How to Install or Update Intel Bluetooth Driver for Windows 11

Drivers are an essential piece of software that enables you to use a particular installed component on your PC. Now, a Bluetooth driver is one such component that is very crucial since it allows your system to transfer files/media and connect to other nearby paired devices. Moreover, Bluetooth on a Windows PC is also very instrumental for security as the ‘Dynamic Lock‘ functionality is dependent on it.

Generally, Windows itself usually takes care of the driver-related issues and also makes sure they are all up to date to provide you with a hassle-free experience. However, there can be circumstances where the operating system might need human intervention in order to process this routine task.

That being said, installing or updating a Bluetooth driver in Windows 11 is a very straightforward process. To add to that, in Windows 11, some of the methods are common that can be either used to install the Bluetooth driver or update it as per your convenience.

Install/ Update Intel Bluetooth Driver from the Settings App

If you have purchased a new computer or restored your PC and find that the Bluetooth driver is missing, you can easily install it from the ‘Optional Updates’ section of the Settings app. Usually, Windows will scan the system and present the drivers as updates to your PC. However, many times some non-critical updates tend to get stuck in the optional updates section and need your intervention to complete the installation.

Moreover, this method works even for updating your already installed driver. Though Windows usually manages the updates itself, it can get stuck sometimes. In that case, this minor issue can present itself with the update as well, as is the case with stuck installation.

To install/update the driver using this method, first, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ icon tile present under the ‘Pinned apps’ section to continue. Otherwise, you can type Settings in the menu to perform a search for the app. Alternatively, you can press Windows+I keys together on your keyboard to open the app.

Next, on the Settings window, click on the ‘Windows Update’ tab present on the left sidebar to proceed.

Then, from the right section of the window, click on the ‘Advanced options’ tile present under the ‘More options’ section to continue.

Then, on the next screen, scroll down to locate and click on the ‘Optional updates’ tile present under the ‘Additional options’ section to proceed.

After that, locate and click on the ‘Driver updates’ tile to expand it. Then, from the list of available drivers, locate the ‘Bluetooth’ driver and click on the checkbox preceding the individual item. Next, click on the ‘Download & install’ button present at the bottom of the section to commence the installation of the driver.

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Install/Update Intel Bluetooth Driver from the Device Manager

Whether you want to install the Bluetooth driver, or you wish to update it, using the device manager, you will be able to perform the desired action fairly easily without any hurdles.

First, head to the Start Menu and type Device Manager in the menu to perform a search for it. Then, from the search results, click on the ‘Device Manager’ tile to open the app.

After that, from the ‘Device Manager’ window, locate and click on the downward arrow preceding the ‘Bluetooth’ category. Then, from the expanded options, locate the ‘Intel Wireless Bluetooth’ driver and right-click it to reveal the context menu. Next, click on the ‘Properties’ option to proceed. This will open a separate window on your screen.

From the separately opened window, you can view the current status of the driver for the hardware present on your PC. In case no driver is detected, the window will state so. Then, click on the ‘Update driver’ button present right beneath the ‘Device status’ area.

In case you are here to update the already installed driver, click on the ‘Driver’ tab present in the top section of the window. Then, click the ‘Update driver’ button present in the window to proceed. This will open a separate window on your screen.

After that, from the separately opened window, click on the ‘Search automatically for drivers’ option to let the Windows search for the latest driver available on the Microsoft servers.

If you already have a driver update package, click on the ‘Browse my computer for drivers’ option to proceed. This will open a File Explorer window on your screen that you can use to navigate and select the driver package to update.

Once the update/ install has been performed successfully, you might need to restart your PC to apply the changes. Hence, restart the PC from the Start Menu.

Install/ Update Driver from Intel Support Website

In the unfortunate case where you are not able to find drivers for your hardware using the above-mentioned methods, you can always go to Intel’s official support website to download the Bluetooth driver for your computer.

To do so, first, head to www.intel.com/support using your preferred web browser. Then, once the webpage has loaded, scroll down the page and click on the dropdown menu and select the ‘Windows 10 and Windows 11’ option to view the supported drivers.

Next, from the ‘Package Version’ column, click on the package mentioned as ‘Latest’ to download the latest Bluetooth driver on your PC. This will redirect you to another page.

Then, on the next webpage, click on the ‘Download’ button present under the ‘Available Downloads’ option to continue. This will open a separate overlay window on your screen.

Now, from the separately opened overlay window, click on the ‘I accept terms in the license agreement’ to initiate your download.

After that, once downloaded, head to your default downloads directory and double-click on the .EXE file you just downloaded.

Now, a UAC (User Account Control) window will appear on your screen. If you are not logged in with an admin account, enter the credentials for one. Otherwise, click on the ‘Yes’ button to proceed and initiate the installation wizard.

Now, from the setup window, click on the ‘Next’ button present in the bottom right corner of the window to proceed.

After that, on the next screen, click on the checkbox preceding the ‘I accept the terms in the License Agreement’ option to select it. Then, click on the ‘Next’ button to continue.

Next, you can choose the setup type. Click the ‘Complete’ button to install all the features supported by your Bluetooth hardware, this consumes the most disk space. Otherwise, click to select the ‘Typical’ button to install the most common features that are supported by every hardware and will provide you with the functionality. In case you wish to change the directory and tweak the installation, click to select the ‘Custom’ button to proceed.

Then, from the installation wizard, click on the ‘Install’ button to commence the installation of the driver.

Once installed, you might need to restart your PC to apply the change on your computer. Thus, do so from the Start Menu of your PC.

Uninstall and Reinstall the Driver

This is one of the most convenient methods to update your Bluetooth driver to the latest version. All you need to do is uninstall the driver from your Windows PC and then restart to let Windows find the latest and most suitable driver for Bluetooth on your PC.

First, head to the Start Menu and type Device Manager to perform a search for it. Then, from the search results, click on the ‘Device Manager’ tile to continue.

After that, from the Device Manager window, double-click on the ‘Bluetooth’ category to expand it. Then, from the options visible in the expanded section, locate the ‘Intel Bluetooth’ option and right-click on it to reveal the context menu. Then, from the context menu, click the ‘Uninstall device’ option to proceed. This will open a separate window on your screen.

Next, from the separately opened window, click on the checkbox preceding the ‘Attempt to remove the driver for this device’ option. Then click the ‘Uninstall’ button present in the bottom section of the window to completely remove the driver from your device.

Once successfully removed, restart your PC from the Start Menu. After restarting your PC, open the Settings app.

Then, click the ‘Windows update’ option in the left sidebar.

From the right section of the window, click the ‘Advanced options’ tile.

Then, click on the ‘Optional updates’ option present under the ‘Additional options’ section.

Now, click on the ‘Drivers’ tile to expand the section. Then, locate the ‘Intel Bluetooth’ driver in the list. Once you find it, click the checkbox preceding the option to select the driver. Then, click the ‘Download & Install’ button to install the driver.