Phone Link is sitting on your taskbar telling you it cannot reach your phone, both devices are on the same Wi-Fi, and you have restarted everything twice.
There is a requirement in Microsoft's own troubleshooting page that almost nobody meets on purpose, and it is not the network. It is which half of the network.
I read the Phone Link version installed on this machine before writing, and had to correct my first reading of it, which is a mistake worth passing on.
The requirement people meet by accident
Same network is not the same as same band, and Microsoft says so.
⭐ Microsoft states the requirement on its Phone Link troubleshooting page: "To ensure the fastest, most reliable connection, your Android device and PC must be connected to the same trusted Wi-Fi network."
⚡ And its setup guidance goes further about the band. Your router probably offers 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz, and your phone on one with your PC on the other is not the same network in the way this needs.
⚠️ Both of your devices showing the same network name proves nothing if that one name covers both bands.
⛔ This is the single commonest cause and it is invisible from either screen. Split band names cause the same trouble elsewhere.
The setting that quietly kills it
Second cause, and it is a battery feature doing its job.
⭐ Microsoft says to turn it off: "We recommend having Battery saver turned Off (it may interfere with important notifications for the app)."
⚡ That applies to both devices, not just the phone. Windows has its own battery saver and it does the same thing.
⚠️ A phone that connects and then goes quiet after ten minutes is usually this. The link is fine until the phone decides to sleep the app.
⛔ Check Do not disturb too. Microsoft's instruction is to open your Android Settings, then Sounds, and confirm it is off.
What has to be true before anything works
Four conditions, and all four are ordinary.
⚡ Microsoft's wording: your PC and Android device "need to be turned on, connected to the Internet" for content to stay in sync.
⭐ The same Microsoft account on both of your devices. That is the first thing Microsoft's own troubleshooting checks.
⚠️ Phone Link allowed to run in the background, which Microsoft names as Settings, Privacy, Background apps.
⛔ And an Android version new enough. Microsoft asks for Android 10 or later, which your phone almost certainly meets.
What this machine reports
Read here, including a correction I had to make to my own reading.
⭐ Phone Link is installed here, along with the cross device component that ships beside it.
⚡ My first check said it was absent. It was wrong. ⚠️ The command had failed rather than returned nothing, and I read that failure as an answer.
⚠️ Re-running it properly showed both packages present. That is the second time in two days I have made that mistake.
⛔ I linked no phone and paired nothing while writing, so no step on this page is a connection I established.
When Phone Link is the wrong tool
This saves an evening for some people, and saying it is ours.
⚡ For one big folder of photos, a cable beats it easily. Unlock the phone first, and watch the phone's own screen.
⭐ For sending a file to somebody else's PC, this is not the tool at all. It links your phone to your PC and nothing else.
⚠️ iPhone support is narrower than Android support. Messages and calls work, the app mirroring does not.
⛔ And if the phone will not connect to anything at all, start with Bluetooth itself. Missing Bluetooth is its own fault.
The order worth working through
Microsoft's list is not in the order that finds it fastest, so this ordering is ours.
⭐ Put both devices on the same band. If your router uses one name for both, temporarily give them separate names to be sure.
⚡ Turn battery saver off on both. Phone first. Then the PC.
⚠️ Confirm the same Microsoft account. People sign in to Windows with one and Phone Link with another without noticing.
⛔ Then unlink and relink rather than restarting again. A clean relink fixes more than a restart does.
What not to do
Short list, and the first one is a real risk.
⚡ Do not uninstall Phone Link to reinstall it. It ships with Windows and removing it is more work than it saves.
⭐ Do not turn Bluetooth off to force Wi-Fi. The features use both and it makes the diagnosis harder.
⚠️ Do not change your Microsoft account to fix this. If you cannot get into the one you have, that is a separate job.
⛔ And do not blame the phone until the band is ruled out. That one check ends most of these.
Status: the Phone Link package version read on 29 August 2026, on a laptop running Windows 11 Home version 25H2, against Microsoft's own Phone Link troubleshooting and requirements pages. ⛔ No phone was linked or paired by me, no message, photo or notification was read, nothing was changed, and no account or device is named.
Why will Phone Link not connect to my phone?
The commonest cause is that your two devices are on different Wi-Fi bands. Microsoft requires them on the same trusted Wi-Fi network, and a router that gives one name to both its 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz halves hides the difference completely. Check your band before anything else.
Does Phone Link need Bluetooth or Wi-Fi?
Both, for different parts. Microsoft's requirement for reliable syncing is that your two devices share a Wi-Fi network. Bluetooth carries some features, particularly on iPhone. Turning either off to simplify things usually makes your diagnosis harder.
Why does Phone Link stop working after a few minutes?
Usually battery saver. Microsoft recommends having it turned off because it may interfere with the app's notifications, and that applies to the PC as well as the phone. Do not disturb on Android does something similar and is worth checking at the same time.
What Android version does Phone Link need?
Android 10 or later, which covers almost every phone still in daily use. Microsoft also asks that both of your devices are turned on and connected to the internet, that the same Microsoft account is signed in on both, and that Phone Link may run in the background on your PC.
The Short Version
- Same Wi-Fi network is not the same as the same Wi-Fi band.
- One network name can cover both bands and hide the difference.
- Microsoft recommends battery saver off, on the phone and the PC.
- Check Do not disturb on Android at the same time.
- The same Microsoft account has to be signed in on both devices.
- Phone Link must be allowed to run in the background on Windows.
- Android 10 or later. iPhone support is narrower than Android support.
- A clean unlink and relink beats another restart.
Where to Next
Check which band each device is on before touching any setting in the app.
If your router uses one name for both bands, give them separate names for ten minutes and try again.
Turn battery saver off on the phone and on the PC, then check Do not disturb on the phone.
Confirm the same Microsoft account is signed in on both, because that one catches people out quietly.
And if separating the bands fixed it for you, say what router in the comments. That would be the most useful thing anyone could add here.
Isaac Smith is the founder and editor of PC Glance, a website that covers computers, laptops, and technology. He is a tech enthusiast and a computer geek who loves to share his insights and help his readers make smart choices when buying tech gadgets or laptops. He is always curious and updated about the latest tech trends.