You see "Self-assigned IP" or a 169.254.x.x address in your Mac's network settings. That means your Mac couldn't get a real address from the router — and you have no internet. Here are the seven fixes in order from fastest to most thorough.

Fix 1: Renew DHCP lease

System Settings → Wi-Fi → Details… → TCP/IP → Renew DHCP Lease. Works ~30% of the time. Try it first.

Fix 2: Forget and rejoin Wi-Fi

System Settings → Wi-Fi → click your network → Forget This Network. Reconnect from scratch with the password. Forces a clean handshake.

Fix 3: Power-cycle the router

Unplug your router for 30 seconds, plug back in, wait 2 minutes for it to fully boot. About 40% of self-assigned IP cases are router-side.

Fix 4: Delete and recreate the network service

System Settings → Network → click your Wi-Fi → − button to remove. Then + to add it back. This rebuilds the network service from scratch in macOS.

Fix 5: Reset the firewall config files

Open Finder → Go → Go to Folder → /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/. Move these files to your Desktop:

• com.apple.airport.preferences.plist
• com.apple.network.identification.plist
• com.apple.wifi.message-tracer.plist
• NetworkInterfaces.plist
• preferences.plist

Restart your Mac. macOS recreates them. Solves stubborn cases.

Fix 6: Disable IPv6

System Settings → Network → Wi-Fi → Details → TCP/IP → Configure IPv6 → Link-local only. Some misconfigured routers reject Mac IPv6 requests in a way that blocks IPv4 too.

Fix 7: Check for VPN or security software

Disable any VPN, network filter, or security suite (Little Snitch, Lulu, antivirus network shield) and try again. Persistent firewall rules sometimes block DHCP on rejoin.

Still broken?

If all seven fail, try a different network (phone hotspot) — if that works, the issue is your router or ISP. More on what causes APIPA in the first place.

Try it now

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