It’s one of the most frustrating things a computer or phone can show you: the WiFi icon looks perfectly normal, it says “Connected”, but nothing loads. Websites time out, emails won’t send, streaming buffers endlessly — and yet your device insists the network connection is fine.
This problem is more common than most people realise, and the good news is that most cases have straightforward causes and fixes. This guide walks through the full diagnostic process from the simplest checks to the more complex — so you can work through it systematically rather than randomly clicking settings, hoping something changes.
Why “Connected But No Internet” Happens?
The WiFi connected message means your device has successfully joined the local network — it’s talking to your router. The internet is a separate step: your router then connects outward through your modem to your ISP and on to the internet.
When you’re “connected but no internet”, the problem sits somewhere in that chain: your device, your router, your modem, your NBN connection, or your ISP. Working through the possibilities in order — starting closest to your device — is the fastest way to find and fix the issue.
Step 1: The Basics First
Before anything else, try these. They solve more problems than most people expect.
Restart your device: Not sleep — a full restart. Network stacks can get into odd states that a restart clears completely. This takes 60 seconds and fixes the issue surprisingly often.
Forget the network and reconnect: On your device, find the WiFi network in your settings, select “Forget”, then reconnect by entering the password again. This clears any corrupted connection state stored on the device.
Try another device on the same network: This is the single most useful diagnostic step. If your phone works fine on the same WiFi while your laptop doesn’t, the problem is with your laptop specifically. If nothing works on this network, the problem is the network itself.
Try the same device on a different network: Connect your laptop to your phone’s mobile hotspot. If the internet works there, your device’s internet stack is fine — the problem is your home network. If nothing works even on mobile data, the problem is with your device.
These two device/network tests let you immediately narrow down whether you’re dealing with a device problem or a network problem, which determines everything else.
Step 2: Restart Your Router and Modem
If multiple devices have no internet on the same network, start here.
Power cycle both your router and modem:
- Unplug both devices from power completely
- Wait a full 60 seconds — not 10 seconds, 60 seconds
- Plug the modem back in first and wait until its lights stabilise (usually 60–90 seconds)
- Then plug the router back in and wait for it to fully restart
The order matters if you have separate modem and router units. The modem needs to establish its connection with your ISP before the router tries to route traffic through it.
This resolves the majority of “connected but no internet” issues — routers and modems can get into stuck states after days or weeks of continuous operation, and a power cycle resets everything cleanly.
If you’re not sure about how to set up your NBN modem correctly or whether your current setup is optimal, that’s worth reviewing — an incorrectly configured modem can cause intermittent connectivity issues that look exactly like the connected-but-no-internet problem.
Step 3: Check Your Router’s Status Lights
Router indicator lights tell you a lot about what’s actually happening. The specific lights vary by model, but you’re typically looking for:
Internet/WAN light: This light indicates whether your router has an active connection to the outside world. If it’s off, red, or amber when it should be white or green, your router isn’t getting internet from your ISP — and no device on your network will have internet regardless of how strong the WiFi signal is.
Power light: Should be steady. Flashing may indicate a fault.
LAN/WiFi light: Should be on if devices are connected. Activity blinking is normal.
The key is the WAN/Internet light. If that’s not showing a healthy status, the problem is upstream from your router — at the modem, the NBN connection, or the ISP.
If you have an all-in-one modem/router unit (common with many NBN setups), there’s typically a single internet indicator that shows the same information.
Step 4: Check If It’s an NBN Problem
If the router’s internet light is off or showing an error, the issue is likely with your NBN connection — which could be a physical connection problem, a line issue, or an outage at your ISP.
Check for outages: Most ISPs have a status page or outage map. Check your provider’s website (on mobile data if necessary) for any reported issues in your area. Widespread outages are common after storms, during peak maintenance periods, and following NBN infrastructure work.
Check physical connections: Trace the cable from your wall NBN connection point to your modem. Make sure it’s firmly seated at both ends. If you have fibre to the premises (FTTP), check that the Optical Network Terminal (ONT) — usually a white box on a wall — has its power and optical lights showing green.
For an overview of how different NBN connection types work and what their typical fault points are, our guide to every NBN technology explained covers FTTP, FTTN, FTTC, FTTB, and HFC in plain terms.
Check if your NBN is connected but showing no internet: Our detailed guide on NBN connected but no internet covers the NBN-specific diagnostic steps in depth, including the specific things to check for each connection type.
If you’re having ongoing problems with your NBN connection, NBN installation problems and fixes cover the most common causes of persistent NBN issues — including signal problems on FTTN connections that are often mistaken for router or ISP faults.
Step 5: Run an Internet Speed Test
If pages are loading but slowly, or the connection is intermittent rather than completely absent, run an internet speed test to see what’s actually happening.
A speed test tells you three things: your download speed, upload speed, and ping (latency). Compare these against your plan’s advertised speeds.
If your speeds are dramatically lower than expected — say, 5Mbps when you’re paying for 100Mbps — the problem is congestion or signal degradation rather than a complete outage. This is a different problem with different solutions, covered in our guide to 13 ways to increase internet speed.
Step 6: Check Your Device’s Network Settings
If the problem is isolated to one device, the issue is in that device’s network configuration. Here are the most common device-side causes.
IP Address Problems
Your device needs a valid IP address to communicate on the network. These are assigned automatically by your router via DHCP — but sometimes the process fails, and your device ends up with an invalid “APIPA” address (starting with 169.254.x.x) instead of a proper local address (typically starting with 192.168.x.x or 10.x.x.x).
On Windows: Open Command Prompt and type ipconfig. Look at the IPv4 address under your WiFi adapter. If it starts with 169.254, your device didn’t receive an IP address from the router.
Fix: In the same Command Prompt window, type ipconfig /release, then ipconfig /renew. This releases your current address and requests a fresh one from the router.
On Mac: Go to System Settings > Network > WiFi > Details. Check the IP address shown. If it’s in the 169.254 range, go to TCP/IP and click “Renew DHCP Lease”.
DNS Problems
Even with a valid IP address, your device needs a working DNS (Domain Name System) to translate website names into the IP addresses needed to connect. If your DNS is misconfigured or slow, pages won’t load even though the connection itself is working.
You can test whether DNS is the issue by trying to open a website using its IP address directly. If an IP address loads but a domain name doesn’t, DNS is your problem.
Fix: Change your DNS server to a reliable public option. On Windows, go to Network settings > Change adapter options > Right-click WiFi > Properties > IPv4 Properties. Change “Preferred DNS” to 8.8.8.8 (Google) or 1.1.1.1 (Cloudflare) and “Alternate DNS” to 8.8.4.4 or 1.0.0.1.
On Mac, go to System Settings > Network > WiFi > Details > DNS, and add 8.8.8.8 as a DNS server.
Corrupted Network Stack (Windows)
On Windows, the TCP/IP stack can become corrupted — particularly after a bad Windows update or malware infection. The fix requires a few Command Prompt commands run as Administrator:
netsh winsock reset
netsh int ip reset
ipconfig /flushdns
Restart after running these. Our guide on fixing Windows update issues covers cases where a Windows update has caused network problems, specifically.
VPN Interference
If you have a VPN application installed, it may be intercepting network traffic even when it appears to be disconnected. Try fully quitting your VPN application and testing the connection. If that fixes it, your VPN needs to be reconfigured or reinstalled. Our guide on VPN setup covers the correct configuration for common VPN clients.
Step 7: Check for WiFi Signal Issues
Sometimes the problem isn’t a complete connectivity failure — it’s a weak signal that’s technically connected but too degraded to load anything reliably.
Check signal strength indicators on your device. Full bars near the router, but a weak signal in distant rooms or through multiple walls.
If you’re experiencing a weak signal in parts of your home or office, several solutions depend on your setup. Our guides on fixing WiFi dead zones at home and boosting wireless internet at home cover the practical options.
For persistent weak signal problems, a WiFi range extender installation can extend coverage without replacing your existing router, while a mesh WiFi setup in Melbourne provides whole-home coverage for larger homes or offices where a single router genuinely can’t reach everywhere.
If your WiFi range is consistently poor despite your router being centrally located, small WiFi range fixes cover the common causes — including router placement, interference from other devices, and whether your router’s hardware is adequate for your home size.
Step 8: Check for Interference
WiFi signals share spectrum with other devices — particularly on the crowded 2.4GHz band. Microwave ovens, baby monitors, neighbouring networks, and even some smart home devices can cause interference that disrupts connectivity without fully breaking it.
Our guide on whether WiFi and microwave interference is real explains the mechanism — it is real, and specific frequency channels are more affected than others.
The solution is often switching to the 5GHz band if your router supports it, or changing your 2.4GHz channel to one less congested by neighbouring networks. Our guide on 5GHz WiFi and its advantages explains when 5GHz helps and when 2.4GHz is actually better — they’re different tools for different situations.
For a complete explanation of the difference between the two bands and when each performs better, see our 5GHz WiFi difference guide.
Step 9: Check for Malware
Certain types of malware specifically interfere with network connectivity — either redirecting DNS to malicious servers, consuming bandwidth entirely, or corrupting network configuration. If your network is working fine on other devices but consistently broken on one, and the software fixes above haven’t helped, malware should be on your diagnostic list.
Signs that malware may be causing your network issue include internet problems appearing suddenly after downloading something, unusually high network activity when you’re not actively using the internet, and browser redirects when you do manage to connect.
Our guides on removing viruses from a computer and virus, spyware, and malware removal cover the professional removal process, while 8 common warning signs of malware on your computer help you assess whether this is likely to be your problem.
Step 10: Consider Whether It’s Time for a WiFi Upgrade
If you’ve worked through all of the above and the problem persists, or if you’re constantly dealing with slow speeds, dead zones, or intermittent connectivity, the underlying issue may be ageing or inadequate hardware.
Consumer routers typically last 4–5 years before hardware degradation starts affecting performance. If your router is older than that and you’re experiencing persistent issues, replacement is often more cost-effective than continued troubleshooting.
Our guide on upgrading your home network for 1Gbps speeds covers what a modern network upgrade involves if you’re looking to make a meaningful performance improvement rather than just replacing like-for-like.
For a broader look at network setup options — including whether wired connections make sense for parts of your home or office — our guides on wired vs wireless home networks and how much faster a wired connection is provide the practical comparison.
When to Call a Professional
Most WiFi connectivity issues can be resolved with the steps above. But some situations warrant professional help:
Persistent NBN problems that come back regularly after power cycling suggest a line fault that needs your ISP to investigate — or a physical connection issue that requires inspection. If you’ve had multiple ISP visits and the problem continues, a WiFi technician vs DIY in Melbourne assessment can help you decide whether independent technical help is needed alongside your ISP.
Network issues after moving into a new home sometimes stem from incorrectly installed or damaged internal cabling. Our new house NBN installation setup guide covers what a proper new connection setup involves, and our network cabling service handles any internal cabling work that needs doing.
Business network problems where staff connectivity issues are affecting productivity deserve more than home troubleshooting steps. Our home networking and managed IT services teams handle business network setup, ongoing support, and fault diagnosis for Melbourne businesses of all sizes.
Complex home network setups — multiple access points, smart home devices, NAS storage, security cameras, VoIP phones — create more potential points of failure. If your setup has grown organically and you’re not sure whether it’s configured correctly, a WiFi setup and security audit can identify configuration issues that are degrading your network’s performance or reliability.
If you’d rather have an expert sort it out than work through the diagnostic steps yourself, get in touch with our team — we handle WiFi setup, troubleshooting, and upgrades across Melbourne.
Quick Reference: Diagnosis Flowchart
Multiple devices, no internet on this network → ISP/NBN problem or router/modem fault. Power cycle the modem and router. Check the router’s WAN light. Check for outages.
One device, no internet → Device-specific problem. Try IP renewal, DNS change, network stack reset, VPN check, and malware scan.
Internet works but slowly → Speed/signal issue. Run speed test, check signal strength, consider interference or hardware upgrade.
Intermittent connectivity → Usually signal, interference, or overloaded router. Check slow WiFi fixes, consider a hardware upgrade.
Problem appeared after an update → Software/driver issue. Roll back recent changes, run network stack reset commands.
Conclusion
“WiFi connected but no internet” is rarely as mysterious as it feels in the moment. Working through the diagnostic steps systematically — from device restart to IP configuration to router to NBN to ISP — will identify the cause in the vast majority of cases.
The most common culprits, in order, are: the router or modem needing a restart, an IP addressing issue on a specific device, a DNS configuration problem, a genuine NBN or ISP outage, and — less commonly — malware or corrupted network software.
If you’ve worked through all of this and the problem persists, or if you’d simply prefer someone else to diagnose and fix it, the Computer Cures team provides WiFi setup and troubleshooting services across Melbourne — including both residential and business network support.
