How to Share Your Home Wi-Fi Without Reading the Password Aloud

A family member, caregiver, or trusted guest may need your home Wi-Fi. The usual method—finding the password, reading every letter aloud, and deciding whether a character is a zero or the letter O—can be frustrating.

Your phone may offer an easier way. An iPhone can send the password directly to another nearby Apple device. Most Android phones can display a QR code that the other person scans. In both cases, you can help someone connect without saying the password or asking them to type it.

Before you share: make sure it is your home network

Use these steps only for a network you own or are allowed to share. Do not share Wi-Fi access with an unexpected repair person, salesperson, caller, or stranger who pressures you. A legitimate guest can wait while you decide.

Also check the network name carefully. On your phone, open Settings and look under Wi-Fi or Internet. The network marked as connected is usually your current network. Avoid a similarly named network that does not belong to you.

Option 1: Share from one iPhone or iPad to another

Apple's built-in sharing works when the other person is using an iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Before starting, keep the two devices close together and make sure both have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on.

1. Unlock your iPhone or iPad and confirm that it is connected to your home Wi-Fi.
2. Ask the other person to open their device's Wi-Fi settings and tap the name of your home network.
3. Watch your unlocked device. A message should appear asking whether you want to share the Wi-Fi password.
4. Check that the person named on the screen is the person you intend to help.
5. Tap Share Password, wait for confirmation, and then tap Done.

If the sharing message does not appear, confirm that both devices are updated, signed in to an Apple Account, and have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on. Apple also says Personal Hotspot should be off. For Apple's automatic sharing, each person may need the email address used for the other's Apple Account saved in Contacts. Restarting both devices can also clear a temporary problem.

Option 2: Show a Wi-Fi QR code on Android

On many Android phones, you can create a square QR code for the network you are already using. Menu names vary slightly by phone brand and Android version.

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Network & internet, Internet, Connections, or Wi-Fi.
3. Tap your connected home network. You may need to tap a gear symbol beside its name.
4. Tap Share or QR code. Your phone may ask for your fingerprint, face, PIN, or screen lock.
5. Show the QR code to the trusted person. They can open their Camera app and point it at the code, then tap the network prompt that appears.

Some Android phones also let the other person open their Wi-Fi settings and tap a small QR-code scanner. If you cannot find Share, use the search box in Settings and search for “QR code” or “share Wi-Fi.”

What if one person has an iPhone and the other has Android?

An Android Wi-Fi QR code can often be scanned with an iPhone's Camera app. Open the camera, hold it steadily over the code, and tap the Wi-Fi message near the top of the screen.

An iPhone does not use Apple's automatic password prompt to send a password to Android. If your router, internet provider's app, or another trusted device can display a Wi-Fi QR code, that may be the simplest alternative. Otherwise, you may need to enter the password manually.

Protect the QR code and your network

A Wi-Fi QR code should be treated like the password itself. Anyone who scans it may be able to join the network.

• Do not post a screenshot of the code on social media or send it in a group message.
• Do not leave a printed code where delivery workers or passersby can scan it.
• Share only with people you trust.
• If your router offers a separate guest network, use that for visitors when practical. It keeps guest access separate from many of your personal devices.

Sharing access does not usually reveal the password in plain text to the guest, but their device may remember the network and reconnect later. If you shared access with the wrong person or no longer want a device to connect, change the Wi-Fi password in your router or internet provider's app. Remember that changing it will disconnect your own phones, televisions, printers, and other devices until you enter the new password on each one.

Ask for help if...

Ask a trusted family member, your internet provider, or a local technician for help if you cannot identify your home network, do not recognize devices connected to it, or think someone has gained access without permission. Do not give a caller remote control of your phone or computer just because they claim they need it to fix Wi-Fi.

Quick recap

For two nearby Apple devices, select the network on the guest's device and approve Share Password on yours. On Android, open the connected network's settings, tap Share, and let the trusted guest scan the QR code. Check the person and network first, and keep any QR code private.

Sources: Apple Support, How to share your Wi-Fi password from your iPhone or iPad; Google Android Help, Connect to Wi-Fi networks on your Android device.