Fix error Windows 10 PC does not detect 5GHz WiFi network

5GHz WiFi networks are becoming more and more popular. Gamers and users who prefer to use high-speed Internet connections switch to newer router models as they support WiFi 5 and WiFi 6 standards. There are several standards that work in the 5GHz frequency band:

1. 802.11a
2. 802.11n (WiFi 4)
3. 802.11ac (WiFi 5)
4. 802.11ax (WiFi 6)

In this article, TipsMake  will talk about problems with WiFi in the 5GHz range.

The reason why Windows PC does not detect 5GHz WiFi network

The WiFi adapter in a Windows PC is for another region

In different countries, different WiFi channels are used. For example, if you buy a 5 5GHz WiFi adapter in Russia, you will only be able to detect channels 36, 40, 44 and 48. Your network adapter will not detect channels 149, 153, 157, 161, and 165. .

In most cases this issue cannot be solved by updating the driver or changing the firmware (which is not possible).

The solution is to manually select a channel from the lower range (36 - 48).

5GHz WiFi offers much smaller coverage

While 5GHz WiFi is capable of transmitting data at much higher speeds, it offers much less coverage. You can do the test with a dual-band router and set up a 2.4GHz and 5GHz network. Make sure that the first 5GHz signal disappears when you leave your router.

The solution is to use a Mesh WiFi system or wireless repeater to extend the range of the 5GHz WiFi network.

In addition, there are many different reasons why 5GHz WiFi is not showing up in Windows 10 such as:

1. Your computer hardware does not support 5GHz bandwidth.

2. Your WiFi router does not support 5GHz bandwidth.

3. 5GHz is not set up properly in your PC or in your WiFi router.

4. Outdated or mismatched WiFi adapter drivers are installed on your computer.

How to fix 5GHz WiFi not showing up in Windows 10

The first thing to do is check your PC and WiFi router to see if they support 5GHz WiFi or not.

1 - Check if the computer supports 5GHz WiFi

The first thing is to check if the PC is 5GHz bandwidth compatible or not. Here are the steps to check:

Step 1 : Press Win + R to open the Run dialog box .

Step 2 : Type cmd in the Run box and press Enter to open Command Prompt.

Step 3 : In the Command Prompt window , type the following command:

netsh wlan show drivers

This will display the wireless LAN Driver properties on your computer.

Step 4 : From the result that opens in the Command Prompt window , find Radio types supported .

Find Radio types supported

In this section you will see 3 network modes. The following are the network modes with what they mean:

a) 802.11g 802.11n: The computer only supports 2.4GHz band.

b) 802.11n 802.11g 802.11b: Your computer only supports the 2.4GHz band.

c) 802.11a 802.11g 802.11n: Your computer supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands.

If you have Radio types supported under 1 of the first 2, then you need to upgrade your WiFi adapter hardware. If you have a compatible PC and 5GHz WiFi isn't showing up, then move on to the next step and see if your WiFi router supports 5GHz.

Note : For those whose computers do not support 5GHz, they can enable 5GHz WiFi on their laptop / PC by purchasing an external USB WiFi adapter.

2 - Check if the router supports 5GHz bandwidth

To check if your router supports the 5GHz band, you'll have to do some research on the Internet. But before that, look for the router box. If the router supports 5GHz, there will be information printed on the box.

If you can't find the information on the box or the box itself, look for the router's manufacturer name and model number.

Now, go to the router manufacturer's website and look for the product with the correct model name. If you can't find the manufacturer's website, ask Google for help. Find out the information about the model you are using. There, you can see if your router supports 5GHz or 2.4GHz bandwidth.

If yes, then move on to the next step to solve the problem 5GHz WiFi not showing up.

3 - Enable 802.11n mode on WiFi adapter

In this step, you will try to learn how to enable 5GHz WiFi bandwidth by doing the following:

Step 1 : Press Win + X and click Device Manager from the list of options that appear.

Step 2 : In Device Manager , find Network adapters and click to expand its menu. From the expansion menu, look for Wireless adapter . Right-click on the wireless adapter driver and select Properties.

Step 3 : The new Wireless adapter properties window will open. Here, go to the Advanced tab . Find 802.11n mode and select it. Once selected, change the value on the right to Enable. Click OK.

Step 4 : Reboot the computer and see if you can find the 5GHz WiFi network in the Wireless Network Connections list .

If this method didn't work for you, try the next one.

4 - Set the bandwidth to 5GHz via Device Manager

Here's another thing you can try to enable 5GHz WiFi and solve the 5GHz WiFi not showing up problem in Windows 10.

Step 1 : Please follow steps 1 and 2 in method number 3 mentioned above.

Step 2 : Go to the Advanced tab of Wireless Adapter Properties . In the Property box , select the Preferred Band option . Now, on the right side from the Value drop-down menu , select the 5.2 GHz band Prefer option . Then, click OK.

Step 3 : Reboot the PC and see if it can detect the 5GHZ WiFi network now.

5 - Update WiFi driver

Updating WiFi drivers can sometimes solve the problem for you. Refer to the article: 5 basic ways to update, update the computer driver to know how.

6 - Downgrade WiFi driver

This method is intended for users who were able to access 5GHz networks before, but not now. Chances are your Windows 10 has been upgraded and the WiFi driver has been updated as well. The latest driver has some problem, so the PC cannot connect or detect the 5GHz band.

Here are the steps to downgrade (roll back) the WiFi driver update:

Step 1 : Repeat steps 1 and 2 from method number 3 mentioned above.

Step 2 : In the Properties window that opens, go to the Driver tab . There, find Roll Back Driver and click on it. After that, follow the instructions to restore the driver to its previous version.

Step 3 : Once done, restart your PC and see if the process worked for you.

Kareem Winters

Update 31 December 2020