Every network in the street is listed except yours. The router lights look normal, wired devices still work, and the Wi-Fi name is simply not there. This is less alarming than it looks: the router is running, and something specific has stopped it advertising the network.
The short answer
Restart the router first, because a radio that has stopped broadcasting usually comes back with one. If it does not, check whether the wireless has been switched off by a physical button on the router or by a schedule, and check whether only one band has vanished. A 5 GHz network that disappears while 2.4 GHz remains usually means the router has selected a restricted channel.
Work out what is actually missing
- Both bands gone, wired still works. The wireless radios have stopped or been switched off. A restart usually recovers it.
- Only the 5 GHz network gone. Very likely a channel issue, covered below.
- Gone on one device, visible on others. That device, not the router.
- Everything gone including wired. A different problem: the router has failed or lost power.
- Visible but you cannot connect. Not this problem at all; that is an authentication issue.
Check on two or three devices before concluding it is the router, because a single phone failing to list a network it connected to yesterday is usually the phone.
Restart the router
Unplug it for a full minute and plug it back in. Wait three minutes for it to fully start before judging. This resolves a stopped radio most of the time and is the right first move.
Check the physical wireless button
Many routers have a Wi-Fi button on the back or side that switches the radios off, and it is easy to press while moving cables. Look for a wireless indicator light on the front that is off while the others are lit.
Check for a wireless schedule
Routers can turn Wi-Fi off on a timer, and some providers enable this by default or as part of parental controls. If your network disappears at the same time each evening or overnight, this is why.
Log into the router and check the wireless settings
Connect by ethernet if you have to. Confirm the radios are enabled, the network name is set, and that broadcast SSID or visible network is on. A hidden network still works for devices that already know it and will not appear in any list.
Change the 5 GHz channel
If only 5 GHz has vanished, the router may have selected one of the channels shared with weather radar. On those it must listen for a full minute before transmitting, and if it detects radar it stops and moves. Set a fixed channel in the lower 5 GHz range, which is not subject to that requirement.
Check the wireless mode and region setting
A router set to a region with different channel rules, or to a wireless mode your device does not support, can produce a network that some devices cannot see. Make sure the region matches where you are.
Forget the network on the affected device
If other devices can see it and one cannot, remove the network from that device and let it rescan. Also toggle airplane mode, which forces a full radio reset.
Update the router firmware
Radios failing to restart after a period of operation is a known class of firmware bug, and updates fix it. Worth doing if the problem recurs.
The 5 GHz radar point catches a lot of people and looks completely mysterious. Higher 5 GHz channels are shared with weather and aviation radar, and routers using them must monitor for radar and vacate immediately if they detect it. If your 5 GHz network vanishes for half an hour at a time, particularly near an airport or a coast, set a fixed low channel and the problem disappears.
If only one device cannot see it
Then the router is broadcasting and the device is the problem. Common causes: the device does not support the band or channel in use, its wireless adapter needs a driver update, a power saving setting has turned the adapter off, or the device has a saved network conflict.
On a laptop, check Device Manager for the wireless adapter and make sure it is enabled and not being turned off to save power. On a phone, toggle airplane mode and restart. On older devices, check whether the router is set to a wireless mode they cannot use, such as a 5 GHz-only or Wi-Fi 6-only setting.
Before factory resetting a provider-supplied router, find out whether it needs specific credentials to reconnect to the internet. Some do, and resetting without them leaves the whole house offline rather than just without Wi-Fi.
When the radio has failed
If the wireless section of the admin interface reports an error, or the radios refuse to enable after a restart and a firmware update, the wireless hardware has failed while the routing side continues to work. That is a replacement, but not necessarily an expensive one: a cheap access point plugged into a spare ethernet port restores Wi-Fi without replacing the router at all, and often performs better than the original did.
Why did my Wi-Fi name disappear but the internet still works on ethernet?
The wireless radios have stopped or been disabled while the routing side continues. A restart usually brings them back; check for a physical Wi-Fi button if it does not.
Why is only my 5 GHz network missing?
Most often a radar-detection channel. Higher 5 GHz channels are shared with weather radar, and routers must vacate them when radar is detected. Set a fixed channel in the lower range.
Can a router schedule turn off Wi-Fi?
Yes, and many routers and parental control features do this by default. If the network disappears at a consistent time, look for a wireless schedule.
What is a hidden network?
One where the router does not broadcast its name. It still works for devices that already know it, but it will never appear in a scan. Check whether the broadcast setting has been turned off.
What if only one laptop cannot see the network?
That laptop is the problem. Check the wireless adapter is enabled, update its driver, and clear the power management setting that allows Windows to turn it off to save power.
The bottom line
Restart the router and wait three minutes before judging, because that recovers a stopped radio most of the time. Check for a physical Wi-Fi button and a wireless schedule next. If only 5 GHz has gone, set a fixed channel in the lower range, since radar detection on the higher channels is the cause people never guess.
