The fastest way to share a WiFi password depends on the two phones involved. Between Apple devices it is a tap on a prompt. Between an iPhone and an Android phone, or for a guest you will never see again, it is a QR code. This post gives the steps for each case, from Apple's own guides and from Android as it ships on recent Pixel phones, checked on 19 October 2026.
The short version
| Situation | What to do | |---|---| | iPhone or iPad → iPhone, iPad or Mac | Let them pick your network; tap Share Password on the prompt | | Mac → any Apple device | Wait for the Wi-Fi Password notification; click Share | | iPhone → Android (or anyone) | Passwords app → Wi-Fi → your network → show the QR code | | Android → anyone | Network settings → Share → QR code | | Guests, a café, a rental | Print a QR code made with a WiFi QR code generator | | You need to look it up | Passwords app (Apple) or the Share screen (Android) shows it |
iPhone or iPad to another Apple device
Apple's method sends the password between devices without showing it. It needs a little setup, which is why it sometimes "does not work":
- Both devices updated, with WiFi and Bluetooth on, and close together.
- Both signed in to an Apple Account, with each person's Apple Account email saved in the other's Contacts.
- Your device unlocked and already connected to the network.
- Personal Hotspot off on your device.
Then: the other person opens Settings → Wi-Fi and taps your network. A Share Password card appears on your screen. Tap Share Password, then Done. If nothing appears, Apple's advice is to restart both devices and try again; failing that, type the password in by hand.[1]
Mac as the sender
The Mac must be unlocked, on the network and signed in to an Apple Account. When the other device selects the network, a Wi-Fi Password notification appears on the Mac; click Share. To read the password yourself, open the Passwords app and click Wi-Fi in the sidebar.[2]
iPhone to Android, or to anyone: the QR code
The Share Password prompt only works between Apple devices. For an Android phone, a Windows laptop or a visitor, use the network's QR code:
- On the iPhone, open the Passwords app and tap Wi-Fi.
- Tap the network, then Show Network QR Code.
- The other person points their camera at the code and taps the join prompt.[2]
The same screen shows the password in text if the other device cannot scan.
Android
On recent Android versions the network settings include a Share button that produces a QR code:
- Open Settings → Network & internet → Internet.
- Tap the gear next to the network you are on.
- Tap Share and confirm with your fingerprint or face.
- A QR code appears, with the network name and password printed under it. The other phone scans it; an iPhone's camera works too.
On some phones a Share Wi-Fi button also sits in the Internet tile of Quick Settings, and Nearby Share can send the key to another Android phone without displaying it. Menu names move between makers and versions, so if a step does not match, look for the gear and the Share button on the network's own screen.[3][4]
Guests, cafés, rentals: print a code
If people you do not know need the WiFi, a printed QR code beats a password on a chalkboard. A WiFi QR code encodes the network name, security type and password in a format phones recognise; scanning it offers to join the network with one tap, no typing.
Make one with the free WiFi QR code generator: enter the network name and password, pick the security type (WPA for almost every home and office network), download the PNG or SVG, and print it. Test it with one iPhone and one Android phone before you put it on the wall, since a semicolon or backslash in a password has to be escaped and will otherwise fail silently on some phones.
Two cautions. The code contains the password in plain text, so anyone who can scan it can also read it; put it where guests are, not where passers-by are. And give guests a guest network, not your main one, so a leaked code costs you nothing more than a new guest password.
Sending the password instead
Sometimes the other person is not in the room. Texting a WiFi password leaves it in two chat histories. If that bothers you, paste it into the free one-time secret link generator: the recipient opens the link once, reads the password, and the stored copy is destroyed.
References
[1] Apple Support. How to share your Wi-Fi password from your iPhone or iPad. https://support.apple.com/102635. Checked 19 October 2026.
[2] Apple Support. Find and share your Wi-Fi password on Mac (Passwords User Guide). https://support.apple.com/guide/passwords/mchl9f8f63cd/mac. Checked 19 October 2026.
[3] 9to5Google. How to share a Wi-Fi password on Android. https://9to5google.com/2024/03/18/share-wifi-password-android/. Checked 19 October 2026.
[4] Android Police. How to share a Wi-Fi network on Android. https://www.androidpolice.com/how-to-share-a-wi-fi-network-on-android/. Checked 19 October 2026.