Some Websites Won't Load on Starlink? A DNS Troubleshooting Guide

A Starlink connection can look healthy while one website, app or group of services refuses to load. That does not automatically mean the dish or router is faulty. The problem may sit with the website, a browser, a device setting, a VPN, a content filter or the system that translates website names into network addresses.

Use the checks below in order. Change one thing at a time and note what happens, so a temporary workaround does not hide the real cause.

First, define the failure

Before restarting anything, answer four questions:

• Does the problem affect one website, several related websites or nearly everything?
• Does it happen on one device or every device on your Starlink Wi-Fi?
• Does the same site work on mobile data?
• Is the Starlink app reporting the system as online?

If every device has no internet access, use a general Starlink connection checklist instead. This guide is for the narrower case where Starlink is online and at least some services still work.

Check whether the website is the problem

Try the affected service in a second browser or its official app. Then test it on mobile data, with Wi-Fi switched off.

If the service fails on both Starlink and mobile data, the website or account may be having a problem. Check the service's official status page if it has one. Avoid repeated router resets while you wait; they will not repair a remote service.

If the site works on mobile data but not on Starlink, continue with the local checks below.

Compare another device

Open the same site on a second phone, tablet or computer connected to the same Starlink network.

• Only one device fails: focus on that device, browser and its privacy or security settings.
• Every device fails: focus on network-wide filtering, DNS, a third-party router or the service itself.
• One browser fails: clear that site's stored data or test a private window before changing network settings.

This simple comparison prevents a browser problem from being mistaken for a Starlink outage.

Temporarily remove extra network layers

VPNs, browser security extensions, parental controls, antivirus web shields, ad-blocking DNS services and Apple or Android privacy features can all change how a request reaches a website.

Temporarily disable one layer at a time, then reload the affected site. Re-enable each feature after the test. If turning one off fixes the problem, review its allow-list, filtering category or server location instead of leaving protection disabled permanently.

If you use a third-party router in bypass mode, test from its main network rather than a guest or isolated network. Do not factory-reset either router for this test.

Test for a DNS problem

DNS is the directory service that converts a name such as example.com into an address a device can contact. A DNS problem often looks like this:

• the browser reports that a server or address cannot be found;
• several unrelated sites fail by name while other apps still work;
• the problem follows every device using the same custom DNS or filtering service.

On Windows, open Command Prompt and run:

On macOS or Linux, open Terminal and run:

Replace example.com with the affected domain. A timeout or failure to return an address supports the DNS theory, but it is not final proof; some networks and security tools deliberately intercept these tests.

If you previously set a custom DNS service on the device or a third-party router, temporarily return it to automatic settings and test again. If automatic DNS is the problem, you can test a reputable public DNS provider on one device. Follow the operating system or router provider's current instructions, record the original setting, and avoid changing the whole household network until the single-device test succeeds.

Refresh the affected device

A stale network lease or cached lookup can survive after the underlying problem has cleared.

1. Close the affected browser or app.
2. Turn Wi-Fi off on that device for 20 seconds.
3. Turn Wi-Fi back on and reconnect to the correct network.
4. Reopen the site.
5. If it still fails, restart the device once.

Windows users can also open Command Prompt as an administrator and run:

On phones and tablets, reconnecting Wi-Fi and restarting is usually the simpler first step. Avoid installing “network cleaner” apps.

Restart the network only when the scope justifies it

If every device on the Starlink network shows the same failure, perform one controlled restart using the Starlink app or the normal power procedure for your hardware. Give the system time to reconnect fully, then test the same site again.

Do not cycle power repeatedly. Repeated restarts remove useful evidence and can make an intermittent fault harder to describe.

If you use an additional router, restart one device at a time: Starlink first, confirm it is online, then restart the third-party router. That order helps identify which layer restored service.

Watch for an IPv6 or routing clue

Sometimes a service is reachable over one network path but not another. A useful clue is that the site consistently works through mobile data or a VPN but fails directly over Starlink on every device.

That pattern does not prove Starlink is at fault. It can also reflect the website's hosting provider, regional filtering, a stale route or the VPN choosing a different path. Do not make permanent security changes to work around it. Record the exact domain, time, device and whether a VPN changes the result.

Collect evidence before contacting support

If the problem persists across multiple devices, prepare a concise record:

• the exact website or service affected;
• the date, time and time zone of each test;
• whether other websites work;
• whether the service works on mobile data;
• whether it works through a VPN;
• any browser or DNS error message;
• whether Starlink reports online, obstructed or another status;
• whether you use a third-party router, custom DNS or content filtering.

Send sensitive account details only through official support channels. Screenshots are useful, but crop out email addresses, IP addresses and other personal information when they are not required.

A quick decision path

Use this sequence whenever the problem returns:

1. Confirm Starlink is online and other services work.
2. Test the site in another browser and on mobile data.
3. Test a second device on Starlink.
4. Pause VPNs and filters one at a time.
5. Return custom DNS to automatic on one test device.
6. Reconnect that device, then perform one controlled network restart if every device is affected.
7. Record repeatable results and contact the website provider or Starlink support with the evidence.

The goal is not to reset everything. It is to identify whether the failure belongs to one site, one device, name resolution, an added network layer or the wider connection.