Verizon wireless outage on January 14, 2026 lasts about 10 hours

What changed

On January 14, 2026, Verizon’s wireless network had a large outage. Light Reading reported that problems started around noon ET and that Verizon said at 10:15 p.m. ET that the outage had been resolved, about 10 hours later. Downdetector logged about 1.5 million reports over the day. Many phones showed “SOS” only, and Verizon told customers to restart their devices once service returned.

Verizon blamed a software issue and said a full review was underway, without giving more detail in the coverage we read. It offered affected customers a $20 credit. Verizon also said: “This credit isn’t meant to make up for what happened. No credit really can.”

On January 28, 2026, the FCC opened an inquiry and invited comments on the outage’s effects, “particularly on 911 calling and public safety” (FCC public notice DA-26-94, as reported by the press).

When

• Start: around 12:00 p.m. ET on January 14, 2026.
• Resolved: 10:15 p.m. ET, per Verizon.
• FCC inquiry opened: January 28, 2026.

Who is affected and what it means for you

This wasn’t a Starlink outage, but it matters a great deal to Starlink users who work from home, because a cellular line is the most common backup for a satellite connection. If your failover plan was a Verizon hotspot, a Verizon cellular router, or tethering a Verizon phone, your backup was down for most of the afternoon and evening.

That would only have hurt if Starlink had also failed that day. But it shows something people often miss: a backup protects you only if it doesn’t fail at the same time as your main line or your phone. Two things on the same carrier, such as your backup router and your phone, can fail together.

There is a second lesson for people who rely on Wi-Fi calling over Starlink. When cellular service fails, Wi-Fi calling can keep phone calls working over your home internet, but only if it is set up and working before the outage. Our VoIP and Wi-Fi calling guide covers why Wi-Fi calling sometimes fails on satellite and how to fix it.

What you can do now

1. Check what carrier your backup uses. If your phone and your backup router are on the same carrier, consider a backup on a different one. The Failover Builder asks about signal by carrier for this reason.
2. Turn on and test Wi-Fi calling on your phone over your Starlink connection, so calls keep working if the cell network fails.
3. For offices, our office backup line guide compares satellite and cellular standbys, and when to use both.
4. Test your failover by unplugging the main line during a quiet hour.

What stays the same

• Starlink was not affected.
• Our backup advice is unchanged: a backup line should be on a different network from your main line, and ideally from your phone too.

What we don’t know yet

• Verizon’s detailed root cause. As of the coverage we read, it had said only “a software issue.”
• What the FCC inquiry will find, and when.
• Whether Verizon’s home internet (fixed wireless) service was affected; the coverage we read doesn’t say.

This item is background: it happened more than 90 days before we published this page.

Source

Verizon restores wireless service after massive outage (Light Reading)

Source date Jan 15, 2026. Retrieved Oct 6, 2026.

Also cited

• FCC public notice DA-26-94 on the Verizon outage (PDF, fcc.gov)

Related guides on this site

• Failover Builder: plan a backup internet line Five questions in; a primary line, backup line, dual-WAN router and UPS out, with dated prices and what it won’t cover.
• Starlink as the backup line for an office Satellite vs cellular as the standby for a wired office, the failover router, and the monthly cost.
• VoIP and Wi-Fi calling on Starlink (and fixes) Why Wi-Fi calling or a VoIP phone fails on a satellite link and the fixes to try, in order.

Correction log

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