How to Find Your Saved Wi-Fi Password in Windows 11

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Ankit Kumar
Windows 11Wi-FiNetworkPasswordSecurity

The Problem

A PC that is already connected to Wi-Fi has the password stored. You do not need to reset the router or hunt for the sticker on the back — Windows will show it to you, and there are three ways to get at it depending on whether you are still connected to that network.

This only works for networks this PC has connected to, and only from an administrator account. That limitation is deliberate: it is a convenience feature, not a way into someone else's network.

Cannot connect at all? Different problem — see fix "can't connect to this network". Locked out of the PC itself? See reset a forgotten Windows password.

Symptoms

Use this guide when:

  • You need to connect a phone, tablet, or guest device and cannot remember the key.
  • The router sticker was replaced with a custom password long ago.
  • You are setting up a new PC and want the password from the old one.

Step 1: Read It from Settings (Currently Connected Network)

Windows 11 shows the key for the active network directly.

  1. Open Settings → Network & internet → Wi-Fi.
  2. Click the name of the network you are connected to.
  3. Scroll to View Wi-Fi security key and click View.
  4. The password appears in plain text. Confirm the UAC prompt if one appears.

If you do not see that option, your build or account may not expose it — use Step 2 instead, which always works.

Step 2: Use Terminal for Any Saved Network

This works for every network the PC has ever joined, including ones you are not connected to now.

  1. Right-click Start → Terminal (Admin).
  2. List every saved network: 
    netsh wlan show profiles
  3. Find the network name in the User profiles list, then run: 
    netsh wlan show profile name="YourNetworkName" key=clear
    Keep the quotation marks if the name contains spaces.
  4. Read the Key Content line under Security settings — that is the password.

To dump every saved password at once:

netsh wlan show profiles | Select-String "All User Profile" | ForEach-Object { $n = ($_ -split ":")[1].Trim(); netsh wlan show profile name="$n" key=clear | Select-String "SSID name","Key Content" }

Run that in PowerShell (the default in Terminal), not Command Prompt.

Step 3: Read It from the Router's Admin Page

Use this when no PC has the network saved, or you want to change the password rather than read it.

  1. Open Terminal and run: 
    ipconfig
    Note the Default Gateway — typically 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1.
  2. Open that address in a browser and sign in. The admin credentials are usually on a sticker on the router, and are not the Wi-Fi password.
  3. Go to Wireless or Wi-Fi settings and look for Password, Pre-Shared Key, or Security key. Many routers hide it behind a Show toggle.
  4. Note that 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands may have separate entries.
  5. If you cannot sign in to the router, a factory reset (the recessed button, held ~10 seconds) restores the sticker credentials — but wipes all other settings including your internet configuration.

Step 4: Share the Network Without Revealing the Password

Often the goal is just to get a phone online.

  1. Most routers support a guest network with its own separate password — set one up so visitors never get the main key.
  2. Many router apps and admin pages generate a QR code for the network; phones join by scanning it.
  3. Both approaches keep the main password private, which matters because anyone with it can reach every device on your network.
  4. Related: share files between Windows PCs on the same network.

Step 5: Check Whether the Password Is Strong Enough

While you have it in front of you, judge it honestly.

  1. It should be at least 12-16 characters and not a phone number, address, or family name.
  2. Security must be WPA3, or WPA2-AES at minimum. WEP and TKIP are broken — change them today.
  3. In Terminal, check what the network actually uses: 
    netsh wlan show interfaces
    and read the Authentication and Cipher lines.
  4. Full hardening walkthrough: secure your home Wi-Fi router and create strong, memorable passwords.

Step 6: Store It Somewhere You Will Find It Next Time

  1. Save it in a password manager rather than a note on the fridge: how to use a password manager safely.
  2. Store the router admin password there as well — it is the more sensitive of the two.
  3. Do not email or message the password to yourself in plain text; those messages outlive the network.

Step 7: Remove Saved Networks You No Longer Use

Every saved profile is a stored credential, and your PC will happily re-join a network with that name.

  1. Settings → Network & internet → Wi-Fi → Manage known networks.
  2. Click Forget on cafés, hotels, and old addresses.
  3. Or from Terminal (Admin): 
    netsh wlan delete profile name="OldNetworkName"
  4. This matters most for public networks — an attacker can impersonate a remembered name: stay safe on public Wi-Fi.

What Not to Do

  • Don't install a "Wi-Fi password finder" utility. Windows already does this; those downloads are a common malware route — see avoid malware in fake downloads.
  • Don't factory-reset the router just to see the password unless you have the internet settings to put back.
  • Don't reuse the Wi-Fi password anywhere else. It gets shared with guests and eventually leaks.

Still Not Working?

If netsh wlan show profiles lists nothing, the PC has no saved wireless networks — check the Wi-Fi adapter is present and enabled in Device Manager → Network adapters. If Key Content is missing from the output, the network uses enterprise authentication (common on work and university networks), where there is no shared key to recover; contact the network administrator.

Related: fix slow Wi-Fi speeds and how to change DNS servers in Windows 11.

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