Turnitin Similarity Pending, Not Showing or Not Available? Fixes
"Pending", "unavailable", a grey icon or no report at all: Turnitin has several ways of telling you there is nothing to see yet. Each one has a different cause. Use the table below to match what you see, then follow the fix.
Quick diagnosis
| What you see | Most likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Pending, a few minutes after submitting | Report still processing | Wait and refresh; most reports are ready within minutes |
| Pending for hours after a resubmission | More than three resubmissions: 24-hour delay | Wait 24 hours |
| No percentage or icon at all | Instructor has hidden reports from students | Ask your instructor |
| Report appears only after the deadline | Release set to due date | Wait until the due date |
| Error icon | File could not be processed | See "File problems" below |
| Similarity shown, AI score missing | AI report is instructor-only, or the file does not qualify | Normal for students |
| Pending for more than 24 hours | Processing failure | Contact your instructor or Turnitin support with your submission ID |
What "Turnitin report unavailable" means
It means one of two things. Either your instructor has not released the report to students, or Turnitin could not create a report for your file. If classmates can see their reports and you cannot, the cause is almost always your file.
Turnitin report not generating: file problems
- Image-only PDF. A scanned document has no text to compare. Export from Word as PDF instead.
- Password protection. Remove it and resubmit.
- Unsupported format. Apple Pages, .docm and InDesign files are not accepted. Save as .docx or .pdf.
- Too short or too large. At least 20 words, under 100 MB and under 800 pages.
- No AI score. AI detection needs 300 to 30,000 words of prose in .docx, .pdf, .txt or .rtf, in a supported language.
Similarity pending or not showing
"Similarity pending", a spinning icon or a missing percentage straight after submitting is normal. Most reports appear within minutes. If yours does not:
- Refresh the page after five minutes. Some LMS pages do not update on their own.
- Check the release setting. If classmates cannot see theirs either, reports are hidden until a later date.
- Count your resubmissions. From the fourth, the report waits 24 hours.
- Check the file. If only yours is missing, see the file problems above.
"An originality report could not be generated"
This message means Turnitin received the file but could not read it. The usual causes are a scanned or image-only PDF, password protection, an unsupported format or a file under 20 words. Save as .docx or export a text PDF from Word, then resubmit if allowed.
Turnitin report pending in Microsoft Teams
When Turnitin is connected to Microsoft Teams Assignments, each submission is checked at hand-in and the report can show as pending straight afterwards. Turnitin's guidance is that students can refresh the pending report to see it. If it stays pending, hand-in may not have completed: check the assignment shows as handed in, then refresh again. More: Turnitin in Microsoft Teams.
Does a pending report make my submission late?
No. Your submission time is recorded when you upload. A pending report does not change it.
Skip the waiting
If you need to see your score before a deadline and your course report is pending, hidden or delayed, a pre-check returns both reports to you directly, usually within minutes, without using a resubmission attempt.
What you should see once the report is ready
Both screenshots below come from the same 24-page, 6,364-word paper. The similarity report found 1% overall similarity. The AI writing report flagged 51% of the qualifying text as likely AI-generated. Tap either one to see it full size.
Screenshots shown for illustration. Your own reports arrive as full PDFs in your dashboard.
Related: how long Turnitin reports take and what happens when you resubmit.
Frequently asked questions
What does Turnitin report unavailable mean?
Either your instructor has not released reports to students, or Turnitin could not generate one for your file.
Does a pending Turnitin report mean my submission is late?
No. Your submission time is recorded when you upload. The report status does not change it.
Why is my Turnitin report pending in Microsoft Teams?
Reports in Teams can show as pending right after hand-in. Refresh the pending report after a few minutes.