Home Wi-Fi keeps dropping out? Fixes that actually work
Practical steps to stop your home Wi-Fi disconnecting, from router placement and channel changes to firmware updates and mesh systems.
Restart the router, move it somewhere central and high up, and update its firmware. If drop-outs are only in some rooms, a mesh system fixes it far better than a plug-in extender.
Wi-Fi that drops every few minutes is one of the most common home tech complaints. The good news is that most fixes are free and take minutes.
Work out if it's the Wi-Fi or the broadband
Plug a laptop straight into the router with a network cable. If the internet still drops, the problem is the broadband line, not your Wi-Fi, so contact your provider.
Restart the router properly
Switch it off at the wall, wait 30 seconds and switch it back on. This clears memory problems that build up over weeks of running.
Move the router
Routers hate being hidden. Get it out of cupboards and away from TVs, fish tanks, microwaves and the back of metal cabinets. Higher and more central is better.
Update the firmware
Log into your router (the address is usually on a sticker on the back) and check for updates. Most provider routers update automatically, but older ones may not.
Change the Wi-Fi channel
In a street full of routers, yours may be fighting the neighbours. In the router settings, try fixed channels 1, 6 or 11 on 2.4GHz, or let the router choose automatically if it's been set manually.
Fix weak spots with mesh
If it only drops in certain rooms, the signal isn't reaching. A mesh Wi-Fi system with two or three units works far better than a cheap plug-in extender, because your devices hand over between units seamlessly.
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