How to View Saved Wi-Fi Passwords

Are you using Wi-Fi on one device but can’t remember the password on another? In Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, here’s how to find Saved Wi-Fi Passwords.

Do you require a Wi-Fi password? Perhaps you’re paying a visit to a friend, but they’re occupied. Alternatively, your laptop may be connected but your phone is not. There are ways to wirelessly share passwords between devices, but if that isn’t an option, here’s how to get the Saved Wi-Fi Passwords from devices that are already connected.

How to See Wi-Fi Password in Windows

As long as you’re currently connected to the network in question, Windows makes this simple. Search for Network Status in the Start menu, then click the Change Adapter Options button in the settings menu. (If you’re using Windows 7, go to Network and Internet > Network Connections in the Control Panel.)

Select Status > Wireless Properties from the right-click menu of your computer’s Wi-Fi adapter in the list. You should see a password box with dots in it under the Security tab; click the Show Characters box to see the password in plain text.

Things get a little trickier if you’re trying to view the password for a network you’re not currently connected to. You can use a third-party app like Magical JellyBean WiFi Password Revealer to see all of your saved networks’ passwords.

You can get the password from the Windows Command Prompt if you don’t want to install any additional software. Search for Command Prompt in the Start Menu, right-click it, and select Run As Administrator. Then, to see a list of saved Wi-Fi networks, run the following command:

netsh wlan show profile

Pick the network you want from the list, then run:

netsh wlan show profile MyNetwork key=clear

(Replace MyNetwork with the name of the network you found earlier.) You’ll be presented with some info about the network, including the “Key Content,” or password.

How to See a Wi-Fi Password in macOS

The Keychain Access app in Apple’s macOS stores Wi-Fi passwords, which you can view by opening the Keychain Access app. To open Spotlight, press Command + Space, then search for “keychain access” and open the app. Then, in the Keychain Access app, search for the name of any Wi-Fi network you’ve previously connected to using the search bar.

When the network appears in the list, double-click it to reveal the password entry. To see the password in plain text, check the Show Password box at the bottom of the page.

How to See a Wi-Fi Password on iPhone

Viewing Wi-Fi passwords on an iPhone isn’t easy because Apple didn’t include the feature in iOS. If you sync your iPhone’s Wi-Fi passwords with your iCloud Keychain, you should be able to see the password on your computer using the Mac instructions above. This method will work on a Mac even if the device has never been connected to that network. Otherwise, the iPhone’s Wi-Fi share feature is your only option, though it will not display the password in plain text.

In recent years, jailbreaking has become much less common. Only the most dedicated users go through the process of hacking their iOS device these days, but if you are jailbroken, search for WiFi Passwords in Cydia (an App Store for jailbroken phones). This tool will reveal those passwords for you, though it may or may not work depending on your jailbroken software version—these things are always changing. If you can’t get it to work, there are a few other similar apps in Cydia worth checking out.

How to See Wi-Fi Password on Android

This can be found under Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi if you’re running Android 10 or higher. Simply choose the network in question. (If you’re not currently connected, tap Saved Networks to see other networks you’ve previously connected to.) The network’s password will appear below the QR code after you tap the Share button.

Without Android 10, you can’t see a Wi-Fi network’s password unless your phone is rooted. If yours is, a root-friendly file explorer like Solid Explorer can help you find the password. Just navigate to /data/misc/wifi and open the wpa_supplicant.conf file.

You should be able to find the network’s name as well as its password in that document. Because some devices encrypt the passwords within wpa_supplicant.conf, the location of that file and the effectiveness of this method may vary from device to device.

Check the Router’s Admin Page

If you’ve read this far and still don’t have a password, you have one more (slightly shady) option: look into the administrative tools on your Wi-Fi router. If you look at the Wi-Fi network’s information on your device—for example, in iOS’ settings, click the I next to the Wi-Fi name—you’ll see the router’s IP address, which is usually something like 192.168.0.1.

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Put that number into your browser’s address bar, and use a site like routerpasswords.com to see if the default username and password for that model router will let you into the settings. (If you don’t know the model number, you can find it printed on the router itself or on the login page.) You might be able to view the network’s password if you look in the Wi-Fi section of the settings.

You won’t be able to do this if the network’s owner has changed the administrative password to their router—which everyone should do for security reasons—and if you don’t have their permission, rooting around in someone else’s router settings is generally not a good idea. (You’re probably fine if you’re on your own network or a close family member’s.) Just make sure you don’t break anything while you’re inside.