How to Fix Wi-Fi Connected but No Internet

September 11, 2026

Work through the fixes for a Wi-Fi network that shows connected but loads nothing, from toggling Wi-Fi to renewing your IP address.

Your phone or laptop shows full Wi-Fi bars, but no page loads. The device is talking to the router, and either the router is not talking to the internet or the device has a bad address. Work down this list in order.

Toggle Wi-Fi off and on

On the device that is failing, turn Wi-Fi off, wait a few seconds, and turn it back on. On a phone, use the quick settings panel. On Windows, click the Wi-Fi icon in the taskbar. On a Mac, use the Wi-Fi menu in the menu bar. This forces a fresh connection and a new address from the router.

Check whether other devices work

Try a second phone or laptop on the same Wi-Fi. If it loads pages, the problem is the first device, so skip ahead to forgetting the network. If nothing on the network works, the problem is the router or the connection to your provider.

Restart the modem and the router

Unplug both from power, wait 30 seconds, plug in the modem, wait until its lights settle, then plug in the router. If you have a single combined gateway, restart that one box. This fixes most cases where every device is affected.

Check for an outage

Switch a phone to cellular data and open your provider's status page or app. Xfinity, Bell, Rogers, and most others show outages by area. If there is one, nothing on your end will help until it clears.

Forget and rejoin the network

On the failing device, forget the network and reconnect with the password. Windows 11: Settings, Network & internet, Wi-Fi, Manage known networks, Forget. Mac: System Settings, Wi-Fi, the three-dot menu next to the network, Forget This Network. iPhone: Settings, Wi-Fi, (i), Forget This Network. Android: Settings, Network & internet, Internet, the gear icon, Forget.

Renew the IP address

On Windows, run the network troubleshooter from Settings, System, Troubleshoot, Other troubleshooters, or open Command Prompt and run:

ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew

On a Mac, open System Settings, Wi-Fi, Details, TCP/IP, and click Renew DHCP Lease.

If pages fail but the connection seems alive. Set the DNS server to 8.8.8.8 or 1.1.1.1 in the same network settings. A failing DNS server looks exactly like no internet.

If you are at a hotel, cafe, or airport. The network needs a browser login first. Open a browser and go to any plain http:// site, and the sign-in page should appear.