How to fix Bluetooth stopped working on Windows 10
Bluetooth technology has been around for years and it’s gotten pretty good. We’re at the point where users can connect all sorts of peripherals, including speakers and headphones, over Bluetooth, and get great audio quality. An internet connection can be shared with a Windows system over Bluetooth, and game controllers can connect using it as well.
The technology, in terms of both hardware and software, is stable. That said, if Bluetooth has suddenly stopped working on your Windows 10 or Windows 11 system, try the following steps to fix Bluetooth stopped working issues quickly.
Fix Bluetooth stopped working
This article assumes you were able to use Bluetooth and it suddenly stopped working. If you were never able to use Bluetooth on your system, these fixes may or may not be helpful for you. Try the following fixes to get Bluetooth up and running again.
Start with these quick checks
Before diving into drivers and system settings, run through these low-risk checks first. Many “Bluetooth stopped working” cases come down to a toggle, a drained battery, or a pairing glitch — not a corrupted driver.
- Make sure Bluetooth is actually turned on. On Windows 11, press Win+A to open Quick Settings and check that the Bluetooth tile is active (highlighted). On Windows 10, press Win+A to open Action Center and confirm the Bluetooth tile is on.
- Turn Airplane mode off. Airplane mode disables all wireless radios, including Bluetooth. On Windows 11, go to Settings > Network & internet > Airplane mode and toggle it off. On Windows 10, go to Settings > Network & Internet > Airplane mode.
- Check for a physical wireless switch or Fn key on laptops. Some laptops have a dedicated hardware switch or a function key (such as Fn+F5 or Fn+F8) that controls wireless radios. Make sure it hasn’t been toggled off accidentally.
- Restart the PC. A simple restart clears temporary software states and is one of the most effective first steps when Bluetooth has stopped working.
- Restart or recharge your Bluetooth accessory. Turn the device off and back on. If it uses a battery, charge it — low battery often causes erratic Bluetooth behavior.
- Put the accessory back into pairing mode. Some devices drop their connection after an update or power cycle and need to be manually placed back into pairing mode before Windows can reconnect.
- Remove and re-pair the device if only one accessory is failing. On Windows 11, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices, click the three-dot menu next to the device, and select Remove device. On Windows 10, go to Settings > Devices > Bluetooth & other devices, select the device, and click Remove device. Then pair it again from scratch.
If none of these quick checks resolve the problem, move on to the steps below to fix Bluetooth stopped working on your system.
Run the Bluetooth troubleshooter and restart Bluetooth Support Service
Windows includes a built-in Bluetooth troubleshooter that can detect and automatically fix common software-level problems, and the Bluetooth Support Service must be running for the Bluetooth toggle to appear at all.
Run the Bluetooth troubleshooter:
- On Windows 11, go to Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters, then click Run next to Bluetooth. Alternatively, open the Get Help app and search for “Fix Bluetooth” to use the guided diagnostic flow.
- On Windows 10, go to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Additional troubleshooters, select Bluetooth, and click Run the troubleshooter.
- Follow the on-screen prompts and apply any fixes it recommends, then restart your PC.
Restart the Bluetooth Support Service:
If the Bluetooth toggle has disappeared from Settings entirely, the Bluetooth Support Service may have stopped running. This is a common reason Bluetooth has stopped working without any obvious cause.
- Press Win+R, type services.msc, and press Enter.
- Scroll down and double-click Bluetooth Support Service.
- Set Startup type to Automatic.
- Click Start if the service is stopped, or Restart if it is already running.
- Click OK, then restart your PC and check whether Bluetooth has returned.
1. Update Bluetooth driver to fix Bluetooth stopped working
Bluetooth drivers are supposed to update automatically but that doesn’t always happen for various reasons.
- Open Device Manager.
- Expand the Bluetooth group of devices.
- Right-click your Bluetooth device, and select Update Driver from the context menu.
- Allow Windows to search for drivers, and install any updates that are available.
- Restart the system.
If Windows Update does not find a newer driver, visit your PC or adapter manufacturer’s website directly — Dell, HP, Lenovo, Intel, Realtek, and Qualcomm all publish Bluetooth drivers that are more current than what Windows may offer automatically. Download and install the latest driver for your specific model, then restart. You can also check Microsoft’s official Bluetooth troubleshooting guidance for additional steps.
If updating the driver does not help and you suspect the driver itself is corrupted or missing, do a full reinstall:
- In Device Manager, right-click your Bluetooth adapter and select Uninstall device. Check the box to delete the driver software if prompted, then confirm.
- Restart Windows. Windows will attempt to redetect the hardware and reinstall a basic driver automatically.
- If Bluetooth does not return after the restart, install the latest Bluetooth driver from your PC or adapter manufacturer’s website manually.
2. Roll back Bluetooth driver
Bluetooth driver updates are automatic and they don’t always take compatibility into consideration. It is possible that your Bluetooth driver has been updated to a new version which isn’t compatible with your Windows version. If Bluetooth stopped working after a driver update, try rolling the driver back.
- Open Device Manager.
- Expand Bluetooth.
- Right-click your Bluetooth switch/chip and select Properties.
- Click Roll Back driver.
- Allow the driver to be removed and the older one to be installed.
- Restart the system.
Note: The Roll Back Driver button will be greyed out if Windows has no record of a previously installed driver. If that is the case, skip rollback and go straight to the full reinstall path described in section 1 above, using a driver downloaded directly from your manufacturer’s website rather than relying on Windows Update.
If Bluetooth disappeared from Device Manager or Settings
Sometimes Bluetooth does not just stop working — it vanishes entirely, with no toggle in Settings and no adapter listed in Device Manager. This commonly happens after a Windows update, a driver change, or a sleep/wake cycle. Work through the following recovery steps to fix Bluetooth stopped working in this scenario:
- Open Device Manager and click the View menu, then select Show hidden devices. Hidden or greyed-out Bluetooth entries will now appear. If you see a stale Bluetooth adapter listed, right-click it and select Uninstall device to clear it out.
- In Device Manager, click the Action menu and select Scan for hardware changes. Windows will attempt to redetect all connected hardware, including your Bluetooth adapter.
- If Bluetooth still does not appear, expand Unknown devices, Network adapters, and USB controllers in Device Manager and look for any entries marked with a yellow warning triangle. These may represent your Bluetooth adapter being misidentified or stuck without a driver.
- Download and install the latest Bluetooth or chipset driver from your PC manufacturer’s website (Dell, HP, Lenovo, etc.) or your adapter manufacturer (Intel, Realtek, Qualcomm). Run the installer and restart.
- If Bluetooth disappeared immediately after an update or after the system woke from sleep, try a full shutdown (not restart) — go to Start > Power > Shut down — wait 30 seconds, then power the system back on. This forces a complete power cycle that allows hardware to redetect properly, which a standard restart does not always do.
- If Bluetooth still does not appear after all of the above, and there are no visible signs of physical damage, the adapter may have been disabled in BIOS — see the next section.
3. Check BIOS
Some systems have a setting in their BIOS that can enable/disable Bluetooth. If you’ve recently updated your system’s BIOS, the update may have turned Bluetooth off. This is an often-overlooked reason why Bluetooth has stopped working on laptops and desktops alike.
- Open your system’s BIOS.
- Look for anything related to hardware or hardware configuration.
- Find your Bluetooth switch and enable it.
- Boot to Windows.
- Confirm Bluetooth is turned on. On Windows 11, press Win+A to open Quick Settings and verify the Bluetooth tile is active. On Windows 10, press Win+A to open Action Center and turn Bluetooth On.
4. Uninstall Windows updates
Windows receives small updates throughout the year. These updates, much like the feature update, can cause hardware problems. If you’ve recently installed an update that is reportedly causing Bluetooth stopped working issues, you can uninstall it.
- Open Control Panel.
- Go to Program>Uninstall a program.
- Click ‘View Installed Updates’ in the column on the left.
- Select an update, and click Uninstall at the top.
- Restart the system and check if Bluetooth is working.
5. Roll back Windows feature update
If Bluetooth stopped working right after installing a Windows feature update, the update is likely to blame. You can check for a driver update as described in the first solution and that may fix the problem. If it doesn’t, you may have to roll back the Windows update until the problem is acknowledged and resolved by Microsoft. Remember that there is a very small window during which a Windows update can be rolled back.
On Windows 11:
- Open the Settings app.
- Go to System > Recovery.
- Under ‘Go back’, click Go back and follow the prompts.
On Windows 10:
- Open the Settings app.
- Go to the Update and Security group of settings.
- Select the Recovery tab.
- Under the ‘Go back to the previous version of Windows 10’ section, click Get Started.
- Windows 10 will roll back to the old version using data in the Windows.old folder.
6. Check for hardware damage
Bluetooth works via a chip on your system. It’s not easy to damage the chip if you take care of your system. If the system has been dropped, or something has been spilled on it, it can damage any hardware component, including Bluetooth. If you’ve tried every method above to fix Bluetooth stopped working and nothing has helped, have the system checked for hardware damage by a qualified technician.
Conclusion: how to fix Bluetooth stopped working on Windows
Bluetooth problems after an update are normally software-related i.e., an incompatible driver or a buggy update. If you suspect hardware damage, you won’t be able to fix it by removing or updating drivers. If there are no visible signs of hardware damage, it may still be worth getting the system checked out if the above solutions fail.
