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

We have all been in this situation: a friend comes over and asks for your Wi-Fi password, or you buy a new phone and need to connect it to your home network. You look at the back of your router, but you changed the default password years ago and cannot remember what it is.

If you have a Windows 11 computer that is already connected to your network, you are in luck. Windows securely saves the security keys of every network you join. In this guide, we will show you exactly how to find your saved Wi-Fi password on Windows 11, whether you are currently connected to the network or simply want to retrieve a password from a network you joined months ago.

Method 1: Find the Password for Your Currently Connected Network

If your Windows 11 PC is currently connected to the Wi-Fi network in question, retrieving the password takes just a few clicks through the modern settings menu.

1. Click the Start button and select the Settings gear icon (or press Windows Key + I).
2. In the left-hand sidebar, click on Network & internet.
3. On the right side of the screen, click on Wi-Fi.
4. Scroll down and click on Manage known networks.
5. You will see a list of networks your PC remembers. Click on the Wi-Fi network you are currently connected to.
6. Scroll down to the bottom of the network’s properties page until you see the View Wi-Fi security key section.
7. Click the View button.
8. A Windows Security prompt will appear asking for your administrator PIN or password. Enter it to confirm your identity.
9. A small pop-up box will appear displaying your Wi-Fi password in plain text. You can now share this with your guest or type it into your new device.

Method 2: Find the Password for Any Previously Saved Network

The GUI method above is excellent for your current network, but what if you want to find the password for a cafe or office network you connected to last week? To view the password of a network you are not currently connected to, you must use the Command Prompt.

Step 1: List All Saved Networks

1. Click the Start button, type cmd in the search bar, and press Enter to open the Command Prompt. (You do not need administrator privileges for this step).
2. Type the following command exactly as written and press Enter:
   netsh wlan show profile
3. The Command Prompt will display a list of every Wi-Fi network your computer has ever connected to under the “User profiles” section. Note the exact name of the network you want the password for.

Step 2: Reveal the Password

1. Type the following command, replacing NETWORK_NAME with the exact name you noted in the previous step, and press Enter:
   netsh wlan show profile name="NETWORK_NAME" key=clear
   Example: netsh wlan show profile name="Home_Network_5G" key=clear
2. A large list of details about the network will appear.
3. Look under the Security settings header.
4. Find the line labelled Key Content. The text next to it is your saved Wi-Fi password.

Conclusion

Forgetting your Wi-Fi password is a common annoyance, but Windows 11 makes it incredibly easy to retrieve. By using the Network & internet settings for your current connection, or the Command Prompt for historical connections, you can quickly find your saved Wi-Fi password without having to resort to resetting your router to factory defaults.

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