download and install the HP Image Assistant (HPIA) software on your computer.

Step 5. Launch this software to scan and analyze your computer. Once the analysis process is complete, review the scan results and click Download SoftPaqs to begin fetching the necessary update files.

Step 6. Install all the updates, restart your PC to check if the HP laptop black screen issue has been resolved successfully.

Method 11. Perform a System Restore

If you have created a system restore point in advance, you can also try performing a system restore to fix the error. Here are the detailed steps:

Step 1. Open the Quick Link menu and select System from the menu.

Step 2. Under the Related settings section, select System protection.

Step 3. Click System Restore under the System Protection tab.

Step 4. Tick Next. Then, choose a system restore point and click Next.

Step 5. Click Finish to confirm.

Method 12. Utilize HP Emergency BIOS Recovery

HP laptop always keeps a copy of the working BIOS for users. If you updated your BIOS recently and encountered a black screen on HP laptop, you can try using the HP Emergency BIOS Recovery feature to fix the issue. Here’s how to do that:

1. Power off your laptop and connect it to a power adapter.
2. Press and hold down the Win + B keys on your keyboard, and then press the Power key for a second.
3. After that, let go of all the keys you held down.
4. Now, your screen will go black for about forty seconds, and then you’ll hear a beep sound.
5. Next, you will then be on the BIOS screen from where you can revert to the working BIOS version.

Method 13. Reset the Memory Modules

If your memory modules are not seated properly, you can run into a black screen in HP laptop as well. In this situation, you can try resetting the memory modules to fix the issue. Here’s the way:

Step 1. Power off your HP laptop and flip it over.

Step 2. Disconnect the power adapter, and unscrew the screws that secure the back lid of the laptop. Then, remove the back lid.

Step 3. Locate the memory module, and disengage the clips that hold the memory module in place. Next, double-check to ensure the clips are properly disengaged.

Step 4. Carefully remove the memory module from the motherboard and then reinstall it.

Step 5. After reinstalling the memory module, replace the back lid, secure it with screws, and reconnect the power adapter.

Step 6. Power on your laptop and check if the error has been resolved.

Method 14. Factory Reset HP

Performing a factory reset on an HP laptop can also help you fix the black screen issue. You can also have a try. Here’s how to perform that:

1. Turn off the laptop.
2. Disconnect all devices from the laptop.
3. Turn it on again and press the F11 key. Then the System Recovery screen shows up.
4. Click Troubleshoot and Reset this PC.

Method 15. Consider Hardware Issues

If your laptop display or the cable is damaged, your HP laptop screen will show a black screen and not turn on easily. Therefore, you need to check the hardware carefully. Ensure there isn’t damage in the display, cable, or anything else.

If any of them are damaged, you need to ask for help from technicians to fix them.

You should seek professional help if:

• No display even in BIOS
• You hear unusual beeping sounds
• The fixes above don’t work

How to Recover Lost Data After Fixing HP Laptop Black Screen

If you find that some of your files are lost after fixing the HP laptop black screen issue, you can try using MiniTool Partition Wizard to help you retrieve them.

It offers the Data Recovery feature that can help you recover the deleted/lost data easily. Here’s how to do that:

Step 1. Download and install MiniTool Partition Wizard on your computer. Then, launch it to enter its main interface.

MiniTool Partition Wizard DemoClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Step 2. Choose Data Recovery, select the drive where you stored the lost files previously, and then click Scan. Then, this software will start to scan.

Step 3. During the scanning process, you can preview the found files. If you found the files you need, you can click the Pause and Stop icon to end the scanning.

Step 4. Check the files that you want to recover and click Save. Then, choose a location to store the recovered files and click OK to confirm.

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HP Laptop Black Screen FAQ

Wrapping Things Up

An HP laptop black screen can be caused by anything from a simple driver glitch to hardware failure.

Start with quick fixes, identify your scenario, and move step by step. In most cases, you can fix it yourself without professional help.

What’s more, if you encounter issues or have any suggestions about MiniTool Partition Wizard, you can contact us by sending an email to [email protected]. We will respond to you as soon as possible.