Wi-Fi settings on Mac

On your Mac, use Wi-Fi settings to set up and manage your Wi-Fi connection.

Change the order of the network services your Mac uses

Browse through the options below for details about customising your settings.

To open these settings, choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Wi-Fi in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.)

Open Wi-Fi settings for me

Option				Description
Wi-Fi				Turn Wi-Fi on or off.
[Wi-Fi network name]				The name of the connected network and the connection status indicator.
Details				View the IP and router addresses and change settings for the network. See Details button settings, below.
Personal Hotspots				Available Personal Hotspots. Connect to a Personal Hotspot: Move the pointer over the Personal Hotspot you want to join, then click Connect.
Known Networks				Available known networks. Known networks are Wi-Fi networks you’ve connected to previously. Connect to a known network: Move the pointer over the known network you want to join, then click Connect. Quickly toggle the automatic join setting for a known Wi-Fi network: Click , then choose Auto-Join. Copy the password of a known Wi-Fi network: Click , then choose Copy Password. Change the settings for a known Wi-Fi network: Click , then choose Network Settings. Remove a known Wi-Fi network from the list: Click , then choose Forget This Network.
Other Networks				Available nearby networks. These are networks you haven’t connected to previously. Connect to a network in the list: Move the pointer over the network you want to join, click Connect, then enter the password for the network. Connect to a network that isn’t in the list: Click Other at the bottom of the list, then enter the network name, type of security and password for the network.
Ask to join networks				Receive a notification when networks you haven’t joined previously are available.
Ask to join hotspots				Automatically join an available Personal Hotspot when no known Wi-Fi networks are found.
Advanced				Set or view additional Wi-Fi information such as the list of known Wi-Fi networks, requirements for administrator authorisation and the Wi-Fi MAC address. See Advanced button settings, below.

Details button settings

Click Details to change or view the settings below.

Option				Description
Automatically join this network				Automatically connect to the specified network when it’s available.
Private Wi-Fi address				Use a private Wi-Fi address to help reduce tracking of your Mac by Wi-Fi network operators. Choose one of these options: Off: Private Wi-Fi address is turned off. This Mac can be identified and tracked on this network and across other networks. Fixed: A fixed private address allows this network to track this Mac, but helps reduce tracking across other networks. Rotating: A rotating private address reduces tracking on this network and across other networks. See Use a private Wi-Fi address.
Wi-Fi address				The current Wi-Fi address.
Low data mode				Reduce your data usage over the Wi-Fi network.
Wi-Fi 6E mode				Choose a Wi-Fi 6E mode for the network. Automatic: Use the network’s 2.4GHz, 5GHz and 6GHz wireless bands. This is the default setting. Off: Don’t use the network’s 6GHz band. This setting is available only when you’re using a computer that supports Wi-Fi 6E and the Wi-Fi 6E network uses the same network name for all bands. See the Apple Support article Use Wi-Fi 6E networks with Apple devices.
Limit IP address tracking				Hide your IP address from known trackers in Mail and Safari. If you subscribe to iCloud+ and have Private Relay turned on in iCloud settings, it’s turned off when you deselect this option. See Use iCloud Private Relay.
IP address				The IP address for the Wi-Fi connection.
Router				The router address for the Wi-Fi connection.
Forget This Network				Remove the network.
TCP/IP				Configure IPv4 and IPv6 or renew the DHCP lease. See Change TCP/IP settings.
DNS				Configure DNS servers and search domains. See Change DNS settings.
WINS				Configure Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) settings. See Change WINS settings.
802.1X				Connect to a network protected by 802.1X, view 802.1X profile settings and enable automatic connection. See Change 802.1X settings.
Proxies				Configure internet proxies. See Change proxy settings.
Hardware				Configure hardware settings and view the hardware MAC address. See Change Hardware settings.

Advanced button settings

Click Advanced to change or view the settings below.

Option				Description
Change networks				Require an administrator password to switch to a different Wi-Fi network.
Turn Wi-Fi on or off				Require an administrator password to turn Wi-Fi on or off.
Show legacy networks and options				Display legacy networks.
Wi-Fi MAC address				The media access control (MAC) address for the computer’s Wi-Fi interface.
Known Networks				List of Wi-Fi networks you’ve set up. Remove a network from the list: Click next to the network you want to remove, then choose Remove From List. Set the auto-join option for a network: Click next to the network you want to set to auto-join, then choose Auto-Join. Copy the password for a network: Click next to the network, then choose Copy Password. This option may not be available for some networks.

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Details button settings

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