If you have a guest in your house for an extended period of time, there’s a good chance they’ll ask for your Wi-Fi password, which can start a dreaded dance of trying to remember what it is or reading a complicated password. string of numbers, letters and symbols.
Of course, you can always buy a Wi-Fi password sign or write it on a sticky note that you can quickly point out to guests, but that’s not always the most convenient solution; if your password is long or contains hard-to-read symbols (is it an O or 0?), it can be a hassle to connect your friends and family.
It’s worth noting that if you frequently have people you don’t know very well or large groups, you should really consider setting up a guest or temporary Wi-Fi network, which many routers will allow you to do. That route is significantly more secure than handing out your password to anyone who comes into your house.
However, for the people you trust, both Google and Apple have built-in ways to quickly and securely share your Wi-Fi password. Here’s how to use them.
The easiest way to share your password using an Android phone is to generate a QR code that people can scan to automatically join the network. If you have a Pixel or most other Android phones:
- Go to settings > Network and Internet > Wifi.
- Tap the settings gear next to your network.
- Tap the Share button and authenticate. A screen should appear with a QR code, the name of the Wi-Fi network, and the password.
Given the wide range of Android skins and versions, the path to Wi-Fi settings may be slightly different. For example, the process on a Samsung phone is slightly different.
- Go to settings > connections > Wifi.
- Tap on the setup gear.
- Faucet QR code in the lower left corner. The Samsung QR code does not include the typed password.
As long as the person’s phone is relatively up to date, they should be able to scan the QR code to automatically join the network. And yes, it even works for people trying to access your Wi-Fi with an iPhone.
If scanning the code doesn’t work for whatever reason, you can have the person manually enter the password.
Since iOS 11, Apple has included an easy way to share your password with other iPhone, iPad, and Mac users. To use it, make sure you have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on; By default, the toggles are in Control Center, which you can access by swiping down from the top-right corner on a phone with Face ID, or from the bottom on a phone with a home button. You will also need to be connected to the network they are trying to connect to.
