Spark Internet Outage? How to Check, Fix and Report It

When Spark broadband stops, the first question is whether it is your house or the network. Spark’s outage page answers that in under a minute, and the steps below sort out the rest — including what to do in the hours before anyone fixes anything.

Check whether Spark is down

1. Spark’s outage page. Spark publishes current broadband and mobile outages by area on its help site, with an address search. If your area is listed, there is nothing to fix at home — note the estimated restoration time and skip to the section on getting by.
2. The Chorus outage map. Most Spark fibre runs on Chorus’s network, and Chorus’s map shows reported faults, the affected area, services affected, status and an ETA, again with address search. A Chorus fault shows here before Spark’s page catches up.
3. Your phone. Turn Wi-Fi off and check whether mobile data works. If it does, the fault is broadband only; if both are out, it is more likely a wider network or power event.

Fixed wireless and 5G customers depend on the mobile network, so a cell-site outage takes the home connection down too. Spark’s page covers both.

If Spark says there is no outage

Then the problem is between the street and your device, and this order finds it fastest.

1. Look at the fibre box

The white Chorus ONT on the wall reports the network’s side of things. On the common ONT 500: POWER solid green is normal; PON solid green means it is connected, flashing means it is trying; LOS off is good, flashing red is a low signal and solid red is loss of signal — the last two are faults for Spark to log with Chorus, not something a restart fixes. Our Chorus ONT guide covers every light and the older ONT models.

2. Power-cycle in the right order

Turn off the modem, then the ONT. Wait 30 seconds. Turn the ONT on first, wait for PON to go solid, then the modem. Spark’s Smart Modem 3 and Futura take two to three minutes to settle; the Futura has a 4G fallback, so a working-but-slow connection during a fibre fault is normal for it.

3. Check the cables

The Ethernet cable from the ONT’s GE1 port to the modem’s WAN port is the one that matters. Reseat both ends; the GE1 light on the ONT should be solid or flashing. A cable that has been chewed, crushed under furniture or kinked behind the TV is a surprisingly common cause.

4. Rule out Wi-Fi

Plug a laptop into the modem. If it works wired but not wirelessly, the internet is fine and the Wi-Fi is the problem — our guide to connections that keep dropping covers channel congestion, placement and modem settings.

5. Check for a billing hold or a plan change

A missed payment or an incomplete plan change can suspend a connection with no fault on the network. The Spark app shows account status; it is worth a look before spending an hour on hardware.

Reporting it and what Spark owes you

Log the fault through the Spark app or the help site rather than social media; that creates the ticket that goes to Chorus. If a fault is not resolved after you have complained and six weeks have passed, the Telecommunications Dispute Resolution service is free for households and small businesses and can award up to $15,000. Ask about a credit for the days you were without service — providers generally credit outages when asked, rarely when not.

Copper customers should also know that Chorus plans to switch off copper nationwide by the end of 2028, and a repeated copper fault is often the prompt to move to fibre rather than keep repairing it. Our provider guide explains how Spark, Chorus and the other network companies fit together.

Getting by during the outage

• Use your phone as a hotspot for the laptop; most Spark mobile plans include hotspot data, and a few hours of email and browsing uses very little.
• Download anything you will need — tickets, documents, a film for the kids — while the hotspot is up.
• Medical alarms, security systems and EFTPOS terminals on the broadband line will have failed over or stopped; check them.
• If your area outage has an ETA, set a timer rather than restarting the modem every ten minutes — it changes nothing during a network fault.

For outages affecting other providers, our New Zealand outage guide lists every status page, and the internet-not-working guide covers the general troubleshooting order in more depth.

Frequently asked questions

Is Spark internet down right now?

Check Spark’s outage page and the Chorus outage map with your address. If neither lists your area, the fault is most likely at your end — start with the fibre box lights.

Why is my Spark internet not working?

In order of likelihood: a network fault in your area, a fibre box showing a red LOS light, a modem that needs a power-cycle, a loose cable between the ONT and modem, or a Wi-Fi problem rather than an internet one.

How do I report a Spark outage?

Through the Spark app or the help site. That creates the fault ticket, which is what Chorus works from if the fault is on the fibre network.

Does Spark give credit for outages?

Usually when you ask. Log the outage dates and request a credit once service is restored.

Why does my Spark Futura still work slowly during an outage?

The Futura modem falls back to 4G when the fibre connection fails, so you keep a slower connection until the fault is fixed.

What do the lights on the Chorus box mean?

Solid green POWER and PON are normal. A flashing PON means it is trying to connect; a red LOS means the fibre signal is lost and Spark needs to log it with Chorus.