I Can’t Find my WiFi Login Username and Password – What Should I Do?

Of all the usernames and passwords you need to keep track of, your WiFi login credentials are unique. First, you don’t set your own username or password. Second, your username and password changes with each new router that you get. Lastly, you may not even know where to go to change your username or password.

This article will teach you how to find your WiFi username and password. We’ll also give you a few helpful tips and tricks along the way to make you the master of your WiFi network.

Things to Know

Before we dive in, there are some distinctions we need to make so that this article will make more sense. If you aren’t tech savvy or familiar with your router, WiFi network, etc. read this section first. Otherwise, feel free to skip ahead.

First, there is the SSID (username) and password you will use to connect a device to your WiFi network. Next, there is a username and password that you will need to make changes to your WiFi network. We’ll review both of those below.

There are a lot of ways to find this information. If you’re already connected to the WiFi network in question, you can find the username and password on the connected device. If you’re trying to connect, we’ll show you how to get the username and password in the next section.

What is My WiFi Username?

As mentioned above, the “username” you need depends on which tasks you’re trying to perform. The first, most common, username is actually your SSID (your router’s name). The second is the username you’ll need to access your router’s settings.

How to Find Your SSID & Password if You Aren’t Connected

If you’re trying to connect a device to your WiFi network, you’ll need your SSID (the name of your WiFi network). This is quite easy to find if you have your Router handy. Every router has a sticker on it. Usually located on the back or bottom, you can quickly find the name of your WiFi network here.

This sticker will often show you two SSIDs; one for the 2.4Ghz band and the other for the 5Ghz band. This is the name you’ll look for when you connect your device to the internet.

If you can’t see the name on the sticker, your best bet is to try to connect to the WiFi network with the strongest signal. This network is usually the one that appears at the top of the network list and has the most bars. If the connection is successful, you now have your SSID.

How to Find Your WiFi Username

Perhaps you need to tweak your WiFi settings, change the password, or check your network’s security. To do any of these things you’ll need your WiFi username.

Most network usernames are simply ‘Admin’ so try that first. Next, if you know which router you have (Netgear, Asus, etc.) you can do a quick Google search for ‘[Router manufacturer] username’ and it will surely pull up. Lastly, the username (along with the password) should be located on the router sticker (as shown above).

Note: To use this username you’ll need the router’s IP Address. Type the IP Address into the address bar of your favorite browser. Here, you can input your WiFi’s username. If you need more help with this, we have an article here.

How to Find Your WiFi Password

Now that you know your SSID and username, it’s time to find your passwords. There are two different passwords involved with your router. One is used to connect your devices when paired with your SSID. The other is used to make changes to your network.

How to Find Your Login Password

If you’re trying to log into your router’s settings and make changes you’ll need the username and password. As discussed above, the username is likely ‘Admin,’ this is also the case for most default login passwords. Try ‘Admin’ firstv and ‘Password’ second. Otherwise, Google the make and model of your device for the default login password.

How to Find Your Default Password to Connect Devices

If you aren’t connected to your WiFi network, you can find the default password on the back (or bottom) of your router. Using the same sticker to find your SSID, you will see the WiFi password too.

If this password doesn’t work, someone may have updated it. On most routers you can perform a reset to connect with the default SSID and password. Otherwise, you’ll need to go to your router’s settings using the username and password to reveal the password.

How to Find Your WiFi SSID & Password if You Are Connected on Windows

The fastest way to identify the WiFi SSID and password in Windows is to use a command prompt.

1. Right click an empty space on the Windows Task bar and select Task Manager.
2. Select File and Run new task.
3. Check the box next to ‘Create this task with administrator privileges’ and type ‘CMD’ into the window. Hit OK.
4. Type ‘netsh wlan show profile’. This will bring up a list of every WiFi network you have ever joined. This will show you the SSID.
5. Type ‘netsh wlan show profile “SSID” key=clear’. Where you see SSID, type the network name identified in Step 4. This will give you the password of that network.

Remember, this only works if you have already been a member of that network. It won’t work if you have never used it.

How to Find Your WiFI SSID if You Are Connected on Mac

Assuming your Mac is already connected to your WiFi network, follow these steps to get the username and password:

1. Open your Mac’s Spotlight (Space bar + Command). Type in Keychain Access.
   
2. Select ‘System’ on the left and ‘Passwords’ at the top. Double-click on the network you want to reveal.
   
3. Check the box to ‘Show Password’ and input your Mac’s login password.
   
4. The Password is now revealed at the bottom of the pop-up window.
   
   

Reset a Router to Default Username and Password to Connect

If you have never been a member of a particular WiFi network and need to join it, your options are limited. You really only have two options, find the little card that comes with your modem or router with the login details or reset the device. Sometimes the default login is on a sticker underneath the device. It depends on the device and your ISP.

There are third party tools that can scan and hack WiFi passwords but these need specialist knowledge. Plus, WPA2 passwords can be very tricky to hack.

If you need to reset a router or modem, here’s how. This will reset any network changes or configurations you made but will let you access the device and return your network username and password to defaults. Those defaults are usually ‘admin’ for the username and ‘password’ for the password.

1. Locate the reset button on the rear or side of the device. It is often helpfully labeled ‘Reset’ but not always.
2. Press and hold that button for a few seconds. Some routers will flash their lights to tell you it worked, some won’t.
3. Allow the router to reboot and reload the default config.
4. Log in using ‘admin’ and ‘password’
5. Reset the password as most usernames are hard coded.
6. Write down that password somewhere safe!

It is all too easy to lose usernames and passwords without writing them down. At least now you know how to recover them should you need to.

Know of any other ways to find a WiFi username and password without resetting the router? Tell us about them below if you do!