The fastest way to see your WiFi password

Open Keychain Access on your Mac — the easiest route is to press Command+Space, type "keychain", and press Enter. Once it opens, search for your network name in the search box at the top right. When you find it, double-click the network entry to open its details window.

In the details window, check the box labeled "Show password" near the bottom. Your Mac will ask for your user account password to confirm. Type it in and click "Allow". Your WiFi password will appear in plain text in that same field.

This method works whether you set up the network yourself or joined it years ago and forgot the password. Keychain stores every WiFi password your Mac has ever connected to, so if your device has been on that network before, the password is there.

Key Takeaways

  • Keychain Access stores every WiFi password your Mac has ever connected to, and you can view any of them by searching for the network name.
  • You will need your Mac user account password to reveal a stored WiFi password, even if you are the one who set up the network.
  • If your Mac has never connected to the network, the password will not be in Keychain and you will need to check your router or contact the network owner.
  • System Preferences also shows connected networks, but only Keychain reveals the actual password.

Using System Preferences to confirm the network

If you want to double-check which network you are currently connected to before looking up its password, open System Preferences (or System Settings on newer Macs) and go to Network. Click WiFi on the left side. The name of your current network appears at the top, and you can see the signal strength and security type.

This view does not show the password itself — it only confirms which network you are on. From here, you would still need to open Keychain Access to see the actual password. System Preferences is useful mainly for verifying the network name before you search Keychain.

What to do if the password is not in Keychain

If you search Keychain and do not find your network, it means your Mac has never connected to that WiFi before. In that case, you will need to get the password from whoever set up the network — usually the router owner, your internet provider, or your network administrator.

Check the router itself. Most routers have a sticker on the bottom or back with the default network name and password printed on it. If the network has been customized, the password may have been changed and you will need to contact the person who manages it. For work or school networks, contact your IT department or help desk.

Resetting a forgotten password on your own router

If this is your own router and you have forgotten the password, you can reset it. Press and hold the reset button on the back of the router for 10 to 15 seconds — the router will restart and return to factory settings. Once it boots back up, the network name and password will be whatever the manufacturer set as default, usually printed on a sticker on the device.

Resetting the router will disconnect all devices currently on the network and erase any custom settings you made, such as a custom network name or security settings. Only do this if you are certain you own the router and have permission to reset it. After the reset, you can log into the router's admin panel and create a new password.

Viewing passwords for networks you have forgotten about

Keychain stores passwords for every network your Mac has ever connected to, even if you have not used that network in years. To browse all of them at once, open Keychain Access, click the "Passwords" category on the left, and scroll through the list. Look for any entry that contains "WiFi" or the network name you are searching for.

This can be useful if you are moving to a new place and want to know what networks your Mac has connected to in the past, or if you are troubleshooting a connection issue and need to see which networks are stored. You can delete old network passwords from here as well by selecting them and pressing Delete, though this will not affect your ability to reconnect to that network in the future.

Security considerations when sharing your password

Once you have found your password in Keychain, be cautious about who you share it with. Anyone with your WiFi password can connect to your network and potentially see other devices or data on it, depending on your router settings. Only share the password with people you trust and who have a legitimate reason to use your network.

If you suspect someone has your password and should not have it, change the password through your router's admin panel. Log into the router by typing its IP address (usually 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1) into a web browser, then look for the WiFi settings or security settings. Change the password to something new, and your Mac will prompt you to enter the new password the next time it tries to connect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need my Mac password to see my WiFi password?

Yes. Keychain requires your Mac user account password before it will reveal any stored password, including WiFi passwords. This is a security feature to prevent someone else from accessing your passwords if they gain physical access to your computer.

Can I see WiFi passwords on my Mac if I did not set up the network?

Only if your Mac has connected to that network before. If it has, the password is stored in Keychain and you can view it the same way. If your Mac has never connected to it, the password will not be in Keychain and you will need to ask the network owner.

What if I see multiple entries for the same network in Keychain?

This usually happens when a network password has been changed and your Mac stored both the old and new versions. The most recent one is typically the one your Mac is currently using. You can delete the old entries to clean up Keychain, but it will not affect your connection.

Will resetting my router delete my stored passwords on my Mac?

No. Resetting the router only affects the router itself and will erase its settings, but it will not touch the passwords stored in your Mac's Keychain. However, after you reset the router, you will need to update the password in Keychain to match the new one the router generates.