How to Fix WiFi Slow on Windows 11 But Fast on Other Devices (2026 Guide)

You run a speed test on your phone and get 200 Mbps. You run the same test on your Windows 11 laptop sitting right next to it — and you get 15 Mbps. Same router, same room, same network. So what is going on?

This is one of the most frustrating Windows 11 problems users report, and the good news is it is almost never a hardware failure. Windows 11 has several built-in settings and driver-level behaviors that silently throttle your WiFi speed — features your phone simply does not have. This guide covers every Windows-specific culprit and gives you exact steps to fix each one.

Why Is WiFi Slow Only on Windows 11? (Root Causes Explained)

When other devices on your network are fast but your Windows 11 PC is not, the problem is almost always software or driver configuration — not the router, not the ISP, and not a weak signal. Here are the main culprits:

• Metered Connection is enabled: Windows 11 deliberately limits background data (and sometimes overall throughput) when a connection is marked as metered to conserve data usage.
• WiFi adapter power management: Windows puts the wireless adapter into a low-power sleep state to save battery, which directly reduces maximum throughput and causes connection stalls.
• Large Send Offload (LSO): LSO is a network optimization feature that can conflict with certain routers and WiFi chips, causing significant packet loss and speed drops specifically on Windows.
• Outdated or incompatible WiFi driver: A driver mismatch — especially after a Windows 11 update — can silently reduce adapter performance to a fraction of its capability.
• Slow DNS servers: The default DNS assigned by your ISP can add hundreds of milliseconds of latency to every request, making pages feel slow even when raw bandwidth is fine.

None of these issues affect your phone because Android and iOS manage network hardware differently and do not implement LSO or aggressive Windows-style power saving on their WiFi chips. That is exactly why the problem is isolated to your Windows 11 machine.

Fix 1: Disable Metered Connection Setting

This is the fastest fix and one of the most commonly overlooked. If your WiFi network was ever set as metered — perhaps accidentally, or after a Windows update — Windows will quietly throttle it.

1. Press Windows + I to open Settings.
2. Go to Network & internet > Wi-Fi.
3. Click your current WiFi network name.
4. Scroll down and find Metered connection.
5. Toggle it Off if it is currently on.

After disabling this, run a speed test immediately. Many users see their speeds double or triple right away without any other changes.

Fix 2: Update or Roll Back the WiFi Adapter Driver

Windows 11 automatically updates drivers, but automatic updates sometimes install a generic driver that performs worse than the manufacturer's certified version — or the update itself introduces a regression.

Update the driver from Device Manager:

1. Press Windows + X and select Device Manager.
2. Expand Network adapters.
3. Right-click your WiFi adapter (e.g., Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201, Realtek RTL8852BE) and select Update driver.
4. Choose Search automatically for drivers.

Roll back a recent driver update:

If your WiFi became slow after a Windows update, the new driver may be the problem.

1. In Device Manager, right-click your WiFi adapter and select Properties.
2. Click the Driver tab.
3. If Roll Back Driver is available (not greyed out), click it and confirm.
4. Restart your PC.

Get the driver directly from the manufacturer:

For best results, download the driver from Intel, Realtek, Qualcomm, or your laptop manufacturer's support page rather than relying on Windows Update. Search for your adapter model + "driver download" and install the latest stable release.

Fix 3: Disable Large Send Offload (LSO) in Adapter Settings

Large Send Offload is a Windows network feature designed to reduce CPU load by offloading large data packet segmentation to the network adapter. In theory, this improves performance. In practice, it causes significant speed drops and packet loss on many WiFi adapters — particularly when paired with certain router firmware versions.

Disabling LSO is one of the most effective fixes for the "WiFi slow on Windows 11 but fast on other devices" problem.

Method A — Via Device Manager (Recommended):

1. Press Windows + X and open Device Manager.
2. Expand Network adapters and double-click your WiFi adapter.
3. Click the Advanced tab.
4. In the Property list, find Large Send Offload V2 (IPv4) and set the Value to Disabled.
5. Find Large Send Offload V2 (IPv6) and set it to Disabled as well.
6. Click OK and restart your PC.

Method B — Via PowerShell (Advanced):

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

Disable-NetAdapterLso -Name "*"

This disables LSO on all network adapters. To target only your WiFi adapter by name:

Disable-NetAdapterLso -Name "Wi-Fi"

To verify the change:

Get-NetAdapterLso

After disabling LSO, run a speed test. Users with Intel and Realtek WiFi adapters consistently report dramatic speed improvements after this step alone.

Fix 4: Turn Off WiFi Adapter Power Management

By default, Windows 11 is allowed to put your WiFi adapter into a low-power state to save battery. This is fine when you are idle, but it actively reduces throughput and causes intermittent slowdowns during active use. On laptops this is especially aggressive.

Disable power saving in Device Manager:

1. Open Device Manager (Windows + X).
2. Expand Network adapters and double-click your WiFi adapter.
3. Click the Power Management tab.
4. Uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power".
5. Click OK.

Set WiFi adapter to Maximum Performance in Power Options:

1. Press Windows + R, type powercfg.cpl, and press Enter.
2. Click Change plan settings next to your active power plan.
3. Click Change advanced power settings.
4. Expand Wireless Adapter Settings > Power Saving Mode.
5. Set both On battery and Plugged in to Maximum Performance.
6. Click Apply and OK.

If you are on a desktop PC and still seeing this setting, set it to Maximum Performance — there is no reason to limit WiFi adapter power on a desktop that is always plugged in.

Fix 5: Change DNS Server to Google or Cloudflare

Your ISP assigns DNS servers by default, and many ISP DNS servers are slow, overloaded, or poorly maintained. Switching to a fast public DNS server like Google (8.8.8.8) or Cloudflare (1.1.1.1) reduces lookup latency and makes web browsing feel noticeably faster — even if your raw download speed stays the same.

Change DNS via Network Settings:

1. Press Windows + R, type ncpa.cpl, and press Enter.
2. Right-click your active WiFi adapter and select Properties.
3. Double-click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4).
4. Select "Use the following DNS server addresses".
5. Enter:
   • Preferred DNS: 8.8.8.8 (Google) or 1.1.1.1 (Cloudflare)
   • Alternate DNS: 8.8.4.4 (Google) or 1.0.0.1 (Cloudflare)
6. Click OK twice.

Also flush your DNS cache:

Open Command Prompt as Administrator and run:

ipconfig /flushdns

Then release and renew your IP address:

ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew

These commands force Windows to request a fresh IP from your router and clear any cached DNS entries that could be routing traffic incorrectly.

Bonus: Reset TCP/IP stack

If none of the above fully resolve the issue, resetting the TCP/IP stack and Winsock can clear deep networking configuration corruption:

netsh int ip reset
netsh winsock reset
ipconfig /flushdns

Restart your PC after running these commands.

If you have worked through all five fixes and your Windows 11 WiFi is still underperforming, the issue may be deeper — a corrupt network driver installation, conflicting VPN or security software, or a hardware fault. In that case, you can get expert help from CloudHouse Technologies and have a certified technician diagnose and resolve the issue remotely, same day.

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