iPhone won't connect to Wi-Fi after iOS 18.5 Update

I’m also having this issue and have tried a lot of the things people have tried when this issue happened to them in prior updates and nothing has worked so far.

I wish my issue was as simple as turning off/deleting vpns like others have said. I don’t have a vpn to turn off or delete.

I have the same problem

I had this issue after the 18.5 update, and the fix for me was turning off my VPN and then turning the VPN back on.

I had tried forgetting the WiFi, changing WiFi settings, and rebooting the phone which did not seem to help at all.

Have you tried to force restart the iPhone to see if the issues persist?

Press and quickly release the volume up button. Press and quickly release the volume down button.Press and hold the side button.

I have found that by forgetting the WIFI network and then adding it back will temporarily solve the issue.

In your situation, you turn off the VPN when you're not accessing company servers. If that doesn't help, you'll need to get the IT folks at your job to help you. If they require a VPN, they should be the one providing it.

I have also found that the wifi privacy was set to fixed, but if anything happened to the wifi like moving from one room to another the problem would reappear. Fix for me was setting the Privacy to off on the network I had issues with. This was effecting my iPad.

knirving wrote:

I have also found that the wifi privacy was set to fixed, but if anything happened to the wifi like moving from one room to another the problem would reappear. Fix for me was setting the Privacy to off on the network I had issues with. This was effecting my iPad.

If moving between Wi-Fi access points, Wi-Fi mesh routing, or Wi-Fi routers, issues can sometimes arise.

When roaming among access points (or a well-functioning mesh), issues should be rare.

When roaming among Wi-Fi routers, issues are common and entirely expected.

And when "coffee shop" VPNs are involved, issues are common, and can include surprises such as immense network loads because the VPN can be sharing your network connection with others.

The "coffee shop" VPNs can also be buggy, and can remain partially active even when apparently disabled. Removal of a "coffee shop" VPN is the only way to ensure it is not insinuated into your connections. (This all ignores the privacy risks and problems introduced by too many of the add-on "coffee shop" VPNs, too.)

My iphone has been doing the same thing. I have no VPN and it will connect to the Wifi, then just turn off and wont reconnect, tried forcing it over and over again, keeps happening, but this isnt happening on my ipads

CarlnSF wrote:

My iphone has been doing the same thing. I have no VPN and it will connect to the Wifi, then just turn off and wont reconnect, tried forcing it over and over again, keeps happening, but this isnt happening on my ipads

How old is your Wi-Fi gear?

Is the Wi-Fi (router or access point or mesh) firmware current?

Does your iPhone show this misbehavior on other Wi-Fi networks?

Tried forgetting and re-adding the Wi-Fi network?

Which iPhone?

I’m having a similar issue after updating to iOS 18.5 on my iPhone 16 Pro Max. In my case, my phone shows that it’s connected to Wi-Fi, but no apps or websites actually load. Even when I try to disconnect or turn Wi-Fi off completely (on my phone), the Wi-Fi icon still stays up in the top corner, and the phone doesn’t seem to fall back to cellular data like it normally would.

The only workaround I’ve found is fully powering off and restarting the phone—but the issue comes back randomly. It feels like the network stack just gets stuck or something.

I’ve tried forgetting the network, and toggling airplane mode, but none of that really fixes it long-term. Curious if others are seeing this too or if a fix is coming soon.

danielfromtallahassee wrote:

I had this issue after the 18.5 update, and the fix for me was turning off my VPN and then turning the VPN back on.

I had tried forgetting the WiFi, changing WiFi settings, and rebooting the phone which did not seem to help at all.

As long as you continue to use a VPN on your iPhone, this will likely happen again and again. VPN is simply not needed on iPhone and almost ALWAYS causes connectivity issues. Unless you are required to have VPN by your employer or school, it would be advisable to remove the VPN profile completely from your iPhone. VPNs track your every move and don't provide the security you think they do. Often VPN providers sell your tracking history to make money. Apple security is VERY robust and protects you better than any VPN could.

So if VPN is required by your employer and the VPN is the suspected problem - how do you get around that? I can’t delete the VPN….

Also, my husband has the same issue as me but the difference is he has no VPN installed.

We also have the same issue with our iPads.