How to Quickly Find out Saved Wi-Fi Password on Mac

December 19, 2019Nicole Jones

It might be very likely to forget the Wi-Fi password after you set it up on Mac, and sometimes, it is difficult to reacquire it when the router is not easy to access, or you have changed the Wi-Fi password.

What to do if you want to share the Wi-Fi password from Mac to your iPhone, iPad or other devices?

The answer is in your Mac.

Once you have previously accessed the wireless network on a Mac, you could easily find the Wi-Fi password on Mac via Keychain Access and Terminal.

That's what we shall talk today, 3 ways to find out the saved Wi-Fi password from Mac, including the deleted password.

Find WIFI Password Mac

Part 1. How to Find Saved Wi-Fi Password on Mac via Keychain Access

Keychain Access is the built-in app on Mac, which stores all your saved password, including the Wi-Fi network password. Keychain Access keeps Wi-Fi password alongside other sensitive data, and you need your admin password to see the Wi-Fi password.

Step 1 Open Keychain Access

Launch Keychain Access through Spotlight Search. Or find it by going to "Applications" > "Utilities" > "Keychain Access".

Open Keychain Access

Step 2 Find Wi-Fi name

Go to "System" under "Keychains" > "Passwords" under "Category" from the left side bar, and then locate the Wi-Fi name you are looking for.

Find WIFI Name

Step 3 View Wi-Fi password on Mac

Double-click the Wi-Fi name to open it, where you can see its basic information. Select the checkbox of "Show password:" and you will be prompted for authentication, where you need to fill in your Administrator Username and Password.

Authentication Mac

Then the Wi-Fi password will be shown in the box beside the "Show Password" button. You can check it or send the Wi-Fi password to your iPhone or iPad directly by pasting it.

Show Wifi Password Mac

Part 2. How to See Saved Wi-Fi Password on Mac by Terminal

Another way to discover the Wi-Fi password on Mac is using Terminal.

Terminal is a built-in app that allows you to control your Mac using command prompts. Those who prefers a direct solution and knows the exact name of the Wi-Fi network may love this solution.

Step 1 Open Terminal

Launch Terminal via Spotlight Search. Or open it by going to "Applications" > "Utilities" > "Terminal".

Open Terminal Mac

Step 2 Type command for getting Wi-Fi password

Type the following command:

security find-generic-password -ga WIFI NAME | grep "password:"

Do not forget to replace WIFI NAME with the exact name of the Wi-Fi network, and you will be prompted to input your Administrator Username and Password.

Enter WIFI Password Checker Command

Step 3 See Wi-Fi password

After you have authenticated, your password will be viewed below the command you have previously entered.

You can get the Wi-Fi password to share it with others from Mac.

Find WIFI Password Terminal

Part 3. How to Recover Deleted Password on Mac

If you have stored the Wi-Fi password in a text document, and accidentally delete the document without backup, you should recover it with Aiseesoft Data Recovery, an easy-to-use data recovery software for Mac and Windows.

Whether your Wi-Fi password is stored in a document that is in your flash drive, external hard drive, it can scan and recover it easily.

Step 1 Run Data Recovery on Mac

Free download this software on your Mac, install and run it immediately.

Free DownloadFor macOS

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In the main interface, should select "Start" under Mac Data Recovery.

Mac Data Recovery Interface

Step 2 Scan data on Mac

Here, there are various data types and hard disk you should select.

For retrieving the deleted Wi-Fi password in a document file, here you should select the checkbox of "Document".

Then select the hard disk where you keep the document.

If you keep the Wi-Fi note in a flash drive, just insert it into Mac and select it.

Then click "Scan" to start a quick scan on your Mac.

Scan Mac Document

Step 3 Retrieve the deleted Wi-Fi document

When the scan process is done, you could click the "Document" folder to open it and the filename marked as the red color are those deleted items.

After checking it, just click "Recover" to get back the deleted documents on Mac.

Note: If you still cannot find the deleted document on Mac via the quick scan, then you should click the "Deep Scan" button on the upper-right corner to perform a deep scan taking long time.

Recover Deleted Document Mac

Part 4. How to Manage Your Wi-Fi Password Safely

Wi-Fi enables you to get rid of the cable and use the Internet work easily. However, once more devices are connected the same Wi-Fi network, you may find the Wi-Fi speed is very slow, and it will become worse once the Wi-Fi signal is poor.

Apart from the resetting the router, you should also monitor your Wi-Fi connection to cut off the Wi-Fi thieves.

Aiseesoft Mac Cleaner is the all-in-one Wi-Fi Mac data cleaner and monitor. It can test Wi-Fi status to stop others from stealing your Wi-Fi in real-time.

Aiseesoft Mac Cleaner

Downloads

Aiseesoft Mac Cleaner

  • Test Wi-Fi upload/download speed, connecting devices, signal, IP address, etc.
  • Clean junk files from system, Emails, iPhoto, Trash, large and old files.
  • Uninstall apps, write to NTFS, hide/encrypt files, compress/extract files from 7Z and RAR, etc.
  • Monitor your Mac system like CPU, memory and disk.
Free DownloadFor macOS

Secure100% Secure. No Ads.

Test Wi-Fi upload/download speed, connecting devices, signal, IP address, etc.

Clean junk files from system, Emails, iPhoto, Trash, large and old files.

Uninstall apps, write to NTFS, hide/encrypt files, compress/extract files from 7Z and RAR, etc.

Monitor your Mac system like CPU, memory and disk.

Step 1 Free download this software into your computer, and install and run it immediately on Mac. In the main interface, you should select "ToolKit".

Mac Cleaner Toolkit

Step 2 In the pop-up window of ToolKit, you should select "WiFi".

Select Wifi

Step 3 Click "Analyzer" to detect the Wi-Fi you are connecting.

Wifi Analyzer

Step 4 Click "Test" and this software will automatically text the Wi-Fi status currently.

Test Wifi

After the test is complete, you can see the network delay, signal, connecting devices, etc.

Wifi Test Result

If you found your Wi-Fi are connected by more devices that you are not familiar with, then you should consider if your Wi-Fi password is too simple and hacked by some Wi-Fi password breakers.

After that, you should try to filter the address on Mac or change the Wi-Fi password to prevent the Wi-Fi squatters' hack.

Conclusion

Wi-Fi password is what we are using every day, but never remember. If you want to send the Wi-Fi password from Mac to iPhone or other devices, you should find the Wi-Fi password on Mac. Terminal and Keychain Access are the 2 ways to help you see the Wi-Fi password on Mac directly. For the lost Wi-Fi password stored in a document, you should get the data recovery tool to recover it. Surely, for guaranteeing a good Wi-Fi connection, you should check and monitor your Wi-Fi status and change a complicated password frequently to stop Wi-Fi password hacking.

Do not hesitate to share this post with your friends, if it does help.

Let me know by leaving your comments if you have any questions.

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How to Check Wi-Fi Connection on Mac in Real-Time