What to Do if Your Amazon Fire Stick Won’t Connect to WiFi

Amazon’s line of Fire TV Sticks is one of the most popular ways to watch Netflix and Hulu, play some music through Spotify around the house, and even stream some games on the web. Still, no matter how good Amazon’s gadgets are, it’s not uncommon to experience some degree of internet connectivity issues. It can be a real bummer if you’re running into network problems. Fortunately, a little troubleshooting can resolve many network connection issues.

Several possible things can cause WiFi connectivity problems with your Fire Stick. This how-to article explains a few quick fixes that can get your Fire Stick back online in no time so that you can get back to enjoying it.

1. Inspect Your Amazon Fire Stick Setup

Before you restart the Fire Stick, take a closer look at the physical setup. Something might be blocking the WiFi signal or making it weak. If your TV is in a cabinet or any other enclosed space, you might experience a weaker WiFi signal subject to periodic interruptions.

If you have a Fire TV device, keep it away from other electronics that could interfere with the WiFi signal.

2. Restart Your Amazon Fire Stick

Once you ensure that nothing is physically blocking or interfering with the WiFi signal to your Fire Stick, the next step to try is simply restarting your device. It’s amazing how often restarting a device fixes problems, including Internet connectivity issues.

There are two different methods to initiate a restart of your Fire Stick.

1. To physically restart your Fire Stick, you only need to unplug the device, wait about 15 seconds, then plug it back in.
   
2. Your Fire Stick should come back online a few seconds or so after it’s plugged in.

Often, you’ll find that this is enough to solve your WiFi connectivity issues.

If you don’t want to get off the couch to reboot your device physically, you can force your Fire Stick to restart using a shortcut on your remote.

1. To restart your Fire Stick with a remote, just hold down the Play/Pause and Select buttons simultaneously.
   
2. Wait for the device to restart.

Lastly, if the remote shortcut doesn’t seem to work for you, restart your device from the Fire Stick menu.

1. To do so, just head to the Settings menu on your device, select the Device submenu, and select Restart.
2. When your device reboots, test your WiFi.

Using one of these three methods, you can quickly restart your Fire Stick to resolve your WiFi connectivity issues. Be sure to try this before moving on, as it is much easier and faster than any other solution.

3. Check Your Internet Connection and WiFi

If restarting your device doesn’t work, there is a possibility that the issue lies in your internet connection. Confirm that your WiFi network is functioning for other devices like your smartphone or laptop. If it is, you know the problem lies squarely with your Fire Stick, and you may want to use the built-in network tool to check the network status and get some tips on how to fix the issue.

To check your WiFi network, follow these steps:

1. Head to the Settings menu on your device and select Network.
2. Press Play/Pause to check your Network.
3. This will tell you whether or not your home WiFi network is up and running.
4. If it’s not, then the solution may be to restart your modem or router to re-establish a connection.

Restart Your Modem or Router

If your network is not working as it’s supposed to, a simple restart should fix the connectivity issue so that your Fire Stick can reconnect to WiFi.

1. Start by powering off your router. Use the Power button to turn off your modem and wait for 30 seconds before you power it back on. You can also unplug the adapter to turn off the device.
2. After 30 seconds, turn your router back and wait for it to establish a connection. You may have to wait several minutes for the router/modem to completely power back on and connect to the Internet.
3. Once your router/modem fully restarts and connects, try reconnecting the Fire Stick to your WiFi.
4. Note: Those who use both a modem and a router need to power on the modem first, then the router.

Forget Your WiFi Network and then Re-establish a Connection

If restarting your router doesn’t work, you can try forgetting your home network and reconnecting with your Fire Stick. This process is a software-level restart that helps establish a new WiFi connection.

1. Use the Fire Stick remote to navigate to the Settings menu and select the Network option.
2. Locate the offending network and press the Menu button for more options. This button is represented by three horizontal lines (also known as the hamburger icon).
3. Choose the option to Forget the Network and confirm your choice by pressing the Select button. This will cause your Fire Stick to disconnect from your home network.
4. After forgetting the network, look for it among the list of available networks and try to connect back to it. Enter your password when prompted to see if you can now connect to the WiFi.

4. Reenter the Password when Connecting to WiFi

If you cannot connect to WiFi after restarting your device and attempting to reconnect, it may be because you are using the wrong password. If this is the case, you will get a password error displayed on the Fire TV menu.

To avoid password problems, remember that they are case-sensitive. If you suspect that you’ve forgotten the password, you might be able to retrieve it by checking your saved networks on another device. Or ask a roommate or housemate if you have one.

5. Check Compatibility Issues

Fire TV devices require particular network and modem or router specifications.

Fire Sticks can connect to WPA1-PSK encrypted, WEP, WPA-PSK, open networks, and hidden networks. Most also support N, B, and G routers on 2.4 GHz and AC, A, and N routers on 5 GHz.

You should check if your equipment and network are Fire Stick compatible before purchasing the device to avoid this problem.

In closing, WiFi connectivity issues can be pretty annoying. On the bright side, this write-up should help you quickly get to the bottom of your connectivity issues. The methods above are quick, simple, and often effective in resolving Fire Stick Internet connectivity problems.