How to Fix WiFi Connection Issues on a Laptop
This article was written by Luigi Oppido and by wikiHow staff writer, Nicole Levine, MFA. Luigi Oppido is the Owner and Operator of Pleasure Point Computers in Santa Cruz, California. Luigi has over 25 years of experience in general computer repair, data recovery, virus removal, and upgrades. He is also the host of the Computer Man Show! broadcasted on KSQD covering central California for over two years.
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Are you trying to figure out why your Windows laptop or MacBook isn’t connecting to Wi-Fi? There’s nothing more frustrating than not having internet access when you need it. But don’t worry—there’s usually an easy fix! This wikiHow article will teach you how to troubleshoot and fix your Wi-Fi connection on any PC or Mac laptop.
Windows Laptops
Check your laptop’s Wi-Fi button or switch. Some PC laptops have a physical Wi-Fi button or switch near the keyboard that lets you quickly turn Wi-Fi access on or off. If you have such a switch, make sure it’s set to the On position. A light will usually (but not always) illuminate when the Wi-Fi switch is on.
Restart your PC. This can clear up a lot of issues, problems relating to Wi-Fi and networking connections. Before you continue troubleshooting, do a quick reboot and see if that resolves the problem.
- Click the «No internet access» icon, which looks like a globe, on the taskbar near the clock. [1] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source If you don’t see it, click the up-arrow to expand the overflow icons.
- If the Wi-Fi tile is gray or deactivated, click it to turn on Wi-Fi.
- While you’re here, make sure Airplane Mode is disabled—if the tile is illuminated, click it to turn it off.
- If you’re using Windows 11, after clicking the «No internet access» icon, click the right-arrow next to the Wi-Fi tile to bring up the list of networks.
- If you don’t see the network you want to connect to, try moving closer to the wireless access point.
- If you are connected to a wireless network but unable to browse the web, click Disconnect on the network name, and then click Connect to reconnect.
- Right-click the «No internet access» icon near the clock and select Network and Internet Settings.
- Click Wi-Fi.
- Click Manage known networks.
- Click Forget on the network you can’t connect to.
- Close this window, and then click the «No internet access» icon and try to connect to the network again. You will need to reenter the password.
- Move away from devices that use 2.4GHz or 5.0GHz bandwidths, such as microwaves, cordless phones, baby monitors, 2-way radios, some tablets, Wi-Fi cameras, and unshielded power or video cables.
- Try to minimize physical obstructions as well, especially walls and furniture made of concrete, brick, marble/stone, metal, reflective glass, water, or ceramic tile.
- For example, if your wireless network is called Centurylink1234 5G and you also see Centurylink1234 2.4, disconnect from the 5G network and try connecting to the 2.4 network.
- If you have access to the router, you might want to change the router’s channel to a less busy channel.
- Windows 10:
- Click the Windows Start menu and select Settings (the gear icon).
- Click Network & Internet.
- Click Status.
- Click Network troubleshooter and follow the on-screen instructions.
- Click the Windows Start menu and select Settings (the gear icon).
- Click System.
- Click Troubleshoot.
- Click Other troubleshooters.
- Click Network Adapter.
- Click Run and follow the on-screen instructions to repair issues.
- Unplug the power cable from both the router and modem (if separate).
- If the light on your modem stays on, it probably has battery backup. Remove the battery for now.
- (If you have a separate modem) After 30 seconds, plug the modem back in to the power source and wait for it to boot back up. When the lights stop blinking, continue.
- Plug the router back in and allow it to boot up. This can take several moments.
- Reconnect your laptop to the Wi-Fi network and try to browse the web.
- If other devices (such as your phone or tablet) can connect to this network but your laptop can’t, continue with this method. If the network isn’t available for any devices, contact your internet provider for troubleshooting.
- Press Windows key + S and type device .
- Click Device Manager in the search results.
- Expand the Network adapters menu and select your Wi-Fi adapter.
- Right-click adapter and select Uninstall device.
- Check the box next to «Attempt to remove the driver software for this device» and click Uninstall.
- Reboot your laptop. When it comes back up, Windows will automatically install a new generic driver for your Wi-Fi card.
- If this resolves your problem, it’s possible that a recent Windows Update is incompatible with your Wi-Fi card. [3] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source You can try updating the drivers to see if that resolves the issue. If the issue comes back, uninstall the driver again and reboot to use the generic driver until a fix is available.
- Open the Windows Start menu and go to Network & Internet >Status (Windows 10) or Advanced network settings (Windows 11) >Network reset.
- Click Reset now and choose Yes to confirm.
- When your PC restarts, try connecting to the Wi-Fi network again.
- If you can’t connect to any Wi-Fi networks, there’s likely a hardware issue with your laptop, and you should contact the manufacturer for service.
- If you can connect at a café, try checking for and installing Windows Updates. Then, head home and try connecting to your Wi-Fi again. If you still can’t connect, contact your internet provider for assistance.
MacBooks
- When Wi-Fi is on, you’ll see a list of all available access points. Click the network you want to join.
Try to join the Wi-Fi network. If you don’t see the Wi-Fi network you are looking for, try moving your laptop very close to the access point.
- Close all open apps.
- Press and hold the Option key while you click the Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar.
- Click Open Wireless Diagnostics.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to allow your Mac to test your wireless connection.
- If any issues are found, click the small «i» in a circle next to each issue found for instructions on how to proceed.
- Click the Apple menu and select System Preferences.
- Click Network.
- Click your Wi-Fi connection.
- Click Advanced and select TCP/IP.
- Click Renew DHCP Lease.
- Unplug the power cable from both the router and modem (if separate).
- If the light on your modem stays on, it probably has battery backup. Remove the battery for now.
- (If you have a separate modem) After 30 seconds, plug the modem back in to the power source and wait for it to boot back up. When the lights stop blinking, continue.
- Plug the router back in and allow it to boot up. This can take several moments.
- Reconnect your laptop to the Wi-Fi network and try to browse the web.
- If other devices (such as your phone or tablet) can connect to this network but your laptop can’t, continue with this method. If the network isn’t available for any devices, contact your internet provider for troubleshooting.
- Move away from devices that use 2.4GHz or 5.0GHz bandwidths, such as microwaves, cordless phones, baby monitors, 2-way radios, some tablets, Wi-Fi cameras, and unshielded power or video cables.
- Try to minimize physical obstructions as well, especially walls and furniture made of concrete, brick, marble/stone, metal, reflective glass, water, or ceramic tile.
- For example, if your wireless network is called Centurylink1234 5G and you also see Centurylink1234 2.4, disconnect from the 5G network and try connecting to the 2.4 network.
- If you have access to the router, you might want to change the router’s channel to a less busy channel.
- Click the Apple menu and select System Preferences.
- Click Network.
- Click Wi-Fi.
- Click Advanced.
- Select the Wi-Fi network and click the minus sign.
- Click Remove.
- Close all windows and then try to reconnect to the network. You will need to re-enter the Wi-Fi password if it was previously saved.
- If you can’t connect at another location, there’s likely a hardware issue with your MacBook, and you should contact Apple for service.
- If you can connect at a café, check for and install any updates. [7] X Research source Then, try to connect to the original network again. If you still can’t connect, there’s likely an issue with your home Wi-Fi router—contact your internet provider for assistance.
Expert Q&A
Luigi Oppido is the Owner and Operator of Pleasure Point Computers in Santa Cruz, California. Luigi has over 25 years of experience in general computer repair, data recovery, virus removal, and upgrades. He is also the host of the Computer Man Show! broadcasted on KSQD covering central California for over two years.
Well, your upload speed is limited by your contracted plan and on your Wi-Fi card. Do a speed test and see if you’re receiving what you’re paying for. If you are, the only option is to upgrade. If not, make sure that no one is downloading or uploading anything on your network. Uploading on alternative times might help you get the most out of your connection.
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Your Windows computer can’t connect to your WiFi network? Don’t worry. Although this is incredibly annoying, you’re definitely not the only person to experience it. And more importantly, it’s fixable…
Try these fixes
You may not have to try them all; just work your way down the list until you find the one that works for you.
Fix 1: Restart your router
This is the first thing you should try when you’re unable to connect to your WiFi network. To do so:
You may need to check your router manual for detailed instructions on how to do the steps below.
- Turn off your router.
- Disconnect the router power cable from the power source.
- Wait for 1 minute to drain the power in your router.
- Connect the router power cable to the power source.
- Turn on your router.
If restarting the router worked for you, great! But if not, move on to Fix 2, below.
Fix 2: Reset your network settings
Perhaps there are issues with your computer network settings, so you’re unable to connect to the WiFi network. You should reset your network settings to see if this fixes the issues for you.
- On your computer, click the Start button and type “cmd“.
- Right click Command Prompt in the list of results, then select Run as administrator.
- Type the following lines of command at Command Prompt, and after typing each line, press Enter on your keyboard.
ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew
ipconfig /flushdns
netsh winsock reset
net stop dhcp
net start dhcp
netsh winhttp reset proxyNow check to see if you’re able to connect to your WiFi network.
Fix 3: Update your wireless network adapter driver
Sometimes your’re having WiFi connection issues because you’re using a wrong wireless network adapter driver or it’s out of date. You should try updating the driver and see if this works for you.
If you don’t have the time, patience or skills to update your wireless adapter driver manually, you can do it automatically with Driver Easy .
You don’t need to know exactly what system your computer is running, you don’t need to risk downloading and installing the wrong driver, and you don’t need to worry about making a mistake when installing. Driver Easy handles it all.
- Download and install Driver Easy .
- Run Driver Easy and click the Scan Now button. Driver Easy will then scan your computer and detect any problem drivers.
- Click the Update button next to your wireless adapter to download the correct version of its driver, then you can manually install it. Or click the Update All button at the bottom right to automatically update all the drivers. (This requires the Pro version — you will be prompted to upgrade when you click Update All. You get full support and a 30-day money back guarantee.)
