Why Doesn’t My Laptop or Windows PC Detect Bluetooth Devices?

Sometimes, hardware issues are the reason your laptop or PC can’t find your Bluetooth devices. When this happens, the problem is likely to be faulty hardware components, compatibility issues, or incorrect configurations. If this step resolves your issue, you’ll be ready to move on to things like optimizing your Bluetooth headphones for the best audio quality and using your wireless keyboard to complete work assignments.

The first thing you should do to check for hardware issues is check to see if your Bluetooth device is compatible with your computer. Unless you have an older device that doesn’t support the newer Bluetooth profiles Windows uses, this shouldn’t be a problem. If the Bluetooth device you’re using is compatible with Windows, you can try updating or reinstalling your computer’s Bluetooth drivers, as explained above. If you’ve gone through all of those steps and Windows is still having trouble finding your device, try running the Bluetooth Troubleshooter.

Follow these steps to run the Bluetooth Troubleshooter: 

1. Go to the Start menu and open Settings.
2. Click Update & Security.
3. Click Troubleshoot and then select Additional Troubleshooters.
4. Click Bluetooth under the Find and fix other problems header.
5. Click Run the troubleshooter.

When Windows has finished running the Bluetooth troubleshooter, a dialogue box will appear, letting you know if changes were made and what problems were found. Close the dialogue box and try to connect your Bluetooth device again.