Can’t Connect to 5GHz WiFi on Windows 11: How to Force It

Apply these quick tips if you fail to connect to a 5Ghz WiFi

5 min. read

Updated onApril 29, 2024

updated onApril 29, 2024

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If you can’t connect to 5GHz WiFi on Windows 11, you are not alone. To avoid network overlapping and to gain a more stable and speedy wireless connection, 5 GHz has been a new standard for WiFi.

However, due to some limitations, many users can’t connect or find the 5GHz WiFi SSID on Windows. Keep in mind that this problem is not like theWiFi option disappearing problem.

Why can’t I connect to the 5GHz WiFi from Windows 11?

How can I check if my computer supports the 5 GHz wireless band?

If you see that it is 5 GHz mentioned in the supported band section, it means your PC has the capability. However, for some adapters, you may see different information. In this case, you should look at the Radio type section.

If you see 802.11a and 802.11g, 802.11n, and 802.11ac, the network adapter supports both 2.4 and 5 GHz bands.

How to switch to 5GHz WiFi in Windows 11?

You can forcibly switch to 5Ghz WiFi on Windows 11 to solve this problem. However, before that, we recommend you check out these things:

After that, you can go through the following methods to fix can’t connect to 5Ghz WiFi in Windows 11.

1. Run the Network Adapter troubleshooter

2. Set 5Ghz preference

You may directly see the 5 GHz option. However, for some adapters, there may be different IEEE standard names, like IEEE 802.11ac. Select these options and see which one works. It should solve can’t connect to the 5GHz WiFi on Windows 11 issue.

We have another article that explains this method in more detail, so learnhow to change the network band on Windows 11.

3. Disable and re-enable the wireless adapter

4. Reset TCP/IP

After that, try to connect to the 5Ghz wireless network and see if it works.

5. Re-install the wireless adapter

Alternatively, you can use anautomated driver updaterto install any missing drivers on your PC.

After re-installation, it should solve the problems with 5GHz WiFi connectivity on your PC. However, in some cases, you may need to considerresetting Windows 11. If necessary, you also can do aclean installation.

If interested, learnif you can clean install Windows after upgrading.

This article has explained how you can fix can’t connect to a 5GHz wireless network on Windows 11. If you have any suggestions, feel free to let us know in the comment box.

Can’t Connect to 5GHz WiFi on Windows 11: How to Force It#

How to switch to 5GHz WiFi in Windows 11?#

1. Run the Network Adapter troubleshooter#

2. Set 5Ghz preference#

3. Disable and re-enable the wireless adapter#

4. Reset TCP/IP#

5. Re-install the wireless adapter#