Computer won't turn on? Free diagnosis for laptops and desktops.
No lights, no fans, a black screen, or a computer that powers on and shuts straight off. We find the cause for free and confirm the price before any repair.
- 1–3 days typical
- No fix, no fee
- 90-day warranty
- Free insured mail-in shipping
Signs you need this repair
Sound familiar? The diagnosis is always free.
- Nothing happens when you press the power button
- Lights or fans come on, but the screen stays black
- Starts, then shuts off after a few seconds
- Beeps or flashing lights at startup
- Restarts over and over before Windows loads
- Died after a power surge, storm or spill
- A burning smell or clicking from the power supply
Try these safe steps first
- Check the power. Try a different wall outlet and skip the power strip. On a desktop, check the switch on the back of the power supply.
- Charge it for 30 minutes. A fully drained laptop battery may need time on the charger before it will start. Watch for a charging light.
- Drain leftover power. Unplug the charger, remove the battery if it's removable, then hold the power button for 30 seconds. Reconnect and try again. Some laptops have a small battery reset pinhole on the bottom for the same purpose, and the manual shows where.
- Unplug everything else. USB drives, docks and external monitors can stop some computers from starting.
- Check whether it's actually on. If you hear fans or see a keyboard light but the screen is black, try an external monitor. On a desktop with a graphics card, make sure the monitor is plugged into the card, not the motherboard.
If none of that works, stop there. Repeatedly forcing power into a computer with a shorted part can make the damage worse.
What usually causes it
- A failed charger or power supply. The simplest fix, so we test it first.
- A dead or failing battery that stops a laptop starting, even on the charger.
- Loose or failed memory, often signaled by beeps or a pattern of flashing lights.
- A motherboard fault: a shorted component, a failed power circuit, or damage from liquid or a surge.
- A failed graphics card in a desktop, which looks like a dead computer because nothing reaches the screen.
- A corrupted BIOS after an interrupted update.
Beep codes and blinking light patterns mean something specific on many Dell, HP and Lenovo computers. If you notice a pattern, count it and tell us when you book.
How the free diagnosis works
We test the charger or power supply, the battery and the power button, then measure power on the board to find where it stops. On desktops we test the power supply, memory and graphics card one at a time. Once we know the cause, we send you the price and wait for your OK. If you decide not to go ahead, you don't pay for the diagnosis.
Board repair or a new motherboard?
When the motherboard is at fault, there are usually two paths. We can often repair the board itself by finding and replacing the failed component, such as a shorted chip or a damaged power circuit. That keeps your original board and often costs less than a replacement. Where board repair isn't practical, a replacement board may be an option, depending on the model and what parts are available.
On most desktops the motherboard is a standard part, so replacing it is straightforward, but Windows may need reactivating afterwards. We reactivate or reinstall using your existing license where possible. If a repair would cost close to what the computer is worth, we say so, and we can move your files to a new one instead.
Are my files safe?
Usually, yes. A computer that won't power on almost always still has its files on the drive. If the drive is removable, we can copy your files even when the computer itself can't be saved.
Some thin laptops have storage soldered to the board, and on Apple silicon iMac and Mac mini models the storage is tied to the board too. On those, getting your files back means getting the computer running, which is one more reason to choose board repair. See data recovery for more.
Getting it to us
Laptops ship easily, well padded, with the charger included. Desktops can be shipped too, but a big tower is heavy, and parts inside, like a large graphics card or a tall CPU cooler, can be damaged in transit. If there's a partner store nearby, that's often the more practical choice for a desktop. If you do ship a tower, we send packing instructions and include the power cable.
Mail it in from anywhere in the US
No repair store near you? Book online and we'll email a free, prepaid, insured shipping label. We diagnose it within 24h of arrival, repair it once you approve the price, and ship it back insured. How mail-in works.
Questions
How much does it cost to fix a computer that won't turn on?
The diagnosis is free. The repair price depends on what failed, from a new charger or battery to board-level repair, and we confirm it with you before any work starts. <a href="/pricing/">How pricing works</a>.
My laptop turns on but the screen is black. Is this the right repair?
It can be. If an external monitor shows a picture, it's most likely the screen or display cable, which is a <a href="/computer-repair/laptop-screen-repair/">laptop screen repair</a>. If nothing shows on any screen, it's usually a board, memory or graphics fault, which we diagnose here.
It died during a storm. Was it a power surge?
Possibly. Surges usually damage the charger or power supply first, and sometimes the motherboard. Try a different outlet and, for a laptop, a known-good charger. For the future, a surge protector is cheap insurance.
Should I keep trying to turn it on?
A few tries with the steps above is fine. Stop if you smell burning, see smoke or hear crackling, and don't try to power it on at all after a spill. Unplug it and book a check.
More Computer repairs
Something else not quite right?
Laptop screen
Cracked, dark, flickering or lines on the display
Laptop battery
Won't hold a charge or swollen battery
Keyboard
Dead, sticky or repeating keys
Won't charge / power jack
Loose or broken charging port, charging faults
Virus removal & tune-up
Pop-ups, slow startup, malware and cleanup
SSD & RAM upgrade
Faster boot, more space, files moved over
Broken today? Start your repair in two minutes.
Three quick questions: your model, what's wrong, and how you'll get it to us. See your price, then book a nearby store or mail it in.