How to Retrieve a Wi-Fi Password Using Windows Command Prompt

June Veva Jr.

Sun, 15 Jun 2025

How to Retrieve a Wi-Fi Password Using Windows Command Prompt

Author: Antonio June Veva Jr.

Date: September 24, 2023

Time: 2:51 PM

Have you ever forgotten the Wi-Fi password for your network, and it's not saved on any of your devices? Don't worry; you can retrieve it using the Windows Command Prompt. In this blog post, we will walk you through the steps to recover your Wi-Fi password on a Windows computer.

Using Command Prompt to Retrieve Wi-Fi Password

Follow these steps to retrieve your Wi-Fi password:

1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator. You can do this by searching for "cmd" in the Windows Start menu, right-clicking on "Command Prompt," and selecting "Run as administrator."
2. In the Command Prompt window, type the following command:

netsh wlan show profile

3. You'll see a list of all the Wi-Fi networks your computer has connected to. Find the network for which you want to retrieve the password and note down its name (SSID).
4. To reveal the password, use the following command (replace "YourNetworkName" with the actual SSID of your Wi-Fi network):

netsh wlan show profile name="YourNetworkName" key=clear

5. Look for the "Key content" entry under "Security settings." The value next to it is your Wi-Fi password.

That's it! You've successfully retrieved your Wi-Fi password using the Windows Command Prompt. Make sure to store it securely.

Important Considerations

Here are a few important points to keep in mind:

• This method only works if your computer was previously connected to the Wi-Fi network in question.
• Make sure to run Command Prompt as an administrator to access the required information.
• Always handle Wi-Fi passwords with care and ensure they are not shared with unauthorized individuals.

Conclusion

Retrieving a forgotten Wi-Fi password using Windows Command Prompt is a handy skill to have. It can save you the trouble of resetting your router or searching for the password in old documents. Just remember to use this knowledge responsibly and only on networks for which you have permission to access.