---
title: "How to use NordLayer on Wi-Fi with a captive portal?"
slug: "how-to-use-nordlayer-on-wi-fi-with-a-captive-portal"
description: "Stay secure on public Wi-Fi with NordLayer. This guide shows you how to navigate captive portals and protect your data."
updated: 2025-05-12T08:25:10Z
published: 2025-05-12T08:25:10Z
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.nordlayer.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How to use NordLayer on Wi-Fi with a captive portal?

At many airports, the wifi networks include something called a captive portal. This is a login or authentication page that pops up when you first connect to the network. It's a common sight at airports, cafes, and hotels, where you might need to enter a password or accept terms of service to gain access.

If you're using a VPN such as NordLayer, the captive portal can't redirect you to the login page. This occurs because the VPN is designed to encrypt your data and route it through a server in a different location, masking your device's actual entry point to the internet. As a result, the local network's captive portal page fails to load, leaving you unable to connect to the wifi at all.

## How to connect to airport wifi using NordLayer

To navigate this, you can use a straightforward workaround:

1. **Disconnect your device from the VPN**. This allows your device to interact directly with the local network.
2. **Connect to the airport wifi without the VPN**. This should prompt the captive portal to appear, allowing you to login or accept the necessary terms.
3. Once you're through the captive portal and have internet access, **reconnect to NordLayer** to secure your online activity.

**Important:** If you have the "[Always On VPN](/v1/docs/always-on-vpn)" feature enabled and your internet connection drops when disconnected from the VPN, please click on the **"Get temporary internet access"** button at the bottom of the app. Doing so will grant you three minutes of direct internet connectivity, usually sufficient to complete authentication through a captive portal.

In case you have any questions or are experiencing any issues, please feel free to contact our [24/7 customer support team](https://help.nordlayer.com/docs/how-do-i-contact-nordlayer-customer-support).