Update the PMDG 737 in MSFS through Operations Center or Marketplace, and fix missing updates, wrong install paths and failed downloads.
To update the PMDG 737 in Microsoft Flight Simulator, close the simulator and use the channel from which you bought the aircraft. Direct PMDG purchases update through PMDG Operations Center; Marketplace purchases update through the simulator’s content library. Reinstall only if the appropriate updater or repair function cannot complete the update.
Which updater should I use for the PMDG 737?
The purchase source determines how the aircraft is updated, regardless of whether Microsoft Flight Simulator itself came from Steam, the Microsoft Store or a console installation.
| Purchase source | Update method | Key limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Direct from PMDG | PMDG Operations Center | The selected simulator and package path must match the actual installation. |
| In-simulator Marketplace | Content Manager or My Library | Marketplace releases can appear later than direct PMDG updates. |
A mistake we see constantly is trying to update a Marketplace purchase through Operations Center, or expecting Steam or the Microsoft Store launcher to patch a directly purchased aircraft. Neither approach works because the licences and package channels are separate.
How do I update a PMDG Store 737?
A PMDG 737 bought directly from PMDG should be updated with PMDG Operations Center while Microsoft Flight Simulator is closed.
- Close the simulator. Also close any utility that may be reading or modifying the aircraft package.
- Launch PMDG Operations Center. Allow the utility to update itself first and reopen it if requested. Sign in with the account that owns the 737.
- Check the simulator selection. If more than one MSFS installation is present, confirm that Operations Center is using the correct packages path. A package intended for one simulator version should not be pointed at another version’s package tree unless it explicitly supports that version.
- Select the installed 737 product. Apply the offered update and repeat this for each separately installed 737 variant if the utility lists them individually.
- Wait for completion. Do not move, rename or manually overwrite package folders while the update is running. Start MSFS only after Operations Center reports that the operation has finished.
Our detailed account, package-path and repair steps for Operations Center cover the utility itself when it cannot detect the aircraft or points at the wrong installation.
How do I update a Marketplace PMDG 737?
A Marketplace-owned PMDG 737 must be updated inside Microsoft Flight Simulator rather than through the PMDG utility.
- Start MSFS with the purchasing account. Complete any mandatory simulator update first so the content catalogue can load correctly.
- Open the content library. Use Content Manager in MSFS 2020, or My Library and its content-management view in MSFS 2024.
- Find the PMDG 737. Search for the aircraft and install any update offered for the base package and the variant you own.
- Restart the simulator. This forces MSFS to register the replaced package before the aircraft is loaded.
Marketplace publication can lag behind the direct PMDG release because it follows a separate submission process. There is no safe way to force that release early, and copying files from a direct edition into a Marketplace package risks duplicate or incomplete installations.
Why is the PMDG 737 update missing or failing?
Most missing or failed PMDG 737 updates come from using the wrong account, update channel or MSFS packages path.
- The aircraft is absent from Operations Center: confirm that it was bought directly from PMDG, that the owning account is signed in and that the correct simulator installation is selected.
- The Marketplace shows no update: verify the purchasing Microsoft account and allow for a Marketplace publication delay. Reinstalling the existing version will not make an unpublished update appear.
- The update completes but the aircraft disappears: check whether the updater used an old or unused
Communityfolder. Our guide to MSFS package locations and custom Community paths explains how to identify the active location. - The download loops or stops: restart the simulator or Operations Center, check free storage and use the updater’s repair or verification action if one is offered. For failures affecting other simulator content too, follow our checklist for stuck MSFS downloads and ownership errors.
- MSFS crashes after the update: temporarily remove older PMDG liveries, sound replacements and compatibility modifications from
Community. Test the unmodified aircraft, then restore those additions one at a time.
Use a full uninstall and reinstall only after repair fails. Remove the aircraft through the same channel that installed it rather than deleting random PMDG folders, since variants and supporting packages may be stored separately.
Will the update preserve liveries, settings and navdata?
Separately installed liveries and user data normally remain, but hand-edited aircraft files may be replaced and an old livery package can become incompatible with the updated model.
Back up only files you knowingly modified, test the clean aircraft first, and then restore changes individually. Do not copy an entire old aircraft package over the updated one.
An aircraft update also does not install a newer AIRAC cycle. Navigation data is maintained separately, so use the separate MSFS navdata update procedure if the CDU database is out of date.